USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Framingham > History of Framingham, Massachusetts, early known as Danforth's Farms, 1640-1880; with a genealogical register > Part 31
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The substance of the narrative, but containing important errors, was printed in the newspapers of the day.
MAYNARD'S ACCOUNT OF THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. - " On the night of the 16th June, 1775, Col. Prescott was sent off from camp with a detachment of men to break ground on Bunker's Hill. He was ordered to Bunker's Hill; but when they got there they found Breed's was better, and so they laid out the fort and went to work there - as they afterwards told me (for I knew nothing of this myself till the next morning; and as they told me Prescott commanded the detachment).
" There are only a few of us left who were there that day, and we can only tell what we saw.
"Our regiment was ordered out early in the morning of the 17th, and we soon found out what the business was we were going upon ; I was in Capt. Aaron Haynes' company in Col. Jonathan Brewer's regiment. We reached the Hill between 10 and II o'clock, and found Prescott's men at work. Col. Brewer was acquainted with Col. Prescott, and went up to speak to him. The balls were then flying about us very thick.
" At about II o'clock Gen. Warren came on ;1 and when Col. Brewer met him (they were old acquaintances) he said, 'General, if you have come to take the command, I am glad to see you.' 'No,' he answered, 'I have come only as a volunteer. I did not come to take the command, but to act as a volunteer in any station: Our perils are commencing, and I have come to take my part.' 'Well,' they said to him, 'do you mean to stay with us, General?' 'Yes,' he said, 'I mean to stay.' And then the other officers present
1 The hour named is evidently too early.
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insisted upon his taking the command. They said, 'We have no officer to lead - we ought to have some particular one for the orders to come from ;' and they asked; 'Why cant you take the command?' He said he didn't think it would be proper for him to do so. Then Col. Brewer said in his blunt way, 'We must have a head, and he ought to be a General. We are all Colonels here, and one Colonel is as good as another.' When he found that Prescott was there he (Warren) said, 'If you will continue to act as a Council, I will give you my views as commander, and if you approve of them, they can go as commands.' And they said that amounted to the same thing as if he was commander : And so he went on - when anything was to be done, giving the orders." (In answer to a question, Mr. Maynard said, "The Council of officers consisted of all the Field officers who happened to be about Warren -sometimes one, and sometimes another)."
"Col. Brewer then asked Warren, ' Have you got an aid ?' No, he said, he did not think there would have been a battle. Then the Colonel recommended me, saying that I was one of his Minute Men of Lexington; and Warren asked me if I would be his aid, and I said I was willing to serve. And this brought me to know what few others do about these things.
" The time was short, and it was difficult to decide what to do. The enemy was coming, and we had not above 1200 men. Said he (Warren), ' I have just come along here by the back of Bunker Hill, and there are a great many men lying there; and they said that they should be of no use here now, but that as soon as they could be of use they would come on. Col. Gerrish says there are 1500 men; and I believe they will come on when they are needed ; if I did not think so, I should advise you now to retreat !'
" Then Gen. Warren, with some of the officers, walked over towards the Mystic. There was nothing but the open field to stand upon ; and he said that he doubted whether the troops would stand there, not being accustomed to stand fire, - and he proposed that they should bring up the fences and make a straight line, and run it up towards the other breastwork, and stuff in hay between the two rows of fence. He said this would answer the purpose, for if it did not stop the balls, the men would think that it would, and that would give them confidence.
" The officers all agreed to this, and we began in earnest to set up the fences, four rails on each side. I set posts; some of the men brought rails, and some brought hay. We had but little time, and worked as hard as we could, and they (the enemy) had begun to march before we had got as far up as the dirt breastwork. We had
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got I should say within about 20 or 30 rods of it, when the enemy had got so nigh that we let it go as it was, and got ready to fight. 1
"Then the General said, 'Our difficulty is that the men take no thought about their fire, but fire too quick. Let the enemy take their own distance, and give the first fire if they will. Send to Col. Nixon and give the word to the officers all along the line, not to let the men fire too quick.' So I went and met Thomas Nixon (John Nixon was Colonel, and his brother Thomas was Lieut. Col. of the regiment) and told him that the orders were that they should not fire a single shot until they fired from the centre. He said it was the same as if I had told John : So I went back, and was told to go to Prescott, and give the same order : and I did.
