Project Appleseed

A AS attendee just sent this to me and I thought I would share.

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       DANIEL MORGAN
      by Janie B. Cheaney

      In the spring of 1735 a tall, strong youth about 17 years old strode into
      Charles Town, Virginia with little but the clothes on his back and a
      determination to make something of himself. Almost nothing is known of
      Daniel Morgan's life before this time: he was born of Welsh immigrant
      parents in 1735 (or 1736) in Hunterdon County, New Jersey (or somewhere in
      Pennsylvania). His father was probably a landless farm laborer and Morgan
      later intimated that the two of them didn't get along. His mother's name
      and the existence of any siblings are unknown--Daniel himself never spoke
      of them. His shady background and subsequent rise strike an almost
      mythical note: he was the true American individual who came from nowhere
      and established himself as an authentic hero.

      The young man was notably strong and a hard, tireless worker. He began by
      hiring himself out as a farm worker but in less than a year earned enough
      trust from his employer to be placed in charge of the man's sawmill.
      Though Daniel would find himself in debt more than once during his life,
      he saved enough money to buy his own wagon and team and set up as an
      independent wagoner by the age of 19. He played as hard as he worked--a
      legendary brawler and drinker in a country full of brawlers and drinkers.
      There was plenty of work to be had hauling farm produce from the backwoods
      and over the mountains.

      War between the British and French on the frontier meant even more work
      for Morgan, who hired himself out hauling supplies for the British army.
      He was in the wagon train when General Braddock's army was attacked and
      almost wiped out by a French and Indian coalition; instead of supplies,
      Morgan found himself hauling wounded soldiers. At some point during that
      same year, 1754, he got into an altercation with a British officer which
      ended with a solid fist landed on the redcoat's soft body. This act of
      defiance led to swift military justice and a sentence of 500 lashes on the
      bare back. Such punishment was not unusual for the British army at the
      time, nor was it uncommon for a man to die under the lash. Morgan was too
      tough to die, but the experience left his back a mass of bone and
      hamburger. Once the scars healed over, however, he possessed a valuable
      visual aid that would prove useful to him more than once.

      He was not too soured on the British army to apply for a commission as
      colonel of militia (which never amounted to anything), and he also scouted
      and ran messages for them. On one occasion he was ambushed and chased by
      Indians for several miles, after taking a bullet through the mouth that
      knocked out several of his teeth and left a deep cleft on his left cheek.
      By 1758 he was settled near Winchester, Virginia, still following his old
      pursuits. His favorite hangout was a tavern near Battletown, a place that
      may have got its name from the numerous frontier brawls in which Daniel
      Morgan was a leading figure. He was often on the wrong side of the law
      during this time and appeared in court more than once on such charges as
      arson, horse stealing, assault and battery, and resisting arrest. One
      wonders if there was a charge of gunpowder in him that had to be worked
      out, for as time went on he showed more of his responsible side.

      By 1763 he claimed a sweetheart, Abigail Curry, and the two set up
      housekeeping and produced two daughters before ever going through a legal
      ceremony pronouncing them man and wife. But Abigail probably had a lot to
      do with settling him down, and teaching him to read and write as well. By
      1774, when they finally married, Daniel was a prosperous farmer, militia
      captain, and respected citizen of the community. When, in 1775, the first
      Continental Congress authorized the muster of two companies of riflemen
      from Virginia, Captain Morgan was the unanimous choice of his county to
      raise and lead one of them. Morgan's 96 riflemen trekked 600 miles from
      Winchester to Boston, arriving in plenty of time for the Battle of Bunker
      Hill. The American rifle, a frontiersman's weapon, was scarcely known in
      New England and Morgan's company caused quite a stir. More to the point,
      they helped create an almost pathological fear of rifle companies among
      the British rank and file, who suffered most from the weapon's range and
      accuracy.

      Morgan soon attracted the notice of George Washington and other officers
      of the Continental army's high command, and was chosen to serve as
      commander of three rifle companies bound for Quebec. Congress had hatched
      a grand scheme to neutralize Canada as a British staging ground by simply
      bringing it into the patriot fold--a 14th colony, as it were. The plan
      called for a double-pronged attack on Montreal and Quebec, led by General
      Richard Montgomery and Colonel Benedict Arnold, respectively. This was
      supposed to be easier than it sounds, for neither city was especially
      well-defended.

