Griffith Rutherford

Griffith Rutherford
Memorial for Griffith Rutherford in Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Born	1721 Ireland
Died	August 10, 1805 (aged 84) Sumner County, Tennessee, U.S.
Allegiance	Great Britain  United States
Service / branch	North Carolina militia
Years of service	Colonial Militia 1760–1775 North Carolina Militia 1775–1783
Rank	Colonial Militia Captain 1760 Colonel 1772 North Carolina Militia Colonel December 21, 1775 Brigadier General April 22, 1776
Unit	North Carolina militia
Commands	Salisbury District Brigade, Rowan County Regiment
Battles / wars	French and Indian War Battle of Fort Duquesne Anglo-Cherokee War War of the Regulation Battle of Alamance American Revolutionary War Snow Campaign Battle of Camden Battle of Ramsour's Mill Battle of Raft Swamp Cherokee–American wars Second Cherokee War Second Invasion of Chickamauga Towns
Relations	Married to Elizabeth Graham
Other work	Served in the North Carolina senate, settled in Sumner County, Tennessee, became President of the Legislative Council of the Southwest Territory (Tennessee)
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Griffith Rutherford (c. 1721 – August 10, 1805) was an American military officer in the Revolutionary War and the Cherokee-American Wars, a political leader in North Carolina, and an important figure in the early history of the Southwest Territory and the state of Tennessee.

Originally from Ireland, Rutherford immigrated with his parents to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Colony, at the age of 18. In 1753, he moved to Rowan County, in the Province of North Carolina, where he married Elizabeth Graham.

During the French and Indian War, Rutherford became a captain in the North Carolina Militia. He continued serving in the militia until the start of the American Revolution in 1775, when he enlisted in the North Carolina militia as a colonel. He was appointed to the post of brigadier general of the "Salisbury District Brigade" in May 1776, and he participated in the initial phases of the wars against the Cherokee Indians along the frontier. In June 1780, Rutherford was partly responsible for the Loyalist defeat in the Battle of Ramsour's Mill. He was present at the Battle of Camden on August 16, 1780, and was taken prisoner by the British. After a prisoner exchange in 1781, Rutherford participated in several other campaigns, including further attacks on the Chickamauga faction of the Cherokee.

An active member of his community, Rutherford served in multiple civil occupations. He was a representative of both houses of the North Carolina House of Commons and as an unsuccessful candidate for governor. Rutherford was an Anti-Federalist and was appointed President of the Legislative Council of the Southwest Territory in 1794. He retired to Sumner County, Tennessee, where he died on August 10, 1805, at the age of 84.