She helped run a prominent tavern in Salisbury, North Carolina, that served as a "resort" for many notable figures of the time.

[3] Robert Gillespie Sr. was shot 7 times and scalped on March 21, 1760, by Cherokee warriors while returning to Salisbury from Fort Dobbs.

He also played a major role in defending the militia concept and criticizing a standing army accompanied by excessive executive authority.

[4] Elizabeth Steele, who was a Whig Patriot, is most renowned for aiding General Nathanael Greene on the morning of February 1, 1781, from her tavern in Salisbury in Rowan County, North Carolina.

He had been riding all night and had just learned of the death of General William Davidson at the hands of the British Lieutenant, Colonel Banastre of the Tarleton's Dragoons.

This was a blow to the war effort and put Greene in a difficult tactical position as he had been waiting the entire night for those men to launch a counter-attack on the British.

General Greene's biographer noted of his encounter with Steele: "Never, did relief come at a more propitious moment; nor would it be straining conjecture to suppose that he resumed his journey with his spirits cheered and lightened by this touching proof of woman's devotion to the cause of her country.

They had a plaque affixed to the front façade of the 1850 Courthouse in Steele's memory and in recognition of the 130th anniversary of her meeting with General Greene.