Western Virginia played a unique and important role in the American revolution. Though not officially recognized until June 20, 1863, there has always been a cultural difference between the Virginians living east of the Alleghenies and those to the west. Most of this can be attributed to the natural border of the mountains that separated the tame from the wild. East of the Alleghenies were cities, seaports, and roads; while to their west lay native tribes, thick forests, and dangerous rivers. Just as the Pringle brothers made their home inside a sycamore tree and Major Samuel McCulloch forced his horse to jump off a cliff to escape hostile natives, those hailing from the western Alleghenies have been a different breed of American. This is especially made clear through the events preceding and during the American Revolution.
Many colonists fought alongside British soldiers during the French and Indian War in order to secure their rights to the land east of the Alleghenies, that hope was crushed by the Proclamation of 1763. This proclamation outlawed settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains and required those already settled to immediately return to the east. Since merely staying in their homes made western Virginians lawbreakers, the Proclamation of 1763 helped spark a rebellious attitude, along with contempt for British Law, in many colonists. Even two British Military deserters, John and Samuel Pringle, founded the first permanent settlement in northeastern Virginia. After spending six years in what is now north central West Virginia, John Pringle left his sycamore home to travel east, and returned with a group of men who would settle the area.
In 1768, the Iroquois tribe gave the British all of their land south of the Ohio River and east of the Alleghenies through the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, and the Cherokee tribe gave all the land between the Kentucky and Kanawha rivers by signing the Treaty of Hard Labor. These treaties effectively nullified the Proclamation of 1763 and opened the west to settlement once again. Growth was so favorable that a proposal was made to make this land a fourteenth colony and name it Vandalia, after Queen Charlotte’s Vandal ancestry. However, the Revolutionary War interrupted the process in England, and the idea did not rekindle afterward. Many individual settlers ventured east of the Alleghenies as well as land speculators; one of which was George Washington, who claimed 55,000 acres in what is now Kanawha, Putnam, Ohio, Berkeley, and Mason counties in West Virginia.
The Cherokee and Iroquois gave up the southwestern lands, but many natives remained causing isolated incidents of violence between the settlers and natives. In April 1774, a group of settlers headed for Kentucky decided to stop in Wheeling in order to wait out the hostilities between Major John Connolly, Virginia Governor Dunmore’s representative at Fort Pitt, and the natives. After failing to see a resolve, the group of settlers, led by Michael Cresap, raided a Shawnee camp at Captina Creek. This action is believed to have heightened the tensions between the settlers and natives, eventually causing Lord Dunmore to take more drastic measures.
He gathered an army of 2,500 men and headed east for what many would refer to as “Lord Dunmore’s War.” The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Camp Charlotte, following a native defeat at what is now Point Pleasant, West Virginia, on October 10, 1774. With over 50 Virginians killed and 100 wounded, in primarily hand-to-hand combat that stretched throughout one mile of forest, it was the second bloodiest battle between Europeans and natives. The natives either took their dead with them or threw them in the river to avoid being scalped, but their casualties are estimated to be over 200.
One of the most notable results of the Battle of Point Pleasant was the creation of the Fort Gower Address by the remaining soldiers on November 5, 1774.
"Resolved, that we will bear the most faithful allegiance to his majesty, King George the Third, while his majesty delights to reign over a brave and free people; that we will at the expense of life and everything dear and valuable, exert ourselves in the support of his crown and the dignity of the British empire.
But, as the love of liberty and attachments to the real interest and just rights of America outweigh every other consideration, we resolve, that we will exert every power within us for the defense of American liberty, and for the support of her just rights and privileges, not in any precipitous, riotous or tumultuous manner, but when regularly called forth by the unanimous voice of our countrymen.
Resolved, that we entertain the greatest respect for his excellency, the Right Honourable Lord Dunmore, who commanded the expedition against the Shawanese, and whom, we are confident, underwent the greatest fatigue of this singular campaign from no other motive than the future interests of the country."
