Yesterday’s sole post included a snapshot of a small part of Carolina map that identified Thomas Sumter’s home near the Santee River area of South Carolina. This detailed 1775 map is described as:
An Accurate Map of North and South Carolina With Their Indian Frontiers, Shewing in a distinct manner all the Mountains, Rivers, Swamps, Marshes, Bays, Creeks, Harbours, Sandbanks and Soundings on the Coasts, with The Roads and Indian Paths; as well as The Boundary or Provincial Lines, The Several Townships and other divisions of the Land in Both the Provinces; the whole from Actual Surveys by Henry Mouzon and Others
Captain William Henry Mouzon II of Hugoenot descent, was educated in France, spoke the language very well and became a surveyor/ civil engineer. Henry Mouzon had known Banastre Tarleton from their boyhood days.
He was a lieutenant in the 3rd S.C. Regiment, then raised the King’s Tree Company and became its captain. This militia company numbered about 75 men when it disbanded after Charleston fell to the British in May 1780. Capt. Mouzon’s company reformed in July 1780, then joined Col. Francis Marion.
By 1780, so callous had British Dragoon commander Banastre Tarleton grown from a sense of duty to his King that he burned the Mouzon Plantation’s home on 07AUG1780. Mouzon’s daughter Ann was eleven years old and was on top of the smoke house at the time and was the first to see the British. She sounded the alarm for the rest of the family before Tarleton’s Green Dragoons burned it.
The Mouzon home was at Mouzon’s Landing, located at Puddin’ Swamp on the Black River where Mouzon fled that day into the swamp to safety. The home was technically on the edge of St Marks Parish.
Following this significant event, British Major James Wemyss burned out Patriots & Loyalists alike in a swathe 15 miles wide all along the 70 miles route from Kingstree to Cheraw along the Black River in 1780.
Shortly thereafter, on September 28, 1780, Capt. Mouzon was severely wounded in Francis Marion’s victory at Black Mingo Creek and forced to retire from further active service. He died in 1807 and is buried in the Mouzon family cemetery .
Both of these scenarios were captured in the 2000 movie “The Patriot” where the fictional character Benjamin Martin also had his house burnt down in front of him and had neighbors and militia fighters learn that their homes along the river had been burnt down as well.