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Black Pioneers, White Officers: Part One of Three
copyright Stephen Davidson UE
On May 10, 1776, Sir Henry Clinton issued a commission to Captain George Martin, a British officer, to command a company of Blacks who had been given their freedom in November of 1775 by Lord Dunmore. The loyalist governor of Virginia had issued a proclamation promising freedom to anyone enslaved by Patriots. The earliest of those who escaped to British lines joined the Royal Ethiopian Regiment, a unit that would be decimated by smallpox within its first year.
Taking a page out of the Virginian governor’s book, Sir Henry Clinton, the commander in chief of British forces in the American colonies, decided to organize the free Blacks who had fled to freedom on North Carolina’s Cape Fear River.
His letter instructed Captain George Martin that the free Black recruits were to “be employed upon such services as may hereafter be found necessary“. Only the Blacks who had taken an oath of obedience would be admitted to the company. To encourage the new recruits to be diligent and faithful, Clinton would see that they were “regularly supplied with provisions and to be decently clothed, and that they are also to receive such pay as may be hereafter determine… At the expiration of the present rebellion {the Black Loyalists would be} “entitled to their freedom“.
Clinton closed his letter to Martin saying that “it may be particularly recommended to the rest of the officers to treat these people with tenderness and humanity“.
This company of free Black men would eventually become the Black Guides and Pioneers, a unit that would see service throughout the American Revolution. They served under Clinton in Rhode Island, New York, Philadelphia, South Carolina, and, finally, in New York City. They were the last unit of colonial soldiers to leave the former British command post with other refugees in November of 1783. The surviving company members eventually settled in Nova Scotia.
In the years that followed the establishment of Martin’s Company, there were actually four units called the Black Pioneers that were active at one time or another during the revolution. Only Martin’s company was on the provincial establishment (that is, officially recognized by the British army). Col. John Graves Simcoe, afterwards commander of the Queens Rangers, wanted to have the Black Loyalists serve as armed soldiers, but General Gage, to whom the application was made, dismissed the idea, saying that there weren’t enough Blacks “to be serviceable“.  Given that there were thousands of Blacks who escaped to freedom within the British lines, this is a feeble excuse for not allowing the former slaves to fight alongside loyalist and British troops. Truth be told, the British had an underlying fear of arming Blacks. Thus, the former slaves were used to fill non-combative roles to free up white soldiers.
All Black Pioneer companies had white men as officers. The highest rank that Black recruits could achieve was that of sergeant.  Sir Henry Clinton handpicked the first officers of the Black Pioneers: Robert Campbell, and Thomas Oldfield. They would later be joined/succeeded by Captain Allan Stewart, Robert Campbell, Charles Plundell, John Stevenson, and Edward Stevenson.
A “pioneer” in the British army was understood to be a combat engineer who went ahead of the troops and prepared the camps where they would stay, building shelters for the night. Other duties could include clearing land, serving as guides and pilots, disposing of garbage, removing obstructions, and digging latrines.
Women were also members of the Black Pioneers. They fulfilled the role of camp followers, serving as cooks, nurses, laundresses, and tailors.  Given that the Black Pioneers existed in one form or another throughout the seven years of the American Revolution, it is no surprise to find that a number of its members fell in love, married and had children.
The first iteration    of the Black Pioneers was a very small unit. Scholars estimate that their maximum strength was only about 80 men.  During the course of the war – and during bouts of smallpox—this numbers would decrease and then be replaced by new recruits.
Only a few dozen of Black Pioneer veterans are known by name.  Eighteen of their number sailed for Port Roseway (Shelburne), Nova Scotia in April of 1783, but as there were 26 evacuation vessels carrying Black Loyalists to the settlement that month, it is impossible to identify who were members of the company.
In the fall of 1783, two ships bound for Annapolis Royal carried 48 adults listed as members of the Black Pioneers, as well as their 19 children. Although the short entries in the Book of Negroes ledger fail to flesh out these men and women, taken as a group, they provide insight into the Black Loyalists who served the crown during the American Revolution.
The evacuation vessel Lehigh carried 30 members of the Black Pioneers in October of 1783. Most of them had been enslaved in Virginia and North Carolina, but there were also a handful from Pennsylvania and South Carolina. The oldest of the Black Pioneer veterans aboard the Lehigh was 60 year-old Tom, who had been enslaved by a patriot officer in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.  Silvia (age 55), the oldest woman onboard, was described as being “worn out”.  The youngest child was six month-old Johnny, who accompanied his 20 year-old mother and a ten year old boy.
The majority of the Black Pioneers who sailed for Annapolis Royal still were only known by a first name. All but one of the names was European in origin. Private Quash, a 39 year old man from Upper Town Creek, North Carolina, had somehow retained his African name.  West African males born on a Sunday were named “Quashee”.
Those veterans with both a first and last name were: Isaac Williams, Joe Mason, Samuel Crocker, John Pomp, Abraham Lesslie, Fanny Brown, and John Cockburn.
The Black Pioneer members who left New York City for Nova Scotia in October of 1783 are notable for the fact that only one of their number carried a General Birch certificate – the document that was proof of its owner’s emancipation. It would seem that the other 29 veterans were considered free based solely on their years of service in the pioneer company.
The Black Pioneers are noteworthy for finding ways to employ those who had physical handicaps. Phillister was “born dumb“, and yet had somehow escaped his master when he was 16 years old. Sarah had run away from Lord Dunmore in 1776 despite the fact that she was “stone blind“. Private Prince, once enslaved in Philadelphia, was described as an “ordinary fellow with a wooden leg“. Molly – “incurably lame of left arm“—brought her 9 year-old daughter and 7 year-old son with her, having escaped their master in 1779. The fact that these four were able to serve alongside the Black Pioneer Company’s able-bodied members speaks of the compassion of these emancipated slaves and their white officers.
The Joseph was second evacuation ship to carry known members of the Black Pioneers to Nova Scotia. The story of its passengers and their white officers will be told in next week’s Loyalist Trails.
To secure permission to reprint this article contact the author at stephendavids@gmail.com.