While declaring loyalty to British rule, this resolution also declared a greater allegiance for American liberty. The First Continental Congress had just finished meeting to discuss the situation with the British and passed the Articles of Association, calling for the boycott of British goods. There is disagreement as to whether the western soldiers were aware of the Continental Congress’ action, or if the resolution was reached solely on the part of the soldiers’ displeasure of their treatment under British rule. Either way, the resolution shows that many on the frontier held the same views as the Continental Congress and were willing to take a stand for what they believed.
Among the terms of the Treaty of Camp Charlotte, the natives agreed to stay north of the Ohio River and the British agreed to stay to the south, hostages were returned, and a more permanent Treaty would be signed in Pittsburgh in 1775. Another key term in the Treaty of Pittsburgh was the agreement that the tribes represented would remain neutral in case of a war between the colonists and the British. This allowed the colonists to focus almost all of their efforts in the east and showed that the colonists were already making provisions for a rebellion.
Since the Battle of Point Pleasant ended in a resolution that declared ultimate allegiance to American liberty rather than British rule, resulted in a treaty that discouraged the natives to assist the British, and left many of the soldiers in the field by the time fighting had began between the colonists and British, some historians have claimed it as the first battle of the American Revolution. However, this is not a widely held view among historians, due primarily to the fact that colonists were fighting alongside the British. Nonetheless, the United States Senate passed a bill on February 17, 1908, declaring the Battle of Point Pleasant the first battle of the American Revolution.
The Frontiers’ priorities were much different from those of the Virginians in the east since much of their livelihood depended on protecting themselves from the natives. Their interests were mixed between their rugged individualism on a personal level and their desire for independence from British rule. Though there were plenty of loyalists and pacifists in western Virginia, (primarily in Greenbrier, Hampshire, and Berkeley counties) most who refused to aid the Continental Congress did so because defending their personal property took precedence over participation in an offensive war.
The amount of western Virginians involved in the Revolution may have been unimpressive, but their skill and presence on the battlefield was immense. George Washington is credited for saying, “any ten soldiers from the west were worth one hundred British Regulars.” As frontiersmen, they had to be able to hunt for themselves, defend their homes and families from the natives and wildlife, and survive under harsh conditions. Unlike many colonial volunteers who reported for duty with little to no weaponry or supplies, the western Virginians, or “men from Augusta” as they were called, showed up armed and proficient with rifles, tomahawks, and scalping knives. Their dress also separated them from the other colonials as they wore buckskin clothing, moccasins, and homemade hunting shirts embroidered with the phrase Liberty or Death, rather than old uniforms or contemporary clothing of the day.
The Berkeley County company, led by Captain Hugh Stevenson, and the Frederick County company, led by Daniel Morgan, were the first contingents to arrive in Cambridge and reinforce Washington’s undersized Continental army near Boston. By August 11, 1775, they had completed the nearly 600 miles from western Virginia to Boston in only twenty-four days in what came to be known as the “Bee-line March.” Washington met them with tears of joy and later returned their loyalty by proposing Shepherdstown (the starting location of the Berkeley County company) as a location for the new nation's capital.
Western Virginia provided the colonials with both brawn through rugged frontiersmen and brain through leaders such as Daniel Morgan, Horatio Gates, Charles Lee, Adam Stephen, Hugh Stephenson, and William Darke. These are just some of the more notable names in the history of the Revolution, and their diversity of skills and character testifies to just the uniqueness of the frontier.
