Elijah Isaacs (17301799) was a farmer, politician from
Wilkes County, North Carolina
Wilkes County is a county located in the US state of North Carolina. It is a part of the state's western mountain region. As of the 2020 census the population was 65,969, in 2010 the census listed the population at 69,340. Its county seat is ...
, and militia officer in Wilkes County Regiment of the North Carolina militia during the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
.
Early life
Elijah Isaacs was likely born near
Berryville, Virginia
Berryville is an incorporated town in and the county seat of Clarke County, Virginia, United States. The population was 4,185 at the 2010 census, up from 2,963 at the 2000 census.
History
Berryville was founded at the intersection of the Winch ...
where in 1771 he sold the farm inherited from his father Samuel Isaacs Jr. By September 1775 he was in Surry County, North Carolina, and a member of the Surry County Committee of Safety with
Benjamin Cleveland
Benjamin Cleveland (May 28, 1738 – October 1806) was an American pioneer and officer in the North Carolina militia. He is best remembered for his service as a colonel in the Wilkes County Regiment of the North Carolina militia during the War ...
and
Joseph Winston
Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Winston (June 17, 1746 – April 21, 1815) was an American pioneer, planter and American Revolutionary War hero from Surry County, North Carolina, and the first cousin of statesman and Virginia governor Patrick Henry. ...
.
He had a younger brother named Godfrey Isaacs. His wife's name may have been Mary, and their children were Jinny Isaacs, George Isaacs, Samuel Isaacs, Winny Isaacs, Abbee Isaacs, Elijah Isaacs, and Rebecca Isaacs.
In 1777, he built Fort Defiance on the
Yadkin River
The Yadkin River is one of the longest rivers in North Carolina, flowing . It rises in the northwestern portion of the state near the Blue Ridge Parkway's Thunder Hill Overlook. Several parts of the river are impounded by dams for water, p ...
in
Caldwell County, North Carolina
Caldwell County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. As of the 2020 census, the population was 80,652. Its county seat is Lenoir. Caldwell County is part of the Hickory–L ...
. William Lenoir later built a home on the site of Fort Defiance.
Military service
Military service
* Captain in the Surry County Regiment of the North Carolina militia, 1776-1777
* Captain in the Wilkes County Regiment of militia, 1777-1778
* Major in the Wilkes County Regiment of militia, 1778-1779
* Lt. Col./Colonel in the Wilkes County Regiment of militia, 1779-1783
Lieutenant Colonel Elijah Isaacs was Colonel Benjamin Cleveland’s second in command of the Wilkes County Regiment of militia during the American Revolution. In August 1780, Isaacs led the Wilkes County regiment under Brigadier General
Griffith Rutherford
Griffith Rutherford (c. 1721 – August 10, 1805) was an American military officer in the Revolutionary War, a political leader in North Carolina, and an important figure in the early history of the Southwest Territory and the state of Ten ...
, commander of the
Salisbury District Brigade
The Salisbury District Brigade was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War (1776–1783). This unit was established by the Fourth North Carolina Provincial Congress on May 4, 1776, and disba ...
of militia in western North Carolina. Two days before the Battle of Camden (South Carolina) Isaacs’ regiment was detached from Major General
Horatio Gates
Horatio Lloyd Gates (July 26, 1727April 10, 1806) was a British-born American army officer who served as a general in the Continental Army during the early years of the Revolutionary War. He took credit for the American victory in the Battl ...
' army to reinforce Colonel
Thomas Sumter
Thomas Sumter (August 14, 1734June 1, 1832) was a soldier in the Colony of Virginia militia; a brigadier general in the South Carolina militia during the American Revolution, a planter, and a politician. After the United States gained independe ...
. Elijah Isaacs was captured when Lieutenant–Colonel
Banastre Tarleton
Sir Banastre Tarleton, 1st Baronet, GCB (21 August 175415 January 1833) was a British general and politician. He is best known as the lieutenant colonel leading the British Legion at the end of the American Revolution. He later served in Portu ...
defeated Sumter’s forces at the
Battle of Fishing Creek
The Battle of Fishing Creek, also called the Battle of Catawba Ford,Heitman, p. 390 was an American Revolutionary War battle fought on August 18, 1780, between American and British forces including the 71st Foot. It was fought near the junction ...
on August 18, 1780.
Lieutenant Colonel Isaacs and General Rutherford, who was captured at the Battle of Camden, were held at St. Augustine, Florida until exchanged in July 1781. From October 1781 through February 1782, Isaacs led a militia regiment fighting against Colonel David Fanning's Tories in
Randolph County, North Carolina
Randolph County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 144,171. Its county seat is Asheboro.
Randolph County is included in the Greensboro- High Point, NC Metropolitan Statistica ...
.
Political career
He was a representative to the North Carolina General Assembly from Wilkes County in 1778, 1779, and 1780. He served as senator in the assembly in 1782 and 1783. In May 1778, he introduced a bill in the House of Commons to form Wilkes County, which was formed in 1779 from parts of Surry County and
Washington District, North Carolina
The Washington District of North Carolina was in a remote area west of the Appalachian Mountains, officially existing for only a short period (November 1776 – November 1777), although it had been self-proclaimed and functioning as an independent ...
.
Death
After the American Revolution ended Elijah Isaacs bought land in Georgia and may have lived there briefly. By 1790 he was living in Anderson County, South Carolina, where he is believed to have died in 1799.