USA > Vermont > Bennington County > History of Bennington County, Vt. : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 7
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ـمسحب
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
stronghold of Ticonderoga passed into the hands of the Green Mountain Boys. This was the first decisive blow struck for American independence, and that blow was given by the men who had been previously called rioters and dis- turbers of the peace and welfare of the country. With the capture of the fort the Americans also took one hundred and twenty cannon, fifty prisoners, and a quantity of small arms, ammunition and stores.
Elated by this successful capture, the commanders at once determined upon the capture of the other British posts upon Lake Champlain, for which pur- pose they armed and manned a schooner and procured several batteaux. Ar- nold commanded the schooner and Allen the batteaux, and set out upon the expedition against a British sloop of war then lying at St. Johns. The schooner sailed the faster and Arnold surprised and captured the sloop before Allen ar- rived. This gave control of the lake to the Americans as the small posts were defenseless without a co-operating naval force.
While these events were transpiring the British in Canada were using every effort to persuade the Indians to again take up arms and fall upon the frontier settlements. And in New York, the home of the Six Nations, a similar effort was making. Sir William Johnson had died in 1774, and his mantle seems to have fallen upon his son, Sir John Johnson, and his nephew, Colonel Guy Johnson, the latter having been made superintendent of Indian affairs. Through his influence the powerful Iroquois confederacy was broken, and the Six Nations, except the Oneidas and Tuscaroras, served under the banner of the king; but it was nearly two years before they committed serious acts of hostility. The Senecas held off for a while, but the prospect of blood and Brit- ish gold was too much for them to withstand, and in 1777 they, in common with the Cayugas, Onondagas and Mohawks, made a treaty with the British at Oswego, agreeing to serve the king throughout the war. The Oneidas main- tained a strict neutrality, while the Tuscaroras were friendly to the Americans. But the hostile Indians of New York had but little part in the operations in the east ; their warfare being mainly carried on throughout central and west- ern New York, and in Pennsylvania. The Indian allies of the British in the east were principally from the Canadas.
To overcome the endeavors of the British emissaries among the Indians, and in the hope that the Canadian colonists might forin a friendly relation with the Americans, Congress decided to raise a strong force of two thousand men to garrison the posts at Ticonderoga, Crown Point, and other points along the lake, and then treat with the people, a fair proportion of whom were French, in the province of Canada. Generals Schuyler and Montgomery were placed in command at the two points first named, where they built a large number of boats and batteaux to transport their troops to Canada.
But during this same period the inhabitants of the grants were also making the needed preparations to defend their own frontier against the British, whose
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PREPARATIONS FOR DEFENSE.
enmity they had incurred by the capture of Ticonderoga and the lake posts elsewhere. On the 26th of July the committees of the several towns west of the Green Mountains met at Dorset, at the inn kept by "Deacon " Cephas Kent, for the purpose of organizing a regiment for military service. The ques- tion whether the convention should proceed in choosing field and other officers- according to the directions of Congress and General Schuyler, was put, and de- cided in the affirmative. Seth Warner was then chosen lieutenant-colonel, and Samuel Safford, major, for the regiment of Green Mountain Boys. The con- vention then proceeded to select seven captains and fourteen lieutenants, as follows : Captains, Wait Hopkins, Oliver Potter, John Grant, William Fitch, Gideon Brownson, Micah Vail, Heman Allen. First lieutenants, John Fas- sett, jr., Ebenezer Allen, Barnabas Barnum, David Galusha, Jellis Blakeley, Ira Allen, Gideon Warren. Second lieutenants, John Noble, James Claghorn, John Chipman, Nathan Smith, Philo Hard, Jesse Sawyer, Joshua Stanton.
For the position of lieutenant-colonel of this regiment, Ethan Allen was a self nominated candidate against Seth Warner, and was much chagrined at his defeat, charging it to the old farmers who had no inclination for war. Warner was the junior of Allen by seven years, he being then in his thirty-third, while Allen was in his fortieth year.