Daniel Morgan was born in New Jersey but left when he was sixteen and eventually settled in present day Charles Town, West Virginia in 1735. He fought in the French and Indian War and against Pontiac’s rebellion. He was among the soldiers who agreed to the Fort Gower Address and led the Frederick County Rifle Company to Cambridge, then to Quebec. There he assumed command after Benedict Arnold was wounded, and the British captured him shortly thereafter. Morgan was released in 1776, and recruited, with much difficulty, a new regiment of riflemen as skilled as his first Frederick County Riflemen. His new regiment played an important role in the victory at Saratoga in 1777. After a short retirement from 1779 to 1780, he took over command of a North Carolina company and helped defeat the British at Cowpens, South Carolina. After the Revolutionary War, he led the Virginia militia in suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion, and represented Virginia in the House of Representatives from 1797 to 1799.
William Darke was born near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, but moved to Shepherdstown, Virginia in 1736 at the age of five. He served under General Edward Braddock during the French and Indian War and later became a General in the Colonial Army. At Germantown, he was captured and taken aboard a prison ship until his release on November 1, 1780. He would eventually assist the siege at Yorktown, Pennsylvania, that forced Cornwallis to surrender. After the war, he served in the Virginia legislature as a staunch federalist until his death on November 20, 1801.
Hugh Stevenson was a captain under George Washington during the French and Indian war and lived on Bullskin Run in Berkeley County. He was brave, and highly esteemed by Washington who recommended him to lead the Berkeley County riflemen. After leading his men on the Bee Line March to aid Washington, he was commissioned a colonel. Sadly though, after returning to Berkeley County on a recruiting assignment, Stevenson fell became and died in August of 1776.
Horatio Gates served in the French and Indian War with the British military, and in 1772 moved from his home in Essex, England to present day West Virginia. In 1775, he was made a brigadier-general in the Continental Army and eventually replaced Philip J. Schuyler as the Supreme Commander in the north. Though he argued with many of his fellow officers, Gates was given credit for his role in the victory at Saratoga in 1777, where he served with Daniel Morgan. The Continental Congress then appointed him as President of the Board of War and He was considered in such high regard that there was once a plot to have him replace George Washington as the Commander in Chief. However, after suffering defeat at Camden, South Carolina, he did very little in the war and retired to his plantation in 1783.
Adam Stephen was born in Scotland, and after becoming a doctor, moved to western Virginia in 1848 to become a planter and establish a medical practice. During the French and Indian War, he commanded the Virginia militia whenever George Washington was absent and was eventually promoted to lieutenant colonel. He held many local political posts but lost a seat in the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1761 to Washington. In 1776, he joined the Continental Army as a brigadier general and was part of the retreat through New Jersey. In 1777, he was court-martialed for his drunkenness during the battle of Germantown and retired to his home in Berkeley County.
Charles Lee fought for the British in Poland, Portugal, and the French and Indian War. He returned to western Virginia in 1773 and became a proponent of colonial independence. His military experience made Lee a candidate for Commander in Chief at the beginning of the American Revolution, but he was instead commissioned as the third in command of the Continental Army. Throughout the war, he served as the Commander of the Canadian Department and the Commander of the Southern Department. He was credited with the successful defense of Charleston, South Carolina but was later captured by the British after failing to follow George Washington’s orders. While in captivity, Lee helped General William Howe plan how to defeat the Americans, but his treason was not discovered until 1857. After retreating prematurely and cursing Washington at the Battle of Monmouth, Lee was court-martialed then discharged from the Continental Army on January 1780.
Though the western Virginian leaders had illustrious careers early in the war some did not finish as strong as they started. Charles Lee would later remark on the western Virginia county these three men called home. “The county of Berkeley is indeed to be congratulated. She can claim as citizens three noted major generals of the Revolutionary War. You, Stephen, distinguished yourself by getting drunk when you should have been sober. You, Gates, were cashiered for advancing when you should have been retreating, while your humble servant covered himself with glory and laurels and was cashiered for retreating when he should have been advancing.”
Only a few battles of the Revolutionary War occurred in present day West Virginia and all involved natives. The British soldiers on the frontier spent much of their time and effort attempting to undo the Treaty of Pittsburgh. As an effort to persuade the natives, the British commander Henry Hamilton offered payment for American scalps, which earned him the nickname “hair buyer.”
