Battle of Hobkirk's Hill - Casualties

Casualties

The British casualties were 39 killed, 210 wounded and 12 missing. The American casualties may be ascertained from two documents written by Colonel Otho Holland Williams, General Greene's deputy adjutant-general. The first of these, a ‘List of the officers killed, wounded, and taken prisoners, in the action before Camden, the 25th of April, 1781’, details 1 officer and 18 enlisted men killed, 5 officers and 108 enlisted men wounded, 2 officers captured (one of them wounded) and 136 enlisted men missing. Williams wrote, “The greatest part of those who are missing had not well understood the order to rally at Saunder's creek; some were killed; 47 of them were wounded, and are in the enemy's hospital; we have tidings of about one third of the remaining number, and hope they will be able to join us”. The second of these documents is a letter from Williams to his brother, dated April 27, in which he wrote, “Capt I. Smith of the Third, and Capt Lunt Bruff are both prisoners, last wounded. Lieut Trueman is a prisoner, and it is said thirty-nine privates of our army are taken, besides a number wounded, the whole amounting to about fifty” This would indicate that 2 officers and 39 enlisted men were taken prisoner apart from the 1 officer and 47 enlisted men who were wounded and captured. The total American loss at Hobkirk’s Hill would therefore appear to be 19 killed; 113 wounded; 48 wounded prisoners; 41 unwounded prisoners and 50 missing unaccounted for, some of whom were killed.