Semiquincentennial - - Revolutionary War - - Private William Hollis

  - #13 in a series of  posts about our family's Revolutionary War soldiers -

250 Years; 1776 - 2026

Our Family was there, from the Beginning

William Hollis

16 Feb 1748 Fairfax, VA – c 1836 Alabama; 

Son of Moses Hollis & Rosannah Berry Hagan

My 6x great uncle

 

Private, South Carolina Militia 

 

William Hollis volunteered for service May 1776 and went to Sullivan’s Island. Both William[i] and his brother, John Hollis, participated in the Battle of Sullivan’s Island on 28 June 1776. 

The Battle of Sullivan's Island or the Battle of Fort Sullivan was fought on June 28, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War. It took place near Charleston, South Carolina, during the first British attempt to capture the city from American forces. … The land assault was frustrated when the channel between the two islands was found to be too deep to wade, and the American defenses prevented an amphibious landing. The naval bombardment had little effect due to the sandy soil and the spongy nature of the fort's palmetto log construction. Careful fire by the defenders wrought extensive damage on the British fleet, which withdrew after an entire day's bombardment; the British withdrew their expedition force to New York, and would not return to South Carolina until 1780.[ii]

 

Both brothers, William and John Hollis,  were also at the Battle at King’s Mountain on 7 October 1780.[iii] The battle took place 9 miles south of the present-day town of Kings Mountain, North Carolina.  British Major Patrick Ferguson, after receiving intelligence of an oncoming attack, decided to retreat to the safety of Lord Cornwallis's army. However, the Patriots caught up with the Loyalists at Kings Mountain near the border with South Carolina.

 

Achieving a complete surprise, the Patriot militiamen attacked and surrounded the Loyalists, inflicting severe casualties. After an hour of battle, Ferguson was fatally shot off his horse while trying to break the Patriot line, after which his men surrendered. Some Patriots gave no quarter until their officers re-established control over their men; they were said to be seeking revenge for alleged killings by Banastre Tarleton's militiamen at the Battle of Waxhaws, under the slogan "Remember Tarleton's Quarter". Although victorious, the Patriots had to retreat quickly from the area for fear of Cornwallis' advance. Later they executed nine Loyalist prisoners after a short trial. The battle was a pivotal event in the southern campaign. The surprising victory of the American Patriot militia over the Loyalists came after a string of Patriot defeats at the hands of Cornwallis, and greatly raised the Patriots' morale.[iv]

 

The Battle at Cowpens was on 17 January 1781 when the British had 800 troops killed, wounded or captured and the patriots had less than 100 casualties. The victory was a boost to the morale of the patriots. William was a part of that encounter with the British.[v]

An American army of 2,000 regulars and militia under Brigadier general Daniel Morgan defeated a force of 1,000 British and Loyalist troops commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Banastre Tarleton. It was the worst defeat suffered by the British in North America during the conflict following the 1777 Saratoga campaign. … Tactically, the battle demonstrated that militia, when deployed properly, could defeat experienced regulars, something which American military and political leaders had previously considered impossible. [vi]

                  Afterwards, he volunteered on many occasions. He was with Colonel Cleveland on the Broad River and General Marion on the Pee Dee River. General Francis Marion was the infamous “Swamp Fox” who outfoxed the British on many occasions. William was “under the command of General Marion [Francis Marion] on the Pedee [River] when they killed twenty-three Tories.”[vii] 

William “was in many skirmishes during the Revolution against the British & Tories.”  He was “wounded by the sword by Captain Isbel near Orangeburg.”[viii]

William stated “he continued in the Army until the end of the War. … he was stationed in Orangeburg at the end of the War. …And he further states that by reason of old age and the consequent loss of his memory he cannot swear positively to the precise length of his service buy according to the best of his recollection he served not less than five years.”[ix]

Revolutionary War Series:

#1  William Stark Kelly, Private in the North Carolina Militia

#2 Captain John Kennington, Camden District Regiment, South Carolina Militia 

#3 Sergeant John Brumfield, Patriot & Spy South Carolina Militia 

#4 Charles Brumfield, Gave Patriotic Service

#5 Captain Johannes Ritter, Sr., Northampton Co., PA Militia

#6 Sgt. David Faulkenberruy, SC Militia 

#7 Lt. Moses Hollis, Lieutenant in the South Carolina Militia

#8 Pvt. Jeremiah Smith

#9 Richard Dillon, NC Militia 

#10 Captain Jacob Ott II, SC Militia

#11 Lt. Johann Jonas Wolf, York Co. Militia, PA

#12 Captain John Hollis, SC Militia

Read more about our family's pioneers & patriots.

