USA > Pennsylvania > Montgomery County > Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a history, Volume I > Part 6
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49
MILITARY OPERATIONS
grown into popular favor On the IIth of September, 1777, the battle of Brandywine was fought. The plan of the engagement, as subse- quently revealed, the necessities which induced it, the skilfully executed movement of the enemy upon the right of the patriot army, the ineffici- ency of Washington's mounted troops in not disclosing the movement of Cornwallis at an earlier hour in the day, the uncertain and embarrassing reports that reached him from sources that should have been reliable, the partial surprise, and the heroic though ineffectual effort to meet and resist a fierce attack from a direction unlooked for, the deeds of valor upon the part of officers who sought to retrieve misfortune by personal daring, and the usual conduct of battle-shocked troops, have gone into history, and been graphically described by Marshall, Botta, Lossing, Headley, Bancroft and others, less distinguished in history, it may be, but by no means less truthful in narrative.
The battle was lost, and its discouraging features were keenly felt by those who left the field in possession of the enemy. But its effects, as measured by them, were by no means as disastrous as intended or believed to be. Marshall, referring to the immediate results of the en- gagement, in his history declares: "It was not considered decisive by Congress, the general, or the army," and cites the fact that the govern- ment upon receiving Washington's report immediately passed vigorous resolutions for reinforcing the army, and directed him to complete the defenses of the Delaware.
On the 15th, four days after this battle, the army was on the march to attack Howe, who, apprised of the movement, immediately put his army in motion, and the opposing armies met between the Goshen Meet- ing-House and the White Horse Tavern, on the table-land south of the Great Valley. The choice of position was again with Washington. Hos- tilities had actually commenced, when storm and flood rendered the movement of troops impossible, and disclosed the alarming fact that arms and ammunition were so seriously damaged that to further engage the enemy would be suicidal. This exigency decided temporarily the fate of the capital city, and doubtless hastened the period of occupation by the British troops. The situation was critical, and the day certainly memorable. To retire upon Philadelphia and suffer a partial investment, leaving the country open from the Schuylkill to the Hudson, making a diversion in favor of Burgoyne not only possible, but probable, would be unwise for many reasons; to give up all further defense of the capital was an hour of supreme interest in the struggle, and upon his decision hung the most momentous results. Assuming the entire responsibility, courting the counsel of his subordinates, but acting upon his own mature judgment, he uncovered Philadelphia, detaching General Wayne, and directing him to attack the extreme left of the enemy, in the hope of detaining him until he could refit his army and renew the conflict, provi- dentially postponed.
Mont-4
50
HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY
Pending the movement of reinforcements from the North, the public mind, having recovered from the first effects of the reverses at Brandy- wine, Paoli and Germantown, perhaps unduly elated by the surrender of Burgoyne and its sequences, clamored for further aggressive move- ments against Howe. Washington moved his army to the east, taking a strong position at Whitemarsh, from which he was able to watch the movements of the enemy, harass his outposts, cut off his source of supplies, give protection to the agricultural people and confidence to the public mind. Here, after an ineffectual attempt on the part of the enemy to dislodge him, on the 5th and 6th of December, the campaign closed, Howe retiring within his lines of defense, reaching from the Del- aware to the Schuylkill river. The war-worn and jaded condition of the patriot troops, the want of supplies, the hopelessness of further opera- tions to repossess Philadelphia, and the approach of winter, all admon- ished the commander to seek shelter and repose for his army.
The proposition to retire the army for the winter gave rise to well- marked differences of opinion. Within army circles the only question was that of location. Whether it should fortify and remain where it was, or retire to the Perkiomen hills, or move south and occupy the vicinity of Wilmington, was canvassed by leading officers in the army, whose opinions were sought by the commander-in-chief. In political circles, and among a large and influential class of patriotic citizens of Pennsylvania, a different view prevailed. In their opinion, the exigency of the public service demanded a continuation of active operations upon the part of this army. Their hostility to the proposed cantonment of troops culminated in a remonstrance prepared by the General Assembly, and by that body presented to Congress, then in session at York. We recite the remonstrance here in order to illustrate the wisdom and force of character of the great and good man who, in serving the higher inter- ests of his country, disregarded the remonstrance of those whose sensi- bilities were shocked by the calamities of war, and who, for a temporary respite from its ravages, would have sacrificed the army of hope by denying it that well-earned repose absolutely necessary at that season and period to preserve its existence.
