PVT IN THE NORTH CAROLINA MAJ FIELD'S BN
REVOLUTIONARY WAR
BORN FEB 10, 1759 DIED SEPT 13, 1842
This man was the great grandfather of Mark Lovelace, Adrian, Mo
August 6, 1780 – The Battle of Hanging Rock in Lancaster County, South Carolina
Patriots, under the command of Brigadier General Thomas Sumter, attacked a British outpost, resulting in a strong American victory. These Patriots were part of a militia, 800-men strong, who took on 1,400 Loyalists. (The Patriots had 12 KIA and 41 WIA, while the Loyalists suffered 200 total casualties.)
Among those fighting were our future President, Andrew Jackson, and his brother Robert. In addition, a soldier named Private Robert Thomas Bedwell, who is the man we honor today.
Private Bedwell was born in Delaware in 1759 and moved to North Carolina as a young man. During these years of his life, he would have only known the growing turmoil between the Colonies and the Mother Country. On February 27, 1776, loyalists were driven from Moore's Creek Bridge, North Carolina. Three weeks later on the other side of the state, Bedwell married his sweetheart, Elender Black.
The Bedwell’s settled in Rowan County, North Carolina and welcomed their first child in 1778. With the war surrounding them, Bedwell joined the North Carolina militia in May 1780. He was first assigned to Major Snoddy’s Company within Major Field’s Battalion. Bedwell and his comrades fought in the Battle of Hanging Rock on August 6th, then the Battle of Camden on August 10th. Bedwell had a short break from his service before resuming in November 1780 under the command of Captain Smith for three months. Next, he enlisted for the third and final time in August 1781. Bedwell spend 2 ½ months with Captain Lopp’s company.
Although the war had interrupted their lives, Bedwell returned home to Elender and resumed family life. Their second child was born in 1783, and their family continued to grow thereafter. The Bedwells moved to Indiana, where Bedwell lived-out the remainder of his 83 years. Their descendants continued westward through the generations. Bedwell’s 5th great-grandson, Mark Lovelace, settled in Adrian, Missouri, where he has commemorated his ancestor’s part in our war for independence. You can view Bedwell’s brick at the Lt. Charles Garrison Veterans Memorial (Section A, Line 15).