Sal and Amanda Take Morgan's Victory March to the Battle of Cowpens

Mary Ann Solesbee, Tony Waters

• Publisher: The History Press
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN: 9781626192799
• eBook ISBN: 9781625847638
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

"You must tell my "real" story " That's the challenge General Daniel Morgan, hero of the American Revolution, gives Ben when he meets the general's spirit in an abandoned house near the Pee Dee River. Ben is frightened. "How did this happen?" "I was just trying to help my cousins and my friend Jennifer get ready for the Morgan Victory March to celebrate the Battle of Cowpens. We were all going to get medals and make our Grammy May so proud Did Sal and Amanda, the underground ambassadors of South Carolina, get me into this mess?" Can Ben save the long-lost letter Daniel Morgan wrote from being destroyed? Can he tell everyone the truth about the famous general and set his spirit free? Will the cousins complete the march and earn their medals? Join Sal and Amanda on Morgan's Victory March and find out.

Chapter 1

Why We Celebrate!

Mrs. Henderson greeted Jennifer at the door. “Hey, Jen, go on out to the sun porch. Ben’s out there. I think he could use some help.”

Jen smiled and said, “Thanks, Mrs. Henderson. Smells like you’ve got something in the oven.”

“I certainly do! I’m practicing my chocolate chip recipe to get it just right for the contest next week!” Ben’s grandmother replied. The children all called her Grammy May because she was the mayor of their town.

“Sounds delicious. I’ll be glad to give you my opinion!” Jen smiled as she headed toward the porch.

“Whatcha doing?” she asked Ben when she saw him staring at his iPad screen.

“Trying to do research on the Revolutionary War in the backcountry.”

Jen couldn’t help but laugh. “Have you lost your mind? It’s almost the end of summer vacation; what’s wrong with you?” Ben looked up from his screen, thankful for the break in his work.

“Grammy says I have to enter this stupid speech contest for the Morgan Victory March. It’s sponsored by the Daughters of the American Revolution. You know, the DAR Grammy is always talking about. The speech is due in October, and the march is in January. She wants me to get a head start,” he moaned.

“Seriously?”

“She says it’s really important for me to do this because we’re inviting my cousins from all over the state to come. She says I have to know all about it and be a good host!”

“What do you have to write about?” Jen asked.

“I have to write a speech telling why the Revolution was important to South Carolina, that’s what!”

Jen, thankful that she wasn’t the one chosen to write the speech, sympathized with her friend. “I guess it doesn’t help that your grandmother was a teacher before she became the mayor, does it?”

“Yeah, and it certainly doesn’t help that I don’t like to write, and I don’t like to read all this stuff. History is just about a lot of dead people and dates and boring facts in my opinion!”

“You say that now, but you liked it when Sal and Amanda told us about it at Walnut Grove. Remember?” Jen asked. Ben smiled and recalled the salamanders they met on the field trip last year that seemed to know everything about South Carolina and its history.

“Those two were interesting and really fun!” Ben agreed.

“They are the Underground Ambassadors of South Carolina,” Jen reminded Ben.

“They represent our state amphibian, the spotted salamander. The children at Woodland Heights Elementary in Spartanburg lobbied successfully in 1991 for the spotted salamander to be our state amphibian,” Ben added.

“Since they aren’t here, maybe I can assist you. We learned a lot of that stuff last year in school, remember?” Jen asked.

Ben frowned and considered all the times he had caught himself daydreaming during history lessons. “That’s the problem; I don’t remember. Grammy says I can’t be a reenactor unless I know what the march is all about. She expects me to know the story of the Revolutionary War in the backcountry.”

“What is a reenactor?” Jen asked.

“It’s a person who plays the part of someone in history. They dress up in the period dress of the time.”

“Who are you going to be?” Jen asked. “General Daniel Morgan himself?”

Ben jumped up in frustration. He didn’t want to work on any Revolutionary War projects at the end of his summer or be teased by his friend.

“Of course not! But I’m going to be someone just as important. I’m going to be a drummer boy. The drummers controlled the soldiers’ day by playing different beats to signal where they should be and what they should be doing. Grammy said some of the drummer boys were about my age, and I could be one and march with a drum to the battlefield!”

Jen squealed with excitement. “I want to reenact this part too!”

Ben smirked. “Well, you can’t be a drummer boy, and they didn’t have drummer girls.”

“I know that, but women and girls called camp followers went with the troops to the battlefields to do the cooking, mending, laundry and nursing the sick and wounded. I could play the part of a camp follower girl! There were important women in the Revolution too, you know!”

Suddenly realizing that he might have some help with his speech and a friend to practice reenacting, Ben grabbed the opportunity to include Jen.

“Grammy is helping organize the march, so you better ask her. Maybe if you help me with this speech, I can talk to her for you,” he grinned, pleased with himself for finding assistance on the project.

“I can talk to her myself, thank you, but I’ll help you because you’re my best friend,” Jen announced.

“Thanks! Let’s get this started. Grammy told me to get my ideas down so she can check over them.”

As the two children began looking through historical websites online, they quickly learned that there would be a lot more to this than finding some simple Revolutionary War facts. They would have to do a ton of research to get their story straight and convince Grammy they knew everything there was to know about the Revolutionary War in South Carolina. While Jen quickly scrolled through the pages, Ben sat trying to take notes, looking lost.

“We just studied it last year, birdbrain!” Jen rolled her eyes at him.

“OK, brilliant one, tell me what to write!” Ben retorted.

