"F" is for Fishing Creek, Battle of [August 18, 1780]. After the Battle of Camden, Banastre Tarleton and his British Legion pursued Thomas Sumter and his troops. Sumter, feeling safe that the British were far enough away on the other side of the river, halted his command to rest at Fishing Creek. He allowed his men to stack arms and do as they pleased. Some napped and some swam, while others lounged around getting drunk. Tarleton’s attack was lightning-fast and overwhelming. The unprepared Americans either surrendered or fled for their lives; 150 patriots were killed and 350 captured. Sumter, somehow, managed to elude capture. Coming on the heels of the humiliating defeat at Camden, the rout of Sumter’s force at the Battle of Fishing Creek marked the low point of the patriot cause in South Carolina.
"F" is for Fishing Creek, Battle of [August 18, 1780]
