Remembering the Battle of Hobkirk Hill

April 25, 2025

April 25, 1781

After the British captured Savannah in December 1778 and particularly Charleston in May 1780, the South was undoubtedly the primary theater of the Revolutionary War. That painful defeat at Charleston was followed by a few militia successes, but almost unraveled with the defeat at Camden in August. Militia won the Battle of Kings Mountain in October as the American Southern Army was still trying to regain its fighting capability. But a change was coming to the army, as Major General Nathanael Greene arrived to take command in December 1780.

Following the dynamic success of Brigadier General Daniel Morgan at Cowpens, the Race to the Dan was on, culminating in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in March 1781. Instead of following Lord Cornwallis’ army to Wilmington and fight the war on Britain’s terms, Greene set his sights on South Carolina and returned to Camden. There he established his camp on astride the Great Wagon Road on Hobkirk Hill, daring the British to attack him. Before the week was out, Brigadier General Francis Marion captured Fort Watson on April 23, and the British attacked Greene’s position on Hobkirk Hill. Colonel Francis Lord Rawdon won the fight that day. But in doing so the British suffered so many casualties that they abandoned Camden about three weeks later and headed to Charleston. Greene had suffered a tactical defeat, but overall achieved a strategic victory at Hobkirk Hill on April 25, 1781.

Today, thanks to the leadership of the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust and American Battlefield Trust and valuable partnerships with the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, Kershaw County, Historic Camden Foundation, and Katawba Valley Land Trust, all of the undeveloped parcels (22.63 acres in 5 parcels) within the footprint of the Battle of Hobkirk Hill have been acquired and permanently protected. More than $2.0 million in local, state, and federal grants and the generosity of private donors made these acquisitions possible.

“Acquiring and permanently protecting these sites is a critical first step in sharing the stories of the Revolution,” remarked Rick Wise, CEO of the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust. “We are excited to work with our partners to research, interpret, and share the stories of this important battle.”

In more recent history, this unique property served as the polo field (and still does!) and special event site for the early 20th century luxury resort hotel—The Kirkwood Hotel—that hosted dignitaries from 1903 until it closed in 1943. This site is now interpreted so that visitors may start their visit of Hobkirk Hill where the 2nd Virginia Continentals once stood.

Your contributions to our work help make more victories like the permanent protection of Hobkirk Hill possible.

###

About The Liberty Trail
The Liberty Trail—developed through a partnership between the American Battlefield Trust and the South Carolina Battleground Trust—connects battlefields across South Carolina and tells the captivating and inspiring stories of this transformative chapter of American history. For more information on The Liberty Trail, visit www.thelibertytrail.org.

Media Contact

Jennifer Howard

jen@stewardterra.com

843.709.4192

< Older Post

Drew Cheatham, Phil Gaines, Buddy Jennings, Catherine Noyes, Molly Fortune, Mike Tyler, Rick Wise

Out and About on The Liberty Trail

March 25, 2025

Get outside this Spring to enjoy enhancements that your gifts make possible on The Liberty Trail!

Behind the Scenes of the Marion Papers

March 13, 2025

Family ties and beach vacations colored with Disney’s Swamp Fox, not just the makings of a memorable childhood for historian David Neilan, but also the backdrop of a lifelong obsession with General Francis Marion. Retirement opened a window for David to pour his energy into an ambitious project to gather all the known letters and material related to Francis Marion, with a vision of creating a comprehensive manuscript. His compilation of those resources, combined with Marion’s Orderly Book entries, created a very accurate chronological view and insights into Marion’s actions during the Revolutionary War. While an unfortunate medical setback paused the publishing of his work, the late Charles Baxley, Commissioner of the SC 250 th , and a friend of Dave Neilan, acquired the rights for the SC 250 th to publish the manuscript, ensuring Neilan’s work would be shared, not shelved. Further, Baxley’s desire was for the work to be put into context with other events going on other places during the war, have biographical references, and also be available to the public at no cost. He then called upon his personal friend and author, the late Doug Bostick, Executive Director of the SCBPT to form a team who would ready the work for publication. Rick Wise and Ben Rubin were tasked as editors to review the manuscript, add military history- based analysis and context, incorporate the biographies, and generally get the manuscript ready for peer review for publication. The first work was done by August 2023, and then with Charles Baxley’s input, further revisions were done to provide even more detail to the over 600 letters and other documents involved. Dr. Jim Piecuch and Dr. Steve Smith conducted the peer review and greatly helped with ensuring the citations and other important aspects of the work were correct. The manuscript was then placed into the very capable hands of Vally M. Sharpe of United Writers Press in Asheville, North Carolina that did an outstanding job in arranging the work into a configuration that the reader will enjoy.