Captain John Henry Felder

Captain John Henry Felder was a passionate, freedom-loving German-Swiss American patriot. He arrived with his parents as a young man, nine years old, from Zurich, Switzerland in 1735. Both of Henry’s parents passed on soon after, leaving him 350 acres of land in the Orangeburg area near Four-Hole Swamp. As a teenage orphan, he was under the guidance of a local friend of his mother’s until he reached maturity at twenty-one.

Felder learned skills of farming and leather craft and created a shop in his home. He was married twice. With his first wife he had eight children. After she passed on, he had six more with his second wife, Catherine Snell, who was with him during the American Revolution.

Seven of his sons fought with him in his militia under Lt. Col. Christopher Rowe in William “Danger” Thomson’s Orangeburg Regiment.

Felder had served as Jury Foreman on the British Grand Jury in the Orangeburg District, but he and members of his community suffered so constantly under the tyranny of British magistrates he began to feel no justice was possible coming from English judges. This led to his writing a “Declaration of Separation from the English King” which he delivered to William Henry Drayton on May 20th, 1776. This made him a target of British loyalist militias in the district and later the British army.

Six weeks later, Thomas Jefferson delivered his Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, Felder was tasked by the Provincial Congress to make gunpowder and collect taxes for the revolutionary government.

Captain Felder led his militia, including seven of his sons, and his Catawba Scout, Sawgrass in a number of successful skirmishes in various parts of the midlands of South Carolina and became a target for a brutal loyalist, William Cunningham (Bloody Bill), commander of a Tory militia (portrayed by a character named Bill Jenkins in All For Liberty). In 1778, they looted and burned Felder’s house, barns and livestock. Felder rebuilt and kept fighting. His son, John, was captured and killed while on a secret mission for William Washington (George’s cousin).

In 1780, loyalists returned again and burned Captain Felder’s new home and surrounded him and his family. The award-winning film, All for Liberty, reveals the rest of the story and the cost of freedom for this brave patriot, his family and friends.

CAPTAIN HENRY FELDER (image is of Peter Felder, Henry’s grandson as no image of Captain Henry Felder exists as of 2025:

Captain Felder is portrayed in All for Liberty by his sixth great-grandson, nationally known actor/writer/director/ producer, Clarence Felder, who was unaware of his Revolutionary War hero ancestor until the age of 56 when he moved back to his home state from Hollywood, California. He is the executive producer, co-writer and leading actor for the film. Clarence Felder’s long career in the entertainment industry spans five decades as a lead actor in films, television and Broadway. His numerous roles include a two year run on ABC’s hit series Hooperman and films such as The Last Boy Scout, Ruthless People, After Hours, and others. Felder co-starred in ten productions on Broadway, performing with such stars as Christopher Walken, Danny Devito, Glenn Close and Meryl Streep. His American theatre appearances include over 160 productions, including starring roles in most of Shakespeare’s plays. A prolific writer/ producer, Felder co-founded Actors Theater of South Carolina with his wife, Chris Weatherhead. Felder was commissioned to write a play about his sixth great-grandfather, Captain Felder’s Cannon, which became the basis for the film All for Liberty. The screenplay was adapted by his wife, Chris Weatherhead and Ron Mangravite.