Colonel William Graham (1742 1835) was commander of the Tryon County and Lincoln County Regiments of the North Carolina

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

and political leader from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

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 Revolut ...

Early life

William Graham was born in 1742 in

Augusta County Augusta County is a county in the Shenandoah Valley on the western edge of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The second-largest county of Virginia by total area, it completely surrounds the independent cities of Staunton and Waynesboro. Its count ...

Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

. He was the son of Archibald Graham of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. The younger Graham moved to the

Province of North Carolina Province of North Carolina was a province of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712(p. 80) to 1776. It was one of the five Southern Colonies, Southern colonies and one of the Thirteen Colonies, thir ...

several years before the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. There he was one of forty signers of the

Tryon Resolves The Tryon Resolves were a brief declaration adopted by the citizens of Tryon County in the Province of North Carolina in the early days of the American Revolution. In the Resolves, the county vowed resistance to coercive actions by the government ...

. In 1776, he served as a delegate from the extinct

Tryon County, North Carolina Tryon County is a former county which was located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It was formed in 1768 from the part of Mecklenburg County west of the Catawba River, although the legislative act that created it did not become effective until ...

to the 3rd and 5th

North Carolina Provincial Congress The North Carolina Provincial Congresses were extra-legal unicameral legislative bodies formed in 1774 through 1776 by the people of the Province of North Carolina, independent of the British colonial government. There were five congresses. They ...

. After Tryon County was dissolved in 1779, he lived in Lincoln and Cleveland Counties. He married the widow Susannah (Beller) Twitty before 1780., Google Books

Military service

He served as a colonel and commandant over two regiments in the North Carolina militia from 1775 to 1781: * Colonel over the Tryon County Regiment of the North Carolina militia (17751779), This regiment became the Lincoln County Regiment after Tryon County was dissolved. * Colonel over the

Lincoln County Regiment The Lincoln County Regiment was a local militia in Lincoln County, North Carolina during the American Revolutionary. It was created by the North Carolina General Assembly of 1778 on February 8, 1779 at the same time that Lincoln County was created ...

of the North Carolina militia (1779–1781) As a colonel of militia, he served under 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 ...

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 disban ...

. He was part of the successful Light Horse expedition against the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

in 1776.Lewis, J.D
''Cherokee Expeditions''
Carolana.com; retrieved May 2016Lewis, J.D.; ''North Carolina in the American Revolution'', Service Record o

accessed Jan 30, 2019, mentions Colonel William Graham in the Cherokee expedition In 1780, he missed the Battle of Ramseur's Mill. That same year Graham marched with his troops in the expedition that led to the famous

Battle of Kings Mountain The Battle of Kings Mountain was a military engagement between Patriot and Loyalist militias in South Carolina during the Southern Campaign of the American Revolutionary War, resulting in a decisive victory for the Patriots. The battle took plac ...

, but again due to an illness in his family, he was not with his men when the battle was fought. Colonel Joseph Dickson took his place. He did participate in skirmishes at Thicketty Fort, South Carolina on July 26, 1780; Wofford's Iron Works, South Carolina on August 8, 1780; and Graham's Fort (his) in September of 1780. William Graham was the oldest Colonel in the frontier parts of western North Carolina. He was involved in the selection of localities for Forts, which had to be erected and provided with a garrison. He directed the forts at Waddleboro, Earles White Oak, Russells and Botts. He received information about threats from spies that reported to him.

Death

He was residing in

Rutherford County, North Carolina Rutherford County is a county in the southwestern area of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 64,444. Its county seat is Rutherfordton. Rutherford County comprises the Forest City, NC Micropolitan St ...

in October 1832. He died on May 3, 1835. Graham was buried at the Twitty-Graham Cemetery, Boiling Springs, Cleveland County, North Carolina., Colonel William Graham and Susannah Beller Twitty Graham, includes tombstone photo, accessed Jan 30, 2019

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, William 1742 births 1835 deaths People from Augusta County, Virginia North Carolina militiamen in the American Revolution Signers of the Tryon Resolves Burials in North Carolina Members of the North Carolina Provincial Congresses People from Lincoln County, North Carolina People from Rutherford County, North Carolina