Lieutenant-Colonel Warner and Major Safford were both citizens of Ben- nington, and were each promoted one grade in the Continental regiment of 1776. Captain Wait Hopkins, and the other officers of his company, were also Ben- nington men. Hopkins afterward became major, and Lieutenant John Fassett occupied a prominent position in State affairs. The second company was prob- ably from Poultney and Tinmouth; the third from Addison, Moncton, Mid- dlebury and that vicinity ; the fourth from Pawlet and Shaftsbury ; the fifth from Sunderland and vicinity ; the Sixth from Danby, Arlington and Colches- ter; and the seventh in part from the northern towns on the Onion River, and in part from Sunderland. The above locations of the several companies are supposed to be correct, but it is quite probable that other towns than those named had representatives in the regiment. The authority 1 upon which this statement, concerning the locality from which each company came, is made, says they probably came from the towns named. As soon as the organization of the regiment was completed, the fact was reported by the convention to General Schuyler. The commissions of the officers, however, were not con- firmed until several weeks later.
On account of the ill health of General Schuyler, he was not in active ser- vice on the frontier, therefore the command devolved upon General Montgom- ery. In September that officer with his army laid seige to St. Jolins, and while so engaged, on about the 20th of that month, the regiment of Green Mountain Boys joined with his forces and went under his command. Here the
1 Governor and Council, vol. I.
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
regiment played an important part. General Montgomery was seriously em- barrassed for want of ammunition and provisions, but the fortunate capture of Chambly relieved this distress. The British commander at St. John's made a stout resistance against Montgomery's attacks and waited anxiously the com. ing of General Carlton to relieve him. The latter soon embarked for that pur - pose, but his movements were being watched by Colonel Warner's regiment, which, when the proper moment arrived, opened on the English with such steady fire of musketry and grape shot from a small cannon that Carlton's force was thrown into utter confusion, and retreated in disorder. The news of this disaster reaching the ears of the English commander at St. John's, he immedi- ately surrendered to Montgomery. This victory was achieved on November 3d. By it five hundred regular soldiers and more than one hundred Canadian volunteers were made prisoners.
Warner's repulse of Carlton compelled McLean to retreat to Quebec, upon which Warner occupied the evacuated position, at the mouth of Sorrel River, and there erected a fortification. But General Warner's regiment of Green Mountain Boys were but volunteers, and drew no clothing from the Continental government. Such being the case, and the men being insufficiently clothed to withstand the rigors of a Canadian winter, on the 20th of November the com- mand was honorably discharged and permitted to return to their homes.
Before concluding the narrative of the events of the war during the year 1775, a brief mention of the operations of Ethan Allen, after his defeat in his endeavor to command the regiment of Green Mountain Boys, will not be con- sidered out of place. It should be stated that Allen's disappointment did not abate one whit his zeal for his country. "He joined the army under Gen- eral Schuyler in the capacity of an officer, but without a commission, and suc- ceeded in raising a body of two hundred and fifty Canadians, which he con- manded. With only about one-half of this unreliable body he attacked Montreal, fought bravely, but was deserted by most of his men and taken pris- oner."1 Allen, and the men who were captured with him, were immediately heavily ironed, placed on board of a British war vessel and taken to England. Here he was kept in prison for the space of more than two years when, by an exchange of prisoners in May, 1778, he was set at liberty. On returning to America he was greeted by a resolution of Congress that made him a brevet lieutenant-colonel, as a reward for his "fortitude, firmness and zeal in the cause of his country, manifested during his long and cruel captivity, as well as on former occasions." He was afterward chosen and appointed brigadier-gen- eral of Vermont militia, as subsequent chapters will show.
The concluding events of the war for the year 1775 were the abandon- ment of Montreal by Carlton's forces, and the occupation of the place by Gen- eral Montgomery ; and later, the siege of Quebec by Montgomery, which was
1 Governor and Council. Vol. I.
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EVENTS OF THE WAR DURING 1776.
unsuccessful, and an attempt to carry the city by assault, which also failed. This charge upon the British works at Quebec was made on the 3 1st of Decem- ber. General Montgomery was killed, and a large number of his men were taken prisoners.
CHAPTER VIII.
