Kings Mountain: Battlefield Museum & Hike

According to whoever decides such things, the Battle of Kings Mountain, October 7, 1780, was a turning point in the Revolution. It was a decisive battle, where the Tories (loyalists - there were no British soliders here) were defeated by an irregular assemblage of local soldiers, supplemented by "over mountain men" who were angered by British threats on their homes and livelihoods.



Izzy and I went with a group to Kings Mountain on Saturday. I think we did things in a good order to cement them in our memory:

1. Visit the museum and look at clothes, armaments, books, other artifacts.






2. Hike around the battlefield and see the geographic conditions the soldiers faced, and read a few signs.




3. Chill back down in the AC watching a History Channel presentation, with the omnipresent Peter Coyote narrating, and have the artifacts, battle and history presented in one tidy package. In the AC.

Fun & educational. Bonus!
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Uniforms


Red Coat -- they stayed in Charlotte, miffed at the Scottish Major, who ended up losing this battle.


Mountain Man / Patriot (paper in hat indicates he is not on side of British)

Armaments


Breech-Loading Rifle - patented by the doomed Major. It was safer: you didn't have to stand like you did w/muzzle loaders.





Hike sights & signage











British (actually Scottish) major who died during this battle


"Evil be to him who thinks evil of it"



More Monuments


Americans


Erected by the DAR



Really awful name for a soldier

Cool spiderweb