Pike County is notable for being the site of the first documented burial of an African American Revolutionary War soldier in Alabama. Jim Capers was an extraordinary Patriot who served for more than seven years as a Drum Major in the 4th South Carolina Regiment.
Born into slavery in 1742 in South Carolina. Little is known about his early life, but at age 33, he enlisted as a drum major at the start of the Revolutionary War. Regimental drummers held one of the most important positions on the battlefield and faced the same dangers as other soldiers. The beating of the drums signaled new orders to advance, withdraw, or change formation. Music was also a daily part of soldiers’ lives in camp. Drummers were usually positioned in front of regiments, without muskets or rifles, and were intentionally targeted by enemy fire because of their role in signaling commands.
Capers saw action at the Battles of Savannah, Camden, and Biggin Church. At the Battle of Beaufort (also known as Port Royal Island) in 1779, Capers served alongside two signers of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Heyward, Jr., and Edward Rutledge.
In 1780, Capers served with the partisans under General Francis “Swamp Fox” Marion in the South Carolina low country. Capers was at the last major engagement of the Revolutionary War in the Carolinas in 1781 at Eutaw Springs. During the battle, Capers was wounded. He sustained four wounds, three saber cuts and a shot that passed through his side, killing the drummer behind him. Capers recovered and was present at Yorktown when the British surrendered. Some historians report that Capers played the drum as the British surrendered their weapons.
By 1840, Capers, his wife Milley, and their six children were living in Orion, Pike County. Capers’s pension records show that he was a free man after his service in the war. Capers died on April 1, 1853, at age 111.
In 2015, Capers’ heroism was commemorated by the Alabama Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, which placed a stone marker. Capers is buried at Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church. Honoring Jim Capers not only acknowledges his extraordinary sacrifices but also enriches our understanding of the countless unsung heroes who shaped the nation’s history.