USA > New York > New York City > Leslie's history of the greater New York, Volume I > Part 23
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It was this artillery company which set the ball rolling, both figura- tively and literally speaking. About eleven o'clock on the night of August 23 a number of the Liberty Boys proceeded to carry out a
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request of the Provincial Congress, to remove the guns from the Bat- tery, so that they might be transferred to fortifications up the river. To cover their exploit a part of Colonel Lamb's company stood guard, and when a barge sent from the Asia to reconnoiter the suspicious movements on shore came near enough, they sent a volley of musketry into the boat, killing one of the ocenpants. Instantly putting back. a broadside was opened upon the town from the ship. Several houses were damaged. one ball going through the roof of Fraunce's Tavern, and three citizens were badly wounded. The whole town was soon in a frenzy of excitement. Several families gathered their portable prop- erty together and fled into the woods and fields. Others raged around mob-fashion, threatening the lives of Tories. Dr. Cooper, the Loyal- ist President of Columbia, was chased through the streets to his home. The crowd were about to beat down the door, when they were confronted by that strange youth who had harangned them in the Fields the year before. Alexander Hamilton had joined Lamb's artil- lery company, and had just been seen doing duty valiantly at his post. He had divined the purpose of the mob, and now stood on the steps of the College, argning the mob ont of their mad design to hurt the poor doctor. It was a foreshadowing of the day when the same mag- nanimous patriot would defend Tories at the risk of his life against cruel retaliations after the war. He appeased the violence of the people, and saved Dr. Cooper, although the old gentleman eried hist- ily from a top-story window not to heed the mad-cap boy whom he supposed was urging them to the very opposite of what he did. The guns meanwhile had been safely captured and were sent northward to serve in a better cause.
To the convenient Asia, so ready to use her guns against the city. although commanded by a captain whose name, Vandeput, suggests a Dutch ancestry or derivation, it was found best for Governor Tryon to retire. He occupied certainly a most peculiar position as Royal Governor, with rebel Commanders-in-Chief crossing his path. and Pro- vincial Congresses ordering the guns of his fort to be removed, and war waging in a neighboring Province, in which his own was bound to bear a part. Early in October it was intimated to him that the pa- triotie Congress at Philadelphia had recommended his arrest. The Mayor assured him that he would guarantee his safety, but, neverthe- less. on October 13, he removed his family and effects on board the British frigate. He continued, however, to annoy his former gov- ernment. In the first place he took away the records from the sec- retary's office, so that hardly any landholder could prove title to his estates in a court of law. They were carried to England three years later, but again three years after they were returned. Nevertheless. much harm had been done by these unnecessary travels of papers so important, and so necessary to be kept in a permanent situation. On October 19 Tryon took up his abode on the sloop-of-war Halifax,
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and again later on the Duchess of Gordon, whence he acted as Gov- ernor of New York as best he could. In December his influence was exerted to prevent delegates from counties strongly Tory, such as Queens and Richmond, from attending the Provincial Congress. And when, in the next year, a plot was concocted to remove Washington by poison, it was not without the connivance or knowledge of the ex- Royal Governor. Colden, who was superseded as Lieutenant-Gover- nor for the last time when Tryon came back in June, 1775, was not living in the city. He had retired to his country-seat near Flushing. and died there in September, 1776.
