Caswell-Guilford County NcArchives Military Records.....Evans, Elisha Revwar - Pension ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/nc/ncfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Nancy Poquette npoq@hotmail.com June 16, 2006, 1:49 am Pension Application Of Elisha Evans, Natl Archives Microseries M805, Roll __, Application #S6830 Caswell County, NC, October 8th, 1832, Elisha Evans, aged 72 years: “That sometime, I think, in the month of October 1778, I (this applicant) was drafted in the militia of the County of Caswell and state of NC in Captain White’s company in the regiment commanded by Colonel James Sander [or Saunders]. In this company or regiment, George Moore was our Major. That we were marched through our state into the state of South Carolina. That at Salisbury we joined General Rutherford commanding the North Carolina militia. That we were marched by a variety of places as far as Purysburg in South Carolina. We had done some little picket guard fighting across the river as we also had at other places, but of not much consequence. While in South Carolina I was discharged after serving a tour of five months or more. My discharge I have lost. I think I received it of Captain William White. A part of the troops had a severe fight at a place on Briar Creek, but I was not with them at the time, being at that time stationed on this side of the river. We were discharged sometime in April 1779. At the time I was drafted, I lived in Caswell County and state of North Carolina, where I have resided ever since.” “Sometime during the summer of 1780, I substituted myself in the place of one James Sergeant, who I always believed was a coward or something worse (Tory) under Captain John Graves, in the company commanded by Colonel Paisley. We were marched again into South Carolina and as far as Camden, where, meeting with the enemy near Camden, we fought the memorable action commonly called Gates’ Defeat, General Gates being our Major General and commanding officer. In this action we suffered a disgraceful defeat by the mismanagement or cowardice of General Gates. From this place, in confusion, we retreated, and the most of us reached home, not having any place appointed for rendezvous. I came home.” “Our time not yet being out, we here transferred (I was) to Captain John McMullin’s company of light horse and went under Colonel James Williams of South Carolina. The said Colonel Williams at that time resided at a place called Ninety Six in South Carolina, and being driven from his home and country by the Tories, he applied to the Governor of North Carolina for assistance, which was granted and myself under Captain John McMullin was one who went out with him. We were marched to a place called the Cowpens, where we were joined Colonel Campbell, colonel Cleveland and I think, Colonel Sevier. With them, we were marched to King’s Mountain, where we met the Tories, whom we were in pursuit of, the enemy here commanded by a Major Ferguson. At King’s Mountain, we had a severe engagement and totally defeated the enemy. This battle, I think, was fought in October 1780. From this place we were marched to a place called the Moravian Town in this state, and were there discharged after serving (as I collect) two tours, amounting in all to some little upwards of four months.” “Sometime in the winter of the same year (1780), I was again drafted under Captain Spillsby Coleman and the company commanded by Colonel Farmer, in which company Archibald Murphy and Thomas Harmon were Majors. We were marched to the Catawba River to a place called Beattie’s Ford or Cowan’s Ford. Here we met the enemy under Lord Cornwallis and endeavored to prevent them crossing. Here we had a fight and our commanding officer, General Davidson killed, we were driven back and retreated. In our retreat we overtook General Greene near Salisbury, and retreated through our state and our county across Dan River and over into Virginia. When General Greene, meeting with reinforcements, we made a stand. The enemy finding we were reinforced, turned their course. We followed them and continued our pursuit toward Guilford as far as to a place called the High Rock, where I was discharged, (my term of service then expired), some four or five days before the Guilford Battle was fought. After serving a tour in this campaign of three months, my discharge is lost, but from my recollection of it now, I think it was dated in March of 1781. In this campaign, I omitted to mention that after we were driven from the Catawba River, we were overtaken in a land called Tarrance’s Lane and here we had a sharp engagement and were defeated and retreated and in our retreat we overtook General Greene as I have before stated.” “Sometime of the latter part of August or the first of September of the same year, I volunteered in Captain John McMullin’s company under Colonel Moore and Major Dudley Reynolds. We were marched to the lower part of our own state (North Carolina) for the purpose and with the view of retaking our Governor who sometime just before this, was captured by the Tories and British. We followed the enemy to a place near Wilmington called the White Marsh. Here we overtook the enemy and had an engagement in which we were driven back. We from thence were marched to Fayetteville and from thence back again to near Wilmington and from place to place under General Butler (in whom I never had confidence as an officer) always avoiding an attack until we had the news of the capture of Lord Cornwallis at York, and afterwards, until my term of service expired and I was then discharged, after serving a tour of three months.” File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/nc/caswell/military/revwar/pensions/evans165gmt.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/ncfiles/ File size: 6.0 Kb