My friend Heather, who was visiting from Colorado over this weekend, and I were exploring the Cherokee Foothills National Scenic Byway in South Carolina on this afternoon. This 118-mile long secondary road follows South Carolina Route 11 from the Georgia/South Carolina border at I-85 to Gaffney along the foothills at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains. We spotted a sign for the Cowpens National Battlefield outside of Chesnee, South Carolina and decided to check it out.

I had heard the Cowpens name before, but wasn't familiar with the place or its history.

Visitors to the Battlefield are greeted by the U. S. Memorial Monument that pays tribute to the events of that day roughly 240 years ago.

The Battle of Cowpens took place on the field at this site on January 17, 1781 and is regarded as the turning point of the Revolutionary War in the South.

The battle saw Brigadier General Daniel Morgan's Patriot forces defeat Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton and his British forces.

Tarleton's forces numbered around 1,050 men.

Markers embedded in the concrete around the monument noted other significant events from this point in history. The Battle of Kings Mountain took place on October 7, 1780 and was a victory for the Patriot forces.

The Surrender of Yorktown on October 18, 1781 was the last major battle of the Revolutionary War and resulted in the surrender of British Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis.

The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783 and ended the American Revolutionary War.

In addition to the actual battlefield, the site features a Visitor Center and museum that describe the events of that day in detail.

Once inside the lobby area of the Visitor Center, visitors are asked to "Join our side !" I believe the small room seen in the photo above contains an animated map presentation of the Battle.

Behind the room seen in the previous photo is an area laid out like a classroom that goes into more detail regarding the Battle.

Interactive displays are featured throughout.

The overhead banners give a brief summary of the Double Envelopment that occurred.

Half of the museum is dedicated to the British and half to the Patriots. The exhibit seen in the photo above provides information on the British troops.

The exhibit seen in the photo above describes the weapons used by the British.

The same pattern is repeated on the Patriot side of the museum.

A replica of the "3-Pounder" or "Grasshopper" cannon used by the British forces was on display. The British used two of these cannons, both of which were captured by Patriot forces during the Battle.

We spent some time checking out the Visitor Center before heading out onto the Battlefield walking trail. Only part of the trail is paved.

We decided to check out the paved section first.

The paved part of the loop winds its way through the wooded area past information displays at various points.

The marker seen in the photo above describes the paths taken be both British and Patriot forces throughout the South. By 1780, the British had been stalled in the North and turned their attention to the South. The sites of other significant battles - Charleston, Camden, Ninety Six, etc. - are noted on the marker.

The name "Cowpens" refers to open stretches of pasture for cattle grazing.

These areas are open because grazing cattle kept the area free of undergrowth.

The result of grazing cattle was a large mostly open area dotted with trees.

We soon encountered the Washington Light Infantry Monument.

The Washington Light Infantry was a South Carolina militia group created in 1807 in the memory of George Washington. However, the group was more associated with Washington's cousin, Colonel William Washington, a cavalry commander during the Revolutionary War who fought at Battle of Cowpens.

The Washington Light Infantry erected the monument seen in the photos above and below in 1856 for the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Cowpens.

The monument commemorates the Patriot victory at Cowpens.

The Battlefield trail consists of the unpaved Historic Green River Road, (which is out of view to the left in the photo above), and the paved trail on which we were walking. The "loop" described earlier leads visitors down the Battlefield along the paved trail before returning to the Visitor Center via the historic Green River Road.

Walking in this direction depicts going from the Patriot lines toward the British lines, (i.e. the British would be in front of us). But this means that viewing the various markers along the trail in this direction describes the events of the battle in reverse order.

The marker seen in the photo above commemorates the misunderstood order from Lt. Col. John Howard toward the end of the battle that ended up winning the war. Howard ordered his Continental army to face the attacking British. But in the confusion and noise of battle, the order was misunderstood as an order to retreat.

Two "3-Pounder" Grasshopper cannons were part of the British forces. Both were captured during the Battle.

Depiction of a "3-Pounder" Grasshopper cannon.

Depiction of a soldier.

The marker seen in the photo above describes the tactic used by the Patriot "Skirmishers."

The Skirmishers were ordered to fire two rounds and then fall back to another position. The idea was to confuse the British into thinking the Patriot army was in trouble and retreating.

We then happened upon an area that was undergoing a restoration.

This area was filled with native bamboo known as Rivercane.

The "canebrakes" were very thick and on both sides of the battlefield. This kept the British forces funneled into the waiting Patriots. The native cane is now being restored.

Just past the cane restoration area stood another marker describing the British battle formation line.

British commander Tarleton formed his battle line in this area.

Marker depicting the British battle line.

The British battle line formed in this area.

The next marker provided some information about the British forces.

We then arrived at the Green River Road, around which the Battle was centered. In the photo above, continuing straight ahead on the paved trail would lead to a trail parking area. Turning right would lead to the preserved Robert Scruggs cabin. Scruggs moved to the Battlefield area and established a farm in the early 1800s and built a cabin around 1828. The cabin was passed down through the subsequent generations of his family until the National Park Service purchased the property in the mid-1970s. The NPS decided to preserve the cabin and restore it to its 1828 appearance.

We would be turning left at the intersection onto the Green River Road heading back toward the Visitor Center.

The marker seen in the photo above describes the events that occurred as Tarleton was retreating and being chased by William Washington.

Turning left onto the Green River Road pointed us toward the Visitor Center. Walking in this direction would take us through the sequence of events as they occurred from the British perspective.

We spotted a few Battlefield visitors off to the side.