Fact Friday 282 - The Battle of Cowan's Ford
Happy Friday!
The Battle of Cowan’s Ford, Mecklenburg County’s last Revolutionary War battle, was fought on February 1, 1781. The battle took place alongside the Catawba River - and even in the river itself - at Cowan’s Ford, between the much larger 5,000 troop British army, led by Lord Charles Cornwallis and a smaller militia (less than 1,000 men), led by General William Lee Davidson. Davidson, who was killed during the battle, is the namesake of Davidson College. Today, the battlefield lies under the waters of Lake Norman.
Lieutenant General Charles Earl Cornwallis Painted by Thomas Gainsborough, 1783, National Portrait Gallery, London
Battle of Cowan’s Ford. Painted by Dan Nance, 2011. www.dannance.com.
Battle of Cowan’s Ford Painted by David Teague.
For a full run down of the battle and more context, click here and here.
Until next week,
Chris.
Email me at chris@704shop.com if you have interesting Charlotte facts you’d like to share or just to provide feedback!
Information taken from:
UNC Charlotte Special Collections on Instagram | @unccspeccoll
"Battle of Cowan's Ford: Defense of the Catawba River by North Carolina militiamen that helped save the American Army Southern Department," by William Lee Anderson III (copyright 2015-2018); elehistory.com
“We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and the future.” – Frederick Douglass