RICHARD ALLEN COLONEL BENJAMIN CLEVELAND ROBERT CLEVELAND	MULBERRY FIELDS OVERMOUNTAIN VICTORY NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL THE TORY OAK

RICHARD ALLEN born in Maryland in 1741, moved to Rowan County, NC in 1770 and became an integral member of the community until his death at the age of ninety-one. The portion of Rowan County along Big Bugaboo Creek where Allen lived became Surry County soon after Allen moved there. Just a few short years later, Allen served the newly created Wilkes County as its first sheriff in 1778 and then represented the county at the Hillsborough constitutional convention. His other public service achievements included serving a term in the House of Commons in 1793 and as Wilkes’ sheriff again from 1798 until 1804.  In 1780, Allen was a Colonel of N.C. Militia at Battle of King's Mountain.

A historical marker is located on NC 268 East in Roaring River.

COLONEL BENJAMIN CLEVELAND, Patriot leader in the Revolution, born in 1738 in Virginia. In 1769, Cleveland moved to North Carolina with his brother and father-in-law and settled on Roaring Creek, near Mulberry Fields in present day Wilkes County. Daniel Boone was his neighbor.

At the start of the American Revolution, Cleveland was appointed ensign in the Second Regiment of the North Carolina Continental forces but he declined the appointment in order to serve in the Surry County militia.  Away from the battlefield, in 1774 and 1775 he served as a justice in the Surry County court. He was elected to the House of Commons in 1778 and to the state Senate in 1779. When Wilkes County was formed from Surry County in 1778, Cleveland was designated head of the commission of justices and named colonel of the Wilkes militia. Leading his militia against Tory uprisings throughout the backcountry, Cleveland developed a reputation for his harsh treatment of Loyalists. On one occasion he was indicted for murder for the hanging of two Tories; he was later pardoned by the governor. Cleveland’s forces participated in the defeat of the  Redcoats at Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780, the turning point of the war in the South.

A historical marker is found on NC 268 East at Chatham Street in Ronda.

ROBERT CLEVELAND, born in 1744, was anAmerican Revolutionary and served as a Captain in the militia under his brother Colonel Benjamin Cleveland.  He was an acquaintance of Daniel Boone because of living along the Yadkin River in Wilkes County.  Cleveland also served on the third electoral college of the United States.

Cleveland is buried alongside his wife in a well marked grave bearing a nice headstone and markers placed there by the Daughters of the American Revolution. The grave is near the site of his old home off Parsonsville Road, close by Rendezvous Mountain, where Colonel Benjamin Cleveland rallied the Over Mountain Men in preparation for the trek to Kings Mountain in October 1780.

Click here to learn about the Robert Cleveland log home, believed to be the oldest house in Wilkes County.  The house is part of the Wilkes Heritage Museum tour, the Candlelight Ghost Tours and host to educational events

MULBERRY FIELDS
A Moravian surveying party passed through the area in 1752, and documented that a Cherokee Indian village stood in the old fields. The Cherokee translation for Mulberry Fields is "Keowee." Keowee was often used by the Cherokees as a place name during the colonial Period. During the Revolutionary War, the Mulberry Fields area was a common mustering site for the Wilkes county Militia. The Mulberry Meeting House was a common meeting place to discuss local government issues of the day.

Mulberry Fields became Wilkesboro in 1800 when the town was laid out by William Lenoir.   Lenoir refused to allow the town to be named after himself. Later, following his death, the next town up the road was named for Lenoir and is present day in Caldwell County.

OVERMOUNTAIN VICTORY NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL

330 Miles of Revolutionary War History through VA, TN, NC & SC, retracing the route of patriot militia as they tracked down the British.  In Wilkes, the commemorative motor route is on NC Hwy 268 West and non-motorized pathways are found on trails on Yadkin River greenway and W. Kerr Scott Dam & Reservoir.  Maps are available at Wilkes Chamber of Commerce (336)838-8662 and W. Kerr Scott Dam & Reservoir Visitor Center (336)921-3390.

Click here for more information about the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail.

Click here to learn about the story of the TORY OAK tree.