Rutherford's cavalry commander, Moore, re-activated his cavalry troop on October 19, 1776.Cherokee Expeditions; Carolana.com; retrieved May 2016 On the 29th, he met up (near Cathey's fort) with Captain Joseph Hardin, who had been active since August in raising a cavalry troop from Tryon County, then part of the Salisbury Military District in North Carolina.Report from the Rutherford Expedition – Letter from Captain William Moore to General Griffith Rutherford, November 16, 1776; Chapter 4: The Rutherford Expedition; Learn NC Digital Archive; accessed January 2016 The next day the combined forces crossed into an area situated between the Swannanoa and French Broad Rivers, where they discovered fresh evidence of recent Indian activity.