The 1779 Invasion of Iroquoia: Scorched Earth as Described by Continental Soldiers
by Victor J. DiSanto 8 July 2025 Journal of the American Revolution
Six indigenous nations in upstate New York—the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora—were joined in an alliance for mutual protection. Known as the Haudenosaunee, which means people of the longhouse, or the misnomer Iroquois, at the beginning of the American Revolution they assured the upstart patriots that they would adopt a neutral stance and not get involved in this white man’s quarrel between Great Britian and its rebellious colonies The British nonetheless successfully wooed and won Seneca and Mohawk warriors over to their side while the Oneida and Tuscarora allied themselves with the Americans. Onondaga remained neutral. The Battle of Oriskany on August 6, 1777, marked the beginning of a civil war within the confederation. In 1778 British forces and their native allies created havoc on the frontier, raiding settlements in New York at Cobleskill, German Flatts, and Cherry Valley, and in Pennsylvania at Wyoming Valley.
In reaction, George Washington ordered a scorched earth campaign through Iroquoia to punish the Haudenosaunee and put an end to their attacks. Several participants kept journals vividly describing the campaign’s ravages. In the passages below, some punctuation and spelling has been adjusted for readability.
General George Washington to Major General John Sullivan:

    The expedition you are appointed to command is to be directed against the hostile tribes of the six nations of Indians, with their associates and adherents. The immediate objects are the total destruction and devastation of their settlements and the capture of as many prisoners of every age and sex as possible. It will be essential to ruin their crops now in the ground and prevent their planting more . . . you will not by any means listen to overture of peace before the total ruin of their settlements is effected.

Read some journal entries…

Joseph Warren, Sally Edwards, and Mercy Scollay: What is the True Story?
by Janet Uhlar 10 July 2025 Journal of the American Revolution
Joseph Warren was the embodiment of the American colonists’ struggle to secure their rights. In 1775 he was a widowed father of four young children and an esteemed Boston physician. He served as chairman of the Committee of Safety and president of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. He authored the Suffolk Resolves, which was unanimously endorsed by the First Continental Congress. Warren called the militia to confront the British in Lexington and Concord then worked tirelessly to bring military and governmental order out of chaos in the weeks leading to his ultimate sacrifice on Breed’s Hill. He was the essence of Liberty.
Early scholars laid the foundation in presenting Warren’s life by adhering to the historical record and circumstances. Contemporary writers purported Warren’s personal life using as their source a ledger and letters previously unknown. Allegations based upon this documentation suggest Warren had intimate relationships with two women. The first, Sally Edwards, was pregnant and unwed. The second, Mercy Scollay, was nanny to Warren’s children. These inferences failed to relate the entirety of the letters and historical circumstances surrounding these associations.
Early biographers Richard Frothingham and John Cary made no mention of Sally Edwards. In regard to Mercy Scollay, Frothingham stated, “Warren was betrothed to this lady for a second wife.” His cited documentation was “Loring’s Orators, 49,” but James Spear Loring’s book gave no citation for his statement of betrothal. Cary expanded on the legend, citing a letter from Scollay to John Hancock. Read more…

