January 5, 2010 - Kettle Creek and SAR

Joe Harris and Lillie Crowe presented a program to the Kiwanis club on Tuesday, January 5, concerning Wilkes County's part in the American Revolution. Lillie, as  program host, introduced Joe and discussed the upcoming Kettle Creek Celebration on February 12 and 13, and Joe discussed the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR). 

From materials presented  during the program, the purposes of the SAR include:

"We help carry out the promises expressed in the Preamble to the Constitution" which states in part that its purpose is to:

'form a more perfect Union, 

establish Justice,  

insure domestic Tranquility,  

provide for the common defence 

promote the general Welfare, and

secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity'"

Revolutionary Days celebration to mark 231st anniversary of Kettle Creek battle

By KIP BURKE news editor

This year’s Revolutionary Days observance of the Battle of Kettle Creek will include parades, demonstrations of colonial life, and for the first time, a live re-enactment of the battle itself.

This year’s Revolutionary Days events in Washington, set for February 12-14, will be bigger and better than ever, organizers say, including for the first time a special reenactment of the Battle of Kettle Creek.

“This year, the 231st anniversary of the Battle of Kettle Creek, will feature an exciting new event,” said Walker Chewning, Georgia Sons of the American Revolution and chairman of the 2010 celebration. “We will reenact a portion of the 1779 victorious action that occurred at Kettle Creek. But to make it available to more people, the portrayal will be conducted on Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m. at Fort Washington Park behind the courthouse.”

Other members of the Revolutionary Days 2010 Planning Committee announced some of the weekend’s specific activities. Tourism Director Ashley Barnett said that history would come alive in Washington’s town Square with the parade and at least 15 revolutionary personalities and colonial life demonstrations. She said, “Several merchants have offered their windows and inside space for the performances. This will allow an escape from the bad weather that has affected us in previous years.”

“Imagine Living in Wilkes County during the Revolutionary War” will be the theme for Saturday morning’s Living History activities. Re-enactors portraying General George Washington, Elijah Clarke, Nancy Hart, Button Gwinnett, and Thomas Jefferson will be among those present. There will be opportunities to play Colonial games, drill with the Georgia Militia, learn about the Revolutionary War battle flags and see demonstrations of daily life such as spinning, weaving, and other colonial crafts.

Joanne Pollock reported that the Kettle Creek DAR members who performed last year as Daughters of Liberty and another as Betsy Ross look forward to repeat performances, and the DAR Chapter will help support all the Revolutionary Days activities. Additional living history performances and exhibits will be featured in the Mary Willis Library, the Robert Toombs House and the Washington Historical Museum.

The Revolutionary Days parade will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday morning in front of the Wilkes County courthouse. The SAR Color Guard in Continental Army uniforms and Elijah Clarke Militia, Children of the American Revolution members and many Revolutionary War re-enactors from Georgia and South Carolina will lead the parade.

Washington-Wilkes Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4-H Club members and other youth and veterans organizations are encouraged to walk in this fun parade. Contact the Chamber of Commerce at 706- 678-2013 to learn more about the parade and how to participate in the weekend activities.

Noted Georgia historian and author Dr. Robert Scott Davis will speak at 3 p.m. on Friday afternoon at the Mary Willis Library, according to Bartram Trail regional librarian Lillie Crowe. “The library is pleased to be one of the sponsors for Revolutionary Days and a focal point for several of the activities,” she said. “On Saturday morning, we will host the viewing of the Battle of Kettle Creek video and feature Kettle Creek author Chris Swager and special colonial personalities in the library.”

Crowe said that Wilkes County School children are already preparing posters illustrating the Battle at Kettle Creek and the founding of the City of Washington. She added, “Selected posters will be displayed in windows of merchants on The Square during the month of February.” In addition, the Washington- Wilkes Comprehensive High School Key Club is planning to sponsor a barbecue luncheon at the Court Street Livery during the Revolutionary Days celebration on Saturday, February 13.

“Attending the Saturday morning Battle of Kettle Creek video at the Library with Army historians Walt Andre and Steven Rausch is ‘a must’ for first-time Revolutionary Days participants,” said Bill Ramsaur, a member of the SAR planning group. “After the film, Walt and Steven will conduct walking tours at the battleground. The tours provide a sense of the battle that can only be achieved by covering the ground much as the combatants once did.”

It was at Kettle Creek on February 14, 1779, that a group of Wilkes County Georgia and South Carolina militia took on a British Loyalist unit twice their size and prevailed by sheer courage and determination. Their leaders, Colonels Andrew Pickens and Elijah Clarke, would go on to further military glory, but Colonel John Dooly would pay with his life for his role in this battle.

Saturday’s highlight will be the pageantry during the memorial ceremony starting at 2 p.m. at the War Hill monument. Patriotic music, wreath presentations, and musket volleys will honor the memory of the Patriots.

For the third year, a Colonial Worship Service will be conducted during Revolutionary Days, according to the Georgia SAR Chaplain Rev. Dan Gates. “The Washington First Baptist Church will be an ideal setting for the service that will start at 9 a.m. Sunday morning, and many attendees will worship in Colonial attire. It is fitting that we gather as the people of Wilkes County did on the Sunday after the battle in 1779 to pray and remember the fallen. On February 14, we will do the same in their memory.”

David Jenkins, President of the new Washington-Wilkes SAR Chapter, reported that representatives of the Children, Daughters and Sons of the American Revolution organizations will gather with the public at 11 a.m. Sunday at the gravesite of Elijah Clarke in the Elijah Clark State Park near Lincolnton. “The Ceremony will honor the memory of Elijah Clarke, John Dooly, and other ‘Heroes of the Hornet’s Nest,’” Jenkins said. “After Kettle Creek, the Wilkes County Militia continued the fight for independence in northeast Georgia and the western Carolinas. Sandwiched between hostile Indians to the west and the British to the south and east, the Militia fought to keep their homes and families safe.”

During a previous Revolutionary Days celebration, a visitor from Johns Creek, Georgia, commented, “Our family has been to tons of historical sites, lots of events, and reenactments. This was without a doubt the most family-child friendly, educational, and well organized event we have ever attended!”

“Citizens of Wilkes County played an important part in the American Revolution,” said Sam Moore, Chairman of the Wilkes County Board of Commissioners. “Many families in our area have ancestors who fought in the Battle of Kettle Creek. We appreciate the efforts of the DAR and SAR and others to sponsor this event and give the Patriots the recognition that they deserve. We look forward to another outstanding Revolutionary Days celebration.”