Laodicea (Dicey) Langston Springfield

Would you have the courage to traverse over five miles in the middle of the night crossing a rushing swollen river to save your friends from certain death? If villains held your family at gunpoint, what would you do? Would you step forward and save them? “Dicey” Langston, who lived during the Revolutionary War, was a patriot who carried messages from the Loyalists to the Patriots. By doing so, she saved many lives and helped to win the fight for freedom. 

During the Revolutionary War, fifteen-year-old Dicey Langston overheard that a band of Loyalists known as the “Bloody Scouts” were going to attack the Elder Settlement at Little Eden, South Carolina at dawn. She set out on foot in the middle of the night, crossed a swollen river, nearly drowned, but made it in time to warn her brother James so that he and his men could warn the settlement. When the Bloody Scouts arrived the next day, the Elder Settlement had been evacuated. 

 On another occasion, the Bloody Scouts broke into their home and threatened to kill all the Langston men. Only her father was present. He had been crippled during the war and wasn’t able to defend himself as well as he once could have. The Bloody Scouts held him at gunpoint and she stepped in front of her father, shielding him with her own body. She told them they would have to kill her first.  One of the Bloody Scouts was so impressed with her bravery, that he stopped the assault and kept the others from killing Dicey or her father.

Dicey’s courage and patriotism shows each of us that one person – no matter their age – can make a difference. One person can change the world for the better and affect lives for centuries to come. Thousands honor Dicey as their grandmother and can trace their roots back to her through one of her 22 children!

Click here to read an excerpt from The Patriot Wore Petticoats, an historical fiction novel based on the accounts of her life.

What We Can Learn from Dicey About Being a Patriot in a Divided Society

Author of The Patriot Wore Petticoats, Marnie Pehrson Kuhns, speaks at Traveler’s Rest, South Carolina City Hall about Dicey’s Legacy and what we can learn from her about being a patriot in a divided society. Presentation was given on 11/2/2023 to help raise funds for the Dicey Langston Monument project.

Interview with Author of The Patriot Wore Petticoats

Joan Hetzler of the Writer’s Show (WAWL Chattanooga 91.5 FM) interviews author Marnie Pehrson Kuhns about her latest novel Angel and the Enemy, how she incorporates family history into her books, and her self-publishing strategies. Interview aired 3/4/07.

Part 1: MP3 File

Part 2: MP3 File