Hessian Soldiers Travelling to America: POW: In Camp A Soldier’s Life. May 1783
From a Hessian Diary of the American Revolution.
This excerpt from the diary of Johan Conrad Dohla (170 pages).

Major Moves during Johan’s deployment:

  • March 1777:   Depart Germany
  • 3 June 1777:   Arrive New York, then Amboy NJ
  • November 1777:  To Philadelphia
  • June 1778: to Long Island
  • July 1778: To Newport RI
  • October 1779: to New York
  • May 1781: to Chesapeake Bay (Yorktown)
  • October 1781: to Williamsburg
  • January 1782: to Frederick MD (about 40 km west of Baltimore)
  • May 1783: departed Frederick MD

1783: Continuation of the Notable Occurences in the North American Field Campaign and Especially In the Captivity at Frederick, In Maryland, in the Seventh and Last Year, Page 134

In the Month of May 1783

1 May.  Private  G‡artner,  of  Quesnoy’s  Company,  returned  from  the  country  to  us  in  the barracks, and brought with him an American female, whom he said he had married.
3 May. At noon today Private Ga‡rtner and his American female again deserted.
9 May. The joyful news and long-wished-for and passionately awaited order, to begin our departure march, arrived, so that we were finally released from our nineteen-month captivity.
10 May.  Our  officers  were  given  command  over  us  once  again.  The  American  guards departed  at  nine  o’clock  in  the  morning,  and  from  our  four regiments we organized  a  small guard which stood watch with sticks. At noon four men of Quesnoy’s Company left: Privates Raithel, Beck, Fichtel, and Petzold. We learned that they had obtained from Colonel Johnson passes that allowed them their freedom. Private Raithel had sold himself because of debts. He owed a resident, who lived not far from Frederick, sixty-four Spanish dollars  for cider, beer, and whiskey, because he had acted as a sutler.
11 May.  For  the  first  time  I  again  went  on  guard  duty.  Today  Private  Strickstrock  of Quesnoy’s Company deserted. Here in  Frederick a  notice was posted that  every  captive had the choice of remaining in the country if he wished; and could work, trade, and farm without hindrance and, in all respects, be treated as a native-born citizen of America and enjoy all the customary freedoms. Because of this, the four regiments lost many men who stayed behind.
12 May.  Private  [Peter]  Meyerh€fer,  of  Quesnoy’s  Company,  was  missing,  having  left considerable indebtedness behind. Today our baggage was packed and everything made ready for the departure tomorrow.
13 May. At noon our two regiments marched out of the barracks at Frederick, having spent a  year  and  three  and  one-half  months  here,  wretchedly,  very  often  hungry  and  thirsty.  An escort  of  two  officers  and  about  thirty  privates  of  the  American  Continental  troops accompanied us.
Most of  the  city’s  inhabitants  wished  us  luck  and  cried,  especially  the  females  who  had gotten acquainted with us and did not wish to see us go.
We left many men here who voluntarily remained behind to seek out and test their fortune in this part of the world.
Still  gone  from  Quesnoy’s  Company  today  was  Private  [Johann  Adam]  Seyfarth,  who reportedly  had  married  an American earlier,  and  Purucker  and  Riegel.  Quesnoy’s Company entered captivity 102 men strong, and today 33 men marched out; and it was the same with all the companies.
We  marched  through  the  Monocacy  River,  and  our  first  march  took  us  thirteen  English miles. At night we camped on a height — without tents, naturally. However, it was not cold, but beautiful, warm, and pleasant May weather.
14 May. It was rainy. We marched to Taneytown, a small city of about 150 houses; from there to Peterlittletown, a place of two hundred  houses,  nine  miles  from Taneytown and  the last  settlement  in  the  province  of  Maryland.  It  was  not  far  from  where  the  border  between Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  is  marked  by  a  wide  line  of  felled  trees  running  through  the forest.
About a mile from Peterlittletown we set up our night camp and made large fires in order to dry ourselves somewhat, after having gotten quite wet during the day.
Today  an  affair  occurred  between  Private  Rettenbacher,  of  Quesnoy’s  Company,  and Sergeant Major [Nikolaus] Scholl, of the Major’s Company, Lieutenant Weinhardt, and Major von Beust.
Rettenbacher  supposedly  spoke  disrespectfully  against  Major  Beust,  and  this  was  falsely reported by Sergeant Major Scholl. Rettenbacher was arrested and, being grabbed by the hair by Lieutenant Weinhardt and Major Beust, who were on horseback, was dragged between the two  officers  to  the  accompanying  American  escort,  which  marched  ahead  of  our  regiment; and [he was] given over to them as a criminal and one under arrest, to be closely  controlled and watched.
This  incident  created  a  strong  resistance  in  the  regiment.  The  Grenadier  and  Colonel’s companies refused to march farther under Major von Beust’s leadership, but wanted to make their own way to New York and, when they arrived, report all this to Colonel von Seybothen and swear that their guiltless comrade had been treated not as a soldier, but as a malcontent. It went so  far that some of  the  Colonel’s Company took off  their  uniforms  and  threw them at Major Beust’s feet, saying, „Now we are no longer soldiers, but slaves, and will negotiate as criminals in an unlawful manner.”
This  resistance  lasted  more  than  two  hours,  and  the  Colonel’s  Company  marched  all afternoon alone and not with the regiment. When we arrived at our destination in the evening, the  entire Quesnoy’s Company went to their  captain,  complained,  and  stated  that  they  were witnesses  to  the  innocence  of  the  arrested  Private  Rettenbacher,  who  had  been  treated inhumanely,  and  they  requested  his  release.  Captain  von  Quesnoy  and  our  Lieutenant  von Ciriacy went to Major Beust and reported our testimony to him. Rettenbacher was questioned and immediately released from his arrest without further punishment. Sergeant Major Scholl, however,  received  a  severe  reprimand  and  was  warned  about  making  false  reports  in  the future. If he had not had such good rapport with Major von Beust, and if he had not been so old, it would not have gone so easy for him.
Today we marched thirty English miles.
(to be continued)