Events of the War During the Year 1776-Wooster Succeeds to the Command of the Army in the North-Wooster's Call for Aid from the Green Mountain Boys-Ilis Letter to Colonel Warner-The Response-Retreat from Quebec and Evacuation of Canada-The Return Home -Troops Organized on the Grants for the Regular and Militia Service-The Tory Element- General Gates Calls for Troops -- Three Regiments of Hampshire Grants Men Respond- Crown Point Abandoned -- Carlton Threatens Ticonderoga -- Withdraws into Canada without making an Attack-Supplying Flour and Provisions.
T' HE unfortunate termination of the siege of Quebec cost Montgomery his life and the united colonies a good force of available men. Upon the death of the brave commander, Colonel Arnold, then being the ranking officer, succeeded in command of the Americans, but was soon relieved by General Wooster, who had been directed to the command of the northern army. Gen- eral Wooster found the men in an exceedingly miserable condition, and not of sufficient force to cope with the enemy in case a sudden and determined attack should be made. To strengthen his position Wooster at once wrote Colonel Seth Warner, informing him of the condition of affairs at Quebec and asking immediate assistance. The letter was in part as follows : 1 " I have not time to give you all the particulars, but this much will show you that in consequence of this defeat our present prospect in this country is rendered very dubious, and unless we can be quickly reinforced, perhaps they may be fatal, not only to us who are stationed here, but also to the colonies in general ; as in my opinion the safety of the colonies, especially on the frontiers, very greatly de- pends upon keeping possession of this country. I have sent an express to General Schuyler, General Washington and the Congress, but you know how very far they have to go, and that it is very uncertain how long it will be before we can have relief from them. You, sir, and the valiant Green Mountain corps, are in our neighborhood. You all have arms, and I am confident ever stand ready to lend a helping hand to your brethren in distress, therefore let me beg of you to raise as many men as you can, and somehow get into this country and stay with us until we can have relief from the colonies. You will see that
1 Hall's Early History of Vermont.
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
the proper officers are appointed under you, and both officers and privates wi". have the same pay as the Continental troops. It will be well for your men to set out as soon as they can be collected. It is not so much matter whether together or not, but let them be sent on by tens, twenties, thirties, forties or fifties, as fast as they can be collected. It will have a good effect upon th .: Canadians to see succor coming on. You will be good enough to send copies of this letter or such parts of it as you think proper to the people below you. I can but hope the people will make a push to get into this country, and I am confident I shall see you here with your men in a very short time."
This appeal for help was not made in vain, for within a very short time after the letter reached Colonel Warner, he and his men joined Wooster in front of Quebec. So quick indeed was the response made as to merit the per- sonal approbation of both Generals Washington and Schuyler.
During the remainder of the winter the troops endured the greatest hard- ships and privations, and, added to their other misfortunes, the camp was afflicted with smallpox from which many died, and of the three thousand troops encamped before the city, at one time not less than two thousand were sick with this disease. Therefore, at the time when an aggressive campaign should have been opened, the whole command was unfit for duty. Then, in May, there suddenly appeared at Quebec a strong reinforcing troop of British regulars and three war ships. These troops were at once prepared for action and marched out of the city to attack the Americans ; but the latter fled be- fore the attack was made. Colonel Warner, however, succeeded in safely re- moving all of his invalid soldiers, and after a long and tedious journey brought his command to Ticonderoga during the latter part of June.
The withdrawal of the American forces upon this occasion left the Canadas wholly in possession of the English. But the former were for a time free from the danger of pursuit as the English, although they had a sufficient fleet upon the St. Lawrence, they did not have a vessel upon Lake Champlain, nor could they hope to successfully cope with the Americans until a naval fleet was con- structed for lake service. There being no present danger of British invasion of the country bordering on the lake, the volunteer soldiery, among whom were the Green Mountain Boys, were discharged and sent home.
Nor were the timely and efficient services of this sturdy and courageous regiment of Green Mountain Boys overlooked by the Continental Congress, for on the 5th of July, of this year, that body, upon the recommendation of the board of war, resolved to organize a regiment of soldiers for the regular ser- vice, most of whom were from the grants, and which regiment, according to the provisions made by the board of war, were to be commanded by the offi- cers who had served during the campaign in Canada. Therefore the colonelcy of the regiment fell upon Seth Warner, and the position of lieutenant- colonel upon Samuel Safford. The other regimental officers were mainly from the grants.
