Stono Ferry was a Revolutionary War engagement fought in South Carolina, 1779. It was a British victory.
On June 20, 1779, forces clashed near Charleston, South Carolina, in what became known as the Battle of Stono Ferry, an engagement of the American Revolutionary War. British troops, serving as a rear guard for an expedition pulling back after a failed bid to capture Charleston, managed to repel an attack launched by militia units under the command of American General Benjamin Lincoln.
Britain's push to reclaim the southern colonies began with a June 1776 effort by Admiral Peter Parker and General Henry Clinton to seize Charles Town, South Carolina, known today as Charleston. That assault, launched without much planning, fell apart when the fort on Sullivan's Island could not be taken.
Savannah's fall in December 1778 changed the picture and put Charleston back in peril. General Benjamin
For the Americans, the fighting opened on a promising note. For a full hour they traded musket fire and artillery blasts with the British lines before pushing forward to the abatis. Among the Highlanders, two companies held their ground until a mere 11 men remained upright, and it was a Hessian battalion that at last gave way. At that point Maitland repositioned his men, seeking to blunt the greater danger coming from Huger's wing. The Hessians, however, regrouped and rejoined the struggle, while additional troops crossed the bridge as reinforcements. It was at this juncture that Lincoln decided to pull his forces back.
Casualties on the American side numbered 34 dead, 113 injured, and 155 unaccounted for. Among those who perished was Hugh Jackson, the older brother of Andrew Jackson, who would later become president. Heat and sheer exhaustion brought him down, leaving him gravely wounded before death claimed him. On the British side, losses totaled 26 dead, 93 injured, and a single soldier missing.
Nearly a week before fighting broke out, Maitland had already resolved to pull his forces back from the position. A shortage of water transportation, however, held up his plans. It was not until June 23 that he finally set his withdrawal toward Beaufort in motion, and this decision owed little to any pressure from Lincoln's assault.
Traces of the battlefield remain visible in the present day, located where South Carolina Route 318 ends near Rantowles.
Shaded area is the surveyed battlefield boundary; the pin marks its centre.
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