Battle of Wahab's Plantation

On September 21, 1780, Patriot militia under William R. Davie struck a Loyalist encampment without warning, catching men from the British Legion off guard even though Banastre Tarleton, their usual commander, was absent battling yellow fever at the time. The land where the camp stood belonged to militia Captain James A. Walkup, who had guided Davie's men to the spot beforehand. Historians note that the name Wahab appears in several variant forms across records, including Walkup, Wahab, Wauchope, and Waughup, which has led to lasting confusion about the proper spelling. At the time, the Loyalist force occupied ground on the western bank of the Catawba River, directly across from General Charles Cornwallis and his army, who held the eastern side. Seeing an opening, Davie chose to press the attack, and his militia routed the Loyalists so thoroughly that the encounter left them with substantial losses, all while achieving total surprise. Davie then withdrew his men, pulling back before British regular troops could reach the scene.

Background

Early in 1780 the British seized on their southern strategy and took Charleston, South Carolina, pushing Continental Army units out of the state entirely. By August of that year, Lord Cornwallis had already crushed a second Continental force at Camden, and afterward he brought his army to a halt in the Waxhaws district of northern South Carolina. Convinced that Georgia and South Carolina now lay firmly under British and Loyalist control, he judged it time to shift his attention northward and deal with what remained of the Continental Army gathering in North Carolina. So in mid-September his troops set out toward Charlotte, North Carolina.

North Carolina militia companies trailed Cornwallis at every turn during this advance. Thomas Sumter led one contingent that lingered behind to strike at British and Loyalist posts scattered through the South Carolina backcountry, while Major William R. Davie commanded another group that kept close on the heels of part of Cornwallis' force as it pressed north. Davie, upon discovering that units of Loyalist dragoons and British light infantry had set up camp behind the main army, resolved to launch a surprise strike against one of those encampments.

Battle

On the evening of September 20, he set out and tracked down the Loyalist encampment at Wahab's Plantation, situated close to where the light infantry had made camp. He dispatched William Davidson along with a company of men through a cornfield with orders to seize the plantation house, while he himself advanced up the lane toward the camp. The element of surprise was nearly total, causing the Loyalists to scatter and run, and they left behind 15 dead along with 40 wounded.

Aftermath

Davie wasted no time pulling back from the Loyalist encampment, since the foot soldiers had spotted his men and were sounding the call to arms. Before withdrawing northward, he seized 120 muskets along with 96 horses. Walkup's plantation went up in flames during this period. A few days afterward, Davie crossed paths with British forces once more, this time as they moved into Charlotte, North Carolina.