Captain Samuel Caldwell
Samuel Caldwell was born in Orange County, North Carolina, on the 10th of February, 1759, and moved to Tryon County, Lincoln, in 1772. He first entered the service in Captain Gowen's company in 1776 and marched against the Cherokee Indians beyond the mountains. In 1779, he volunteered (in Captain William Chronicle's company) in the nine months of service and joined General Lincoln's Army at Purysburg, South CarolinaIn March 1780, he joined the Company of Captain Isaac White, and marched to Kings Mountain. In the following battle, he and his brother, William, actively participated. Shortly after this celebrated victory, he attached himself to the Company of Captain Montgomery and was in the battle of the Cowpens, fought on the 17th of January, 1781. Soon afterward, he marched to Guilford Courthouse and was in the action fought there on the 15th of March, 1781. The following fall, he substituted for Clement Nance in Captain Lemmond's cavalry company in the regiment Colonel Robert Smith and Major Joseph Graham commanded. They attacked and signally defeated a large body of Tories at the Raft Swamp. Two days afterward, they defeated a band of Tories on the plantation of Alfred Moore opposite Wilmington. On the next day, the same troops vigorously attacked the garrison near the same place. After this service, he returned home and was frequently engaged in other minor but essential military duties until the close of the war. After the war, Captain Caldwell settled on a farm three miles southwest of Tuckaseege Ford, where he raised a large family. He was a kind and generous neighbor, attained a good old age, and was buried in the graveyard of Goshen church, Gaston County, North Carolina.