" The British came on, and fired first by the right and then by the left; and when they were about 10 rods off (I don't know the exact distance, but we generally thought it was about 10 rods) the word was given for us to fire! I tell you there was a thundering noise. The whole line was one blaze. I fired among the first. No man can think what a time it was. They fell in heaps- actually in heaps. They kept falling; the officers falling until they began to retreat - but they did not retreat in great confusion. The bodies lay there very thick. We kept on firing till they got off to about 20 rods ; then we gave it up.
" The British went back to near where they started from ; and then we saw a reinforcement coming to them. They delayed long enough for us to clean our guns, I cannot say how long it was - And then they came up in the same way that they did before. They came up to where the dead were, and when they were just past the heap of bodies, we began to fire. We were a little cooler than before, and they were in greater confusion. There was hardly one of us hit - they were in great confusion and shot over. Their officers were shot down; there seemed to be nobody to command 'em; And they retreated to the same spot as before.
"The next time there came over to 'em a General officer (I got it from a British soldier afterwards that it was a General officer -he said it was Gen. Burgoyne2), and he gave 'em better orders. This time they started in column, at a slow march, and displayed half way
1 In most accounts of the battle it is asserted that Capt. Knowlton was sent by Col. Prescott to the exposed line towards the Mystic, and that the rail-fence breastwork was set up by the Connecticut company. But Mr. Maynard helped make it ; and he recites particulars which leave no doubt that his account is the true one.
2 General Clinton. " It is related, that at this critical conjuncture, upon which depended the issue of the day, General Clinton, who from Copp's Hill, examined all the movements, on seeing the destruc- tion of his troops, immediately resolved to fly to their succor. This experienced commander, by an able movement, re-established order; and seconded by the officers, who felt all the importance of success to English honor and the course of events, he led the troops to a third attack." [Botta.]
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up the hill. It was strange that the British should have marched up in such close order-it was a thing unaccountable ; it flung them completely into our hands. They came on in column ; and the second time did not display at all. The first time they displayed into two platoons, advanced right and left and fired ;1 and then the fire was returned. The next time they did not display at all. The third time they came up with the General of whom I have spoken, and he gave 'em better orders- they came more open - and when they were part way up they displayed and fired. - This time we reserved our fire as before, but it didn't do so much execution. We fired till our ammuni- tion began to fail : then our firing began to slacken -and at last it went out like an old candle.
" As our firing slackened, the British assaulted the breastwork. Just as they began to force it, I went with a message from Col. Brewer and their Council to Prescott in the redoubt, to know whether he wanted any more men. He said it was no use to send for more men. - The British were then putting their guns over the rampart, and Prescott shouted, 'Take their guns away -twitch 'em away! and you that can handle stones, seize 'em and knock about!' As soon as they got in, our men ceased firing, and began to knock the guns aside - to spring on 'em with stones - to give 'em heavy punches, feeling that they must sell their lives there. They didn't know how to take this kind of fighting, and they fell back. For a moment we had a pretty good time: We hit 'em as they went out - with their own guns. We took about 30 of their guns, I should think. But immediately vengeance added to their determination, and they fell on again. We used such weapons as we could find - stones, the breaches of our guns, and such things, and gave 'em a good warm reception : it was getting full there, and the red coats couldn't do anything, and many of them began to fall, and they quivered as if they were frightened at such play, and they soon fell back again.
" During this assault I saw a British officer- I think he was a captain - come up with some pomp, and he cried out, 'Surrender, you -rebels !' But Prescott called out in return, 'We are no rebels !' and he made a little motion of his hand, and that was the last word the British officer spoke. He fell at once; and their men retreated at once, leaving as many as 60 guns, I should think, in the hands of our men, and ten British dead to one American. - But they were no sooner out than they rallied, and began to press back again ; and as our powder was all gone, we fell back.
"We formed column, and went out of the redoubt between their
1 " The Welsh Fusiliers advanced on the rail fence ; and when within So or 100 yards they deployed into line, and opened a regular fire by platoons." [Dearborn.]
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advance and Charlestown (which had then been burnt down). Prescott gave the order and said, 'Go and save yourselves, my boys!' The British were advancing in two columns, and we passed out between them. He said, 'Don't go too thick, and then their fire wont do so much damage ; Go quick, but go thin.'1
"I was not with Gen. Warren when he fell, having gone into the redoubt with a message-as I have just stated, and was there detained by Prescott, who said to me, 'Stop, I may want to send you, in a minute ;' and just then the new contest of their breaking into the redoubt began. I was sent up with about 60 men, and was told by the officers to tell Prescott if he wanted more he could have them. But he said, 'No, there are as many men here as can stand to advantage.' But he told me to wait a minute, for they were about charging us, and he might want to send some word. And so I was detained till the British had got possession of the gap."
