Saw this on AOL news: Tuesday, 07/04/06 'Kings Mountain Messenger' bravery remembered by few Long trek reassured Continental Congress By KATE HOWARD Staff Writer PETERSBURG, Tenn. — Joseph Greer's grave doesn't look like that of a hero. The pile of broken monuments that mark his final resting place in this small Lincoln County town offer no hint of the role Greer played more than 225 years ago in gaining America's freedom from British rule. Any explanation of the 600 miles he trekked to tell of a patriot victory in the Carolina wilderness has been lost to time, erosion or vandals. (http://gcirm.tennessean.com/RealMedia/ads/click_lx.ads/news.tennessean.com/local/inside/index.html/19103 01681/300x250_1/OasDefault/nelsonMazda-050806-island/I-NelsonMazda-050506.gif/ 63646263373434333434623161336430) Historians say that much of Tennessee was settled by Revolutionary War soldiers, like Greer, who were paid in land. Although there are probably thousands of native Tennesseans who are descended of the soldiers, the battles of the Civil War were geographically closer and more recent. With every passing generation, interest in Revolutionary War genealogy seems to wane, said Bettye Silvey, regent of the Kings Mountain chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. "There's really not probably as much interest here in the Revolutionary War as the Civil War history," she said. "So many of us are getting older." Historians say Greer arrived in Philadelphia on Nov. 7, 1780, after a dangerous, monthlong expedition and told of an American win at the Battle of Kings Mountain. The news re-energized a downtrodden Continental Congress, and the win was considered a turning point in the quest for American independence. A marker detailing Greer's journey is now displayed at the Lincoln County Courthouse in nearby Fayetteville to protect it from vandalism. Few descendants still live in the area where Greer and his family settled after the end of the Revolutionary War. Over the years, even fewer landowners have taken up the cost to maintain the graves of Greer, his second wife and youngest son that sit in an open field off a gravel road near Greer's former home. While the man dubbed the "Kings Mountain Messenger" is one of more than 100 Revolutionary War soldiers buried in Lincoln County, a local genealogist said that most gravestones have stayed in much better condition than his. "These graves are like old houses," Silvey said. "If the family doesn't live in it and die in it, it falls apart." The DAR chapter hopes to restore the graves within the year, Silvey said. The site is owned by a local man who is not a descendant, but has given the OK for improvements to the site, Silvey said. Mark Whitaker of Petersburg is one of the few descendants left in town, a member of the fifth generation of Greer's family. He can point to the gravel road that marked the beginning of Greer's land here, the hill where it ended and all the places in between where some of his 11 children settled. Greer passed down more than 5,000 acres of what was then Williamson and Rutherford counties to his children. But the Civil War and economic troubles that followed forced Greer's descendants to sell off their land, and Greer's crypt has fallen victim to the changing hands of land ownership. "There was nobody left to maintain the gravesite," Whitaker said. "There aren't many descendants left around here." Whitaker said he takes care of another family cemetery a few miles away because it was deeded to Greer's descendants. He cleaned it up, fenced it off and made it his business to learn the stories of most everyone there. He figures that cemetery's appearance will die with him, once there's no one left who cares enough to keep it up. It's a commitment nobody has made in recent years to Greer's plot, although Whitaker visits it often. "I'm not sure anyone wants to do it," he said. "Guess it's just me." But the DAR plans to take up the cause. Silvey envisions the Greer plot with a wrought-iron fence and a small parking lot for visitors. She occasionally talks to students about Revolutionary War history, but she thinks more people would take an interest in Greer's history if they could see the grave firsthand — the way it was intended. "We want to restore it to just how it originally looked," Silvey said. Whitaker continues to share the story of his ancestor to anyone who asks, telling of Greer's physical greatness at 6-foot-7 and what he sees as his lingering historical greatness. "I think this is the most important battle because they were all ready to quit until this man reported to congress and saved the day," Whitaker said. "There might be no nation without this battle." • (javascript:NewWindow(540,775,'/apps/pbcs.dll/misc?url=/misc/zoom.pbs&Site=DN&Date=20060704&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=607040352&Ref=AR');) Mark Whitaker looks at the gravesite of Joseph Greer, an ancestor who fought in the Revolutionary War. The gravesite is on someone else's property and has not been maintained. (KATE HOWARD / THE TENNESSEAN) (javascript:NewWindow(540,775,'/apps/pbcs.dll/misc?url=/misc/zoom.pbs&Site=DN&Date=20060704&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=607040352&Ref=V2');) A historic marker commemorating Joseph Greer's role in the Battle of Kings Mountain stands in the town square in Petersburg. (KATE HOWARD / THE TENNESSEAN) ____________________________________ JOSEPH GREER After the battle on Kings Mountain in what is now Blackburg, S.C., Joseph Greer was picked to deliver news of the victory to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Historians say he made most of the 600-mile, one-month trip on foot with just a compass to guide him, passing through hostile territory on the way. The war for control of America had reached a stalemate in the north in early 1780, and England's military strategy was to move into the Southern colonies and increase their troop size before returning north. Historians say the October battle halted the British advance into the Carolinas, changing the course of history and pushing the Continental Army toward its eventual victory. Nobody in the congress knew about the battle or knew of Greer until he arrived, historians said. Greer, at least 6-foot-7, had to force his way in on Nov. 7, 1780, to tell the tale of the battle, earning the nickname of the "Kings Mountain Messenger." Greer moved to what is now East Tennessee with land given to him as payment from North Carolina's military officials after the war. He later bought up to 10,000 acres of land near Petersburg in Middle Tennessee. A widower, Greer met and married Mary Ann Harmon in 1808 after moving to Petersburg. They had 11 children before his death in 1831, at the age of 77. SOURCE: Tennessee Daughters of the American Revolution research; U.S. Department of the Interior documents; writings of Mark Whitaker, a Greer descendant Kate Howard can be reached at 726-8968 or [email protected]_ (mailto:[email protected]) .

Does anyone have a listing of those killed during the Civil War that were from Lincoln Co., TN? I'm searching for Charles Wakefield, born 1831, TN and the son of Elizabeth Pigg Wakefield. Thank you. Dortha McElroy Greenlee