Although most Americans have never heard of it, the Battle of Hanging Rock had considerable impact on the American Revolution in the South. Led by "The Gamecock," Thomas Sumter, 600 Patriot militiamen won a victory against a Tory force that was twice as large. When it was all over on that hot, bloody Sunday in August, 1780, these citizen-soldiers had accomplished more than they realized. They had helped to turn the tide of the war in the South Carolina backcountry.