by Oliver North
Baron Cameron Thomas, the sixth Lord Fairfax – Lord Fairfax, the only British peer residing in the thirteen colonies (since 1747), professed to be Loyalist during the Revolutionary War. But he also maintained a secret friendship with George Washington and provided quiet support for the Patriot cause. His ruse prevented threats, retribution, or hostility against him by either Tories or rebels. Yet, in the Virginia Act of 1779, the Commonwealth of Virginia seized title to all of his unsettled land (originally more than five million acres granted to his family by the British Crown in 1649). He was at his home, Greenway Court in the Shenandoah Valley, when Cornwallis surrendered the British Army at Yorktown (October 19, 1781) and still there, unmolested, when he died on December 7, 1881.
Nathanael Tracy – Wealthy merchant and ship owner; headed the Newburyport, Massachusetts secret Committee of Safety and Correspondence; aided the Arnold Expedition in preparing for deployment; assisted survivors and escapees from Quebec (1775–76). His merchant fleet totaled more than 100 vessels. Received first letter of marque issued by Congress (1776). His twenty-four cruisers captured 120 “prizes” but in 1777 he lost a privateer and more than ninety of his merchant ships to storms and the Royal Navy. Financially devastated by the war, he died in what some described to be “genteel poverty” on September 20, 1796.
Jemima, wife of Pvt. James Warner – She held her husband until he died of an unknown sickness after he dropped from the ranks marching to Quebec, unable to walk. She then picked up his rifle and caught up with the column. She made it to Quebec only to die from a ball fired from the city.
George Washington – Resigned his commission as Commander-in-Chief on December 23, 1783. In 1789 he was coaxed from his beloved farm to serve as America’s first president. After much pleading, he agreed to serve a second term in 1793. Though he was again urged to continue in the presidency for a third term, he retired to Mount Vernon in early 1797. In the second week of December 1799, he contracted a severe illness. On his deathbed shortly before he passed, he told his doctor, James Craik, “Doctor, I die hard, but I am not afraid to go.” He died Saturday, December 14, 1799.
Isaac Zane – Raised a Quaker in Philadelphia, came to Virginia in early 1760s and acquired Marlboro Works and considerable real estate in the Shenandoah Valley. Member of the Frederick County Secret Committee of Safety. To the chagrin of some, he lived openly with his mistress, Elizabeth McFarland. Elected to the House of Burgesses in 1773. He later joined Thomas Jefferson on a Convention committee to develop their colony’s armed defense. He was appointed by Governor Jefferson as brigadier general in the Virginia Militia at the end of the war, he retired to his beloved Shenandoah Valley. He died at home August 10, 1795.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Daniel Morgan and his Riflemen won so many battles during the American Revolution because they worked as a team. Their legendary feats required they be able to count on one another, day in and day out. The difficult and often dangerous things they accomplished required the same kind of solidarity of purpose, pursuit of a common goal, and fellowship I experienced as a U.S. Marine.
Completing this book required that same kind of teamwork—and demands my gratitude.
In the 1980s, I was befriended by a WWII veteran, former Congressman, and at the time, Secretary of the Army, John O. Marsh. He was the first to encourage me to start this project. My only regret is not having done so sooner or worked faster so I could have handed him a copy of what he started long ago and before he left us to be with our Lord in February this year.
It still would not be started—and certainly not finished—but for all the research—first by Katie Roberts and subsequently by the wonderful folks Nathan Stalvey leads at Clarke County Historical Association; the librarians at Anderson House, Headquarters for The Society of the Cincinnati; the countless Park Rangers at the battlefields and places the Riflemen and others in this book fought, traversed, and lived; even my guide in Quebec who was kind enough to speak English instead of French!
As they have since the last century, Bob Barnett and Michael O’Connor at Williams & Connolly have once again ensured the words I write—like the rounds fired by Morgan’s Riflemen—are on target. Their work with Anthony Ziccardi’s team at Post Hill Press has forged an alliance as important to this mission as the one we had with France during the Revolution!
The maps used by Daniel Morgan’s Riflemen on the way to their first fight in the American Revolution were wholly inadequate. But the ones George Skoch prepared for this book are spot-on! It has been an absolute pleasure to work with George as a cartographer and artist on the magnificent maps and end sheets in this book.
Many of the characters inside this work—including Morgan—suffered from wounds and the privation of war in service to our country. Describing all they endured is a reminder of the extraordinary work Tom Kilgannon and his team at Freedom Alliance do every day to help the current members of our Armed Forces, Veterans, and their families. That’s why they are in this book.
Every military operation—like those Morgan’s Riflemen engaged in during the Revolution—have scores of participants who must perform tasks essential to the mission for it to be accomplished. And those tasks require organization, teamwork, and leadership, not just management. This book is no different.
My dear friend and Samurai Word Warrior, Gary Terashita, Associate Publisher of Fidelis Books is just such a leader. His tireless work and the team he has assembled to accomplish the mission of getting this book into your hands or on a tablet for you to read is spectacular:
Gary’s lovely wife Kim, proofreader extraordinaire, has caught my every “glitch.”
Steve Chisholm at Xcel Graphic Services created the stunning interior design.
Amanda Varian has somehow done all the copyediting with incredible speed and accuracy.
Calvin Coolidge at Arclight, LLC, has solved every info-tech challenge.
Josh Smallbone at Smallbone Management has found a way to manage all my travel.
Duane Ward’s logistics team at Premiere Centre, as they have so many times for nearly thirty years, is ensuring my books get where they need to be.
My Real American Heroes Productions team has arranged to keep our production schedule on track despite me: Dave Valinski, Dennis Azato, and Mike Aitken.
Most importantly—thank you Betsy, mother of our four children, grandmother of our eighteen grandchildren. For more than half a century you have been my mate, my muse, my most fervent advocate, my greatest inspiration, and my best friend. You are still the most fun I’ve ever had!
Oliver North
Narnia Farm
Clarke County, Virginia
September 2019
Other books by Oliver North
Non-fiction
Under Fire: An American Story
War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom
War Stories II: Heroism in the Pacific
War Stories III: The Heroes Who Defeated Hitler
American Heroes: In the Fight Against Radical Islam
American Heroes in Special Operations
American Heroes on the Homefront:
The Hearts of Heroes
Fiction
Mission Compromised
Jericho Sanction
Assassins
Heroes Proved
Counterfeit Lies