Advertised on 9 July 1775: ‘SOAP and CANDLES as usual’

What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago this week?

“SOAP and CANDLES as usual.”

It was an exceptionally rare Sunday edition that carried John Benfield’s advertisement for “RUM of all Sorts” and “SOAP and CANDLES as usual,” Ann Durffey’s advertisement offering an enslaved man for sale, and a handful of other advertisements.  Charles Crouch usually published the South-Carolina Gazette and Country Journal on Tuesdays, but news of recent events merited a broadside extraordinary edition on Sunday, July 9.
Throughout the colonies, printers produced issues of their weekly newspapers on every day from Monday through Saturday, many of them choosing which day according to when postriders arrived with weekly newspapers from other towns.  They allowed just enough time to select and reprint news updates, editorials, and letters about current events.  None, however, published their weekly newspaper on Sundays.  Some occasionally distributed supplements or postscripts at some point during the week, but not on Sundays.  That made Crouch’s South-Carolina Gazette Extraordinary for “SUNDAY EVENING, June 9, 1775” truly extraordinary.  The Adverts 250 Project has so far examined advertising from January 1, 1766, through July 9, 1775.  I believe this is the first advertisement from a newspaper published on a Sunday included in the project in nearly a decade.
What prompted Crouch to rush to press with a broadside edition printed on only one side of the sheet?  The Extraordinary included news of the Battle of Bunker Hill, including articles and letters that originated in Cambridge, Massachusetts; Newport, Rhode Island; and Philadelphia.  Read more…