On the IIth of December the camp was broken up at Whitemarsh, and after a painful march over rough and frozen roads reached the Gulf Hills, crossing the Schuylkill river at Swedes' and Matson's ford on improvised bridges. Here the advance division under General Potter, which moved south of Matson's ford to cover the passage of the main army, unexpectedly came in contact with a strong detachment of the enemy under Cornwallis, out upon a foraging expedition. The presence of the enemy in this quarter and in such force was a surprise at the time, and occasioned delay, the counter-movement of troops and some apprehension upon the part of the commander-in-chief, which subse- quently proved to be without cause. A camp was established for some
51
MILITARY OPERATIONS
days on the Gulf Hills, fourteen miles distant from Philadelphia, where the army remained until the 18th, when it retired to Valley Forge, going into position with the right resting upon the base of Mount Joy, near the acute angle of the Valley creek, the left flank resting upon and pro- tected by the Schuylkill river, about one-half mile below Fatland ford or Sullivan's bridge.
Historians have uniformly signalized the arrival of the army on this ground as coincident with the famous order of the commander-in-chief dated Headquarters on the Schuylkill, December 17, 1777, congratu- lating his troops upon the close of the campaign, the results accom- plished, the heroic conduct of officers and the endurance of men, coun- seling them to continue in fortitude and patience, assuring his follow- ers "that while in some instances he has unfortunately failed, that upon the whole, heaven had smiled upon their army and crowned them with success, that the end of their warfare was independence, liberty and peace, and that the hope of securing these blessings for themselves and their posterity demanded a continuance of the struggle at every hazard." This was the pleasing side of the picture, set in the gilded framework of war's seducing blandishments and panoplied with its field-day glories. But there was another,-the shoeless soldiers, the frozen ground, the cheerless hills, the lowering leaden sky that arched them over with gloom. These were the sorrowing and mute witnesses to the true scene of the arrival, and which the artist has thus far failed to place upon can- vas. We are not, however, wanting for the pen picture, and I give it in the language of Mr. George Washington Parke Custis:
The brigades had gone into position upon the line of defense indi- cated by the skillful officer who drew it. The pitiless winter winds swept the hills and valley with unceasing fury as the December sun sank into banks of snow-clouds, presaging the coming storm. The pov- erty of supplies in food and raiment was bitterly and profanely bewailed by shivering, unpaid officers and half-naked men as they crowded around the comfortless camp-fire of the bivouac, when suddenly the appearance of the Horse Guard announced the approach of the commander-in-chief. The officer commanding the detachment, choosing the most favorable ground, paraded his men to pay their general the honors of a passing salute. As Washington rode slowly up he was observed to be eyeing very earnestly something that attracted his attention on the frozen sur- face of the road. Having returned the salute with that native grace and dignified manner that won the admiration of the soldiers of the Revolu- tion, the chief reined in his charger, and ordering the commanding officer of the detachment to his side, addressed him as follows: "How comes it, sir, that I have tracked the march of your troops by the blood-stains of their feet upon the frozen ground? Were there no shoes in the com- missary's stores, that this sad spectacle is to be seen along the public highway?" The officer replied : "Your Excellency may rest assured that this sight is as painful to my feelings as it can be to yours, but there is no remedy within our reach. When shoes were issued the different regi- ments were served in turn ; it was our misfortune to be among the last to
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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY
be served, and the stores became exhausted before we could obtain even the smallest supply."
The general was observed to be deeply affected by his officer's description of the soldiers' privations and sufferings. His compressed lips, the heaving of his manly chest, betokened the powerful emotions that were struggling in his bosom, when, turning towards the troops, with a voice tremulous, yet kindly, he exclaimed, "Poor fellows!" Then giving rein to his horse, he rode rapidly away.
