The closest location for an actual battle to Trough Shoals was the action at Fort Thicketty. It was more of an armed conflict and not an actual battle because not a single shot was fired. The ruins of the fort still exist not very far from the Goucher Baptist Church and the Goucher Elementary School. The fort is about 5 miles from the bridge.Fort Thicketty
The fort was originally called Fort Anderson and it had been built before the War to help guard the Goucher community from Indian attack.
When the War started, a group of Tories took over the fort and used it as a headquarters to raid the surrounding countryside. They were a threat to a wide area, particularly the folks that had settled up and down the Pacolet River and over on Fairforest Creek. We need to keep in mind that many, if not most, of these Tories or Loyalists, that held the fort were local men. At the beginning of the War, it is estimated that about 50% of the Upcountry people supported the King and not the revolution.
Word of this fort and the Tory attacks on the local communities made its way to a group of Patriot soldiers camped on the Broad River. These men were under the command of Col. Isaac Shelby of North Carolina. On July 30,1780, Shelby and 600 of his men rode from their camp on Broad River and surrounded Fort Thicketty. After the Tories in the fort realized what they were up against, they surrendered the fort without a shot being fired. Shelby and his men captured 93 Tories and one British soldier. They also captured 200 badly needed muskets. Col. Shelby went on to gain fame at the battle of Kings Mountain three months later. See Fort Thicketty for more information and photos about the fort.
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