The Liberty Trail History Makers

Built in 1767, the Chowan County Courthouse is one of the oldest operating courthouses in the country and still serves the North Carolina Supreme Court to this day.

Once the training ground for British troops in Boston, it was from here that Regulars marched toward Lexington & Concord, sparking the American Revolution.

When Jane Black Thomas overheard Loyalists plotting a surprise attack on her son's militia camp, she rode nearly 60 miles through dangerous territory to warn him. Her daring ride gave Colonel John Thomas Jr. and his Spartan Regiment time to prepare an ambush that repelled the attackers — fueling Patriot momentum toward the war-changing Battle of King's Mountain just three months later.

An oyster-shell, “tabby,” fortress, originally constructed here during the French and Indian War, was restored, and occupied by both the British and Patriots.

Discover the stories of frontier settlers, Native peoples, and Revolutionary War soldiers at the Tioga Point Museum, located near the historic sites of Fort Sullivan and an early post-Revolutionary trading post. Through artifacts and exhibits spanning centuries of local history, the museum offers a fascinating glimpse into life along the Upper Susquehanna frontier.

The Abingdon Muster Grounds is a 9-acre park is the site where, in 1780, 400 Virginians joined other patriot militia from the western frontier in a two-week campaign that ended with a critical victory at the Battle of Kings Mountain. The Abingdon Muster Grounds is a partner site of the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail.

The Dey Mansion, built around 1770, served as General George Washington’s headquarters in 1780 during a pivotal time in the American Revolution. As one of his surviving field headquarters, it offers a lasting connection to the strategic decisions, military challenges, and historic events that shaped the fight for independence.

On August 6, 1777, British forces under the command of Sir John Johnson engaged American forces under Nicholas Herkimer in the Battle of Oriskany, resulting in one of the few battles of the war where all the participants were North American.

During the British occupation of Charleston in 1781, these grounds were part of a British outpost to supply ammunition and provisions to patrolling British troops.

The site of the 1780 battle of Musgrove’s Mill where a small force of Patriot militia fought and defeated a larger force of Loyalist and Provincial soldiers in a short but pivotal battle.

Located just south of the Chesapeake Bay, this "uninhabitable" Great Dismal Swamp was home to thousands of Native Americans and Maroons--self-emancipated slaves--throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.

Built in 1792 by Revolutionary War officer William Lenoir, Fort Defiance preserves the homestead that rose near the site of an earlier frontier fort and reflects the legacy of one family for nearly two centuries.