The purpose of the commander-in-chief in taking position at Valley Forge was to give the greatest measure of protection possible to the State, and to circumscribe the operations of General Howe within limits that would seriously affect his source of supply. To this end his line was admirably drawn. On the west side of the Schuylkill he extended his right flank to Wilmington, at which point he stationed General Small- wood with his brigade of infantry, covering the long interval with Mor- gan's rifle corps and the squadron of cavalry under Major Harry Lee. On the east of the river he occupied the country as far as Whitemarsh, placing General Armstrong with a brigade of Pennsylvania militia so as to cover the principal roads converging at that point; the cavalry under Major Jameson and Captain McLane guarded the highways in the direc- tion of Barren and Chestnut Hills; and to still further prevent the incur- sions of the enemy northward from Philadelphia, he directed General Pulaski, who was in command of the brigade of cavalry, to go into camp at Trenton, New Jersey. The line of defense from the west shore of the Schuylkill river to the base of Mount Joy, at the angle of Valley creek, occupied commanding ground, and the earthworks and fortifications erected under the direction of General Duportail were extensive in char- acter and skillfully constructed. The interior line of works and abatis were semicircular in form, crossing from north to south, with one star and two square forts, from which the army could have successfully cov- ered a retreat westward, had such a movement become necessary.
An order was given to construct huts for the winter, and its execu- tion followed with dispatch and great exactness. Soldiers became axe- men from necessity; before them the forest fell, and hundreds of log houses grew as by magic. The dimensions of each hut were fourteen by sixteen feet, with chimney, fire-place, and door, facing upon company streets, drawn in strict conformity with the rules of military encamp- ments. Quarters for field and staff officers were erected in rear of the line of troops, while still farther to the rear, upon the sloping hills, shelter was sought for the trains of the army. History and tradition alike confirm the fact that the hills were made bare of timber in com- pleting the shelter necessary for men and animals, and the wood neces- sary for fuel during the long winter was hauled by men a distance of one or more miles from the camp.
Chief Justice Marshall and others in writing of these dark days of
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MILITARY OPERATIONS
the War for Independence, gave facts as follows, as will be seen in that most authentic history of Montgomery county, by Colonel Bean :
In the absence of blankets, the want of straw as well as grain was sorely felt by the army ; farmers in the immediate vicinity had suffered great loss by the presence of both armies in their midst. If the patriot army were considerate to those known to be friendly to their cause and merciless upon the "Tory," the British, who closely followed them, laid a heavy hand upon the supplies of the "Rebel," and between the two the farmers from the Brandywine to the Delaware found an involuntary market. Under these circumstances, it was not surprising that those who had stowed away the grain and hay that was relied upon to keep body and soul together for another year were tardy in threshing it out. The commander-in-chief comprehended the situation, and the order issued went direct to the vital point; it suggested an alternative which brought flails to the front, barn-doors were opened, the golden sheaves were brought in from well-preserved stacks, in many instances by the soldiers themselves, who were glad to exchange the rigors of a starving camp for the toil of the threshing-floor, which exchange yielded bread for themselves and compatriots by day, and afforded the hope of merri- ment amidst the cheerful homes of patriot mothers and daughters by night. . Tradition says that throughout the length and breadth of "Wash- ington's seventy miles" could be heard from morn till night two or three threshers on every barn-floor. Straw was soon in the market, soft as flails could make it, and contributed greatly to the comfort of the men at Valley Forge, and hundreds and thousands of other sick and wounded, who filled every church and meeting-house from Barren Hill to the "Swamp," and from "Birmingham to Reading."
"At no period of the war," writes Chief Justice Marshall, "had the American army been reduced to a situation of greater peril than during the winter at Valley Forge. More than once they were absolutely with- out food. Even while their condition was less desperate in this respect, their stock of provisions was so scanty that there was seldom at any time in the stores a quantity sufficient for the use of the troops for a week. The returns of the Ist of February exhibit the astonishing num- ber of 3,989 men in camp unfit for duty for want of clothes. Of this number scarcely a man had a pair of shoes. Although the total of the army exceeded 17,000 men, the present effective rank and file amounted to only 5,012. The returns throughout the winter did not effectually vary from that which has been particularly stated."