      On September 25, 1775, the Quebec expedition set off from Fort Western,
      Maine (near Augusta) into the howling Canadian wilderness. It was a
      nightmare. Their route followed the Kennebec River into Canada, where the
      "height of land" forced a four-mile portage of their heavy, cumbersome
      bateaux (oversize canoes) to the Chaudiere, or "Cauldron" River. Roads did
      not exist there, and bogs and fallen timber impeded almost every step of
      the way. Both rivers were barely navigable. Game was extremely scarce and
      before it was all over the soldiers were reduced to eating dogs and
      leather. Two and a half months after they began, the expedition had
      thinned from 1050 able-bodied soldiers to 675.

      During the march, Captain Morgan distinguished himself as a driver of men
      who nonetheless retained the common touch and kept their respect. Ordinary
      soldiers tended to work a little harder and push themselves a little
      farther when Morgan was leading them. On November 10 they camped on the
      St. Lawrence, within view of Quebec. General Montgomery joined them after
      securing the city of Montreal, and it was decided to attack Quebec during
      the next snowstorm. The weather did not oblige until New Year's Eve, when
      a blizzard blew in to mask the approach of the Americans. Montgomery was
      to lead a column from the south and Arnold from the north, the two columns
      to unite just inside the walls of the "lower city" before pressing on to
      storm the walls of Quebec proper. Before dawn on January 1, Arnold and
      Morgan at the head of the north column began their approach.
      The delay allowed the British to rally and organize a quick defense, which
      soon became an offense when they surrounded Morgan's column on the narrow
      street. Even then, he refused to give up--backed up against a wall in a
      one-man defense, he dared the British to come on. Finally, under the
      urging of his own men, he handed over his sword to a priest in the crowd.
      Prisoners of rank generally received courteous treatment until they were
      exchanged with prisoners of equal rank from the other side. In Morgan's
      case an exchange did not occur until September 1776, when he was returned
      to the Continental army.

      Washington, by now well aware of Morgan's abilities, used his rifle corps
      throughout the following winter and spring as light infantry to harry the
      British foragers and rear guard. By late summer, the Americans faced a
      threat in New York state as British General John Burgoyne marched from
      Canada with the intention seizing the Hudson River, thus dividing New
      England from the rest of the colonies. General Horatio Gates was
      dispatched to organize and lead the American resistance, and Colonel
      Morgan with his rifle corps accompanied him by special request. The two
      armies clashed near Saratoga, New York, in October 1777, in a two-day
      battle generally considered the turning point of the Revolution. Horatio
      Gates, more administrator than soldier, coordinated forces but left the
      fighting to Morgan and Benedict Arnold, both outstanding combat
      commanders.

      On the first day, at Freeman's Farm, the Virginia riflemen attacked and
      drove off Burgoyne's Indian scouts. Later they cut up an entire regiment
      and rendered the British artillery corps useless by picking off the crew
      one by one. The second day, at Bemis Heights, Morgan led a flanking
      movement to the British right that, with Arnold's coordinating movement on
      the left, wrapped up the entire army and forced Burgoyne to surrender. It
      was a decisive victory, won when Americans needed victory in the worst
      way, and it played no small part in influencing the French government to
      officially enter the war on the side of the struggling colonies.

      Morgan returned to Washington's army covered with glory, and almost
      immediately floundered in army politics. He felt that his accomplishments
      had earned him a promotion and a larger command; a special brigade of
      light infantry was then forming, and he wanted it. The problem: he was a
      Virginian, and Virginia was thought by Congress to have fielded enough
      generals. Jealousy and rivalry among the colonies prompted Congress to
      offer the command to Anthony Wayne, a Pennsylvanian.