This is my newest book, published in late 2024. It includes chapters on these families:

Alford, Ashely, Brown, Brumfield,

Fortenberry, Hollis, Kelly, Kennington,

Lawrence, Ott, Smith & Spurlock

Buy from me: Price: $95.00 + $10 shipping & packaging. No credit cards.

OR: use credit card & purchase through Troy Book Makers.

---

[i] Graves, Will. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Roster; (revwarapps.org); accessed March 2026; William Hollis.

[ii] “Battle of Sullivan’s Island”, Wikipedia (accessed March 2026). 

[iii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) William Hollis.

[iv] “Battle of Kings Mountain”, Wikipedia (accessed March 2026).

[v] Graves, Will. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Roster; (revwarapps.org); accessed March 2026; William Hollis.

[vi] “Battle of Cowpens”, Wikipedia (accessed March 2026).

[vii] Graves, Will. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Roster; (revwarapps.org); accessed March 2026; William Hollis.

[viii] Graves, Will. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Roster; (revwarapps.org); accessed March 2026; William Hollis.

[ix] Graves, Will. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Roster; (revwarapps.org); accessed March 2026; William Hollis.

 

 

 

 

 

Semiquincentennial - - Revolutionary War - - Captain John Hollis

 - #12 in a series of  posts about our family's Revolutionary War soldiers -

250 Years; 1776 - 2026

Our Family was there, from the Beginning

Captain John Hollis

3 Dec 1751 Fairfax, Virginia – 4 November 1836 South Carolina

Son of Moses Hollis & Rosannah Berry Hagan; Husband of Nancy Knighton

My 6x great uncle 

Captain, South Carolina Militia

John Hollis, born 3 December 1751 on the Potomac River, Fairfax County, Virginia, was 26 years old and living on the Wateree River in Craven County, South Carolina when he first served with the patriots. In the winter of 1775, he was a private under Captain Samuel Boykin and Colonel Fletcher for one month.^{[i], [ii], [iii]}

            His second tour of service lasted for 18 months. He served under Colonel Thompson. His pension papers show his rank, during this tour, as either sergeant or lieutenant. This tour began in November 1775 and lasted through June 1777 and included the Battle of Sullivan’s Island on 28 June 1776.[iv] This took place near Charleston, South Carolina when the British troops tried to capture the city. American troops had begun construction of a fortress built out of palmetto logs and sand to defend the island and the channel into Charleston Harbor.  The British and American forces faced each other across the channel. The British launched a naval bombardment on Fort Sullivan. Due to the nature of its construction the fort absorbed the cannonballs rather than splintering. When night fell the British withdrew.[v]  John had been on the island during the battle.[vi]

After this battle John Hollis was transferred to Richard Winn’s company. They marched to the Georgia, Florida border area.[vii] Fort McIntosh, Georgia was a small stockade of 100 square feet on the bank of the Satilla River. About 80 patriots, led by Winn, were inside the fort. After a battle of several days the British took the fort in March 1777. Winn surrendered[viii] and John Hollis became a prisoner. He was held for a short time and then received a parole and was allowed to return to his home in South Carolina where he remained until his enlistment expired.[ix]^, [x]

            An 1833 letter written by John Buchanan in support of John’s pension included the following description of John.

We have no revolutionary soldier whose case excites more general interest in this District than his. There is no one better entitled, there is no one who stands in greater need of his Country’s assistance. He was gifted by nature with a robust and athletic frame, a daring courage and an unbending spirit of resistance to opposition, and singularized himself throughout the war as one of the most active and efficient officers of his rank in this section of the Country. He is now reduced from easy circumstances to a state of poverty by the workings of providence…[xi]

Starting with John Hollis’ third tour of duty he was a captain in rank. He served for one month and a half under Colonel Thomas Sumpter. Captain William Miller was absent without leave and his men were assigned to Captain Hollis’ company.[xii]

His fourth tour lasted two months under Major John Odair. They were “engaged in marching through the country.”[xiii] It must have been during the third and fourth tours that John was a part of the Battle of Rocky Mount that took place 1 August 1780 at Rocky Mount, Lancaster County, South Carolina. Sumpter was unable to defeat the British at Rocky Mount. He had the British trapped in log cabins.[xiv]