Dr. Thatcher, in his private journal, states: "That it was with the greatest difficulty that men enough could be found in a fit condition to discharge the military camp duties from day to day, and for this pur- pose, those who were naked borrowed of those who were more fortunate in having covering for their bodies and shoes for their feet. Yet, amidst the sufferings and privations endured by these devoted troops week after week and month after month, pelted by the storms of one of the severest winters ever known in this region, the love of country, the hope of victory, and an abiding confidence in their great leader, sustained
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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY
them until, in the Providence of God, the cause found an ally whose offices of friendship, long and ardently hoped for by the chivalrous Laf- ayette, were finally assured by the diplomacy of our own glorious Franklin."
Perhaps no more marked spirit of patriotism and loyalty to one's country can be named in connection with the Revolution than is recorded by Bishop in his "History of American Manufactures," Vol. I, in which he says :
William Dunning, a blacksmith of Cumberland County, during the Revolution endeavored to serve his country by the construction of a wrought-iron cannon of a curious description. One of these is said to have fallen into the hands of the British at the battle of Brandywine, and is to this day preserved in the Tower of London, and another unfin- ished specimen is said to be at the arsenal in Philadelphia. These sin- gular pieces of ordnance were made of "wrought-iron staves, hooped like a barrel, with bands of the same material, excepting there were four layers of staves breaking joint, all of which were firmly bound together, and then boxed and breeched like other cannon." An obituary notice of Dunning, who died in Mifflin township, in 1830, at the age of ninety- four, states that he was an artificer in the Revolutionary army, and that his was the only successful attempt ever made in the world to manufac- ture wrought-iron cannon, one of which he completed in Middlesex, Pa., and commenced another and larger one at Mount Holly, but could get no one to assist him who could stand the heat, which is said to have been so great as "to melt the lead buttons on his clothes." The British, it is added, offered a stated annuity and a large sum to the person who would instruct them in the manufacture of that article, but the patriotic blacksmith preferred obscurity and poverty in his own beloved country, though the country for which he had done so much kept her purse closed from the veteran soldier until near the close of his long life.
During the British occupancy of Philadelphia county, property was destroyed or damaged in that portion now known as Montgomery county as follows :
Townships and Assessors.
Amount.
£.
s.
d.
Cheltenham, Peter Rush.
210
I
6
Gwynedd, Stephen Bloem
I20
O
0
Hatfield, George Sheive
71
12
6
Lower Merion, Hugh Jones
3413
II
0
Moreland, Robert Whitten
2119
I3
2
Norriton, Jacob Auld
7076
IO
6
Plymouth, Zebulon Potts
1172
12
8
Providence, Benjamin Dismant
679
5
9
Springfield, Baltzer Hydrick
1165
19
9
Upper Merion, John Johnson
1525
9
6
Upper Dublin, John Mann
343
IO
0
Worcester, Peter Wentz
125
O
0
Whitemarsh, William Johnson
668
I
6
Whitpain, Daniel Yost
610
O
6
There were no returns received from the townships of Abington, Douglas, Frederick, Franconia, Horsham, Lower Salford, Limerick,
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MILITARY OPERATIONS
Montgomery, Marlboro, New Hanover, Skippack, Towamensing, Upper Salford or Upper Hanover. Much damage that was done was never made a subject of claim. The whole amount of the assessment for Phil- adelphia City was £ 187,280 5s .; the amount for the county £ 19,300 8s. Iod. These estimated damages were assessed under an act of the General Assembly passed September 21, 1782, and subsequently these claims were filed in the office of the county commissioners and the Supreme Council.