*
Mr. Maynard here gave an account of finding his brother John, wounded, and unable to walk, lying just back of the redoubt; whom he succeeded in getting safely off to Cambridge.
* * *
In answer to specific questions, Mr. Maynard said : "I saw General Pomeroy there; I knew him; He was in the Council of officers of which I have spoken. He was from Northampton. He had his gun there.
"I did not see Stark there. He might have been there, and I not have seen him.2
" Reed of New Hampshire was there. We had some smart men in the Council of officers. Warren had a dark eye ; was a little under 6 feet in height, well proportioned, with a pleasant face, and his countenance was remarkable. There was Prescott, and Brewer, and Nixon, who were all officers in the French war. Both the Nixons and Prescott were then Captains. Pomeroy was there; Reed was there some of the time. Prescott was wide awake. He was a bold man, and gave his orders like a bold man.
" Col. John Nixon's regiment was sent on soon after we were. He was not there the night before. Nixon was stationed at the hay breastwork below the gap.
"Col. Reed was with Nixon down towards the Mystic. Little was somewhere there. I dont know exactly where Gardner was, after I
1 " The retiring troops passed between two divisions of the British, one of which had turned the northeastern end of the breastwork, and the other had come round the angle of the redoubt." [Froth- ingham.]
2 Stark's position was at the extreme left of the American line, at the Mystic. "He reached the rail fence just as the fire commenced between the left wing of the British army, and Col. Prescott in the redoubt." [ Dearborn. ]
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left Little Cambridge - I saw him there, and saw my brother speak to him ; he got his mortal wound on the northerly Hill.
"Col. Brewer had about 150 men with him - perhaps a little more. Many of the men had 'listed only a little while before, and had gone home for clothes and things, or there would have been more of us. This regiment was stationed in the open field, pretty much the whole of it-I mean the gap between the dirt breastwork and the hay breastwork. This gap was about 25 rods wide -it might be 30. I was in Capt. Haynes' company, which was in this open space. My brother John was quarter master's sergeant, but he acted as ensign that day. He was two years and three months older than I.
"Our Lieut. Col., Buckminster, a good friend of Gen. Warren, and a true hearted man, had a ball shot through his shoulder. Almost all our officers were hurt. Col. Brewer was wounded through the lower part of his arm ; Adjutant Butler had a flesh wound in the arm ; Maj. Cudworth was unhurt. 1
" Gen. Warren brought on a gun ; I dont know whether he used it - I did not see him fire.
"Gen. Pomeroy had his gun with him.
" Col. Brewer, I know, had a gun and fired it. He had a double- barrelled one."
Mr. Maynard said, "people might differ about the length of time occupied by the attacks and the pauses between them. He should not think the first attack lasted more than fifteen minutes ; 2 between that and the second attack might be an hour -he should think an hour and a quarter. There was time enough to get the guns all fixed and cooled. There was about the same time between the second and third attacks. They couldn't get the troops over from Boston, and parade and march, much quicker. And they could not get up so fast as they did before, because they displayed on the march. He should think the action commenced not far from two o'clock in the afternoon. When they got across the Neck, it was a little after sundown, and he should think the sun was an hour high when they left the breastwork." * * *
On being asked why the British did not march into the open gap, between the rail-fence and the breastwork before, Mr. M. replied, with deep feeling, "You must ask them, not me! They were terribly
1 In most accounts of the battle, it is implied that these officers were wounded during the second attack ; but such is not the fact. Nearly all our officers and men were unhurt till after the British had advanced the third time, and got possession of the gap to the eastward of the redonbt. The men in the redoubt suffered most from sword and bayonet wounds. And a large part of the fatalities of the retreat were caused by the fire from the shipping and from some cannon which were brought up to Breed's Hill.
2 " In the course of ten or fifteen minutes the enemy gave way." [Dearborn.]
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repulsed from that place ! The gap was filled chock full of men. There was a heavy column there, and men on each side ready to reinforce it. [See Note A.] Warren was below the gap, against the hay breastwork. This brought him about the centre of the line. Many of us thought we had rather stand in the open space. We could see better how to aim, and they might as well take our shins as our heads - though in fact they fired over us. I tell you a man dont know how he will feel in his first action."
