When war with England threatened Leroy raised a regiment for protection of citizens in the upstate. He and many of his men were captured and imprisoned in Charleston for a time. As a condition of his release he affirmed that he would not take up arms again against the king. He retired to his home in Edgefield and supported his nephew Samuel who reorganized the regiment and went on to distinguish himself in the upstate in the battles against the British.
One of the family stories recounts how a band of British soldiers entered his home while Leroy was away. His wife, Mary Ann, took Leroy's sword down from above the mantle and beheaded the captain of the British company. The sword is still in Edgefield County and I had the opportunity to hold it about 1994.
Le Roy was born in Richmond County, Virginia., February 18, 1728. He was the son of John Hammond and Catherine Dobbins. Little is known of his early life, education, and training although from letters in the Washington papers we find that he knew Washington well and corresponded frequently. He married Maryann Tyler, and left Virginia about the year 1765, with his wife and one child. He began business as a merchant in Augusta, which
