On the morning of October 1, 1780, a patriot militia of about 1,500 men crossed Greenlee Ford heading south in pursuit of an enemy force led by Major Patrick Ferguson of the British Army. The men had come from as far away as present-day eastern Tennessee, then part of North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and Surry and Wilkes counties in North Carolina. Many were on horseback and had already been on campaign for over a week. They continued the pursuit for nearly another week before catching up with Ferguson at Kings Mountain, South Carolina, where they won a decisive victory in the American Revolutionary War.