In September 1777, 200 natives and British soldiers killed several militiamen and laid siege to Fort Henry, near Wheeling. After three days, the attackers gave up on trying to draw out the sixty defenders and left after destroying the surrounding houses, crops, and cattle. Natives also laid siege to Fort Randolph in May 1778, after the execution of Red Hawk, Chief Cornstalk, and his son Elinipsco, but after one week, the natives gave up on Fort Randolph and headed to Fort Donnally. Two colonists, disguised as natives, warned the settlers and the attack resulted in the death of seventeen natives and only lasted until reinforcements arrived later that day. This was the last time a sizable raiding party of natives entered the Greenbrier and upper Kanawha valleys.
On September 10, 1782, Fort Henry was attacked once more; this time by colonial army deserter, Simon Girty with his company of British soldiers and 238 natives. Though most of the fifty settlers were women and children, they were able to drive off the British after two days and nights. Much of their victory is attributed to Elizabeth “Betty” Zane, who ran to her brother’s house sixty yards away to retrieve much needed gunpowder. She returned under heavy enemy fire and received one bullet hole through her skirt. Though Cornwallis’ defeat at Yorktown effectively ended the Revolutionary War, the 1782 Battle of Fort Henry still occurred afterward. Since it occurred before the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783 and was the last battle fought between the British and colonists, it is considered by many to be the last battle of the American Revolution.
These battles, titles, heroes, declarations, clothes, and fighting styles were not only evidence of the inimitability of western Virginia and its inhabitants, but of the significant role this unofficial state played in its nations struggle for independence. Arguably, the first and last battles of the American Revolution were fought by its men and women on its own soil. These “men from Augusta” had followed Daniel Morgan and declared their allegiance to America in the Fort Gower Address before it had even declared independence. They wore buckskin cloths, shot rifles rather than muskets, and fought in nearly every battle of the American Revolution. Western Virginians garnered so much respect that George Washington once said that should the war be lost in the East, he would cross the Allegheny Mountains where he was sure he would find men who would fight until victory was secure.
Works Cited
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Brooks, A. B. Story of Fort Henry. Published by West Virginia Archives and History. Volume I, Number 2 (January 1940), pp. 110-118
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Haymond, Henry. History of Harrison County, West Virginia From the Early Days of Northwestern Virginia to the Present. Morgantown, W. Va: Acme Pub. Co, 1910.
Higginbotham, Don. Daniel Morgan, Revolutionary Rifleman. Chapel Hill: Published for the Institute of Early American History and Culture at Williamsburg, Va. by the University of North Carolina Press, 1961.
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Jefferson, Thomas.The Writings of Thomas Jefferson. . United States: G.P Putnam's Sons 1899. Original from the University of California v.10
Lewis, Virgil Anson. History of the Battle of Point Pleasant Fought between White Men and Indians at the Mouth of the Great Kanawha River (Now Point Pleasant, West Virginia) Monday, October 10th, 1774. The Chief Event of Lord Dunmore's War. Charleston, W. Va: The Tribune Printing Co, 1909.
Lewis, Virgil Anson. History of West Virginia In Two Parts. Philadelphia: Hubbard Brothers, 1889.
Mozier, Jeanne. “The George Washington Heritage Trail” Wonderful West Virginia Magazine FEBRUARY 2000 V. 64, N. 2
Mintz, Max M. The Generals of Saratoga John Burgoyne & Horatio Gates. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990.
Wood, Vicki. West Virginia the History of an American State, Atlanta Georgia: Clairmont Publications 1994
WESTERN VIRGINIA, THOUGH NOT OFFICIALLY ITS OWN STATE, PLAYED A UNIQUE AND IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
A Term Paper
Presented to
Dr. Brent J. Aucoin
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
HIS 4990: The American Revolution
Scot Randolph
Southeastern College of Wake Forest
November 27, 2007
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