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Guilford Courthouse National Military Park

1917 establishments in North CarolinaAmerican Revolution on the National Register of Historic PlacesAmerican Revolutionary War museumsAmerican Revolutionary War sitesColonial Revival architecture in North Carolina
Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in North CarolinaCourthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in North CarolinaGeography of Greensboro, North CarolinaHistoric districts on the National Register of Historic Places in North CarolinaIUCN Category IIIMilitary and war museums in North CarolinaMilitary facilities on the National Register of Historic Places in North CarolinaMuseums in Greensboro, North CarolinaNRHP infobox with nocatNational Battlefields and Military Parks of the United StatesNational Historic Landmarks in North CarolinaNational Park Service areas in North CarolinaNational Register of Historic Places in Guilford County, North CarolinaParks on the National Register of Historic Places in North CarolinaProtected areas established in 1917Protected areas of Guilford County, North CarolinaTourist attractions in Greensboro, North Carolina
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park entrance
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park entrance

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, at 2332 New Garden Road in Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina, commemorates the Battle of Guilford Court House, fought on March 15, 1781. This battle opened the campaign that led to American victory in the Revolutionary War. Though they won the battle, the casualties suffered by the British in this battle contributed to their surrender at Yorktown seven months later. The battlefield is preserved as a National Military Park and operated by the National Park Service (NPS). Based on research of historical evidence, the interpretation of the battle has changed since the late 20th century, which will affect the placement of monuments and markers.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Guilford Courthouse National Military Park (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, Greensboro

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N 36.131388888889 ° E -79.846388888889 °
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Guilford Courthouse National Military Park
27408 Greensboro
North Carolina, United States
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Guilford Courthouse National Military Park entrance
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park entrance
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Battle of Guilford Court House
Battle of Guilford Court House

The Battle of Guilford Court House was on March 15, 1781, during the American Revolutionary War, at a site that is now in Greensboro, the seat of Guilford County, North Carolina. A 2,100-man British force under the command of Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis defeated Major General Nathanael Greene's 4,500 Americans. The British Army, however, suffered considerable casualties (with estimates as high as 27% of their total force).The battle was "the largest and most hotly contested action" in the American Revolution's southern theater. Before the battle, the British had great success in conquering much of Georgia and South Carolina with the aid of strong Loyalist factions and thought that North Carolina might be within their grasp. In fact, the British were in the process of heavy recruitment in North Carolina when this battle put an end to their recruiting drive. In the wake of the battle, Greene moved into South Carolina, while Cornwallis chose to march into Virginia and attempt to link with roughly 3,500 men under British Major General Phillips and American turncoat Benedict Arnold. These decisions allowed Greene to unravel British control of the South, while leading Cornwallis to Yorktown, where he eventually surrendered to General George Washington and French Lieutenant General Comte de Rochambeau. The battle is commemorated at Guilford Courthouse National Military Park and associated Hoskins House Historic District.

Jethro Sumner
Jethro Sumner

Jethro Exum Sumner (c. 1733 – c. March 18, 1785) was a senior officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Born in Virginia, Sumner's military service began in the French and Indian War as a member of the state's Provincial forces. After the conclusion of that conflict, he moved to Bute County, North Carolina, where he acquired a substantial area of land and operated a tavern. He served as Sheriff of Bute County, but with the coming of the American Revolution, he became a strident patriot, and was elected to North Carolina's Provincial Congress. Sumner was named the commanding officer of the 3rd North Carolina Regiment of the North Carolina Line, a formation of the Continental Army, in 1776, and served in both the Southern theater and Philadelphia campaign. He was one of five brigadier generals from North Carolina in the Continental Army, in which capacity he served between 1779 and 1783. He served with distinction in the battles of Stono Ferry and Eutaw Springs, but recurring bouts of poor health often forced him to play an administrative role, or to convalesce in North Carolina. Following a drastic reduction in the number of North Carolinians serving with the Continental Army, Sumner became a general in the state's militia but resigned in protest after the North Carolina Board of War awarded overall command of the militia to William Smallwood, a Continental Army general from Maryland. At the end of the war in 1783, Sumner helped to establish the North Carolina Chapter of the Society of the Cincinnati, and became its first president. He died in 1785 with extensive landholdings and 35 slaves.