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Special Feature: Site of Daniel Morgan's decisive victory over the British under Banastre Tarleton on January 17, 1781.

COWPENS was one of the most interesting battles of the Revolutionary War. It proved the value of backwoods militia when commanded by competent officers and used in conjunction with a nucleus of well-disciplined regular troops.

Established in 1929, the historical reservation at the site of the battle contains only 1 acre, with a monument in the center commemorating the significant event which occurred there. The area is located in an agricultural region typical of the South Carolina piedmont country, and is surrounded by cotton fields. The name Cowpens owes its origin to the fact that the area, with its grass and fine springs, had been used for the raising of cattle.

After the Battle of Kings Mountain, in October 1780, Cornwallis remained in South Carolina, but Greene, commanding the American Army, in the South, had too few men to risk a general engagement, and occupied his forces with harassing the British posts. In accordance with this policy he ordered Daniel Morgan to cross the Catawba, join Sumter, and move South to threaten Ninety-Six, in South Carolina, where there was a British fort. In order to repel this stroke, Cornwallis detached Tarleton, a dashing cavalry officer, to move against Morgan. The two forces met at Cowpens, about 20 miles west of Kings Mountain, on the morning of January 17, 1781. The British force numbered about 1,100 infantry and dragoons; the Americans had a slightly smaller number of militia and regulars. Tarleton expected an easy victory, and attacked with great confidence.

But the British commander did not reckon sufficiently with the ability of his opponent. Daniel Morgan was unexcelled as a leader of militia and light troops. He posted his men in three lines: 150 expert riflemen in front; then about 315 militia, many of whom had served in the Continental line; and behind them the remainder of the militia, the regulars, and the cavalry. The militia in the forward lines fired with deadly effect at the advancing British and fell back as ordered. The British were then halted by the cavalry and the main line—the Marylanders. Afterwards, the militia returned to the fray and aided in driving back their opponents, who fled in disorder, pursued by Col. William Washington's cavalry. Tarleton lost 100 killed, 229 wounded, and 600 prisoners not wounded—about 85 percent of his entire command. The firing at epaulets by the Americans was very effective, for 39 of the British officers were killed or wounded. Morgan lost only 12 killed and 60 wounded.

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