The very last day of the year 1775 had been marred by the disas- trons failure of the Canadian campaign before the gates of Quebec. During the early months of 1776 Washington kept drawing the lines tighter around Boston, occupying the time spent in waiting in trying to make something like an army out of the enthusiastic crowd of pat- riots called from plows, or fishing boats, or counting-houses by the whirring bullets at Lexington and the glorious action of Bunker Hill. At last, in March, 1776, Boston was evacuated by the enemy, and now came New York's turn. It was morally certain that this city would be the next point of attack. Its openness to attack by a power in ab- solute command of the sea was notorious, and its situation was such that withont a navy to support the army, defense on land was hardly possible. Therefore the Continental Army began to wend its way hither. Some months before the movement had already begun. In January, 1776, Washington received word that Sir Henry Clinton had left Boston for New York with a man-of-war. General Charles Lee was thereupon hurried off to the latter city, and reached it on Febru- ary 4, the same day that Sir Henry came into port. At once there was much ado, but it proved to be about nothing. Sir Henry was one of the numerous sons of Governor George Clinton, and he had spent ten years of his boyhood life in New York. He informed the citizens through the Mayor that he had only come to visit Governor Tryon, and to renew his juvenile impressions of the place. Meantime, al- though it was a Sunday, loaded carts and boats full of passengers were leaving town as fast as they could, under the supposition that Lee and Clinton must necessarily have a battle in the streets. Lee did not have the best of feelings toward the town he came to defend. The Provincial Congress, still tampering with pacific endeavors, had sent word to him not to come on the very day before he left the camp before Boston; he came therefore with the idea that he must overawe the city as a Tory stronghold. Whether welcome or not, however, his undoubted familiarity with military science enabled him to put New York into as good a state of defense as circumstances made possible. A redoubt protected by fascines was stretched across Broadway where it faced the open country. Bayard's Mount, later called Bunker Hill (also sometimes called Mount Pleasant), covering
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the space now bounded by Grand, Centre, Broome, and Elizabeth streets, afforded an advantageous position for fortification, com- manding a view across country all the way to Greenwich. Further out, Horn's Hook, or Gracie's Point, opposite Hell Gate, now part of the park at Eighty-sixth Street, East River, was also fortified by Lee. while he ocenpied Jacob Walton's elegant country-seat there as a headquarters. After Boston was evacuated nothing was looked for but the appearance of the British in the Port of New York. Guards were stationed at the Narrows and at Rockaway to watch for the first appearance of the enemy's feet, and signals arranged to quickly com- municate the fact. On April 4 General Putnam was placed in com- mand of the city, superseding the more scientific but less popular Lee. The work of fortifying points of vantage went on diligently. Red Hook was provided with breast works and cannon. Governor's Island received a garrison. On Bedlow's Island buildings intended as an asylum for banished Tory New Yorkers were burned, and stores, such as clothing and poultry and tools for making trenches, secured. Three companies of ri- Hemen were placed on Staten Island to worry boats landing from the enemy's ships. On April 14 Washington himself came to the city. and carefully sur - VIEW OF HELL GATE IN 1776. veyed what had been done. His main anxiety was getting the raw troops into soldierly trim, with which their thirst for independence sadly interfered. In fact, he ac- tually was forced to send many home again, because they refused to go through the necessary drills. Alarm signals were arranged, to consist of two cannon fired in quick succession, either in the day or night; in daytime this signal was to be accompanied by a flag hoisted above the General's headquarters, and at night two lanterns similarly hoisted. These headquarters, according to some authorities, were at No. 1 Broadway; others place them at Richmond Hill. a fine country- seat, about where now lie the blocks between Charlton and Spring streets, on Varick. This would seem rather far away for the utility of danger signals. On still other authority Washington resided dur- ing the first weeks of his stay at the old De Peyster house in Pearl Street, opposite Cedar. No. 1 Broadway was General Putnam's resi- dence during his command of the city. It was estimated that no less than ten thousand troops had been collected in and around the city
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before the end of April. By request of Congress, New Jersey and Con- necticut were to hold their militia in readiness to serve in New York at the first call for them, during which service they would receive pay as Continental regulars. A brigade under John Morin Scott was sta- tioned in the city itself; another along the East River shore within the city boundaries; a third from the shipyards above Peek Slip along the East River beyond Kip's and Turtle Bays, as far as Jones's Wood. Lord Stirling (William Alexander) and MacDougall's brigade were stationed near Bayard's or Bunker Hill, and another brigade along the Hudson shore from Greenwich down to Canal Street. A brigade under General Mifflin was placed at Fort Washington, and one under General George Clinton at King's Bridge. At the same time exten- sive defenses had been erected on all the elevated points on Long Island now within the limits of Brooklyn, reaching from Wallabout to Gowanus and Red Hook. Back of these ran a line of intrenehments within a narrower circle, making a sort of fort in the vicinity of the present Fulton Ferry. It was not yet certain that the enemy would approach that way, and only General Nathaniel Greene's division was stationed among these defenses. Naturally of the troops concen- trated here for her defense those of New York City herself were found most active and ready for service. The regiments already organized in 1775 were re-organized, as the terms of some had expired, and they had seen service in the Canada campaign. Colonel MacDougall was soon made Brigadier-General. Captain Lamb, of the artillery com- pany, had been wounded and made prisoner at Quebec, and but thirty of his seventy men returned home. It needed building up again, and now became " the New York Provincial Company of Artillery," choos- ing for Captain, on March 14, 1776, the youthful Alexander Hamil- ton, whose versatile mind had rapidly mastered the principles of artillery service. While drilling his men one day on the Commons, his superior knowledge and ability in training his men attracted the attention of General Greene. He introduced the youthful prodigy to Washington, and thus began that intimate relation between the two men which became of such immense service to their common country, and which lasted to the end of Washington's life.