      The "Hero of Saratoga," deeply offended, slung his rifle over his shoulder
      and returned home to Winchester on indefinite furlough. Touchiness was one
      of his faults, but he benefited from the rest. The rigors of the Quebec
      campaign had caught up with him, in the racking pains and tortures of
      rheumatism. Over the next year Abigail treated him with cold baths and
      herbal remedies, but Morgan would never again be free of back problems.
      Though physically removed from the war he kept in touch through
      correspondence with his many friends, including General Horatio Gates, a
      near neighbor. When Gates was appointed to command the army of the South,
      he urged Morgan to join him as combat commander.

      Unfortunately for his country, Daniel was in no condition to respond at
      first; only after Gates, through spectacular mishandling of his field
      forces at Camden, had lost yet another American army did Morgan pull
      himself together and head south. The Continental Congress had by now seen
      the error of its ways and promoted him to Brigadier General. When he
      arrived at headquarters in Charlotte, there was but little to command.
      After its near-annihilation at Camden, the army of the Southern Department
      was building up with agonizing slowness, and of the total number present,
      only a little over half were fit for duty. Foraging and raiding occupied
      their time until the end of the year, when a change of command promised
      better things for the future.

      General Nathanael Greene arrived early in December to take over from
      Horatio Gates. Greene, raised a Quaker in Rhode Island, had jumped into
      the war at its beginning and quickly earned the respect of George
      Washington, who regarded him as one of his most valuable officers. He was
      Washington's choice to head the southern department from the beginning,
      but Congress had liked Gates better. Now that Gates's shortcomings were
      obvious to everybody, Nathanael Greene was to have his chance.
      It was obvious to all that the new commander seemed to have a sure grasp
      of logistics, terrain, and discipline, but only a few weeks into his
      command he performed what appeared to be a fundamental error: in the face
      of the superior army of Cornwallis, he divided his own puny force.
      Charlotte, stripped clean by two successive armies, was no longer able to
      support them. Greene himself retreated with the sick, halt and lame to a
      camp on the Cheraw, while Daniel Morgan took command of the more
      able-bodied men--about 600, plus a small cavalry unit under Colonel
      William Washington--and marched them westward along the Broad River.
      Morgan's orders were to keep his own little army together, draw into his
      force any scattered militia units that might be attracted to him, and
      stand ready to meet any British threat. This was a vague objective, and it
      made him nervous. Very soon something else made him nervous--the
      intelligence that Colonel Banastre Tarleton was chasing him with the body
      of Tory cutthroats known as the British Legion, along with two regiments
      of British regulars. Tarleton enjoyed the most formidable reputation of
      any British commander in the entire war: no one moved faster or struck
      harder, and on more than one occasion he was known to have cut down
      American troops even after they had surrendered. Morgan probably knew he
      could outsmart the Colonel, but had not so much confidence in his men.
      The core of his little army was the Maryland and Delaware regiment,
      seasoned soldiers commanded by Colonel John Eager Howard, who had proved
      their worth over and over again. But the militia groups who were joining
      them daily were just the opposite of "seasoned"--what they did best was
      eat, and they were known to turn tail and run in the face of well-trained
      British bayonets. Their numbers brought his total up to around 1000, but
      the worth of a militiaman, in Morgan's view, was only half a trained
      soldier's.

      Through the first half of January, 1781, Tarleton gained on him, never
      backing off even though severely impeded by the steady rains that swelled
      every creek and river. By the 14th, Morgan broke his camp on Thicketty
      Creek and began moving northward. He had sought permission from Nathanael
      Greene to march southwest into Georgia and build up his troops, but he had
      an idea his superior would not go for the plan and Tarleton was almost on
      him anyway. Early on January 16, the Americans had to leave their
      breakfast still cooking on the coals in order to escape Tarleton's advance
      guard closing in on them.

      Morgan decided it was time to turn and fight, and pressed northward
      looking for a favorable spot to take a stand. Late in the afternoon he
      came to a rolling pasture known as "the Cowpens," and decided it would
      suit his purpose. Some of his contemporaries and later historians have
      criticized his choice of ground, because the area was wide open to any
      flanking movement and the Broad River, less than five miles at his back,
      would have cut off any retreat. Morgan later explained that this was
      precisely his intention--he figured the militia would stand and fight if
      they knew there was no escape.

