Wilmington

1732–1786 · Continental Army General · North Carolina Patriot Officer

North Carolina Continental general from the Cape Fear region who commanded the unsuccessful defense of Savannah in December 1778. Despite the defeat, he continued to serve and later suppressed the Pennsylvania Line mutiny in 1781. The Cape Fear gentry network that supported him was based in Wilmington.

1725–1786 · North Carolina Militia Officer · Moore's Creek Bridge Commander

Cape Fear region militia colonel who commanded Patriot forces at the north end of Moore's Creek Bridge on February 27, 1776. His preparation of the defensive position — removing the bridge planks and positioning artillery — was decisive. A veteran of the Stamp Act resistance and one of the Cape Fear's most effective Patriot military leaders.

1748–1812 · British Army Officer · Wilmington NC Occupation Commander

British officer who landed at Wilmington in January 1781 with a garrison of 450 men and occupied the town for the remainder of the war. Craig organized systematic raids on the surrounding countryside, supplied Loyalist partisan David Fanning, and maintained Wilmington as Britain's last toehold in North Carolina until evacuation in November 1781.

1738–1805 · British Commander, Southern Army · Guilford Courthouse Campaign Commander

British general who retreated to Wilmington NC after the costly victory at Guilford Courthouse in March 1781, then made the fateful decision to march into Virginia rather than south to reinforce South Carolina. His Yorktown surrender in October 1781 effectively ended the war.

1742–1786 · Continental Army General · Commander of Southern Department

Rhode Island general who took command of the shattered Southern Army in December 1780. At Guilford Courthouse he traded his army's retreat for a quarter of Cornwallis's force, then turned south when Cornwallis retreated to Wilmington — dismantling the British position in the Carolinas while Cornwallis marched to his destruction in Virginia.

1755–1825 · Loyalist Partisan Commander · North Carolina Tory Militia Leader

North Carolina Loyalist militia officer who conducted some of the war's most effective and brutal partisan operations from a base supplied by Craig's Wilmington garrison. His raids in 1781, including the capture of Governor Thomas Burke, demonstrated the savagery of North Carolina's civil war dimension.

1747–1783 · Governor of North Carolina · Continental Congress Delegate

North Carolina governor captured by Loyalist partisan David Fanning in a raid on Hillsborough in September 1781. Held briefly at Wilmington before being sent to a British prison hulk in Charleston harbor. His capture illustrated the chaos of North Carolina's wartime governance and the effectiveness of Craig's Wilmington-based partisan strategy.

1742–1790 · Continental Congress Delegate · Signer of Declaration of Independence · North Carolina Lawyer

Wilmington NC lawyer who represented North Carolina in the Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence. Once a Tory sympathizer who had defended Loyalist clients, he became a committed Patriot. British forces burned his Wilmington home and property during the occupation, forcing his family to flee.