LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. — The sounds of a battle, screaming, running and barking commands, echo through the amphitheater at Woodmill Winery in Vale.

The Battle of Ramsour's Mill happened more than 240 years ago in Lincoln County, on June 20, 1780. 

Thunder Over Carolina Inc. has put on the historical drama of the battle over the last few years. It educates the community and keeps the importance and significance of the battle alive. 

Cleveland County woman Hollen Carpenter rehearses under the blazing June sun. Her daughter wanted to audition for Thunder Over Carolina, but they also needed Carpenter to play the part of Ann Carpenter. 

"Ann Carpenter was Jacob Ramsour's wife, he was the owner of the mill where the battle took place," Hollen Carpenter said. 

The director wanted Carpenter to understand her character and know her history, so she began to read and research the Carpenter family history. 

​"I am a teacher in Cleveland County, and I had heard of the Battle of Ramsour's Mill, but I really didn't know much about it," Hollen Carpenter said. 

She said one night, while researching the family history, she learned the Carpenter and Ramsours had a familiar immigrant family history. 

“His pattern of coming from Germany, to Pennsylvania, to Lincoln County, matched what happened in my family,” Hollen Carpenter said. 

So she kept digging. Then, she discovered the connection. 

“Jacob and Ann are my seventh great-grandparents," Hollen Carpenter said. 

She said she felt like she was the winner on an episode of "The Price is Right."

"That same excitement, I could not go to sleep, I could not go to sleep,” Hollen Carpenter said. 

So now, instead of just playing a part in a play, she's portraying the life of her own family. 

The show will be June 17 to 19 at Woodmill Winery, at 7:30 pm.