This led to the American Revolution, with its ethos of freedom and equality. The spirit of the age was not lost on African Americans, who became involved in a parallel struggle for their own freedom.

Patrick Mantle, an East Rockaway, N.Y., history buff, needs a few good men and women—and even children—to fill the ranks of the Huntington Militia. Mantle isn’t some radical firebrand.

A commemoration for the Battle of Cowpens will be held at the battlefield in January, 244 years after the clash dashed ...