Unearthing America’s Heroes: The Reburial of Revolutionary War Soldiers

In 1780, twelve brave American soldiers died in a pine forest in South Carolina. They were buried quickly under the ground as their friends ran away from the British forces that seemed ready to end America’s new experiment of freedom.

At the end of this month, twelve Unknown Soldiers will finally receive a proper burial in the same place where they died during the Revolutionary War. Additionally, these 250th anniversary commemorations are emphasizing a shared history that everyone can enjoy and appreciate together.

Stacey Ferguson, an Air Force veteran, wrote a letter that was placed in soldiers’ coffins at the end of March. In the letter she thanked these brave people by saying that what they died for made America one of the most powerful countries in the world, even though it has had its share of disagreements amongst ourselves.

Recently, soldiers dug up and reburied some fallen friends from a long time ago. It shows us how modern research like DNA testing and genealogy can help us find out who these people are. Some of them were even teenagers! One soldier was found to have a bullet in his spine, which is crazy!

Time has changed things and many of the bones were destroyed by animals, people taking souvenirs or a farmer from long ago who was growing watermelons. Some of the bones have cuts from equipment like plows, but it’s hard to tell if it was also from muskets or bayonets.

Madeline Atwell, who is Deputy Coroner and Forensic Anthropologist with Richland County Coroner’s Office, said that they were not able to determine the exact reason why a lot of the people died. Her team has been busy for months helping archeologists dig up soil at a site where some remains were found. When these remains were discovered, they were treated with respect as a U.S. flag was draped over them and an Armed Forces veteran drove them away in a truck.

The remains of some very special people have been checked carefully by scientists, and will soon be put back in the ground with an important ceremony. According to Doug Bostick from South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust, these people are America’s first heroes, and it is our responsibility to show respect for their bravery.

A big event is coming up in South Carolina from April 20-22. Soldiers will be remembered at the Army base in Columbia before going on a journey of 32 kilometers (20 miles) to Camden. After that, they will stay for two days and then the horses pulling their coffins will take them back to their graves.

In New Jersey, there is a project going on where 12 people were found in a grave at the Red Bank Battlefield. These people are called Hessians and they fought for the British during war times. To learn more about them, tests including DNA are being done too.

Jennifer Janofsky, a public historian from Rowan University says that history is constantly changing and evolving. We cannot know everything about the Battle of Red Bank after one look, but instead we should focus on the individual people who were involved. Who were these people? Why did they come to this battle? What happened to them in the end? The fortunate thing is that these soldiers can still be remembered by us!

At the Battle of Camden on August 16, 1780, nearly all the U.S. soldiers fighting there were either killed, wounded, captured or they deserted. This battle was one of the worst disasters for the U.S., and more than 900 of those killed were left above ground instead of being buried. The hot weather and humidity in South Carolina made sure that no trace of the dead bodies were left after a few years by animals scavenging them away.

George Washington’s advice changed the course of history! The Continental Congress listened to his suggestion and named Nathanael Greene as their leader for the Southern armies. Only a year later, Greene’s troops had forced the British army all the way back up to Virginia and with help from France they trapped them there, which was an important victory in winning the Revolutionary War.

South Carolina was key to the victory of U.S. independence in the Revolutionary War. People like Bostick are now trying to remember this conflict and get people excited about it again – battles and fights happened in almost all of South Carolina’s counties at that time! But, during the Civil War years, South Carolina tried to separate themselves from the U.S., which made historians not happy with them.

“Most people forget that the South was part of the Revolutionary War,” Bostick said. To celebrate the 250th anniversary of this war in South Carolina, organizers want to remember important battles and also highlight American values like democracy and how our country has changed for the better. They also want us to learn from our past mistakes.

Ferguson was writing a message to some old soldiers. She is part of the Historic Camden Foundation, who plans to preserve and show respect for these long-gone soldiers. Among all the fourteen soldiers who were dug out, there is one Scottish Highlander and one person from North Carolina. Both of them worked for the British Army and they will also be honored by the Foundation.

Researchers believe that the U.S. soldiers might have come from either Maryland or Delaware. To identify them, they are doing a DNA test and lots of people with ancestors who died in the Revolutionary War have already stepped up to give their sample. It might take several months or years before the results are revealed.

Ferguson is helping archeologists and workers at Richland County Coroner’s Office to place the human remains into special wooden caskets designed from 18th century plans. They will be sealed shut with nails crafted by a blacksmith.

They put dirt from the place they found each soldier in their coffins. Everyone signed a letter written by Ferguson. In her letter, she told the soldiers that since they died over 250 years ago, their country has grown a lot stronger and richer.

Ferguson was an officer and felt responsible to take care of these soldiers like she did for those who were under her command.

“You passed away in a terrible way, very far from where you used to live and the people who loved you. It’s sad that your death was never recognized, but now we are giving you a proper goodbye ceremony. All I can say is thank you on behalf of this country.”