Patrick Cunningham (veteran)

Patrick Cunningham (c. 1742 – October 25, 1796) was a Loyalist Colonel, surveyor, and political figure in the backcountry of South Carolina during the American Revolutionary War.

Early life

Cunningham was born in western Pennsylvania. He migrated south to the Ninety Six District of South Carolina during the 1760s. He settled along the Saluda River. Through his agricultural and survey ventures, he became known as one of the wealthiest men in the Little River territory at the time. He established the Rosemont Plantation.

Revolutionary War career

Gunpowder Seizure (1775)

On November 3, 1775, Cunningham led a force of roughly sixty Loyalists to intercept a Whig wagon train at Mine Creek. The wagons were transporting a thousand pounds of gunpowder and ammunition sent by the Patriot Council of Safety. The gunpowder was intended for the Cherokee Nation to secure frontier neutrality. Backcountry Loyalists feared the munitions would instead be used to arm native tribes against Tory settlements. Cunningham's force successfully captured the munitions and took the guarding Patriot Rangers prisoner.

Siege of Ninety Six and Great Cane Brake

Following the ammunition seizure, Cunningham and Major Joseph Robinson mobilized nearly 2,000 Loyalist militia members and marched on the settlement of Ninety Six. They surrounded a Patriot militia fort commanded by Major Andrew Williamson at Savage's Old Fields. The siege was the first major military land engagement of the Revolutionary War in the southern theater. The battle ended in an inconclusive stalemate and a negotiated truce, after which both sides temporarily withdrew.

The truce did not last. Patriot authorities ordered a large-scale expedition, known as the Snow Campaign. The goal was to crush the backcountry Loyalist leadership. On December 22, 1775, a 1,300-man Patriot detachment staged a surprise dawn attack on Cunningham's encampment at the Battle of Great Cane Brake. the Loyalists were unprepared and were routed. Cunningham managed a narrow escape on horseback while commanding his men to scatter.

Later wartime activity

As the British military expanded its campaign into the deep South in 1780, Cunningham resumed an active military role. He achieved the rank of Major (and later Colonel) in the Loyalist provincial units. In late December 1780, Cunningham and his brother, Brigadier General Robert Cunningham, occupied Williams' Fort, a fortified stockade located on a farmhouse in Laurens County.

Facing a rapid advance by Patriot cavalry forces under Colonel William Washington and Colonel Joseph Hayes, the Cunninghams elected to evacuate the fort and slip away toward Ninety Six rather than face a siege.

Post-war life and political career

After the British evacuation of South Carolina, the estates of prominent Loyalists were subject to confiscation. While his brother Robert was permanently exiled, Cunningham petitioned the state for readmission. Since he had conducted his military campaigns honorably without participating in the partisan atrocities that defined the backcountry war, the South Carolina General Assembly granted him a pardon. His property was returned to him, subject to a 12% amercement fine on his estate.

Cunningham successfully reintegrated into South Carolina society, cultivating his Rosemont Plantation estate. He was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives representing Laurens County in 1792. He died at Rosemont Plantation on October 25, 1796.

  • Ninety Six National Historic Site — National Park Service