| 6th North Carolina Regiment | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1776-1783 |
| Country |  United States |
| Allegiance |  North Carolina |
| Branch | Continental Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Part of | Northern Department, North Carolina Line |
| Engagements | Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, Battle of Monmouth |
The 6th North Carolina Regiment was one of ten regiments of the North Carolina Line of the Continental Army that fought in the American Revolution. [1]
The 6th North Carolina Regiment existed as a Continental Army unit from North Carolina from 1776 to 1779. Key events in its history include: [1]
The regiment saw action at the Battle of Brandywine in Pennsylvania on September 11, 1777, Battle of Germantown in Pennsylvania on October 4, 1777, Battle of Brier Creek in Georgia on March 3, 1779, and Battle of Stono Ferry in South Carolina on June 20, 1779.
The field grade officers included [1]
All company grade officers were considered to be part of the North Carolina Militia vice Continental Army. Some enlisted men were on the Continental roll and others were on militia rolls. The company grade officers and enlisted troops signed up for nine months of service at a time. They were recruited from the Wilmington and Hillsborough Districts of North Carolina. Captain Griffith John McRee became the namesake for the 1836 Union Fort McRee in Pensacola Florida. Other known captains included: [1]
Richard Caswell was an American politician and lawyer who served as the first and fifth governor of the state of North Carolina from 1776 to 1780 and from 1785 to 1787. He also served as a senior officer of militia in the Southern Theater of the American Revolutionary War. As a delegate to the First Continental Congress he was a signatory of the 1774 Continental Association.
John Baptist Ashe was a slave owner, U.S. Congressman, and Continental Army officer from Halifax, North Carolina.
The 1st North Carolina Regiment of the Continental Army was raised on September 1, 1775, at Wilmington, North Carolina. In January 1776 the organization contained eight companies. Francis Nash was appointed colonel in April 1776. The regiment was present at the defense of Charleston in 1776. It transferred from the Southern Department to George Washington's main army in February 1777. At that time, Thomas Clark became colonel of the 1st Regiment. The regiment became part of General Francis Nash's North Carolina Brigade in July.
The 4th North Carolina Regiment was authorized on January 16, 1776 and established on April 15, 1776 at Wilmington, North Carolina for service with the Continental Army Southern Department under the command of Thomas Polk. The regiment saw action at the Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, Battle of Monmouth and the Siege of Charleston. The regiment was captured by the British Army at Charlestown, South Carolina, on May 12, 1780. The regiment was disbanded on January 1, 1783.
The 5th North Carolina Regiment was assigned on March 26, 1776, to the Continental Army in the Southern Department. It was organized in the spring of 1776 at Wilmington, North Carolina, as eight companies of volunteers from the districts of New Bern, Edenton and Hillsborough District of North Carolina. On February 5, 1777, the regiment was assigned to the main Continental Army and assigned to the North Carolina Brigade on July 8, 1777. The regiment was reduced to a cadre on June 1, 1778 at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania and was assigned to the Southern Department. The regiment was re-organized to nine companies during the fall of 1778 at Halifax and assigned on January 11, 1779 to Sumner's Brigade. On 3 June 1779, this brigade was redesignated as Armstrong's Brigade. The regiment was captured by the British Army on 12 May 1780 at Charlestown, South Carolina and was officially disbanded on January 1, 1781.
The 9th North Carolina Regiment was raised, on 16 September 1776, at Halifax, North Carolina for service with the Continental Army. The regiment saw action at the Battle of Brandywine and Battle of Germantown. The regiment was disbanded, on 1 June 1778, at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
The North Carolina Light Dragoons Regiment was raised on April 13, 1775 at Wilmington, North Carolina, first as provincial troops, then as state troops, then for service with the Continental Army, and finally returned as a State Troop Regiment. On April 16, 1776, the General Assembly authorized the creation of three companies of NC Light Dragoons. These are first considered to be Provincial Troops then State Troops. On March 7, 1777, these companies were placed on the North Carolina Continental Line. All companies of North Carolina Light Dragoons were removed from the Continental Line on January 1, 1779 and ordered to disband. The North Carolina General Assembly decided to retain these units, but it took them several months to figure out how best to employ them. Between February and June of 1779, they were assembled into a new Regiment of State Troops under ex-Continental Col. François Malmédy, who had marched south with Major General Benjamin Lincoln in late 1778.
