Liberty Man

Private Abel Johnston

by Larry Johnson for the Liberty Man website

Abel Johnston was born in 1757. His family had moved from Southampton County, Virginia to Johnston County, North Carolina about the time of his birth. His family raised tobacco, cotton and all the things they needed except salt, and trips to the port to buy salt became dangerous and life threatening.

There came a time when many the colonists were so oppressed by the King that it was necessary to fight for freedom. Abel was 19 years of age and his wife Anne was 17 when Abel went to war under Col. Ebenezer Folsom's militia command, an officer honored for the battle skills of his men. The Colonel called Abel a "man of great veracity."

Abel and Ann believed in liberty and freedom. The North Carolina Council of Safety called Abel and men like him "liberty men" since they believed in liberty and independence. He was also known as patriot and rebel.

Not only did he fight against the Redcoat Soldiers he had to fight many of his neighbors who were known as Loyalists, "kingsmen" or Tories. Not every colonist wanted to be free from the rule of King George.

Abel's story is true and about a young man who was a private, and ended up in the "horse"(cavalry) and fought for most of eight years. He was at the Battle of Guilford Court House, March 15, 1781, which turned the tide of the war.

He was paid almost nothing and was never issued a uniform. He took his own musket from home, and used what he could carry in his haversack or on his back. He had a horse which was his own since the government did not provide militiamen horses, nor equipment. His sword most likely was made from the family crosscut saw.

You can have Abel's great(4) grandson, Pastor Johnson, visit you and tell the story as no one else can tell it. Larry grew up and worked the fields within minutes from where Abel and Ann lived. This story is real and not just Hollywood fiction. Develop a new appreciation for your freedom by learning from the Liberty Man.

Pastor Johnson succinctly states the reason for doing these presentations:"If men choose not to remember the sacrifices of our forefathers and fail to cherish the freedoms they won for us then we shall surely lose our freedom." Larry Johnson, Liberty Man