It was to be expected that the Tories in the city, the upholders of the old state of things, would not be looked upon with a very friendly eye. Their British friends sought to provide a place of safety for them on Bedlow's Island, but, as we saw, this scheme was frustrated by the patriots. The more violent party among the populace could not be altogether restrained within the bounds of propriety by the generals in command. In the month of June outbreaks of hostility occurred more than once. An eyewitness tells of Tories being hauled about through the streets by night, lighted candles being placed in their hands and forced into their faces. A few days later the aggres- sors became bolder. and in broad daylight they took several people
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of standing in the community, stripped them naked and rode them around on rails. Perhaps they were tarred and feathered also, as was done frequently in country districts. Putnam had great trouble in dispersing the mob and stopping such discreditable business. And yet there was much to provoke the people at that very time. During this same month a conspiracy was discovered which had for its object the poisoning of Washington and other generals of the patriot army. A free use of gold was made, issuing, without doubt. from the Gover- nor's ship. Several arrests were made, the most prominent one that. on June 21. of David Matthews, the Tory who opposed Willett. at the corner of Beaver and Broad streets, and who was made Mayor when the British came in. A gunsmith and some other tradespeople, and Thomas Hickey, a private of Washington's bodyguard. were also taken into enstody. Investigation pointed clearly to some significant dealings between Governor Tryon and Matthews and a few more citi- zens, in regard to the supply of arms and ammunition for suspicions purposes; but nothing could be proved, and the prisoners were re- leased. It was different with Hickey, who had made definite propo- sitions to cooks at headquarters, so that a case was made out against him for attempt at poisoning, as well as holding communication with the enemy. On June 28 he was hanged for the offense, much to the satisfaction of a large gathering of people.
The somewhat anomalous conditions under which the war had hitherto been carried on were relieved very greatly by the Declaration of Independence. On June 7. 1776. Richard Henry Lee. of Virginia. had offered his famous resolution in Congress at Philadelphia. " that these united colonies are and of right onght to be, free and indepen- dent states." John Adams, of Massachusetts, seconded the motion. and its disenssion was made the order for the day at 10 o'clock on June 8. The 9th was Sunday; on Monday the debate was resumed. when a motion to postpone action for three weeks was carried, with the proviso that in the mean time a Declaration of Independence should be drafted and be submitted at the next discussion. On the 12th of Inne the committee to draft this paper was appointed. consist- ing. as is well known, of Thomas Jefferson. John Adams, Benja- miu Franklin, Roger Sherman, of Connecticut, and a prominent citi- zen of New York. Robert R. Livingston. On July 2 the resolution of Independence was adopted, and the discussion of the Declaration. written almost unaided by Jefferson, began. It was finally adopted on July 4, which thenceforth became the date to mark the birth of the nation.
