"McCalls Mounted Unit" Topic

I see where a Capt. James McCall led a mounted unit of South Carolina and Georgia men in several battles in the Southern Campaign, including Cowpens.

How would this unit have dressed? Civillian clothes or did they have a state uniform? Has anyone portrayed them in 28 mm figures? Does any info exist?

Any uniform info would be appreciated. Thanks.

The Iron Scouts have this impression of McCall's men:

link

and a piece on McCall himself here:

link

It's worth noting that McCall's men appear to have been issued sabres before Cowpens.

The websites linked above describe McCall's command as "McCall's State Dragoons". Greg Novak's second volume on the AWI describes McCall's command at Hammond's Store (December 1780) as "McCall's Georgia/South Carolina Light Horse". Novak goes on to describe the same unit in 1781 as "McCall's Carolina/Georgia Light Horse".

This excellent blog, on the other hand, counts McCall's men as militia:

link

I found all those using Google. Nowhere are the men described in regard to uniform or clothes. I would like to paint up a unit, so it would help in picking which figures to use and what colors to paint. I used Google Image and came away empty.

I'm looking at plate 750 of CMH's uniforms. This is "Dragoons, Georgia State Legion, 1781-1782.

This isn't McCall's unit, of course, but is a similar unit from the same area just a year or two later.

They are dressed in yellowish buff-colored deerskin jackets with blue collar and cuffs. Very nice looking.

What is perhaps most of interest is that they made their own equipment -- even caps and boots and spurs. Swords were made from old saw blades and such.

A return for the legion's infantry component listed 20 muskets, 17 carbines, 10 cartridge boxes, and 10 bayonets with belts.

First of all Merry Christmas

Actually McCall's men are most likely militia light dragoons – as opposed to the normal mounted infantry that usually makes up the men fighting under Pickens and Sumpter – my guess is the unit has a number of swords and pistols that encourage it to fight mounted – somewhere recently – my mind goes fast these days – I ran across an account of a militiamen from the 96 area who talked about making leather helmets on a block of wood to help protect the unit when in mounted melee.

Someday Eureka or Perry is going to get around to making us a militia light dragoon

One again

Merry Christmas

Novak

Interesting.