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Historic rifle to return
Kings Mountain sharpens up exhibits for 225th anniversary
JOE DEPRIEST
A Ferguson rifle, one of the world's rarest firearms, is going back on public view at Kings Mountain National Military Park this week for the first time in nearly 40 years.
It's an important reappearance.
The last time I saw the rifle was in the 1960s before someone stole it from a glass case at the park's old visitors center.
I don't care much about guns, but I care about the Ferguson rifle. The weapon is named after its designer, Lt. Col. Patrick Ferguson, the British Army commander killed at Kings Mountain on Oct. 7, 1780, as he rallied his troops by blowing a silver whistle.
There's no evidence he ever owned this rifle or used one like it in the battle.
But the innovative musket you could load and fire faster than standard models tells us about the creative mind of a Carolina legend.
When I went to Kings Mountain as a kid, the gist of what I learned about the battle was this: The bad guys were Americans loyal to England's King George III, and they were led by Patrick Ferguson; the good guys were American patriots led by such people as Isaac Shelby, later the first governor of Kentucky.
This great morale-builder was the first major Patriot win after the fall of Charleston and the crushing American defeat at Camden, S.C. Patriots needed a win. And it was even sweeter because a commander of Ferguson's caliber fell.
The more I've learned about Ferguson, the more I see him as honorable, decent and brave.
Rifle restored
Friday, at the 225th anniversary of the Kings Mountain battle, an original Ferguson rifle will go on display for the first time since the theft in 1969.The FBI and National Park Service authorities recovered the stolen rifle from a person in Charleston in 1991. Since then, it's been restored and locked away in a bank vault. Park officials were waiting until they had a more secure space before showing it off to the public again.
Now, the rifle is part of a new $400,000 exhibit that will interpret the battle for new generations. Kings Mountain averages around 500,000 visitors a year, making it one of South Carolina's top 10 tourist attractions. Even with high gas prices, officials say attendance is still strong.
Many visitors are probably like Juan Ceballos, 35, of Jacksonville, Fla., whom I met recently at the visitors center with his two young sons. He admitted he didn't know much about the Revolutionary War but wanted to learn more.
"I've seen a little on The History Channel, and it pulled my interest in," said Ceballos, a translator originally from Colombia. "Places like this (park), I really appreciate."
Chief Ranger Chris Revels told me the park's 2,700-square-foot exhibit area hasn't had a major makeover since it went up in 1975. The new exhibit is a mix of traditional cases and high-tech audio/visual elements. Many are inside large fiberglass trees that give you the feel for the virgin forest that was here at Kings Mountain in 1780 when the battle was fought.
"What else have you got?" I asked Revels.
"Well, we have an officer's model Ferguson rifle."
He dropped that one on me from out of nowhere. Only about 200 rifles were ever made. They were used in America at the Battle of Brandywine (Pa.) by a rifle company under Ferguson's command. But the company broke up after he was wounded, and the rifles were abandoned, lost or taken for souvenirs.
Ferguson's whistle
A few Ferguson rifles survive in private collections and such places as the National Museum in Washington and the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.
The National Park Service owns two Fergusons. One is at the Morristown National Historic Park in Morristown, N.J. The other is at Kings Mountain.
While news of the rifle's return sank in, Revels told me about other new things going in the exhibit. Some were on loan from private collections, others purchased by the park service.
They included a pair of pistols that might have belonged to Ferguson, a rifle actually used at the Kings Mountain battle and Isaac Shelby's hunting knife. The exhibit also has bullets, buttons, shoe buckles, bayonet scabbards and other items carried by battle veterans that turned up in recent archaeological surveys.
Revels tried to get one of Ferguson's whistles from a private collector. He negotiated through third or fourth parties, trying to buy the whistle, get it on loan or have a recording of it being blown.
So far, nothing has worked out. But I hope the collector finally comes around. The whistle belongs at Kings Mountain, where the real owner is buried and thousands come every year to connect with a great American story.
Want to Go?
The 225th anniversary of the Battle of Kings Mountain begins Friday at the Kings Mountain National Military Park with a wreath-laying ceremony at the U.S. Monument. The Overmountain Victory Trail Marchers arrive at the amphitheater at 3 p.m. Guest speaker is author David Wilson.
At 7 p.m., British actor Howard Burham will perform as English Gen. Henry Clinton. Events continue Saturday and next Sunday. For more information, call (864) 936-7921.
The battlefield is about 15 miles southwest of Gastonia, just south of the S.C. state line. From Charlotte, it's about 30 miles. Plan on a 45-minute drive (one way).
Getting there: From Charlotte, take Interstate 85 South to Exit 2; drive south on N.C. 216.