Sumter rolled a burning wagon against the cabins. The Tories put up a white flag and was going to surrender. Just at that time, a torrential downpour appeared and the rain quickly put out the fire. The Tories withdrew their surrender request and engaged the Americans again.[xv]

John Hollis was also at the Battle of Hanging Rock on 6 August 1780.[xvi] Colonel Thomas Sumpter and Major William Richardson Davie led this battle. They attacked a British camp. The British had 200 men killed but the Patriots lost only 12 men in this victory for the Patriots.[xvii] On 15 August they were a part of the skirmish at Carey’s Fort on the west bank of the Wateree River Ferry in Kershaw County. 

Sumter and his men took 70 British soldiers, 150 loyalists, some horses, 44 wagons loaded with supplies, a drove of three hundred cattle and a flock of sheep. When Sumter learned of the British preparing to cross the river and retrieve their American prisoners and stores, they then made a hasty retreat up the west side of the Wateree River.[xviii] 

John was involved in the Battle of Camden on 16 August 1780 which was a devastating defeat.[xix] And on 7 October 1780 John participated in the Battle of King’s Mountain, a series of hills inside the South Carolina border. The colonists steadily fought their way up King’s Mountain and killed or captured the British troops.[xx]

During his fifth tour he commanded a company [xxi] and was involved in the Battle at Fort Granby, which was fought May 2 – 15, 1781 in Lexington County, South Carolina. Captain Hollis was one of 400 – 500 men who served under Colonel Sumpter as he laid siege to Fort Granby, a British post. An American victory was the result of musket and cannon fire.[xxii] Captain Hollis said there was “a considerable body of militia at the taking of the fort at Granby, perhaps one thousand men.”[xxiii]

During his sixth tour of two months John was under Colonel Edward Lacy in the 3^rd Regiment of South Carolina Rangers. John was frequently “out scouting.”[xxiv]

John’s next three tours were all served as captain in the Orangeburg area of South Carolina and each lasted two months. Edward Lacey was in command during his seventh tour. The “army attacked and defeated a body of Tories.” During this tour, John Stallings, a British Captain with 25 or 30 men surrendered themselves a prisoners of war. In a sudden quarrel shots were fired. Captain Hollis “received one of the balls through his left arm.”[xxv]

He served under Major Wise during his eighth tour. There were several regiments serving together.[xxvi]  In his final tour in Orangeburg they oversaw the surrender of between 200 and 300 soldiers.[xxvii]

In his recollections to the court John Hollis said, “he was never at home more than one month at a time and seldom from the year 1778 to the conclusion of peace and during all this period was in active duty as Captain of a Company when his Company’s services were required.”[xxviii]  

He [John Hollis] stated that he was wounded in the right leg and his horse shot in an engagement on ‘the Juniper’, and was also wounded by a musket ball passing through his left arm on his first tour to Orangeburg …[xxix]

In 1790 John lived in the Camden District, Fairfield County, South Carolina.[xxx] In 1800 he was still in Fairfield.[xxxi]

In 1830 Captain Elijah Hollis wrote a letter in support of John’s pension application. Under oath Elijah swore that he was the brother of John Hollis and that John was “out almost the whole time of the Revolutionary War”.  Elijah verified that everything in John’s statements about his service to the country were accurate.[xxxii] When Elijah petitioned for a pension for himself he claimed service under Lieutenant John Hollis.[xxxiii]

In 1831, as a part of his petition for a pension “for Military services rendered the State of South Carolina in the war of the revolution”[xxxiv] John listed his property. That list includes:

·      150 acres of land in Fairfield District, their quality three fourths cleared and one half of the clearing lands worn out worth $400.00

·      2 horses 15 years old worth perhaps $20.00

·      3 yearlings $3.00 each

·      15 head of sheep at $2 each[xxxv]

Records kept by the Daughters of the American Revolution note John’s parents as Moses Hollis and Rosannah Berry (Hagan) Hollis, daughter of Berry Jacob Hagan. His wife was Nancy (Knighton) Hollis and their children were Isaac Knighton Hollis, Elizabeth Hollis, Margaret H. Hollis, John Hollis, Jr., Sarah Emmaline Hollis, Darling Jones Hollis, Susannah Hollis and Nancy Hollis.[xxxvi]

Captain John Hollis’s application for pension was granted.[xxxvii] Hopefully that money made his last years of life easier. One of the documents in his file said John was supporting four daughters and four grandchildren. He died 4 November 1836 in South Carolina.