From Market to Department Store
The Selling of Textiles in Whitby from 1700 to 1914
By Viveka Hansen 10 July 2020 IKFoundation
Market Day has been Saturday in Whitby ever since the mid-15th century; until then, Sunday was the day for markets in the town. The present Market Place has been in use since 1640 and has consistently been the site of the market throughout the period from 1700 to 1914. This essay will look more closely at the trade in textiles and clothing in the open air within a small coastal town such as Whitby – in contrast to the indoor specialist family shops and larger drapery establishments. Research has been done via a wide selection of primary sources, including contemporary printed books, plans, censuses, preserved clothing, photographs and advertisements in the local newspaper.
Acts of Parliament from as early as 1764, among other things, introduced new regulations about paving and keeping the streets and squares clean, which greatly increased outside trade. To quote: ‘Also it is enacted, That no person whatsoever shall erect or set out in the public streets, any table or stall for the sale of merchandise, save in the Market-Place, or on a market-day, under the penalty of forfeiting five shillings for every such offence.’ These new laws made it easier for the shops inside the town’s buildings to expand and diversify, since trading from open stalls now came under severe restrictions both to the times and places where business could be transacted. Probably, the open market and street stalls were able to offer a richer choice of textiles before that year, since until then, sellers would have had unrestricted opportunities to advertise their goods when and where they liked, but it has not been possible to prove this from the extant documents. There is even surprisingly little evidence of sales of textiles and textile raw materials in the Market Place. In other words, it is difficult to establish with any certainty which textile materials were sold at those regular weekly markets, but it can be assumed that demand must have centred on the most essential goods, such as among other things wool, yarn, knitted stockings, lace, basic material for interior decorating, second-hand clothes plus woollen and linen material by the yard. Cloth of various qualities was kept on rolls and in bundles and measured out by the seller with a yardstick – just as in shops – so that the customer could get the desired length of material for making clothes or interior decoration. Read more…

Vitus Bering: a Forgotten Hero of Exploration
By Antoine Vanner 2 July 2025 The Dawlish Chronicles
When thinking of the exploration of the Pacific the name that most immediately comes for mind is that of Captain James Cook (1728 – 1779) whose three voyages in the 1760s and 70s added immensely to knowledge of that ocean. These expeditions, meticulously  planned, splendidly resourced and staffed by excellent officers, seamen, cartographers and scientists, were the equivalent in their own day of the Apollo Program. The focus in the first two voyages was on the South Pacific and Australasia but the third, which was to see Cook murdered in Hawaii, focussed on the Northern Pacific and its North American coastline. In the course of this voyage Cook penetrated the Bering Strait between Asia and Alaska and entered the fringes of the Arctic Ocean.
Cook’s achievement was impressive, but the initial exploration of the Northern Pacific had been almost a half-century earlier by a man who had to cope with far greater challenges as regards resourcing and back-up. Though he gave his name to the Strait that separates Asia and America , Vitus Jonassen Bering (1681-1741) is largely unknown outside Russia. His achievement in the face of almost insuperable odds make him however one of the true giants of exploration.
Born in Denmark, and at sea from the age of 18, Bering was one of the many foreign officers recruited by Czar Peter the Great (1672 – 1725) who was rapidly modernising his country and establishing it as a great European power. A key element in his strategy was not only securing a Russian outlet on the Baltic – which became the new capital, St. Petersburg – but the creating from scratch of a navy to defend it.  “The Great Northern War” that raged between Russia and Sweden from 1700-1721 saw Peter’s ambitions realised.
Bering had been with the Russian Navy since 1704 and though he resigned briefly in 1724 he re-enlisted almost immediately, around the time of Peter’s death. Rule of the vast empire now passed to Peter’s widow Catherine (1684 –1727), a woman of obscure and lowly origin who was to prove herself surprisingly capable in government affairs. She inherited Peter’s ambition to have Eastern Siberia’s Pacific coastline and the seas beyond mapped for the first time.  Read more… 

UELAC Loyalist Directory: New Contributions

    No entries have been added, or revised, this week.

Events in July to Celebrate the Loyalists
Several provinces have noted our Loyalist Heritage with designated days or events. Here are some planned events, most organized by UELAC Branches.

Sun 20 July. Chilliwack and Vancouver Branches Celebrate BC Loyalist Day in New Westminster
The tradition to celebration BC Loyalist Day (officially on July 22nd) continues, but this year it is a reunion picnic with former members invited to join in and renew friendships and hear the latest UELAC news.
Location is Picnic Shelter #2 in Queen’s Park, New Westminster.  Fun begins just before noon.  Bring your own chairs and picnic lunch.  Christine Manzer and Marlene Dance
For more about BC Loyalist Day, see Calendar of provincial Loyalist Days and annual observances, under July 22

More special events are welcome – send to editor.

