NCPI Workmark
Articles in regional publications that pertain to a wide range of North Carolina-related topics.

Betsy Dowdy's Ride

Record #:
4556
Abstract:
In November 1775, Lord Dunmore, Virginia's last Royal Governor, planned to invade North Carolina. Capturing Portsmouth and Norfolk, he next barricaded Great Bridge on the Carolina side, blocking all shipments to the Norfolk port. A small force of Americans marched on Great Bridge. Knowing the force was outnumbered, Betsy Dowdy from Currituck Banks rode her horse Black Bess fifty miles on the night of December 10, 1775, to alert General William Skinner and his men at Hertford. Skinner's force reached Great Bridge in time to help defeat Dunmore on December 11, 1775, and end the invasion threat.
Source:
Our State (NoCar F 251 S77), Vol. 67 Issue 12, May 2000, p25-27, il