The Liberty Trail

History Along the Trail

Explore the people and stories of the American Revolutionary War in South Carolina through videos, audio, and biographies. Hear tales of bravery, defeat, and treason from historians and travelers. The Liberty trail offers captivating and inspiring narratives from this transformative chapter of American history.

We invite you to visit the preserved locations along the Liberty Trail and to immerse yourself in the extraordinary events that determined the fate of a nation.
Battlefield |
Union, NJ

The Battles of Connecticut Farms and Springfield were small but at the same time significant. It proved that New Jersey militia would stubbornly oppose any attempt by the British to move inland. The battles also showed that militia and Continental regular troops could work well together.

Historic Site |
Portsmouth, RI
In honor of the first Black slaves and freemen who fought in the Battle of Rhode Island Historical Marker Database By late 1777, Washington’s army was collapsing from disease, desertion, and supply...
Historic Site | Historic House
Remsen, NY

Historic home of Baron Von Steuben, Drillmaster of the American Revolution.

Historic Site | Fort/Outpost
Newport, RI
Fort Hamilton is an 18th–19th-century coastal fortification that occupies the island beneath and around the Rose Island Lighthouse. It includes bombproof barracks, bastions, remnants of WWI and WWII...
State/County Park | Historic House
Rensselaer, NY

Historic home of Henry K. Van Rensselaer, Lieutenant Colonel, 6th Regiment of the Albany County militia at the Battle of Fort Anne.

Historic Site
Gaffney, SC

James Henderson Williams, a South Carolina militia colonel and Patriot leader, was killed at the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780 and is commemorated here, where his remains were later reinterred and a memorial erected in his honor.

Historic Site |
Newport, RI
William Vernon House Kenneth C. Zirkel This house is named after William Vernon, who was the President of the Eastern Navy Board through the Revolutionary War and was also the founder and second...
National Park | Historic Site
Gaffney, SC

The 330-mile Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail traces the 1780 Kings Mountain campaign through Virginia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas via a marked motor route and 87 miles of walkable trails.

Historic Site |
Cranston, RI
Joy Farmhouse Visit Rhode Island The Joy Homestead sits directly on the Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route (W3R). On June 18, 1781, General Rochambeau and roughly 5,000 French troops marched...
State/County Park | Fort/Outpost
Summerton, SC

After an eight-day siege, this strategic outpost fell to the Americans, who used an ingenious structure called Maham’s Tower to fire down into the fort and trap the enemy.

Battlefield
Manning, SC

Now under the man-made Lake Marion, British Lieutenant Colonel John Watson and Patriot Brigadier General Francis Marion, the “Swamp Fox,” skirmished in Wyboo Swamp near Santee Road.

Historic Site
Gaffney, SC

Three unknown British soldiers wounded at the nearby Battle of Cowpens died here at Limestone Springs and were buried on the land by order of Patriot Captain Vardry McBee Sr. and his wife, Hannah Echols.