      That evening, the general came up with a battle plan that made the best
      use of militia in combination with his Continentals. If the plan seems
      glaringly simple to today's armchair strategists, we must bear in mind
      that it went against the military conventions of his day, and 18th-century
      warfare was nothing if not conventional. Since he had no artillery, he
      placed about 150 riflemen in a picket line shielded by trees, to perform
      the "softening up" that artillery was supposed to do. On his front line,
      he strung out the militia under the command of Colonel Andrew Pickens,
      with a very important proviso: they were to fire two volleys, and two
      only. Then they were to retire to their left and take cover in the shallow
      swale at the rear. About 150 yards behind the militia were the Maryland
      and Delaware Continentals commanded by John Eager Howard, who could be
      trusted to hold that line as long as it was humanly possible to do so.
      Colonel Washington's cavalry, about 80 strong, was held in reserve at the
      rear.

      The night before he expected Tarleton to attack, Morgan went the rounds of
      the camp and made pep talks around the cooking fires, explaining carefully
      to the militiamen what he expected them to do and, for good measure,
      displaying the scars on his back. He claimed that the British drummer who
      laid those stripes on him had miscounted; instead of 500, he'd only
      received 499. So King George owed him one, but Morgan, "the Old Wagoner,"
      anticipating cracking his own whip in the morning. He jollied, exhorted,
      and praised his men throughout the night; seldom in history have troops
      been better prepared for an anticipated action.

      Tarleton arrived on the scene at about 7 a.m. on January 17 and began
      deploying his troops almost immediately. While his artillery--two
      six-pounders--commenced to hurl grapeshot toward the militia lines, a
      detachment of cavalry was sent to break up the snipers sheltering in the
      trees. Well-aimed rifle fire took a heavy toll of the horsemen, but the
      British artillery succeeded in breaking up the skirmish line. Tarleton
      then ordered a frontal assault by foot soldiers of the 7th Regiment and
      the British Legion infantry. The American militia stood their ground just
      long enough to deliver the promised two volleys, and their massed
      firepower opened gaping holes in the British ranks. Then the militia broke
      up in a more or less orderly fashion and made for the rear, where they
      might have kept going except that General Morgan and Colonel Pickens were
      there to keep them together.

      The British, meanwhile, assumed that the retreat was a rout and pressed
      their attack on up the slope to the waiting Continentals. Here they came
      up against formidable resistance and for some time the two armies poured
      fire on each other with neither side giving ground. Frustrated at his
      inability to break through, Tarleton ordered his reserve corps to move up
      the slope double-time and outflank the American right. These were the 71st
      Highlanders, who customarily marched into battle with bagpipes squalling.
      At their approach, John Eager Howard ordered his right flank to turn to
      meet the attack. The order was misunderstood; instead of turning, the
      American right began an orderly retreat. The British, anticipating a quick
      victory, shed their famous discipline and broke ranks as they closed in
      for the kill.

      At this point Morgan dashed up on horseback and, in Howard's words,
      "expressed apprehension of the event." (We can just bet he did!)
      Improvising quickly once he had grasped the situation, Morgan established
      another line beyond the crest of the slope for the Continentals to
      re-form. No sooner had they done this than the British made their last
      charge. The Americans turned and fired, then counter-charged. At the same
      time, Colonel Washington's cavalry attacked the British right and folded
      it. Under this furious assault, soldiers of the 7th and the Legion began
      throwing down their arms, and even themselves, in surrender. On the
      British left, the 71st Highlanders were giving a good account of
      themselves until a sudden influx of Americans outflanked the outflankers.
      Andrew Pickens had rallied the militia and delivered them where they were
      most needed, thus wrapping up the entire British army in a classic double
      envelopment.

      Tarleton tried to save his artillery, but was too late even for that; he
      escaped with only about fifty troopers and a broken reputation. The entire
      action had taken about an hour. Cowpens is regarded as the tactical
      masterpiece of the Revolution--the plan was perfectly adapted for the men
      and terrain, the coordinating units worked beautifully together, and at a
      critical point when the outcome was iffy, luck or Providence stepped in.
      Also, Tarleton played directly into Morgan's hands. His forte was the
      swift approach and head-on charge, tactics that Morgan anticipated and
      used to his own advantage.