The 6th South Carolina Regiment was authorized on 28 February 1776 in the South Carolina State Troops and was organized during the spring of 1776 as five companies of volunteers from the northwestern region of the colony of South Carolina. It may have been composed exclusively of expert riflemen from the colony.
John Ashe, Sr. was Speaker of the House of Burgesses in the Province of North Carolina. He was Harvard educated and fought in the North Carolina militia during the French and Indian War. During the American Revolution, he attained the rank of major general and was in charge of North Carolina militia and state troops from 1776 to 1779. He resigned from military service after the Patriot defeat at the Battle of Brier Creek in 1779.
The North Carolina Line refers to North Carolina units within the Continental Army. The term "North Carolina Line" referred to the quota of infantry regiments assigned to North Carolina at various times by the Continental Congress. These, together with similar contingents from the other twelve states, formed the Continental Line. The concept was particularly important in relation to the promotion of commissioned officers. Officers of the Continental Army below the rank of brigadier general were ordinarily ineligible for promotion except in the line of their own state.
The Hillsborough District Brigade of militia was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia established on May 4, 1776. Brigadier General Thomas Person was the first commander. Companies from the eight regiments of the brigade were engaged in 55 known battles and skirmishes in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia during the American Revolutionary War. It was active until the end of the war.
John Alexander Lillington, also known as Alexander John Lillington, was a planter, politician and Patriot officer from North Carolina in the American Revolutionary War. He fought in the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge in 1776 as Colonel of the Wilmington District Minutemen. He was afterwards commissioned as colonel of the 6th North Carolina Regiment of the Continental Army, but resigned after a month to instead serve as brigadier general of the Wilmington District Brigade of the North Carolina militia. At the Battle of Camden his troops were among the militia who fled the field. His son John Lillington also served in the North Carolina militia.
James Moore was a Continental Army general during the American Revolutionary War. Moore was born into a prominent political family in the colonial Province of North Carolina, he was one of only five generals from North Carolina to serve in the Continental Army. He spent much of his childhood and youth on his family's estates in the lower Cape Fear River area, but soon became active in the colonial military structure in North Carolina.
The 2nd Rowan County Regiment was first established in October 22, 1775 as a local militia in Rowan County in the Province of North-Carolina. This regiment was created from the existing Rowan County Regiment of militia. Its original officers were Col Adlai Osborne, Lt Col Christopher Beekman, and Major Charles McDowell. Adlai Osborne was a leader in Rowan County and member of the Rowan County Committee of Safety. On May 9, 1777, the regiment was renamed the Burke County Regiment, which was active until the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783.
The Mecklenburg County Regiment was authorized on May 31, 1775 by the Province of North Carolina Congress. From November 7, 1779 until the 3rd Quarter of 1780, it was called the 1st Mecklenburg County Regiment when a 2nd Mecklenburg County Regiment existed. The 1st Mecklenburg County regiment was engaged in 39 known battles and skirmishes against the British during the American Revolution in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia between 1776 and 1781. It was active until the end of the war.
The Edenton District Brigade was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War (1776–1783). This unit was established by the North Carolina Provincial Congress on May 4, 1776, and disbanded at the end of the war.
The Wilmington District Brigade was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War (1776–1783). This unit was established by the North Carolina Provincial Congress on May 4, 1776, and disbanded at the end of the war.
The New Bern District Brigade was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War (1776–1783). This unit was established by the North Carolina Provincial Congress on May 4, 1776, and disbanded at the end of the war.
North Carolina state troops in the American Revolution were the initial military units created in a transition from the Province of North Carolina under British rule to independence from British rule. Most units did not last long as such and were either transferred to the Continental Army or state militia instead.
The Dobbs County Regiment was a unit of the North Carolina militia that served during the American Revolution. The regiment was one of thirty-five existing county militias that were authorized by the North Carolina Provincial Congress to be organized on September 9, 1775. All officers were appointed with commissions from the Provincial Congress. On May 4, 1776, the regiment was placed under the command of the New Bern District Brigade commanded by Brigadier General Richard Caswell. The regiment was active until the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783 and was engaged in twelve known battles and skirmishes in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.