I haven’t been blogging lately, but I have been writing. Still editing (trying to get that word count down that I worked so hard to build) and also working on a couple of short stories. Took a day to enjoy the spring sunshine during my son’s spring break and went to Kings Mountain. Besides being a nice place to take a not-too-strenuous hike (except for that little part when you’re going straight up the mountain but still piece of cake compared to its neighbor, Crowders Mountain), an important piece of American history took place there in 1780.

To sum: the Brits stirred up a hornets nest by threatening the Scots-Irish mountain men. The Patriots had lost several major battles, and Major Patrick Ferguson was sent to raise men for the loyalist cause in the Carolinas.  Sending a message to the leader of the “backwater men”, Ferguson riled the mountain men with his words that “he would march his army over the mountains, hang their leaders, and lay their country to waste with fire and sword,” if they did not desist from their opposition to British arms. With 900 of their best riflemen, the Patriots met Ferguson and his men on this mountain, and using their superior guerrilla tactics, defeated Ferguson and his men in little over an hour on October 7, 1780. This battle turned the tide of war in the Patriots’ favor which would eventually lead to their overall victory.

Memorial to the three African Americans who fought with the Patriots.

83 feet high, this monument was dedicated in 1909 with a list of those died in the battle.

The centennial monument dedicated on October 7, 1880.

In spite of his loss and death in this battle, Ferguson was honored for his service and is also known as the sharp-shooter who had an opportunity to shoot General George Washington, but out of a sense of honor did not.

A tree that seems to be flaunting its individuality. (I enjoy finding unusual trees).