The American Revolution Comes to the South

At Ninety Six, the first southern land battle of the Revolutionary War took place in 1775. All of the men fighting here were Americans, divided between Loyalists who supported British rule and Patriots who wanted independence from the Crown. Because Ninety Six stood at the junction of several major routes between the interior backcountry and the coast, it was a strategic post during the American Revolution. The fighting began after Loyalists seized a shipment of gunpowder intended as a gift of friendship from the Provincial Congress to the Cherokee Indians. In response, Patriot Major Andrew Williamson mustered 500 troops at Ninety Six and prepared to meet the enemy. His men built a makeshift square fort in the field from fence rails, baled hay, and beef hides, enclosing a barn and outbuildings. On November 19, 1775, Loyalist commanders Captain Patrick Cunningham and Major Joseph Robinson arrived with 2,000 men. Though greatly outnumbered, the Patriots in the fort refused to surrender. Several days of fighting followed, leaving several wounded on both sides and one Patriot dead. James Birmingham was the first Patriot killed in the South in the American Revolution. A Loyalist officer, Captain Luper, also died. Days later, a truce was arranged.

Ninety Six, South Carolina · United States