Sal and Amanda Take Morgan's Victory March to the Battle of Cowpens
Read Sal and Amanda Take Morgan's Victory March to the Battle of Cowpens Online
Authors: Mary Ann Solesbee
Published by The History Press
Charleston, SC 29403
Copyright © 2014 by Mary Ann Solesbee
All rights reserved
First published 2014
e-book edition 2014
ISBN 978.1.62584.763.8
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Solesbee, Mary Ann.
Sal and Amanda take Morgan's victory march to the Battle of Cowpens / Mary Ann Solesbee ; illustrations by Tony Waters.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references.
print edition ISBN 978-1-62619-279-9
1. Cowpens, Battle of, Cowpens, S.C., 1781--Juvenile literature. 2. Morgan, Daniel, 1736-1802--Military leadership--Juvenile literature. I. Waters, Tony, 1958- illustrator. II. Title.
E241.C9S68 2014
973.3'37--dc23
2013046008
Notice
: The historical information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.
This book is a work of historical fiction. References to real people, events, organizations or locals are intended to provide authenticity and historical information. All other characters, and all incidents and dialogue, are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
I dedicate this book to my dear friend Mayor Elaine Harris, who has worked tirelessly to promote tourism in Upstate South Carolina.
We are kindred spirits who know dreams can come true!
Contents
3. Rivers, Rivers and More Rivers!
7. Cowpens National Battlefield
Appendix. Daniel Morgan's Letter
Acknowledgements
Special thanks go to Jo Ann Zeise, curator of history at the South Carolina State Museum. Her help in obtaining permission to use the Daniel Morgan letter and her enthusiasm for supporting this book are greatly appreciated. Thanks also to Cowpens National Battlefield park rangers. Their assistance with providing information about the battle and the march has been invaluable. Amanda Stone, editor of
StudySC.org
, at the South Carolina State Library, was also helpful in her assistance with the website.
I would also like to thank Dr. George Fields for his help with the historical details in the manuscript. Who better than Daniel Morgan himself to do a review? A big round of applause goes to my faithful readers/editors, Mrs. Susan Illner; Mrs. Jackie Putnam; Mr. Dominic Boebel and his sons, Spencer and Liam; Mrs. Anne-Marie Glover; and my mother, Mrs. Marjorie Solesbee. Of course, I give a bravo to Tony Waters, who always brings our characters to life in such a charming way! Finally, I acknowledge the children and their parents and teachers who love Sal and Amanda and wait in anticipation for their next adventure.
Chapter 1
Why We Celebrate!
Mrs. Henderson greeted Jennifer at the door. “Hey, Jen, go on out to the sun porch. Ben's out there. I think he could use some help.”
Jen smiled and said, “Thanks, Mrs. Henderson. Smells like you've got something in the oven.”
“I certainly do! I'm practicing my chocolate chip recipe to get it just right for the contest next week!” Ben's grandmother replied. The children all called her Grammy May because she was the mayor of their town.
“Sounds delicious. I'll be glad to give you my opinion!” Jen smiled as she headed toward the porch.
“Whatcha doing?” she asked Ben when she saw him staring at his iPad screen.
“Trying to do research on the Revolutionary War in the backcountry.”
Jen couldn't help but laugh. “Have you lost your mind? It's almost the end of summer vacation; what's wrong with you?” Ben looked up from his screen, thankful for the break in his work.
“Grammy says I have to enter this stupid speech contest for the Morgan Victory March. It's sponsored by the Daughters of the American Revolution. You know, the DAR Grammy is always talking about. The speech is due in October, and the march is in January. She wants me to get a head start,” he moaned.
“Seriously?”
“She says it's really important for me to do this because we're inviting my cousins from all over the state to come. She says I have to know all about it and be a good host!”
“What do you have to write about?” Jen asked.
“I have to write a speech telling why the Revolution was important to South Carolina, that's what!”
Jen, thankful that she wasn't the one chosen to write the speech, sympathized with her friend. “I guess it doesn't help that your grandmother was a teacher before she became the mayor, does it?”
