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Page 2 The Kings Mountain Herald October 11, 2007 Fe LOCAL NEWS KM celebrates ‘tuming point’ of Revolution EMILY WEAVER eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com Whether by car, by foot or by limo, over 100 people attended the 227th anniversary celebration of the Battle of Kings Mountain at the KM National Military Park’s amphitheater on Sunday afternoon. Five. students from Kings Mountain Intermediate School arrived" at the park with Mayor Rick Murphrey and his wife Sandra in a white stretch limou- sine shortly before 3 p.m. For all of the students, it was their first time to ride in a luxurious limo. They filed out of the expanded back seat with smiles on their faces. A few of their parents fol- lowed behind in their cars. Austin Anthony, Dalton Cash, Kirby Hullender, Kaylen Ledford and Tanner Orders all seemed to enjoy the limo ride and especial- ly the ice cream at Swooger’s afterwards. Volunteer marchers with the Overmountain Victory Trail Association, following some of the 330-mile path once trekked by the Overmountain men, stepped into the amphitheater a little after 3 p.m. to mark the beginning of the ceremony. This was their 33rd annual reenact- ment of the campaign to Kings Mountain. Park Superintendent Erin Broadbent said that the Overmountain men’s victory in the Battle of Kings Mountain would change the course of his- tory. “At the time they did not know that and all of them did not care. All that truly mattered is that they had defeated Major Patrick Ferguson, the man who had threatened to march his army over the mountains, hang their leaders and lay their coun- try ‘waste with fire and sword,” she said. “Today, we once again celebrate that victory and honor those who fought and died here.” Don Boshell, of St. John's United Methodist Church, gave the invocation. Mayor Rick Murphrey recognized his young companions and said that today they were there to learn more about the Battle of Kings Mountain. “We believe, for our youth to study and learn from our history, that it will provide a brighter and a better future,” he said, adding that the battle waged on this mountain “led to the founding of this great nation.” Volunteers preserve history of Battle of KM _ EMILY WEAVER eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com Thousands came out to cele- brate the 227th anniversary of the famous Battle of Kings Mountain at the national mili- tary park over the weekend. On Saturday, re-enactors with the Back Country Militia and the 84th Highland Regiment breathed new life into the old historical story for the thronging crowds. “We probably had about a few thousand people come by yesterday,” Rick Stuck said on Sunday. A volunteer with the Back Country Militia, he was dressed like one of the Overmountain men, who in 1780 gave a mighty blow to the royal- ists on Kings Mountain. He said that they gave a lot of demonstrations of life during the Revolutionary = War-era on Saturday, including games and the art of scrim-shawing. Men would often carve on the horns they carried, personalizing them with art, an act called scrim- shawing. Stuck had carved a beautiful bird and his name into the cow horn he carried on a string around his neck. His horn, like many others of old, was used to hold his gunpowder. The 84th Highland Regiment had set up camp just a stone’s throw away from the militia. Members of both’ reenactment - groups spent the weekend at the park on the same ground once trampled on by the Overmountain men as they headed into a surprise battle with Major Patrick Ferguson's militia. Joseph and Edith Moran, who have volunteered with the 84th Highland Regiment for four reenactment, said that at least 500 boy scouts visited their campsite on Saturday. Edith said that she gave them some sewing demonstrations, showing them the long slip dressing that all babies used to wear. “Some of the boys said they would never wear a dress. But I said, ‘Oh yes you would've. As a baby that’s what you would have worn,” she said, with a smile. She stitched the slip by hand, just as the women of old had to do, which took incredibly longer than today’s quick zip on a machine. Joseph was down to his nor- mal civilian clothes on Sunday afternoon as they began to col- lect their belongings for the jour- ney home. He said that they enjoyed camping at the park and they really enjoy re-enacting. Looking through a Revolutionary War history book at the park’s gift shop on Saturday afternoon was Mark Anthony, who was clad in British Revolutionary garb. He is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and said that his relatives actually fought in the Battle of Kings Mountain 227 years ago. He was out at the park Sunday morning for the wreath-laying ceremony and stuck around for the celebration in the amphitheater. He came out for the anniversary to pay hom- age to his ancestors and to pre- serve the history of the famous battle they fought. “The love of history was instilled in me at a young age by my mother,” he said. On the air floated the soft entrancing whistle of a far away flute played by Stuck, tucked away at his camp in the thickets, around 2 p.m. The seats in the amphitheater started filling up as the second-hand of the clock marched closer to the 3 p.m. anniversary celebration. Allen Bowen, OVTA president, said that their annual trek to Kings Mountain is “a two-week campaign that started back on September 24, with the muster up in Abingdon, Virginia, mov- ing on down to Sycamore Shoals, crossing the Appalachian moun- tains, coming down through North Carolina, Spruce Pines, Morganton on down to Polk County and into South Carolina,” he said, adding that another militia called up in Surry County to join the Overmountain men in Morganton. “We've been doing this for years, but something has been happening lately. Communities along this trail have been waking up. The trail has been silent for a long time, since 1780. The men that came out of the woods today when we came in, they were to show that the 28 that died on this mountain and all of the other patriots that were on that campaign, they're still watching. They're watching what happens and they're start- ing to smile because the commu- nities, the young people are start- ing to see the value of what they gave so much of for and that was our independence, our freedoms and our liberties.” He said that over 5,000 volunteers joined the campaign this year, about 4,000 more than they had a few years ago. U.S. Congressman of South Carolina John Spratt gave the principal address about the his- tory of the Battle of Kings Mountain and all of the events that preceded and followed it, which led to America’s inde- pendence. EMILY WEAVER/HERALD Don Boshell, a token French re-enactor, rests on a stump in the woods at the Kings Mountain National Military park. Left, U.S. Congressman of John Spratt gives the keynote address at the 227th anniversary of the Battle of Kings Mountain. The Home Assorted Fragrances To ~ Choose From! Now 15% Off! Fragrances At $14.95 ARNOLDYS WTR er Rell Hours: Mon.-Sat. 9am-5:30pm « Fri. 9am - La-“Tee-Da! 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The Kings Mountain Herald (Kings Mountain, N.C.)
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