September 25, 1780, the “Over Mountain Men” met along the Watauga River before heading along the Yellow Mountain Road over the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Yellow Mountain Road, today part of the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail, stretches through what is present-day Avery County. In the fall of 1780 an army of backcountry men marched on the road toward the Battle of Kings Mountain. The Appalachian men were called “Over Mountain Men,” having crossed through the backcountry regions of Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina on their way to Kings Mountain.
The road begins on the western side of the Blue Ridge Mountains at Sycamore Flats where groups of militiamen gathered. Taking the Yellow Mountain Road, which was then the only road that led east, they went through Gap Creek Mountain to the Toe River before heading south to the top of the ridge at Roan High Knob and Big Yellow Mountain. The troops then were paraded on a 100-acre tract of flat land to determine how they were fairing on the journey.
The militiamen went on to form a coalition of approximately 1,000 troops that fought and defeated the British Army on October 7 at the Battle of Kings Mountain.
Other related resources:
- The American Revolution, the Reasons Behind the Revolutionary War and the Stamp Act on NCpedia
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