“Yeah, and it certainly doesn't help that I don't like to write, and I don't like to read all this stuff. History is just about a lot of dead people and dates and boring facts in my opinion!”
“You say that now, but you liked it when Sal and Amanda told us about it at Walnut Grove. Remember?” Jen asked. Ben smiled and recalled the salamanders they met on the field trip last year that seemed to know everything about South Carolina and its history.
“Those two
were
interesting and really fun!” Ben agreed.
“They are the Underground Ambassadors of South Carolina,” Jen reminded Ben.
“They represent our state amphibian, the spotted salamander. The children at Woodland Heights Elementary in Spartanburg lobbied successfully in 1991 for the spotted salamander to be our state amphibian,” Ben added.
“Since they aren't here, maybe I can assist you. We learned a lot of that stuff last year in school, remember?” Jen asked.
Ben frowned and considered all the times he had caught himself daydreaming during history lessons. “That's the problem; I
don't
remember. Grammy says I can't be a reenactor unless I know what the march is all about. She expects me to know the story of the Revolutionary War in the backcountry.”
“What is a reenactor?” Jen asked.
“It's a person who plays the part of someone in history. They dress up in the period dress of the time.”
“Who are you going to be?” Jen asked. “General Daniel Morgan himself?”
Ben jumped up in frustration. He didn't want to work on any Revolutionary War projects at the end of his summer or be teased by his friend.
“Of course not! But I'm going to be someone just as important. I'm going to be a drummer boy. The drummers controlled the soldiers' day by playing different beats to signal where they should be and what they should be doing. Grammy said some of the drummer boys were about my age, and I could be one and march with a drum to the battlefield!”
Jen squealed with excitement. “I want to reenact this part too!”
Ben smirked. “Well, you can't be a drummer boy, and they didn't have drummer girls.”
“I know that, but women and girls called camp followers went with the troops to the battlefields to do the cooking, mending, laundry and nursing the sick and wounded. I could play the part of a camp follower girl! There were important women in the Revolution too, you know!”
Suddenly realizing that he might have some help with his speech and a friend to practice reenacting, Ben grabbed the opportunity to include Jen.
“Grammy is helping organize the march, so you better ask her. Maybe if you help me with this speech, I can talk to her for you,” he grinned, pleased with himself for finding assistance on the project.
“I can talk to her myself, thank you, but I'll help you because you're my best friend,” Jen announced.
“Thanks! Let's get this started. Grammy told me to get my ideas down so she can check over them.”
As the two children began looking through historical websites online, they quickly learned that there would be a lot more to this than finding some simple Revolutionary War facts. They would have to do a ton of research to get their story straight and convince Grammy they knew everything there was to know about the Revolutionary War in South Carolina. While Jen quickly scrolled through the pages, Ben sat trying to take notes, looking lost.
“We just studied it last year, birdbrain!” Jen rolled her eyes at him.
“OK, brilliant one, tell me what to write!” Ben retorted.
Jen confessed that she also didn't know where to even begin. “I wish we had Sal and Amanda to help us. It seems like it has been forever since we met them.” At that moment, they both sadly realized that they may never see their salamander friends again and their first encounter with them may have just been luck.
“We may never see them again!” Ben mumbled sadly.
“Quite to the contrary, sir!” a voice came from outside the window.
“Sal and Amanda to the rescue!” Amanda announced as both she and her twin brother scrambled onto the windowsill from outside.
“Oh, wow!” Ben shrieked.
Jen's mood instantly lightened. “I've missed you two!”
“Shh! Be quiet,” Sal warned.
“You know we can't let grown-ups see us! They just wouldn't understand!” Amanda reminded them.
“Even though they see that talking gecko on TV all the time,
real life
talking salamanders are just too much for them!” Sal muttered.
The salamanders blinked at the pictures of the Revolutionary War on the computer and instructed the children to meet them outside under the big oak tree.
Sal and Amanda scurried out the window, and Ben and Jen headed toward the door.