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TO HIGHLY COMMEND AND CONGRATULATE DR. C. LEON HARRIS OF MT. PLEASANT FOR HIS MILESTONE LABORS IN HISTORICALLY DOCUMENTING OUR PAST THROUGH THE WORDS AND VOICES OF THE MANY SOLDIERS WHO WON OUR INDEPENDENCE AND LIBERTY DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
Whereas, the toils, turmoil, trauma, and toll of the Southern campaigns of the American Revolution substantially contributed to our country's struggle for liberty and independence from Great Britain; and
Whereas, the State of South Carolina experienced more than four hundred battles, skirmishes, engagements, and actions; and
Whereas, the emphasis in telling the history of such battles is ordinarily on the biographies of commanding leaders, whose stories are often documented and retold and their battles recounted from the leaders' point of view; and
Whereas, the Southern campaigns of the American Revolution were fought by ordinary men (and women) doing extraordinary things through much sacrifice and suffering, as well as grit; and
Whereas, the untold military records and battle-account descriptions from the average soldier on the ground largely have been ignored or overlooked; and
Whereas, Dr. C. Leon Harris of Mt. Pleasant, along with his research partner, Mr. William T. Graves of Charlotte, North Carolina, is creating a comprehensive compilation of these service records to document the affidavits of those who fought in the Southern campaigns of the American Revolution; and
Whereas, Dr. Harris has committed countless hours for the past six years, as well as his fullest intellectual capacity and resources, to this Revolutionary-soldier documentation project; and
Whereas, the Senate recognizes the herculean accomplishment of documenting more than ten thousand first-person records of soldiers who fought in the Southern campaigns of the American Revolution by transcribing and posting their pension statements and applications, and the members note Dr. Harris' dedication to the art and skill of transcription and to annotating these records to create a legacy for countless historians, genealogists, and tourists; and
Whereas, in addition, this documentary work, online and searchable at www.southerncampaigns.org/pensions, has set a new bar for researching any Revolutionary War battle fought in South Carolina and her neighboring states. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate:
That the members of the South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, highly commend and congratulate Dr. C. Leon Harris of Mt. Pleasant for his milestone labors in historically documenting our past through the words and voices of the many soldiers who won our independence and liberty during the American Revolutionary War.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be provided to Dr. C. Leon Harris.
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