Revolutionary War Series:

#1  William Stark Kelly, Private in the North Carolina Militia

#2 Captain John Kennington, Camden District Regiment, South Carolina Militia 

#3 Sergeant John Brumfield, Patriot & Spy South Carolina Militia 

#4 Charles Brumfield, Gave Patriotic Service

#5 Captain Johannes Ritter, Sr., Northampton Co., PA Militia

#6 Sgt. David Faulkenberruy, SC Militia 

#7 Lt. Moses Hollis, Lieutenant in the South Carolina Militia

#8 Pvt. Jeremiah Smith

#9 Richard Dillon, NC Militia 

#10 Captain Jacob Ott II, SC Militia

#11 Lt. Johann Jonas Wolf, York Co. Militia, PA

#12 Captain John Hollis, SC Militia

#13 Pvt. William Hollis, SC Militia

Read more about our family's pioneers & patriots.

This is my newest book, published in late 2024. It includes chapters on these families:

Alford, Ashely, Brown, Brumfield,

Fortenberry, Hollis, Kelly, Kennington,

Lawrence, Ott, Smith & Spurlock

Buy from me: Price: $95.00 + $10 shipping & packaging. No credit cards.

OR: use credit card & purchase through Troy Book Makers.

[i]Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[ii] Roster of South Carolina Patriots in the American Revolution; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020) Hollis.

[iii] Daughters of the American Revolution, Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR, Volume 15; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020) p. 189, John Hollis. 

[iv] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 24, John Hollis, SC.

[v] The Battle of Sullivan’s Island, American Revolutionary War; digital record, (revolutionarywar.us: accessed Sept. 2020).

[vi] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Flol3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 25, John Hollis, SC.

[vii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[viii] Revolutionary War Raids & Skirmishes in 1777; digital record (myrevolutionarywar.com: accessed Sept. 2020).

[ix] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 5, John Hollis, SC.

[x] Roster of South Carolina Patriots in the American Revolution; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020) Hollis.

[xi] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 14, John Hollis, SC.

[xii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 25, John Hollis, SC.

[xiii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[xiv] The Battle of Rocky Mount; digital record, (revolutionarywar.us: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xv] The Battle of Rocky Mount; digital record, (revolutionarywar.us: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xvi] Daughters of the American Revolution, Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR, Volume 15; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020) p. 189, John Hollis.

[xvii] American Battlefield Trust. Battle of Hanging Rock; digital record (battlefields.org: accessed Sept. 2020). 

[xviii] Skirmish at Carey’s Fort; digital record (myrevolutionarywar.com: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xix] American Battlefield Trust. Camden; digital record (battlefields.org: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xx] American Battlefield Trust. King’s Mountain; digital record (battlefields.org: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xxi] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[xxii] The Siege at Fort Granby; digital record, (revolutionarywar.us: accessed Sept. 2020).

[xxiii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 26, John Hollis, SC.

[xxiv] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 22, John Hollis, SC.

[xxv] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 27, John Hollis, SC.

[xxvi] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[xxvii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 27, John Hollis, SC.

[xxviii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) John Hollis, SC.

[xxix] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 9, John Hollis, SC.

[xxx] Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790; South Carolina (Baltimore, MD: Clearfield Co., Inc., 2004) 19 – 20.

[xxxi] Holcombe, Brent H. Index to the 1800 Census of South Carolina (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1980) 115.

[xxxii] Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files; NARA record group 15; digital image, Fold3 (fold3.com: accessed Sept. 2020) page 7, John Hollis, SC.

[xxxiii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History; Accounts Audited of Claims Growing Out of the Revolution (S108092), Reel 72, Frame 561; Elijah Hollis.

[xxxiv] South Carolina Department of Archives and History; Accounts Audited of Claims Growing Out of the Revolution (S108092), Reel 72, Frame 5796, file 3705; John Hollis.

[xxxv] South Carolina Department of Archives and History; Accounts Audited of Claims Growing Out of the Revolution (S108092), Reel 72, Frame 5796, file 3705; John Hollis.

[xxxvi] Daughters of the American Revolution. Ancestor Record, Ancestor #A056678, John Hollis; digital image (dar.org: accessed Oct 2020).

[xxxvii] Ervin, Sara Sullivan. South Carolinians in the Revolution (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1976) 38.