" After Gen. Washington arrived at Cambridge, at an interview between him and several of the officers who were in the battle of June 17th, Washington, alluding to Warren, said, 'You lost your com- mander-in chief.' And Col. Brewer went on to tell Washington, how he lost sight of Warren as he was going towards the redoubt ; and supposing he had gone on ahead, he followed on with as much speed as possible, but found nothing of him. He then supposed he must have been shot down by a dead shot, not many rods from the spot whence they started ; for they started together from the place they had occupied all during the battle."
" And where was that ?"
"Just on the other side of the gap, against the hay breastwork - only about a rod from the gap." [See Note B.]
[Note A .- It is not easy to determine who composed the bulk of this " heavy column " at the gap. Brewer's regiment was here during the three attacks. Some of Nixon's men, and some of Reed's New Hampshire men were here a part of the time. Capt. Perkins of Little's regiment was here; and Capt. Wade's and part of Capt. Warner's companies appear to have been here. Adj. Febiger of Col. Gerrish's regiment was probably here, as was one of Col. Gardner's companies. Capt. Benj. Hastings, an associate of Col. Asa Whitcomb in the Indian War, though not commissioned, went on with thirty-four men, and fought at this point. He was from Bolton, and had been in camp since April 20. Callender's company of artillery was stationed here for a while, and did excellent service.
Many of the officers and men stationed here were veterans in war, and the defence of this point was of vital importance to the fortunes of the day. Swett says : "The open gap was the key to the American position." Frothingham says: "The British commander ordered his men [on the third attack] to move forward in column, to reserve their fire, to rely on the bayonet, to direct their main attack on the redoubt, and to push the artillery forward to a position that would enable it to rake the breastwork. The gallant execution of these orders reversed the fortunes of the day."]
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[Note B .- Mr. Maynard's statements in regard to the position occupied by Gen. Warren during the battle - though differing from most writers on the subject - are so distinct, and so circumstantial, that his testimony cannot be gainsaid. There is no room for mistake on the ground of misinformation ; and no motive existed for misstate- ment. And he is confirmed by the testimony of Sergt. Ebenezer Eaton of this town, who was a clear-headed, matter-of-fact man, and took no sides in the question of commander-in-chief. He states that he was with Gen. Warren when he started from the lines, and saw him fall, and with some comrades, made an effort to carry him off the field ; but when they found that he was dead, the hot fire from the British artillery induced them to leave the body, and try to save their own lives.]
Col. Jonathan Brewer went upon the Hill with about 165 men. He received a painful wound in the arm. Lt. Col. Buckminster (who was born on the Bowditch farm) received a dangerous wound from a musket ball entering the right shoulder and coming out in the middle of his back, which made him a cripple for life. Adj. Butler was wounded in the arm. Seven of this regiment were reported killed, and eleven wounded. One of the killed was Corning Fairbanks, aged sixteen, of this town. He is the only Framingham man known to have been killed in this battle. Ens. John Maynard was wounded and disabled, but got off alive.
Adj. Samuel Brewer, a brother of Col. Jonathan, was in the battle, and was severely wounded.
Col. John Nixon took with him to Bunker Hill about 300 men ; Capt. Thomas Drury of this town was there, and had with him fifty of his company, all Framingham men. Part of this company fought in the redoubt with Prescott, and part were at the hay breastwork with the regiment. Peter Salem, who shot Maj. Pitcairn, was a member of this company. Capt. Micajah Gleason had six Framing- ham men in his company, all of whom were in the battle. Col. Nixon was severely wounded during the third attack of the British, and had to be carried off the Hill. Lieut. William Maynard, of Capt. Drury's company, received a bullet in his hip, which he carried to his grave. Three of this regiment were reported killed, and ten wounded. Most of these casualties happened after the men left the breastwork. The reason why the shots of the British did so little execution during the action, is found in a statement made by Sergt. Ebenezer Eaton : "The British fired over our heads ; the tops of the young apple trees where we stood were cut all to pieces by their bullets."
After the 17th, the several regiments went into camp at different points. Col. Jona. Brewer's regiment was stationed through the
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summer at Prospect Hill. This regiment was then known as the Sixth. He remained here till Nov. 16, when by some new arrange- ment of companies, he was requested to transfer the command to Col. Asa Whitcomb. For this graceful act, he was thanked by the Provincial Congress ; and Gen. Washington issued an order the same day, "that Col. Jonathan Brewer be appointed Barrack Master untill something better worth his acceptance could be provided." He held this appointment till the army moved to New York the next year.