Second War With Great Britain-Thirty years after the colonies had achieved their independence and twenty-three years after the constitu- tional Union of States was established, Congress declared war against Great Britain. Peace was declared at the end of the Revolution, Novem- ber 30, 1782, and war was declared by Congress June 18, 1812, hence the title of the second war with Great Britain is styled "War of 1812." The population of the United States was in 1812 approximately eight millions. The event was in the third year of President James Madison's administration, and was supported by the Democratic party as an ad- ministration measure, and was resisted by the Federalists. The bill was supported by seventy-nine members in the House of Representatives ; forty-nine of the one hundred and twenty-eight present entered their protest against it, and the measure passed the Senate by a slight majority. The cause leading up to this conflict with the Mother country was the conduct of England in insisting upon the right of search and impress- ment of naturalized American citizens into her naval service. This alleged right was exercised against the solemn protest of the govern- ment, and finally, to vindicate the rights of her citizens, the appeal to arms was made.
At this period England had not conceded the right of her subjects or people to absolve their allegiance to the King by the simple forms of American naturalization, while the United States government was in honor bound to protect her foreign-born citizens in the full and free exercise of their rights. At the date referred to, thousands of American citizens were serving out terms of impressment in the British navy, many of them suffering imprisonment and subjected to treatment of extreme cruelty. One among many examples will serve to show the un- warrantable conduct of the British government. We quote:
In the month of June, 1807, the English man-of-war "Leopard" came in sight of the American frigate "Chesapeake" near Cape Henry. At this point the "Leopard" was joined by the British frigates the "Bellona" and "Melampus." The "Chesapeake" was hailed by Admiral Berkley, an officer sent aboard with an order of search, alleging that five deserters from the English service were aboard the American vessel. Commodore Barron refused the officer, saying that he did not know of any deserters on board, that the recruiting officers for the "Chesapeake" had been par- ticularly instructed not to receive any deserters from His Britannic Majesty's service, and that he was directed never to permit the crew of
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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY
a ship under his command to be mustered by any officers but his own. Upon receiving this answer the officer returned to the "Leopard," when a heavy fire was opened upon the "Chesapeake," to the surprise and dis- comfiture of Commodore Barron, who was unprepared to resist the attack. After remaining under fire for thirty minutes, having three men killed and eighteen men wounded, himself among the rest, the ship sur- rendered. The British officer refused to accept the surrender, but came aboard, made search, claimed four of the seamen as British subjects and deserters, conveyed them to Halifax where they were tried and one of them executed in order to establish the rightfulness of their system of impressment. Subsequently the other three were proved to be Amer- icans who had been previously impressed and made their escape from the British service. The intelligence of this outrage upon the high seas was received by the country with profound indignation.
The citizens of Montgomery county held a public meeting at the court house, July 22, 1807, "for the purpose of expressing their sense of the late unwarrantable and dastardly outrage committed by one of the British ships-of-war on the American frigate 'Chesapeake.'" General Francis Swaine was appointed president, and Samuel Patterson, secre- tary. Levi Pawling, William Henderson, Israel Bringhurst, George Weaver, Mathias Holstein, John Markley, and James Winnard reported seven resolutions, wherein they state:
That the outrage committed by the British ship-of-war, "Leopard," on the American frigate "Chesapeake," and the murder of our seamen, whether it be considered as the act of the British government, or of individuals who committed it, requires rigid retribution or honorable reparation. That we will, at the hazard of our lives and properties, support the proclamation of the President of the United States, and any other measures that may be adopted by the constituted authorities to obtain redress from the British Government, for the reparation of our national honor and insulted sovereignty. At this crisis, it is the duty of every citizen, who is not conscientiously scrupulous against bearing arms, to arm in defense of his injured country, and to prepare for the event of a war.
Public meetings were called in all the principal cities of the Union, party feelings were forgotten for the time, and all united in resolutions supporting the government in measures deemed necessary to redress the wrong. The President issued a proclamation forbidding British ships-of-war the ports and harbors of the United States, and instructing the American Minister at the Court of St. James to demand satisfaction for the insult. He also summoned Congress to meet and take the subject into consideration.
The act of the British naval officer was promptly disavowed by the English government, but they still persisted in their right of search, nor did they offer adequate reparation for the injury and indignity suffered. The exasperated feelings of national hostility became deep-seated ; for- eign complications arising out of contentions between France and Eng-
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