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THE TORY ELEMENT.
The reader must not infer that Colonel Warner's was the only military organization formed upon the New Hampshire grants, for, at an adjourned ses- sion of the committees of safety held at Dorset, on the 25th of September, it was voted that Simeon Hathaway, Dr. Jonas Fay, Nathan Clark, Captain Joseph Bowker, Lieutenant Joseph Bradley, Lieutenant Martin Powel, Cephas Kent, Captain Joseph Woodward and Nehemiah Howe " be a committee of war." Provision was also made for the raising of men for six companies.
" This," says the governor and council. "is the first record of a board of war in Western Vermont. Warner had raised one regiment in 1775, under the approval of New York; in January, 1776, he raised another, which served through the Canada campaign, and under the resolution of Congress of July 5, 1776, he raised what was known as ' Warner's Continental Regiment.' This last named regiment was organized for the regular service, while the others were volunteer militiamen ; but that the latter were organized for active service if necessary, will be seen by an extract from the proceedings of the Dorset convention to the effect that the committee of war were empowered to issue warrants ' to the several field officers of the militia on the district of New Hampshire grants, that on any sufficient notice received from the general or commander-in-chief of the armies of the United States of America,1 the hon- orable Continental Congress, or on any sudden emergency that shall be judged by said committee of war to be for the immediate safety of the grants, request- ing the assistance of the militia, and march immediately to the relief of such part of the continent as they may be required to.'"
But at this time and during the succeeding years the inhabitants of the New Hampshire grants, as well as the loyal colonists elsewhere, were greatly troubled by a certain element of their population that were known as the "Tories "; and it was with these foes within, as well as others without their territory, that the committee of war had to deal and make military provision against. The Tories, as is well known, were wholly in sympathy with the British cause; and while all had not the courage to take up arms in favor of England, yet they did an equal injury to the cause of America by spying upon the actions of the pro- vincial authorities and conveying a knowledge thereof to the British com- manders. Subsequent accounts will show that some joined the British army and rendered service therein, but the majority fought the Americans covertly, secretly, and in an underhand manner.
There was more or less of this Tory element in every township, and their punishment was generally left to the discretion of the committee of safety of each ; but of the proceedings of the general committee concerning them, it is found that the Dorset convention, in 1776, through a sub-committee, chosen
' This is the first occasion upon which the phrase, " United States of America," has been used in connection with the early history of Vermont. From and after the Declaration of In- dependence, on July 4, 1776, this country has ever been so designated.
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
for the purpose, recommending that "a gaol" be built in the township of Man- chester, "twenty foot by thirty inside ; said gaol to be built with logs and earth ; said gaol to be erected a few rods east of the dwelling house of Lieutenant Martin Powel, in said town, for the confinement of Tories and other offenders that may be adjudged to be confined."
Returning again to the field of warlike operations in the valley of Lake Champlain, it is found that immediately after the evacuation of Canada by the Americans, General Carlton commenced the construction of vessels of war and transportation for the campaign against the ports further up the lake in pos- session of the provincials, and after the expiration of a few months he had a fleet far superior to that commanded by Colonel Arnold. But the latter de- termined to stand an attack from the British fleet, notwithstanding the greater strength. The engagement took place on the 13th and 14th of October, and resulted in Arnold's defeat, although he and nearly all his command succeeded in avoiding capture, while their vessels were destroyed to prevent them falling into the hands of the enemy.
While these events were transpiring upon the lake Colonel Warner was making every preparation for an order to march his forces to oppose the enemy ; nor had he long to wait, as such an order was received on the even- ing of October 20th from General Gates, who was then in command at Ticon- deroga, and the order was immediately complied with, and three regiments -one under Warner, one under Colonel Brownson, and one under Colonel Robinson-were started for the front. Other localities than the west side of the mountains also sent troops to Ticonderoga. From the east side there were three regiments of militia. John Trumbull wrote that in October, 1776, when General Gates was at Ticonderoga, "the whole number of our troops under arms that day (principally, however, militia) exceeded thirteen thousand." Of these the New Hampshire grants contributed probably about three thousand.
