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Release of new book coincides with the 224th anniversary of the Battle of Cowpens
Ledger Staff Writer
As Cherokee County and the nation prepare to celebrate the 224th anniversary of the Battle of Cowpens, local historians Bobby Moss and Michael Coggins have released a new book focusing on a little known point of the American Revolution - blacks in the Southern Campaign. “I’ve written quite a few books about the Revolution and the Southern Campaign in particular,” Moss said. “But this book is the first to focus on the role that blacks played in the war. The book was written and produced at the request of an individual in the National Park Service.” Moss, who has struggled with declining vision over the years, is almost blind now and was assisted in the research by Coggins. “We found some very startling things in our research,” Moss continued. “Our original goal was to focus on the blacks that stayed loyal to the king of England during the war, the loyalists, but we found that there was an incredible number of African-Americans involved on both sides, but for the Americans the official estimate for the war was some 200,000 blacks. There was so much more information than what we expected that this is actually the first of two books we’re publishing.” Moss and Scoggins worked on the book for three years and on Saturday they will unveil the project to the public as part of the 224th anniversary celebration at Cowpens Battlefield. In a fitting historic coincidence, the painting on the cover of the book depicts a young black boy named Colin shooting a British dragoon to save the life of George Washington’s nephew, Lt. William Washington. The dragoons are those under the command of famous Cowpens British commander Banastre Tarleton. “The boy Colin, whom we think was named Colin Washington, was famous for the rest of his life because of that one shot,” Moss added. “He fired just as the British dragoon was about to saber Washington, and like so many others is a bit of an unsung hero who saved lives in the Revolution.” Records and files unearthed for the book were found in South Carolina’s capital as well as in Great Britain and Germany. “The blacks in the Revolution didn’t all wear uniforms, although our book does feature the first African-American to wear a United States Marines uniform,” Moss said. “But it shows that a lot of them helped out behind the scenes, they were called pioneers in those days but today’s military calls them Construction Battalions. They build forts and fortifications but also served as blacksmiths, cooks, seamstresses and some did the very important work of hunting for wild bees.” While honey was a delicacy in the era, the wild bees weren’t gathered for eating purposes. “Honey is a very efficient medicine,” Moss explained. “In those days, it was the best antiseptic they had for wounds from musket balls and sabers. No bacteria can live in honey, so as part of the treatment regimen they treated the dressings for the wounds in honey to prevent infection. They saved so many lives that way.” “African-Americans in the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution” is published by Scotia-Hibernia Press and copies may be obtained from the publisher or purchased at the Cherokee County Library. WHAT: The 224th Anniversary of the Battle of Cowpens WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 15, and Sunday, Jan. 16, beginning at 9 a.m. WHERE : Cowpens National Battlefield is located on SC Highway 11, approximately 6 miles east of Gaffney. DON’T MISS: Highlights of the event include daily battlefield tours, weapons demonstrations every half hour beginning at 10:30 a.m. each day, book signings for “Nothing But Blood and Slaughter: Vols. 1 and 2” and “African-Americans in the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution,” ceremonies at the U.S. Monument and the Washington Light Infantry Monument and lantern-lit battlefield tours at 6:15 p.m. Saturday.
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