      But stunning as the victory was, the General did not linger to celebrate;
      knowing that Lord Cornwallis would soon be after him, he was on the road
      by noon on the same day as the battle. Before long his rheumatism flared
      up again and to that was added the misery of hemorrhoids; after a week on
      the road he could no longer ride. He held his army together until its
      rendezvous with Greene's, but soon after he applied for a furlough. Greene
      discharged him most reluctantly, and Daniel headed home for another series
      of cold baths. The War had only eight more months to run, and he had done
      as much as any one man to bring about its favorable conclusion. He
      recovered in time to take the field very briefly in the Virginia
      skirmishing that led eventually to Yorktown, but even that proved too much
      for him.

      In July of 1781 he retired for good. Daniel Morgan lived out the rest of
      his life in peace and prosperity at his home, "Soldier's Rest," near
      Winchester. In 1794 he commanded a company charged with putting down the
      short-lived Whiskey Rebellion, an uprising of backcountry farmers incensed
      over a federal tax on distilled grains. He served one term in Congress,
      and one term was enough. A staunch Federalist like his hero George
      Washington, he became disgusted with Jeffersonian Democrats--"a parsall of
      egg-sucking dogs," as he termed them. He died in 1802 at the age of 66 (or
      67). In the opinion of at least one historian, America never produced a
      better field commander.
     
Sources:

      Higginbotham, Don, Daniel Morgan: Revolutionary Rifleman. Chapel Hill,
      1961.
      Buchanan, John. The Road to Guilford Court House: the American Revolution
      in the Carolinas. New York, 1997
      © 1998 Janie B. Cheaney dgccmaster

FWIW, a trip to Quebec City to see the Citadel (that's what was attacked) is something to consider, if you get the chance. I have, and it's something.

Looking at a map, it doesn't look all that hard to take the Citadel, as it's a very short distance from the St lawrence River. When you are there, you see the difficulty. It's a LONG way up from the river.

I usually talk a bit about Daniel Morgan as we retrieve and inspect the redcoat targets. Primarily I talk about "Morgan's Riflemen" and Tim Murphy rather than Morgan himself as a rifleman.

I come back to it several times over the weekend as I coach shooters, particularly on the 400 yard targets.

I always frame the first Redcoat of the weekend by talking about what it took to be a part of Morgan's Rifleman Corps (headshot at 250 yards) with their antique firearms, and what it meant if you failed (going to the Regular army, standing shoulder to shoulder and trading ball with Redcoats 50 yards away until enough people fall down or a bayonet charge occurred).

"It's good to be a Rifleman".

I don't want to take too much time as I know everyone is raring to go for pulling the trigger, but my 10 minute speech there gives a little intro to history to start.

(Obviously a little artistic license...... but oh well.)

A nice bit of Morgan material here

http://www.archive.org/details/gendanielmorgan00grahrich

With included material from "authentic sources"

for material on Michael Cresap go here

http://www.archive.org/details/abiographicalsk00jacogoog

The Cresap material is written by the man that married Cresap's widow, refuting criticism of him made by Thomas Jefferson. Very Interesting.

Quote from: MeanStreaker on July 15, 2009, 04:07:31 PM
<snip>

      In the spring of 1735 a tall, strong youth about 17 years old strode into
      Charles Town, Virginia with little but the clothes on his back and a
      determination to make something of himself. Almost nothing is known of
      Daniel Morgan's life before this time: he was born of Welsh immigrant
      parents in 1735 (or 1736) ...

Er, bit of a discrepancy in those dates, eh?

Those Jersey boys, you can't keep 'em down.

Ever since I first heard of the suffering of the men who went and came back from the attack on Canada, starving in the cold, I think of them every time I make a simple vegtable stew which I'm sure they were wishing for.
Makes me thankful for what I have.

Maybe I ought to research the dates of this, and organize an 'Appleseed dinner' sometime.