The news of the event that occurred at Philadelphia on the Fourth. reached New York a few days later, and on the 9th of July prepara- tions were made for paying proper honors to the occasion. All the troops within the city were ordered to collect on the Commons, form- ing a hollow square about where the plaza in front of the City Hall is
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now. Washington rode into the center of it with his staff. The Decla- ration was then read in the hearing of all. It was an important instru- ment for the army. Well had Washington said in the general order calling the assembly together: " The General hopes this important event will serve as a fresh incentive to every officer and soldier to act with fidelity and courage, as knowing that now the peace and safety of his country depend (under God) solely on the success of our arms, and that he is now in the service of a State possessed of sufficient power to reward his merit and advance him to the highest honors of a free country." There were no salvos of cannon or musketry to greet the reading of the Declaration, but a burst of hearty applause rose from the assembled troops and citizens. The latter rushed to the City Hall and tore down the portrait of George III., cutting it into frag- ments and trampling upon it in the street. The soldiers, not to be outdone in an enthusiasm which, while not altogether commendable, and properly rebuked by Washington, was yet quite natural, showed their zeal that evening by pulling down the leaden statue of his royal majesty on the Bowling Green. Its head was recovered afterward by Engineer Montressor and sent to England; the saddle and horse's tail were found at Wilton, Connecticut, in 1871, and are now pre- served in the collection of the New York Historical Society, at Elev- enth Street and Second Avenue, where may also be seen the stone slab on which the statne originally stood. The rest of the statue, horse, man, and all, was wisely utilized by being converted into bul- lets for patriotic purposes at Litchfield, Conn. The recognition of the Declaration of Independence by the army was ere long supplemented by a public acknowledgment of it on the part of the municipal govern- ment. This, as has been noted, was in the hands of the Committee of One Hundred (or of Safety). By their order the citizens were called together in front of the City Hall on Thursday, July 18, at exactly twelve o'clock noon. The Declaration of Independence was read, and greeted again with enthusiastic approval and applause. The King's coat of arms was removed from the courtroom and burned in the presence of the multitude as a token of the new order of affairs. For already the Province of New York had ceased to be. On July 9, while the troops were listening to the Declaration in New York. the Provin- cial Congress assumed the name of the " Convention of Representa- tives of the State of New York." John Jay was appointed to draft a constitution. New York having become the seat of war, it was not till March, 1777, that Jay was ready with his report. In April the convention, then sitting at Kingston, in a house still sacredly pre- served, adopted the Constitution, and under its provisions before the end of the same year, 1777, General George Clinton was elected Gov- ernor. John Jay was appointed Chief Justice of the State, and Robert R. Livingston, Chancellor. Five citizens of New York, which was then in the hands of the British, were elected delegates of the State
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to the Continental Congress: Philip Livingston, James Duane, Fran- cis Lewis, William Duer, and Gouverneur Morris.
The Declaration of Independence had made facing both ways on the part of the Municipality of the Provincial Congress impossible. The lines between submission to English authority and the effort for independence and nationality were now sharply drawn. It was obey or fight; and the English were at hand to give plenty of exercise to the second alternative. On June 29 Washington wrote to Congress that the first view had been obtained off Sandy Hook of the approach-
ing fleet of the enemy. By July 2 a fleet of over one hundred and thirty vessels, ships-of-the-line. frigates, tenders, transports, were lying at anchor in the Lower Bay. The few American troops were withdrawn from Staten Island, and on July 2 and 3 General Howe landed a part of his forces there, distributing them over the island so as to guard against approaches by the patriots. On Friday morning. .July 12, Lord Howe, the Commander-in-Chief, arrived, attended by still more ships. About three o'clock that same afternoon the people of the city were treated to an unpleasant surprise. Washington had already warned them that a bom- bardment of the town might be expected hourly. in view of the great naval force of the enemy so close at hand, and had recom- RUINS OF TRINITY CHURCH. mended the removal of women and children and aged men to the country, both for their own safety and in order to permit greater freedom for the maneuvers of the troops. The bom- bardment seemed now to have been actually initiated. Two of the enemy's biggest ships, each followed by its tender, were seen coming through the Narrows and up to the city at a lively rate. favored by the tide and a southerly breeze filling out to the full every inch of canvas set. They reserved their fire till past the batteries on shore, which blazed away at them without much effect. When nearly opposite Trinity Church they opened their broadsides, damaging honses all along the river as far as Greenwich and killing three American sol- diers, three others suffering death from careless or unskillful hand- ling of a cannon. The six were buried in one grave in Bowling Green. Meantime the two ships (the Rose and the Phoenix) had gone rapidly up the river. The intention of the movement had been to ent off communication between the city and interior, to destroy some ves- sels building for the patriots at Poughkeepsie, and to replenish the larder. The ships met with little success in either of these particu-
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lars, and were fain to return a month or more later (August 17). Gen- eral Putnam, to prevent their return, and to keep other ships from re- peating the experiment, had devised a sort of cheraux-de-frise in water. Between ships placed two by two seventy feet apart three large logs were stretched, by which means a length of two hundred and eighty feet of the river was obstructed, the vessels being sunk just below the surface of the water. The Rose and Phonix on their way down had no trouble in evading this obstruction, however; but the batteries at Paulus Hook and on the city shore did better work this time, and succeeded in getting a few shot into their hulls. Fire ships up the river too had caused the loss of one of the tenders.
