Display Patriot - P-296787 - Mrs Elizabeth MAXWELL/GILLESPIE/STEELE

Mrs Elizabeth MAXWELL/GILLESPIE/STEELE

SAR Patriot #: P-296787

The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.

State of Service: NC Qualifying Service: Patriotic Service

DAR #: A108174

Birth: 1733
Death: 22 Nov 1790 Salisbury / Rowan / NC

Qualifying Service Description:

Gave financial aid

Additional References:

Wheeler, John H, Historical Sketches of North Carolina, from 1584-1851, PA. Philadephia: Lippincott, Grambo and Co, 1851, pg 381-383
Ellet, Elizabeth F, The Women of the American Revolution, Volume I, New York City: Baker and Scribner, 1848, pg 297-300

Spouse: (1) Robert Gillespie; (2) William Steele
Children: John; Margaret;

Members Who Share This Ancestor

Date Approved	Society	ACN	SAR Member Info	Lineage via Child	View Application Detail
2022-07-15	AR	102672	Harold Anthony Ritch (223120)	John

Burial:

Thyatira Presbyterian Church Cemetery_(C-0070698)

Location:

Mill Bridge / Rowan / NC / USA

Find A Grave Cemetery #:

184369

Grave Plot #:

Grave GPS Coordinates:

35.653320 / -80.637910

Find A Grave Memorial #:

14805236

Marker Type:

DAR

SAR Grave Dedication Date:

Comments:

Image taken and provided with permission from compatriot Gerald Adams (SC) member 195444
Modern upright monument erected by the DAR

Directions to Cemetery / Gravesite:

The cemetery driveway divides the cemetery into two large sections. Proceed to the northern most point along the driveway. From the driveway loop go north about 2/3 of the length of this cemetery section
In about the middle of the cemetery (left to right) is the obelisk type marker for Elizabeth Steele
It is a modern marker erected by the DAR

Photo: 1 of 3

Photo: 2 of 3

Photo: 3 of 3

Author: President Gen John Thomas Manning M.Ed.

Elizabeth Maxwell, nee Mrs. Elizabeth Steele, and Mrs. Elizabeth Gillespie was born in 1733.

On the morning of 1 February 1781, Lord Cornwallis and 5,000 British soldiers crossed the Catawba River at Cowan's Ford. They killed North Carolina General William Lee Davidson. After Davidson's death, the North Carolina militia scattered, and many gathered at Torrence's Tavern, a few miles to the north.

When the locals heard the fighting, many began to flee with their belongings, causing the roads to be flooded with refugees, many of whom gathered at Torrence's Tavern, expecting the militia to protect them. Tarleton meanwhile heard of the gathering and attacked the tavern in the afternoon, causing the entire group to scatter and killing multiple militiamen. The next day, General Cornwallis burned the tavern to the ground.

General Greene, who was the top commander of the Continental Army in the South, waited for the militia at David Carr's farm several miles to the north, where he planned to meet with them and go on to Salisbury, the rendezvous point for the two branches of his southern army. The militia, however, had scattered after the attack at the tavern and did not show up to meet him.

Greene was on horseback alone and decided to ride on to Salisbury. He rode through the night and arrived in the morning, where he went for breakfast at Steele's Tavern, run by Elizabeth Maxwell Steele. Greene was discouraged, having just learned of General Davidson's death and the attack at Torrence's Tavern. He also realized that other parts of his army had yet to arrive and that Cornwallis was very near with thousands of troops.

Greene's personal physician, Dr. Read, happened to be at the tavern when he arrived. Read asked the General how he was doing, and Greene replied, "Fatigued, hungry, alone, and penniless." Elizabeth Maxwell Steele was serving breakfast and overheard the comment. She returned with two bags of coins and gave them to the general, saying, "Take these, for you will want them, and I can do without them." Her gift now made up the entire treasury of the Southern Army.

General Greene was so moved and encouraged by Mrs. Steele's patriotism and generosity that he took down a portrait of King George III from the wall and wrote, "O George, Hide thy face and mourn," on the back of it and then placed it back on the wall with George's face to the wall.

Elizabeth Maxwell Steele earned her place in history by this act of patriotism. Just six weeks later, General Greene's disparate forces would gather and destroy a quarter of Cornwallis' army at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. The picture of King George with Nathanael Greene's comment scrawled across the back still remains to this day in the Thyatira Presbyterian Church Museum in Salisbury.

The Patriot died on 22 November 1790 in Salisbury, Rowan County, North Carolina.

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Additional Information:

A few mentions of Mrs. Steele in this article on the Thyatira Church and its history here: Thyatira Church | American Revolution Tour of N.C. (amrevnc.com)