Wilkes County Regiment

Wilkes County Regiment
Active1777-1783
AllegianceNorth Carolina North Carolina
BranchNorth Carolina militia
TypeMilitia
Part ofSalisbury District Brigade
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Col. Benjamin Cleveland
Col. Elijah Isaacs
Col. Benjamin Herndon

The Wilkes County Regiment was authorized on December 9, 1777 by the Province of North Carolina Congress at the same time that Wilkes County, North Carolina was created from Surry County, North Carolina and Washington District, North Carolina. The regiment was subordinate to the Salisbury District Brigade of militia. It was engaged in battles and skirmishes against the British and Cherokee during the American Revolution in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia between 1779 and 1782. It was active until the end of the war.[1]

Officers

The colonels and commanders of the regiment were:[1]

Known Lieutenant Colonels and Majors:

  • Lt. Col. Hardgrove
  • Lt. Col. John Herndon
  • Lt. Col. William Nash
  • Lt. Col. William Shepherd
  • 1st Maj. John Brevard
  • 2nd Maj. William Lewis
  • Maj. Josiah Branham
  • Maj. Jesse Hardin Franklin (later Governor of North Carolina, 1820-1821)[3][4]
  • Maj. Nathaniel Gordon
  • Maj. Joseph Hardin Sr.
  • Maj. Francis Hardgrave
  • Maj. Benjamin Herndon
  • Maj. Joseph Herndon
  • Maj. Elijah Isaacs
  • Maj. William Lenoir
  • Maj. Joseph Lewis
  • Maj. James Smith
  • Maj. James Stevenson

The regiment had 78 known companies headed by captains. Companies consisted of lieutenants, ensigns, sergeants, corporals, privates, drummers and fifers. Notables captains and other troops included:[1]

  • Capt Richard Allen (1778-1781, may have been Colonel of the regiment after the war[5]
  • Private John Hammond under Captain Larkin Cleveland (the 2nd to last Revolutionary War Patriot to die, 1760-1868)[6]
  • Captain and Major William Lenoir later went on to become a major general in the North Carolina militia after the war.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Lewis, J.D. "Wilkes County Regiment". Retrieved March 3, 2019.
  2. ^ Waugh, Betty Linney (1979). "Colonel Benjamin Cleveland". NCPedia.
  3. ^ McFarland, Daniel M. (1986). "Jesse Franklin". NCPedia.
  4. ^ Angley, Wilson, Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History (2005). "Governor Jesse Franklin". NCPedia.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ Cross, Jerry L. (1979). "Richard Allen". NCPedia.
  6. ^ Thompson, Lawrence S. (1988). "John Hammon". Retrieved April 19, 2019.

Bibliography