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Re: [AmRevolution] Flag at Kings Mountain
Posted By: Doby Pilgrim (cache-ntc-aa08.proxy.aol.com)
In Response To: Re: [AmRevolution] Flag at Kings Mountain (Mike Blake)
Date: Tuesday, 9 September 2003 0140 hrs. EDT
It was definitely a crucial turning point. I agree that Ferguson was an extremely interesting person, and my one regret about that battle is that he was killed in it. Ferguson was a gentleman of the highest order, and there is some significant speculation that he had Washington in his sights while still with his rifle company. He passed on the shot, since in his belief the American officer (probably accompanied by Lafayette) was simply too fine looking to shoot from cover. The Ferguson breechloader was probably the finest infantry rifle of the war, and fortunately for us, the British military didn't recognize that fact. King's Mountain not only expedited the eventual American victory, it ended serious British experimentation with breech loading rifle-armed infantry for at least 75 years. Fergusons are being reproduced here and are availble for in the $3,000 range. The extremely rare originals would fetch in excess of $100,000 US.
Best,
Doby Pilgrim
Santa Fe, NM
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