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/states/north_carolina/counties/gaston/12796898.htm
Kings Mountain sharpens up exhibits for 225th anniversary
JOE DEPRIEST
A Ferguson rifle, one of the world's rarest firearms, is going back on public view at Kings Mountain National Military Park this week for the first time in nearly 40 years.
It's an important reappearance.
The last time I saw the rifle was in the 1960s before someone stole it from a glass case at the park's old visitors center.
I don't care much about guns, but I care about the Ferguson rifle. The weapon is named after its designer, Lt. Col. Patrick Ferguson, the British Army commander killed at Kings Mountain on Oct. 7, 1780, as he rallied his troops by blowing a silver whistle.
There's no evidence he ever owned this rifle or used one like it in the battle.
But the innovative musket you could load and fire faster than standard models tells us about the creative mind of a Carolina legend.
When I went to Kings Mountain as a kid, the gist of what I learned about the battle was this: The bad guys were Americans loyal to England's King George III, and they were led by Patrick Ferguson; the good guys were American patriots led by such people as Isaac Shelby, later the first governor of Kentucky.
This great morale-builder was the first major Patriot win after the fall of Charleston and the crushing American defeat at Camden, S.C. Patriots needed a win. And it was even sweeter because a commander of Ferguson's caliber fell.
The more I've learned about Ferguson, the more I see him as honorable, decent and brave.
Rifle restored
Friday, at the 225th anniversary of the Kings Mountain battle, an original Ferguson rifle will go on display for the first time since the theft in 1969.The FBI and National Park Service authorities recovered the stolen rifle from a person in Charleston in 1991. Since then, it's been restored and locked away in a bank vault. Park officials were waiting until they had a more secure space before showing it off to the public again.
Now, the rifle is part of a new $400,000 exhibit that will interpret the battle for new generations. Kings Mountain averages around 500,000 visitors a year, making it one of South Carolina's top 10 tourist attractions. Even with high gas prices, officials say attendance is still strong.
Many visitors are probably like Juan Ceballos, 35, of Jacksonville, Fla., whom I met recently at the visitors center with his two young sons. He admitted he didn't know much about the Revolutionary War but wanted to learn more.
"I've seen a little on The History Channel, and it pulled my interest in," said Ceballos, a translator originally from Colombia. "Places like this (park), I really appreciate."
Chief Ranger Chris Revels told me the park's 2,700-square-foot exhibit area hasn't had a major makeover since it went up in 1975. The new exhibit is a mix of traditional cases and high-tech audio/visual elements. Many are inside large fiberglass trees that give you the feel for the virgin forest that was here at Kings Mountain in 1780 when the battle was fought.
"What else have you got?" I asked Revels.
"Well, we have an officer's model Ferguson rifle."
He dropped that one on me from out of nowhere. Only about 200 rifles were ever made. They were used in America at the Battle of Brandywine (Pa.) by a rifle company under Ferguson's command. But the company broke up after he was wounded, and the rifles were abandoned, lost or taken for souvenirs.
Ferguson's whistle
A few Ferguson rifles survive in private collections and such places as the National Museum in Washington and the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.
The National Park Service owns two Fergusons. One is at the Morristown National Historic Park in Morristown, N.J. The other is at Kings Mountain.
While news of the rifle's return sank in, Revels told me about other new things going in the exhibit. Some were on loan from private collections, others purchased by the park service.
They included a pair of pistols that might have belonged to Ferguson, a rifle actually used at the Kings Mountain battle and Isaac Shelby's hunting knife. The exhibit also has bullets, buttons, shoe buckles, bayonet scabbards and other items carried by battle veterans that turned up in recent archaeological surveys.
Revels tried to get one of Ferguson's whistles from a private collector. He negotiated through third or fourth parties, trying to buy the whistle, get it on loan or have a recording of it being blown.
So far, nothing has worked out. But I hope the collector finally comes around. The whistle belongs at Kings Mountain, where the real owner is buried and thousands come every year to connect with a great American story.
Want to Go?
The 225th anniversary of the Battle of Kings Mountain begins Friday at the Kings Mountain National Military Park with a wreath-laying ceremony at the U.S. Monument. The Overmountain Victory Trail Marchers arrive at the amphitheater at 3 p.m. Guest speaker is author David Wilson.
At 7 p.m., British actor Howard Burham will perform as English Gen. Henry Clinton. Events continue Saturday and next Sunday. For more information, call (864) 936-7921.
The battlefield is about 15 miles southwest of Gastonia, just south of the S.C. state line. From Charlotte, it's about 30 miles. Plan on a 45-minute drive (one way).
Getting there: From Charlotte, take Interstate 85 South to Exit 2; drive south on N.C. 216.
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/states/north_carolina/counties/gaston/12796898.htm
