Well Disposed to Give Battle – The Patriots of Charles County

I. Rising in Importance:  Thomas Stone, part 1

II. Distinction & Despair:  Thomas Stone, part 2

III. An Unusual voice for Independence:  Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer

IV. President of the U.S. in Congress Assembled:  John Hanson

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Leading the Old Line:  General William Smallwood

  Many local residents made their contributions toward American Independence outside the political arena.  The Continental Army often saw Charles Countians make outstanding contributions, particularly the man who reached a higher rank than anyone else in the state, William Smallwood.

  Smallwood was a fourth generation Marylander from a very wealthy Charles County family of successful planters and merchants.  The Smallwoods took an active part in the political affairs of colonial Maryland during the early and mid 1700’s. 

  In 1761, Smallwood himself began a career in public service as a delegate to the lower house of the Maryland Assembly, a position in which he spent most of the next fifteen years.  He also served as a delegate to the Charles County Committee of Correspondence, in addition to the Provincial Convention.  He earned a reputation for decisive leadership and served on a number of important committees, many dealing with the growing concerns between the colonies and England.

  Although sometimes an outspoken individual with regard to his beliefs, Smallwood still saw himself as a dutiful subject of the King.  As such, he originally defended the old cherished order of things.  This stance was changed dramatically however, by the events preceding the Revolutionary War.   

  After the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, Congress called for a 17,000 man army to surround British forces in Boston.  Shortly thereafter, Maryland’s Provincial Convention authorized the raising and support of a nine-company battalion to answer the call.  Smallwood, now on the side of revolution, had already offered his services to Maryland.  In January 1776, he was given the rank of colonel and command of the battalion.  Smallwood’s battalion earned a glowing reputation on many battlefields.

  The Maryland battalion’s first action came in August 1776.  The British had brought the largest force ever seen on the North Americ