Events Upcoming
     See above “Events in June to Celebrate the Loyalists

Abegweit Branch: PEI Loyalists and the Land Question by Dr. Edward MacDonald Thurs 17 July 6:30 AT

This year’s Public Event will be held at the Rotary Auditorium, Charlottetown Public Library, Charlottetown, PEI. Guest Speaker will be Dr. Edward MacDonald, OC, OPEI, Professor Emeritus UPEI. He will be presenting on “PEI Loyalists and the Land Question”.
To attend in person, register
To attend online, register
See more details.

From the Social Media and Beyond

  • Food and Related : Townsends

  • This week in History
    • 11 Jul 1767, Braintree, MA, John Quincy Adams is born. He’d later serve America in Europe as a teenager. Eventually became the 6th President of the United States and served in the United States Congress. image
    • 11 July 1774, Johnstown, NY. Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet, Irish-English general, died at his estate. Colonial superintendent of Indian affairs responsible for keeping the Iroquois friendly to the British during the French & Indian War.  image
    • 6 July 1775, Philadelphia. After restating their fidelity to King George III, wishing him “a long and prosperous reign” in the Olive Branch Petition, Congress sets “forth the causes and necessity of their taking up arms” against British authority image
    • 8 Jul 1775, Boston Neck (Roxbury), MA. American troops, led by Maj. Benjamin Tupper and Capt. John Crane, probing British defense works, overran a small detachment of regulars and set fire to the guard post. image
    • 9 Jul 1775 Cambridge, MA Gen. Washington convenes a council of war, where they decide not to fortify Dorchester Heights. He also organizes the army into three divisions under Maj. Gens. Heath, Ward, and Greene. image
    • 7 Jul 1776 Quebec, Canada. Royal Gov-Gen Guy Carleton authorizes Sir John Johnson to recruit the King’s Royal Regiment from among fellow displaced Loyalists. image 
    • 7 Jul 1776, Crown Point, NY – American Gen. John Sullivan’s 8,000 weary men arrive after rowing the length of Lake Champlain and are soon directed to retreat 10 miles to Ft. Ticonderoga by Gen. Phillip Schuyler.  image
    • 8 Jul 1776, Philadelphia  A 2,000-pound copper & tin bell known as the Liberty Bell rang from the tower of the Pennsylvania State House,  summoning people to Col. John Nixon’s first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. image
    • 8 Jul, 1776 People gathered at the Pennsylvania State House for one of the first public readings of the Declaration of Independence, by Col. John Nixon. image
    • 9 July 1776, NYC. The newly arrived Declaration of Independence was read aloud to the troops assembled. Huzzahs followed. But celebrators later tore down an equestrian statue of King George III. Gen Washington was not pleased with the vandalism. image
    • 11 Jul 1776 Capt. Lambert Wickes sails his brig, Reprisal, on a successful cruise, seizing four British merchant vessels by the end of the month. image
    • 5 Jul 1777, Ft Ticonderoga NY. Arthur St. Clair’s council of war determines that Gen. Burgoyne’s force consists of 3.5K British, 4K Brunswick and Hesse Hanau, 200 Indians, and 200 Canadians. They resolve on retreat as the fort is deemed indefensible. image
    • 6 Jul 1777 After a desultory bombardment by a small battery of British guns secreted onto Mt Defiance, American forces under Arthur St. Clair abandon Fort Ticonderoga, NY to Gen Burgoyne’s army. Phase I of Burgoyne’s plan is a success. image
    • 7 Jul 1777, Hubbardton, VT. Americans retreating from Ft Ticonderoga engage in a battle at Hubbardton under the command of Seth Warner & Ebenezer Francis.  The British suffer greater losses, but the rebels retreat. image
    • 8 Jul 1777 NYC Gen William Howe’s army begins to embark on the British fleet for a long voyage to the Chesapeake Bay. This will seal General John Burgoyne’s fate, even as his army moves triumphantly south from Canada.  image
    • 9 Jul 1777 Skenesboro, NY Gen John Burgoyne’s main army arrives. The British general deploys a Hessian screening force and continues south, but the thick forest and rough terrain slow the advance image
