118:
391:, but having just a small army of 97 men at that point, found they could not surround the large, spread-out settlement, and opted for a direct raid instead. Charging into town, they found it almost entirely empty. They looted what food they could find, and torched the town. The chase of the main body of the fleeing Cherokee, however, then continued at a brisk pace, which at one point forced the fleeing natives to set fire to the forest to impede the progress of the pursuing cavalry. This conflict became known as the "
376:"After the Moon arose we sent out a Detachment of 13 men Commanded by Capt Hardn & Lieut Woods. They Continued their pursuit about 8 miles and Could Make no Discovery, Untill Daylight appear’d, then they Discovered upon the frost, that One Indian had gone Along the Road; they pursued Very Briskly about five miles further and came up with sd Indian, Killed and Scalped him." [
728:
328:, to join up with the combined infantry and cavalry force from North Carolina (under General Rutherford). This united, southern army invaded the middle and lower Cherokee towns, and burned over 30 settlements, including the major towns of
693:
403:
The expeditionary force destroyed an additional five
Cherokee towns before being forced to retreat due to a lack of supplies. The majority of the Cherokee towns made peace shortly thereafter under the
281:
to annex the area. Shortly thereafter, the
Cherokee initiated a plan to drive the settlers out of the area as a prelude to a planned invasion of Virginia. The first prong of the attack, led by
230:
and resulted in the destruction of six
Cherokee towns, ran from October 17 until November 16, 1776. The adventure only concluded when the troop was forced to turn back due to a lack of
648:
507:"Petition of the Inhabitants of Washington District, Including the River Wataugh, Nonachuckie, and Co."; 1776; received August 22, 1776; North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, NC
703:
494:
336:. The southern and northern forces, however, were unable to link up, due to a lack of supplies, and each group had returned home by mid to late September, 1776.
593:; September 1, 1776; "Colonial and State Records of North Carolina;" University Library, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; accessed January 2016
708:
698:
259:
351:
Rutherford's cavalry commander, Moore, re-activated his cavalry troop on
October 19, 1776. On the 29th, he met up (near Cathey's fort) with Captain
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Shortly after the outbreak of the
Revolutionary War (April 1775), the members of the Watauga Association organized themselves into the extra-legal "
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293:. The second prong, led by Abraham of Chilhowee, was routed at Fort Watauga. However, the third prong of the attack, led by
611:
Report from the
Rutherford Expedition – Letter from Captain William Moore to General Griffith Rutherford, November 16, 1776
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the district. After
Virginia's refusal, a similar petition was drafted (July 5, 1776) asking the
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in North
Carolina. The next day the combined forces crossed into an area situated between the
566:"The American Revolution in North Carolina - Cherokee Expedition 1776 - Rutherford's Campaign"
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to oversee it. In the Spring of 1776, the
Washington District Committee of Safety drafted a
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364:
649:"Rutherford's Expedition against the Indians, 1776 • North Carolina Booklet 4:8 (1904)"
614:; Chapter 4: The Rutherford Expedition; Learn NC Digital Archive; accessed January 2016
343:" (down from an initial 2500), and about 80 "light horse" cavalry under Captain Moore.
286:
211:
153:
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117:
231:
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The Bloody Ground: The
Chickamauga Wars and Trans–Appalachian Expansion, 1776-1794
297:, was successful in emptying the Carter Valley of settlers, at least temporarily.
339:
At the end of the late summer engagements, Rutherford's force consisted of 1971 "
498:; Bloomington, Ind; Indiana University Press; 2001; pp. 66-71; accessed May 2016
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In response to these attacks, several thousand Virginia militia (under General
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77:
64:
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309:
729:
Battles in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War 1775–1779
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was a punitive military excursion launched against the Lower, Middle, and
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refused to sign another treaty, and fled south with their followers, the
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Punitive military excursion launched against several Cherokee settlements
258:", a region... "loyal to the united colonies..." They promptly formed a
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was drawn in conjunction with a strategy which called for two thousand
422:, in order to continue the armed struggle in what became known as the
355:, who had been active since August in raising a cavalry troop from
470:"The American Revolution in North Carolina, Captain William Moore"
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371:, where they discovered fresh evidence of recent Indian activity.
680:; Kane, Sean Patrick; retrieved July 2021; PDF format/download.
378:
218:
attacks made against the European American settlements of the
694:
Battles of the American Revolutionary War in North Carolina
242:, acting directly under the command of Brigadier General
625:"Cherokee wars and treaties | United States history"
538:; Discover Kingsport online; retrieved February 2023
426:, a decades long struggle which lasted until 1794.
387:The cavalry quickly headed to the Cherokee town of
495:Tennessee Frontiers: Three Regions in Transition
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590:Letter from Griffith Rutherford to Samuel Ashe
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226:. The expedition, which took place on the
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704:North Carolina in the American Revolution
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222:in July 1776, in an early action of the
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324:), as well as a small contingent from
175:Salisbury District Light Horse Cavalry
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709:Battles involving the United States
699:Virginia in the American Revolution
521:History of Blount County, Tennessee
289:, was defeated by colonials at the
555:; Carolana.com; retrieved May 2016
214:. This was in retaliation for the
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196:Rutherford Light Horse expedition
42:October 17 thru November 16, 1776
22:Rutherford Light Horse expedition
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719:Lincoln County, North Carolina
1:
447:"Revolution; Learn NC online"
308:, in what is today northeast
420:creek which bears their name
408:(1777). Dragging Canoe and
224:American War of Independence
361:Salisbury Military District
306:attacked the Overhill towns
745:
291:Battle of Heaton's Station
29:American Revolutionary War
406:Treaty of Dewitt's Corner
320:militiamen (led by Major
240:2nd Rowan County Regiment
234:. It was led by Captain
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172:2nd Rowan County Regiment
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100:Treaty of Dewitt's Corner
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382:] —Capt. Wm Moore
629:Encyclopedia Britannica
724:1776 in North Carolina
535:Battle of Island Flats
424:Cherokee–American wars
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135:Commanders and leaders
653:penelope.uchicago.edu
552:Cherokee Expeditions
415:Chickamauga Cherokee
347:The Light Horse raid
161:Abraham of Chilhowee
393:Battle of Cowee Gap
369:French Broad Rivers
359:, then part of the
260:Committee of Safety
256:Washington District
244:Griffith Rutherford
220:Watauga Association
202:settlements of the
141:Griffith Rutherford
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57:Washington District
55:settlements of the
51:Lower, Middle, and
268:Colony of Virginia
714:Conflicts in 1776
322:Andrew Williamson
302:William Christian
228:American frontier
200:Overhill Cherokee
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276:North Carolina
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110:Belligerents
285:war chief,
266:asking the
208:Appalachian
81: /
688:Categories
658:2018-10-31
634:2018-10-31
575:2018-10-31
430:References
250:Background
210:region of
185:97 cavalry
475:March 22,
418:, to the
389:Too Cowee
365:Swannanoa
310:Tennessee
295:The Raven
523:, 11–12.
410:Ostenaco
330:Tuskegee
283:Cherokee
279:Assembly
264:petition
232:supplies
204:Cherokee
180:Strength
158:Ostenaco
129:Cherokee
47:Location
27:Part of
519:Burns,
399:Results
326:Georgia
238:of the
188:unknown
125:militia
123:Patriot
69:82°09′W
66:36°12′N
452:May 1,
334:Citico
312:. The
94:Result
272:annex
477:2019
454:2016
367:and
332:and
194:The
39:Date
395:."
379:sic
270:to
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
