Patriots and Loyalists

Living historian at the top of Kings Mountain

NPS/K. Lynn

Loyalists and Patriots

One of the things that makes the battle of Kings Mountain unique is that the battle was fought between Patriot and Loyalist forces. Other than Major Patrick Ferguson, every one else was an American. The Loyalists were American colonists who wanted to remain part of the British Empire. Following their defeat at Kings Mountain, Loyalist survivors of the battle were dispersed after the war. Many who left emigrated to other British colonies, such as Canada, Bermuda, and the Bahamas. Wealthier Loyalists might have made their way to Britain. Some remained in the newly independent United States; possibly changing their names or moving west.

Today, we know a lot less about the Loyalists who fought at Kings Mountain than we do about the Patriots. Part of the reason for this is that they were on the losing side of both the battle and the war. It also doesn’t help that after the battle, the Patriot militiamen burned Major Patrick Ferguson’s papers, which would have included rosters. Additionally, many of the Loyalists were able to slip away from their Patriot captors on the march to Hillsborough, North Carolina where the Continental Army was encamped. What we do know is that most were from North and South Carolina. There were also men from the Royal Provincial Corps, who were trained soldiers, from Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey.

We know a lot more about the Patriots forces, since they won the battle and the war. These men were from Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. A large contingent was from the Overmountain region, an ill-defined area west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. As Patriots they were fighting to secure independence from the British Empire. These men were all militia, which means that they were not structured or organized like a professional army. They did not have the bureaucrats and administrators that were found in the Continental Army. This means that they did not really maintain records or rosters of who participated in the battle.

The creation of these sorts of records began in 1818 with the passage of the first of four Pension and Land Bounty Acts. These acts allowed veterans of the Revolutionary War, their wives, and children to claim land bounties and pensions for their service during the conflict. To make their claim, the veteran or their family had to submit sworn testimony to their service during the war often with collaborating witnesses. Some states passed similar state laws that followed a similar process. These state and federal records are today considered by most genealogical researchers and historians to be the most authoritative sources when it comes to determining an individual’s service during the war.