Tar Heel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tar Heel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "In the third volume of Walter Clark's Histories of the Several Regiments from North Carolina in the Great War, the author explains that the nickname came from the North Carolina troops ability to hold their ground during a battle. According to the book, North Carolina troops held their ground during a battle in Virginia during the American Civil War while other supporting troops retreated. After the battle, supporting troops asked the victorious North Carolinians: 'Any more tar down in the Old North State, boys?' and they replied: 'No, not a bit; old Jeff's bought it all up.' The supporting troops continued: 'Is that so? What is he going to do with it?' The North Carolinian troops' response: 'He is going to put it on you'ns heels to make you stick better in the next fight.'[7]"

North Carolina State Governor Vance said in one of his speeches to the troops: "I do not know what to call you fellows. I cannot say fellow soldiers, because I am not a soldier, nor fellow citizens, because we do not live in this state; so I have concluded to call you fellows Tar Heels".

Tar Heel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "A letter found in 1991 by North Carolina State Archivist David Olson somewhat supports this theory that Lee might have stated something similar to this. The letter dated from 1864 (in the North Carolina 'Tar Heel Collection') a Colonel Joseph Engelhard described the Battle of Ream's Station in Virginia. In that letter he states: 'It was a 'Tar Heel' fight, and ... we got Gen'l Lee to thanking God, which you know means something brilliant.'"