Col. David Brewer, with his regiment, was stationed at Roxbury, through the season.
Col. John Nixon was at Winter Hill, where he remained till March, 1776, and probably held the post till the army went to New York. His regiment was called the Fourth.
The nominal date of discharge of the eight months men was Dec. 31, though some companies completed their term Dec. 24, and others not till the early spring. Many of the companies were persuaded to remain in the service after their time had expired.
No bounties were offered to our men at the time; but March 10, 1777, the town " voted the sum of £4 to each of those non-commis- sioned officers and soldiers that engaged eight months in the service soon after the battle of Lexington, whose terms expired in the January following."
The method of providing the army with guns and camp tools, is indicated by the following bill :
"The Colony of the Massachusetts Bay, to Josiah Stone, - Dr.
" For collecting 42 fire arms; also for purchasing collecting and transporting 31 wood axes to Head Quarters by order of Congress, for the use of said Colony Army, viz.
To 4 days collecting said Arms @ 6s. per day £1. 4. 0
To 2 days collecting said Axes 66
12. 0
To cash paid for transporting said Axes 2.
The prices given for said Axes are as followeth of Asaph Bigelow, 4 Axes @ 6s. I. 4. 0
" Jona. Rugg, I @ 6/, Seth Bullard, I 4
II. 4
" Josiah Temple, I ". 5/4, Wm Maynard, I
6 II. 4
" Jesse Eames, " 12/, John Eames, 2 I 18. 0 6
" Jonas Clark, I " 6 8, Dan1 Stone, I
66 .6 12. 8
" John Fisk, 3 " 17 , Joseph Haven, I 5 4 66 I. 2. 4
" Jos. Bixby, I " 6/1, /4, Henry Eames Jr. I 66 4 13. 0
" Jesse Haven, I " 6/, Dan1 Sanger, II
66 734 3. 19. 4
£II. 10. 0
" Framingham Aug. 10, 1775.
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War of the Revolution.
" Sept. 20, 1775. Ordered to be paid out of the Public Treasury of this Colony."
"In Council of War, Dec. 1, 1775, voted that a temporary re-in- forcement of 5000 men be called for, to defend the fortifications at Cambridge and Roxbury." The quota of Framingham was twenty- eight.
In response to this call, Capt. Simon Edgell raised a company of thirty-three men, and reported for duty.
A true Roll of Capt. Simon Edgell's Militia company, from Framingham, now in Roxbury, in Col. Wyllys' regiment, six weeks service, from Dec. 1, 1775 to Fan. 15, 1776.
Capt. Simon Edgell
David Rice
Lieut. Jesse Eames
William Haven
Lieut. John Gleason
Joseph Winch
Nathan Drury
Gideon Rider
John Bent
Abel Childs
Roger Brown
John Kendall
Matthias Bent
Timothy Pike
Silas Pike
John Holbrook
William Cushing
John Snelling
Moses Edgell
Timothy Ballard
Joseph Pullen
Nathan Barrett
Cheever Kendall
Elias Hemenway
J. Grant Haven
Henry Eames
Daniel Jones
Jotham Eames
Jonathan Rice
James Mellen
Uriah Rice
Joseph Lovering
Isaac How
The town paid the men a bounty of sixteen shillings each.
1776. - Jan. 20, a call was issued for 4,368 men for the army at Cambridge, to serve till April I.
Under this call, Capt. Simon Edgell enlisted a company of eighty- five men : twenty-five from Framingham, four from Natick, two from Sherborn, twenty-five from Marlborough, fifteen from Hopkinton, and fourteen from Holliston. The company marched Jan. 29. The names of the Framingham men were, Capt. Simon Edgell, Andrew Allard, Ebenezer Boutwell, James Boutwell, Abel Childs, Joseph Cutting, Moses Cutting, Nathan Dadmun, Timothy Dadmun, Timothy Darling, Jotham Eames, Jonathan Edmunds, Allen Flagg, Aaron Haven, Joshua Grant Haven, Jotham Haven, Elias Hemenway, Joshua Hemenway, Isaac How, John Kendall, Jacob Pepper, Joseph Pullen, Peter Salem, Joshua Trowbridge, Joseph Winch. The term
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