Jen confessed that she also didn’t know where to even begin. “I wish we had Sal and Amanda to help us. It seems like it has been forever since we met them.” At that moment, they both sadly realized that they may never see their salamander friends again and their first encounter with them may have just been luck.

“We may never see them again!” Ben mumbled sadly.

“Quite to the contrary, sir!” a voice came from outside the window.

“Sal and Amanda to the rescue!” Amanda announced as both she and her twin brother scrambled onto the windowsill from outside.

“Oh, wow!” Ben shrieked.

Jen’s mood instantly lightened. “I’ve missed you two!”

“Shh! Be quiet,” Sal warned.

“You know we can’t let grown-ups see us! They just wouldn’t understand!” Amanda reminded them.

“Even though they see that talking gecko on TV all the time, real life talking salamanders are just too much for them!” Sal muttered.

The salamanders blinked at the pictures of the Revolutionary War on the computer and instructed the children to meet them outside under the big oak tree.

Sal and Amanda scurried out the window, and Ben and Jen headed toward the door.

Just then, Grammy called from the kitchen, “Ben, have you started your notes?”

“Not yet, Grammy. Jen and I are going to talk about it, and then she’ll help me write it down,” Ben winked at Jen.

“Well, y’all take some of these cookies and lemonade and see if you can get it all straight. I want to see what you’ve learned about the founding of our great nation.”

Ben took the cookies and Jen grabbed the cups of lemonade Grammy had fixed, and they hurried out to the oak tree.

“Here we are!” Amanda exclaimed as she and her brother climbed out from under a log.

“Just keeping cool!” Sal explained.

“That’s right! Salamanders need to stay moist!” Ben said, remembering what Sal and Amanda had taught them about amphibians.

“We’ve been hanging out at the Pacolet River. Plenty of salamander buddies there!” Sal nodded.

“Well, that’s what we need help with!” Ben shrieked.

“The Pacolet River?” Amanda asked, looking quite confused.

“Well, not the river exactly, but all the events that happened during the Revolution around the river,” Ben clarified. “That’s what my project is about.”

“A lot took place before the war got to the Pacolet area. Let’s catch you up!” Amanda smiled and sat down to start her speech.

“Could you give us the short version?” Ben asked.

Jen glared at Ben. “Don’t be rude!”

“Oh, no, it’s OK, I planned to do that,” Amanda replied.

“Oh, by the way, would either of you like some cookies and lemonade?” Jen asked. The salamander pair smiled at each other, thankful for the children and their hospitality but eager to get on with their storytelling.

“No thanks! We just had some earthworms on our way from the river,” Amanda smiled.

Jen and Ben gulped and exchanged disgusted looks.

“Well, let’s get to the story! There’s some really cool stuff about the battles and the fighting and the people!” Sal added.

“I know, but it’s all rattling around in my head from the history books and from what Grammy told me,” Ben shuddered.

“Time to listen up!” Amanda started. “The first permanent settlers to come to South Carolina were from England. Explorers from Spain and France also tried to establish colonies on the coast, but they failed.”

“Why did all these people want to come all the way across the Atlantic in ships anyway?” Ben asked.

“Some were searching for gold, some wanted religious freedom, some wanted a better life and some wanted adventure. But they were all trying to claim the land for their country,” Amanda explained.

Sal went on, “These settlers often used the phrase ‘for King and Country!’ The king of England gave people land here, and they became known as colonists. They were ruled by the king just like the people in England. Our colony was one of the first! It was called Charles Towne.”

“I knew that! And later it became Charleston!” Ben wanted to show that he remembered something.

“Ben’s cousin Kara lives there, and she’s coming to the Morgan March,” Jen added.

Sal smiled. “Yeah, and our Uncle Newt lives there too! He’s a real historian. Uncle Newt always says, ‘A revolution is a change in people’s lives and government.’ And I think…”

“OK, OK, let’s stick to the story,” Amanda interrupted. “Where was I? Let’s see, Charles Towne was established in 1670, but it was almost one hundred years before settlers came to the backcountry where we live. By that time, this colony was known as Carolina.

“These backcountry folk were mostly Scots Irish. That means they were from Scottish ancestors who had been living in Ireland. They migrated to this area from the northern ports where they first landed in the New World. They came to the Blue Ridge and the Piedmont because these regions reminded them of their homeland.”

“But how did the war get started?” Ben asked impatiently.

“That’s just what I was about to tell you. There was a revolution!” Sal blurted out.

“Let me finish! Then, you can tell about the war!” Amanda warned. “Many of the colonists wanted a change from British laws because they thought they were unfair.”

“Sounds that way to me!” Ben piped up.

“Well, in the 1750s and 1760s, England sent soldiers to the colonies to help fight both the Native Americans and the French,” Amanda explained.

“What was that all about? I thought the Native Americans owned the land since they were here first! And I thought the French left?” Ben exclaimed, sounding more puzzled than ever. Jen decided it was her turn to add some facts to this history lesson.

“I learned last year that the Native Americans were trying to keep the land they had lived on for years. And the French continued to try to gain control of some of the land so they could start their own colony. Everyone wanted the land, so there was a war.”

Ben sat pondering what Jen said and remembered le...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• 1. Why We Celebrate!
• 2. The Southern Campaign
• 3. Rivers, Rivers and More Rivers!
• 4. Is It Haunted?
• 5. Spirit!
• 6. To Tell the Truth
• 7. Cowpens National Battlefield
• 8. Morgan’s March
• 9. The Speech
• Appendix. Daniel Morgan’s Letter
• Discussion Questions
• Bibliography
• About the Author
• About the Illustrator