Daniel Appling (August 29, 1787 – March 5, 1817) was an officer in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
during the first two decades of the nineteenth century. He was born and educated in
Columbia County, Georgia
Columbia County is a county located in the east central portion of the US state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 124,035. The legal county seat is Appling, but the ''de facto'' seat of county government is Evans. . After joining the Army at age eighteen, he was commissioned into the Regiment of Riflemen, in which he served for his entire career. He led troops in Florida during the Patriot war and along the Niagara frontier during the War of 1812. Appling resigned his commission in 1816 and moved to Alabama. Appling died in 1817 (or possibly 1818). He died while the State of Georgia was procuring a sword to be presented to him in recognition of his service during the War of 1812. A county in Georgia is named after him and a U.S. Naval vessel after the county.
Early life and education
Appling was born in
Columbia County, Georgia
Columbia County is a county located in the east central portion of the US state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 124,035. The legal county seat is Appling, but the ''de facto'' seat of county government is Evans. to John and Rebecca (Carter) Appling. He was educated in private schools judged to be among the best in Georgia, studying under
David Bushnell
David Bushnell (August 30, 1740 – 1824 or 1826), of Westbrook, Connecticut, was an American inventor, a patriot, one of the first American combat engineers, a teacher, and a medical doctor.
Bushnell invented the first submarine to be used in ...
, among others; his education included Greek and Latin.
Career
Operations in Florida
In 1805, Appling enlisted in the United States Army.
On May 3, 1808, Appling was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the
Regiment of Riflemen
The Regiment of Riflemen was a unit of the U.S. Army in the early nineteenth century. Unlike the regular US line infantry units with muskets and bright blue and white uniforms, this regiment was focused on specialist light infantry tactics, an ...
.
Appling served as a recruiting officer for some time and was later stationed at
Fort Hawkins, near
Macon, Georgia under the command of Captain (later Brigadier General)
Thomas A. Smith. He marched with his regiment to Point Peter on
St. Mary's River in Georgia.
He commanded troops on
Amelia Island
Amelia Island is a part of the Sea Islands chain that stretches along the East Coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida; it is the southernmost of the Sea Islands, and the northernmost of the barrier islands on Florida's Atlanti ...
in
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
during the
Patriot War
The Patriot War was a conflict along the Canada–United States border in which bands of raiders attacked the British colony of Upper Canada more than a dozen times between December 1837 and December 1838. This so-called war was not a conflic ...
.
On July 1, 1809, Appling was promoted to first lieutenant, and on April 1, 1812 he was promoted to captain.
[
]
Battle of Big Sandy Creek
During the War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...
, Appling was ordered to Sackets Harbor
Sackets Harbor (earlier spelled Sacketts Harbor) is a village in Jefferson County, New York, United States, on Lake Ontario. The population was 1,450 at the 2010 census. The village was named after land developer and owner Augustus Sackett, who ...
in New York. Navy Captain Melancthon Taylor Woolsey was assigned to transport cables and cannons needed to outfit a frigate, , and other vessels from Oswego, New York to Sackets Harbor. The equipment was loaded onto nineteen boats on the evening of May 28, 1814. Appling, who had been promoted to major the previous April 15 and 120 of his riflemen were assigned to support Woolsey. One of the boats was separated from the others and was captured by the British. Captain Sir James Yeo decided to pursue the remaining Americans, who had withdrawn up Big Sandy Creek to fortify their position. On the morning of 30 May, a large British force engaged the Americans. Appling, his riflemen and 120 Oneida Warriors had established an Ambuscade
An ambush is a long-established military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind moun ...
and surprised the British. The Battle of Big Sandy Creek
The Battle of Big Sandy Creek was fought in northwestern New York (state), New York on May 29–30, 1814, during the War of 1812. American troops and Oneidas, Oneida Indians launched an attempted surprise attack on British troops and sailors, wh ...
lasted less than ten minutes and resulted in an overwhelming American victory. The Americans captured 143 prisoners (133 men and 10 officers), wounded 20 (18 men and 2 officers); and killed 14 (13 men and one officer). They also captured three gun-boats, one with a 24-pounder and a 63-pounder; two cutters; and one gig.[ Effective May 30, 1814, Appling was brevetted as a lieutenant colonel for gallant conduct in capturing a superior force of the enemy at the Battle of Big Sandy Creek.]
Battle of Plattsburgh
During the Battle of Plattsburgh, Appling led 110 riflemen against General Sir George Prevost
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
's attack, conducting a number of delaying actions on the Beckmantown Road. For his distinguished service there, he was brevetted as a colonel effective September 11, 1814.
Resignation and death
On June 1, 1816, Appling resigned from the army; he returned to Georgia and later moved to Montgomery County, Alabama
Montgomery County is located in the State of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, its population was 228,954, making it the fifth-most populous county in Alabama. Its county seat is Montgomery, the state capital. Montgomery County is included in th ...
.[
Appling died on March 5, 1817, in Montgomery County.][ An alternate date of death is March 18, 1818.]
On December 22, 1819, a petition from Rebecca C. Appling, Daniel Appling's sister, requesting that prize money
Prize money refers in particular to naval prize money, usually arising in naval warfare, but also in other circumstances. It was a monetary reward paid in accordance with the prize law of a belligerent state to the crew of a ship belonging to ...
for the capture of the Royal Navy vessels equipment at the Battle of Big Sandy Creek be distributed to her and the men who had served under Daniel at the battle as would have happened if Daniel and his men had been in the U.S. Navy. On January 5, 1820, a bill in support of the petition failed to pass.
Honors and namesakes
The Georgia Legislature
The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directl ...
awarded Appling a sword in recognition of the efforts during the War of 1812. Appling died before the sword could be delivered. The sword hung in the Governor's Office until 1883, when it was sent to the archives of the Georgia State Historical Society. In 1906, the sword was sent to be displayed in the Jamestown Exposition
The Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States in the early part of the 20th century. Commemorating the 300th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown in the Virginia Colony, it w ...
, but it never returned to Georgia. In 2010 the director of the Georgia Division of Archives and History saw an advertisement in an antiques magazine offering the sword for sale for $250,000. The Pennsylvania antiques collector and dealer gave Georgians until December 31 to raise $100,000 to purchase the sword or he would sell it to waiting buyers. An initiative by Friends of the Georgia Archives and the Daughters of the War of 1812 raised the money, and in 2012, the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, the sword was returned to the state of Georgia. It now hangs in the State Capitol's Hall of Valor.
Appling County, Georgia
Appling County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,444. The county seat is Baxley.
History
Appling County is named for Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Appling, a s ...
was named for Daniel Appling on December 15, 1818.
, an attack transport
Attack transport is a United States Navy ship classification for a variant of ocean-going troopship adapted to transporting invasion forces ashore. Unlike standard troopships – often drafted from the merchant fleet – that rely on ...
named for Appling County, Georgia, was launched on April 9, 1944, and decommissioned on December 20, 1946. ''Appling'' earned three battle stars for her World War II service.
See also
References
External links
Appling County
historical marker
{{DEFAULTSORT:Appling, Daniel
1787 births
1817 deaths
United States Army colonels
Appling County, Georgia
United States Army personnel of the War of 1812
People from Columbia County, Georgia
People from Montgomery County, Alabama