After returning home to Halifax County, John and his father moved to Lincoln County, North Carolina, where once again John volunteered to serve. He witnessed several important events in our country’s history while serving in North Carolina.
Cobb served with Colonel John Sevier along the frontier and was in several skirmishes against the Cherokee Indians, who were British allies at the time. He was also at the Battle of Cowpens in South Carolina on January 17, 1781, under General Daniel Morgan, when Lieutenant Colonel. Tarleton was defeated. Cowpens was a rare American victory and slowed British efforts to invade North Carolina. On March 15, 1781, Cobb was assigned to guard the baggage at another decisive battle, the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, in North Carolina. During this battle, the British suffered such a significant troop loss that General Cornwallis abandoned his campaign for the Carolinas and instead turned his attention to Virginia.
American troops, under the command of George Washington, and their French allies, led by the Comte de Rochambeau, laid siege to Yorktown, Virginia. The siege ended on October 19, 1781. John Cobb was a first-hand witness to the battle and to the surrender of British General Charles Cornwallis and the British Army at Yorktown, the last major battle of the war.
Cobb’s military service ended after Yorktown and he returned to Lincoln County, North Carolina, where he stayed until the end of the Revolutionary War. He finally settled in the Pickens District of South Carolina where he farmed and served as a minister.