Before the actual clash of arms soon to startle the country with its results, and destined to leave our city for so many years in the hands of the enemy, there was a lull in the tempest, filled with the sweet murmurings of an attempted conciliation and peace. Lord Howe had been authorized by the home government to offer terms of peace, in- cluding pardon for all acts of rebellion. He began the effort at recon- ciliation by sending an officer with a letter to Washington. A boat with a white flag was seen approaching the city, and Colonel Reed, Adjutant-General of the American forces, was sent by the Comman- der-in-Chief to meet it half way. As the two barges touched in mid- stream, the bearer of the letter handed it to Colonel Reed, informing him that it was intended for Mr. Washington. The Colonel replied that there was no such person in New York City. The letter was then produced bearing the superscription, "George Washington. Esq." Again Reed insisted that he knew of no such person, and as- sured him that the one whom he surmised was meant would under no circumstances receive a letter so addressed. The disappointed officer was therefore compelled to return to his principal withont accom- plishing his errand. A few days later, July 19, Howe. abandoning the attempt to forward a letter, sent a representative in the person of Colonel Patterson, the British Adjutant-General. He was accorded an interview at General Putnam's headquarters. No. 1 Broadway. But the conference came to nothing, and as to the pardon, Washing- ton observed that the term was quite irrelevant in connection with the American colonists, as nothing requiring pardon had been com- mitted by them.
Thus there was nothing for it but war, and England's formidable array of land and naval forces was now marshaled together for the long-dreaded assault. The list of Howe's forces before New York in 1776 is preserved. There were the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Regi- ments of Dragoons; a regiment of foot gnards, eleven hundred strong; twenty-three regiments of infantry; the Forty-second Regiment of Royal Highlanders; the Seventy-first Regiment, or Frazer's Battal- ion, numbering nearly thirteen hundred men; six companies of artil- lery, and two battalions of marines counting eleven hundred men.
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There were also nearly fourteen thousand Hessian troops. The whole force numbered 33,614 men. of whom 24,464 were in actual condition for battle. Four hundred transport boats had been collected to con- vey the army from Staten Island to any point chosen as the most expe- dient for attack. For some reason discarding the use of his great naval support, to which the Americans had absolutely nothing to oppose, Lord Howe determined to approach New York by way of Long Island. Ou August 22, fifteen thousand troops were conveyed across the Lower Bay and landed on the beach at the head of Graves- end Bay, between New Utrecht and Gravesend villages. The story of what follows is familiar to all. The march on the intrenched camp in Brooklyn in three columns; the surprise effected by the detour made by one of these columns, and its descent upon an unguarded point in the rear of the American army; the heroic but fruitless fight; the utter defeat ;- all stand vividly before the mind as we recall the Battle of Long Island of August 27, 1776. Not less thrilling is the story of Washington's masterly withdrawal of his army from the trap in which they would have been otherwise inevitably caught. But the story in its details belongs more especially to the history of our sister city, now one with the Greater New York, and a place for it must be reserved in the next volume. We must hasten on to the results and such subsequent events growing out of the Battle of Long Island as had for their scene the island of Manhattan more particularly. There are enough of these to more than occupy the space allowed here.
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