The Fort That Refused to Surrender: Fort Morris, Midway, GA

In the fall of 1778, as the American Revolution raged across the colonies, the quiet coastal town of Sunbury, Georgia, became the stage for one of the war’s most memorable moments. Guarding the approaches to Savannah stood Fort Morris, a modest but strategic stronghold manned by Colonel John McIntosh and roughly 200 Continental soldiers and militia.

On November 25, 1778, a British force of about 500 men under Lieutenant Colonel Fuser advanced on the fort, intent on seizing it as part of Britain’s plan to reclaim Georgia. Confident in their superior numbers, the British sent a formal demand for surrender to McIntosh, expecting the American commander to yield without resistance.

Instead, McIntosh’s reply became immortal in Revolutionary War lore. With steely defiance, he sent back a message containing just four words: “Come and take it!”

The British, lacking sufficient artillery and reinforcements to risk a full assault, withdrew rather than face a determined garrison behind stout defenses. For the moment, Fort Morris remained firmly in American hands, and McIntosh’s bold words became a rallying cry of patriot resolve.

Yet the victory was temporary. Just two months later, in January 1779, a much larger British force returned. This time outnumbered and surrounded, the Americans surrendered, and Fort Morris fell into British control as part of the campaign that would soon make Georgia the only colony fully retaken by the Crown during the war. Still, the defiance at Fort Morris on that November day lived on as a symbol of American courage in the face of overwhelming odds—a moment when one Georgia commander dared the British Empire itself to “come and take it.”