HISTORICAL MARKER SPOTLIGHT
Inscription: 1-50, McPhaul’s Mill. Rendezvous point for local Tories. Near here on Sept. 1, 1781, David Fanning’s men routed a Whig force under Thomas Wade. Stood 1.7 mi. W.
Background: In 1761, John McPhaul, a Scottish immigrant, established a tavern and mill alongside Little Raft Swamp with his son Neill. During the American Revolution, McPhaul’s (McFall’s) Mill served as a Tory stronghold. Neill McPhaul was one of the leading Loyalists in the county, and often operated under the command of David Fanning. In July 1781, Fanning encamped at the mill with the prisoners taken in the attack on Chatham Courthouse, and in late September he bivouacked there with individuals captured in the attack on Hillsborough…