After the naval engagement between the British, under Carlton, and the Americans, under Arnold, had been decided in favor of the former, it was sup- posed that the victors would at once proceed upon a campaign against Crown Point and Ticonderoga; and such was the intention of the British commander, but unfortunately for him a strong south wind retarded his progress, thus giv- ing the Americans time to greatly strengthen their fortifications at Ticonderoga. The works at Crown Point'had been abandoned and destroyed before Carlton arrived there. General Gates hourly expected and rather hoped for an attack upon his position from the British, but Carlton did not see fit to hazard an as- sault; and, after spending about a month in reconnoitering the American works, he re-embarked his army at Crown Point and returned to Canada, and thus terminated the military enterprises on Lake Champlain for the year 1776. Early in November, and soon after the withdrawal of the British troops from the valley, the several regiments of soldiers from the New Hampshire grants were again discharged and returned to their homes for the winter.
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EVENTS DURING 1777.
During the time that the military operations were going on about Ticon- deroga, and while the Vermont soldiery were at that point, a message was sent to the committee at Bennington urging that flour and provisions for tlie sub- sistence of the army be sent at once, to which the reply was sent that one thou- sand bushels of wheat had been collected and was being ground for the use of the troops, but that the militia being all away on the frontier, it was very dif- ficult to convey to the army what was already prepared for them, and sug- gested that a part of the militia be sent to get the provisions.
CHAPTER IX.
Events of the War for 1777 - An Important Period - Vermont Declares Her Indepen- dence - Burgoyne's Invasion - Preparation to Resist it - Defenses at and about Ticonderoga - Its Evacuation by the Americans - Pursuit to Hubbardton - The Battle - Warner's De- feat - Death of Colonel Francis - Warner's Regiment Reassemble at Manchester - British Occupy Castleton - New Hampshire Responds to Vermont's Appeal for Aid -General John Stark Sent to the Rescue - Burgoyne's Advance - Ira Allen's Plan for Raising Money and Men for the Service - Commissioners of Sequestration - Council of Safety Moves from Man- chester to Bennington - Stark Reaches Bennington - Burgoyne's Plan for Obtaining Supplies - Sends Colonel Baum to Bennington to Take Them - The Battle - Success - British Re- inforced - Americans Fall Back -Colonel Seth Warner's Regiment Saves the Day - Bur- goyne's Career Checked - Defeated at Stillwater - His Final Surrender - Ticonderoga Evac- uated by the British - Their Withdrawal into Canada.
T HE year 1777 was an important one for the people on the New Hamp- shire grants; more important, unquestionably, than any that had pre- ceded it, and only equaled by the year in which the independence of Vermont was conceded by Congress. That independence was recognized in 1791, and that was the crowning event of that year, and the result of nearly thirty years of patient toil and energy and hardships for its accomplishment. That inde- pendence was declared at the convention at Westminster in January, 1777. The decision was made, the die was cast, and there was no looking back, or retracing these political steps. This matter is made the subject of chapters further on in this volume.
But the year 1777 was also an eventful one for the people upon the grants, from the fact that in that year the British made a threatening invasion of their territory and carried their conquering arms across the western border, spread- ing terror and desolation throughout the region ; but when the war cloud hung heaviest, and hope seemed lost, the determined stand of the New England soldiery at the famous battle of Bennington dispelled the darkness and turned the tide of disaster against the British.
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HISTORY OF BENNINGTON COUNTY.
During the winter and early spring months of 1777 the British made every preparation for an active, aggressive campaign against the Americans. The troops were kept under constant discipline, supplies of provisions and ammu- nition were collected from every source, and large bodies of reinforcements were brought from England and Germany, so that when spring was opened the available British force amounted to over ten thousand men, besides a consider- able body of Canadians and Indian allies. The whole army was put under the command of General Burgoyne, who arrived at Quebec early in May. From that time until June this officer was constantly employed in arranging his plans for the summer and adding to his strength.
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