    • 10 July 1777, Newport, Rhode Island—In a daring midnight raid, Major William Barton, a bold Rhode Island patriot, led a band of 40 stout-hearted men through the inky darkness to strike a blow against the British. With stealth and grit, they rowed across Narragansett Bay, evading Redcoat patrols, and stormed the Overing House, where British Major General Richard Prescott lay snoring in his bed, oblivious to the rebellion creeping through his window. The Yankees nabbed him in his nightshirt, a prize catch, and spirited him away before the lobsterbacks could muster a defense. This wasn’t Prescott’s first dance with captivity. The pompous general, known for his haughty demeanor, had already tasted defeat in 1775 when he blundered into American hands while trying to seize Quebec. Exchanged in September 1776 for General John Sullivan, nabbed by the British at the Battle of Long Island, Prescott barely had time to dust off his epaulettes before taking command of British forces in Rhode Island. Yet, here he was again, trussed up by rebels, the only British general to suffer the double disgrace of being captured twice during the War for Independence. Barton’s raid was no mere prank—it was a calculated jab at British morale, proving the patriots could strike where the enemy felt safest. Prescott’s second humiliation ended with another swap, this time for American Major General Charles Lee, a fiery leader caught by the British in a New Jersey tavern. The exchange sent ripples through both camps, bolstering patriot spirits and leaving the Redcoats red-faced. image
    • 5 Jul 1778, Sandy Hook, NJ: The British Army under Gen. Henry Clinton begins ferrying across lower New York Harbor to New York with the fleet of Adm. Richard Howe, brother of the man he just replaced as commander-in-chief in North America. image
    • 10 Jul 1778 Brest, FR French Admiral Louis, comte d’Orvilliers, sails a fleet of 32 warships into the open sea but has orders to avoid a battle with the Royal Navy. image
    • 10 July 1778, Paris. Louis XVI of France openly committed to joining the Americans as a full ally, declaring war on Great Britain. This forced a strategic realignment of British plans & shifted the center of gravity to the south and the West Indies. image
    • 6 July 1779, Philadelphia, the Continental Congress, in recognition of brave service, awarded Margaret Corbin a pension equivalent to 1/2 that of males. 1st woman to receive a military pension.  image
    • 8 July 1781 Major Thomas Fraser’s Loyalist cavalry charged a rebel detachment under Colonel Isaac Hayne on July 8, 1781, near the Ashepoo River at Horse Shoe Creek, South Carolina. Fraser’s mounted militia, consisting of about 90 dragoons, conducted a surprise raid on Hayne’s camp after a circuitous 70-mile march through the woods. The attack resulted in the death of 14 rebels, the wounding of several others, and the capture of Hayne, who was away from his regiment at the nearby Woodford plantation. image
    • 10 Jul 1781 Sharon Springs Swamp, NY Col. Marinus Willet’s militia regiment attacks John Doxtader’s 300-man raiding party, luring Doxtader into an ambush, routing him, and inflicting 40 casualties on his men , routing him, and inflicting 40 casualties on his men.  image
    • 6 July 1782 Battle of Negapatam, fought off the coast of India between a British fleet, under Adm Sir Edward Hughes, & French fleet, under Adm Bailli de Suffren. Engagement indecisive. Suffren was stopped in his goal by Hughes & withdrew to Cuddalore.  image
  • Clothing and Related:
    • Provence, France.  Marvellous Hooded Cape, 1785-1820. Cotton plain weave, copperplate- and roller-printed.
    • Fashion tips from 18thC France: don’t let being ‘in mourning’ dampen your sense of style.  This ensemble was worn by a lady of rank during the mourning period for Empress Maria Teresa of Austria, mother of Marie Antoinette
    • Pair of stencilled kid leather shoes by Hoppe, London, 1780-1805. Via ROM Toronto.
  • Miscellaneous
    • Robert Adam, one of the greatest 18th-century architects, would have turned 297 today!  We’re celebrating with one of his lesser-known designs – a delightful organ case for Prince Edward Augustus (King George III’s younger brother) for his townhouse, Cumberland House 

Editor’s Note: It’s great to be back in Saint John NB at Conference, both for the historical significance of this Loyalist city and for the camaraderie amongst the people at conference.
Think about the summer of 1783 when 12,000 Loyalists disembarked here into a small town of some 450 people. That puts a rather different perspective on the challenge we share welcoming and absorbing a number of refugees into our relatively much larger population.

 

 

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