United States Revolution collection, 1754-1928.

ArchivalResource

United States Revolution collection, 1754-1928.

This collection consists of an eclectic group of records pertaining to the American Revolution. Gathered from diverse sources, it includes correspondence, reports, returns, orders, rolls, military court records, copies of town meeting minutes, petitions, oaths, depositions, and receipts. There is material relating to the early resistance of colonists to British efforts to tighten administration of the American colonies. Such events as the Stamp Act and its consequent resistance, colonial non-importation agreements, opposition to the Tea Act and other unpopular measures, are all illuminated by documents in this collection, as well as the activities of Committees of Correspondence and town meetings. There are some especially interesting documents pertaining to the actions of the convention of committees of correspondence of Worcester County in the period 1774 to 1776. Several items refer to the participation of the French in the American Revolution, including a few letters of Roderigue Hortalez & Co. which was an operation through which Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (1732-1799) was able secretly to channel French aid to the American cause. Several documents written in French pertain to military organization and training. There are also several documents dealing with charges against and imprisonment of American Loyalists as well as confiscation of Loyalist estates. A series of interesting documents relate to the transport and detention of Loyalists from New York State in Worcester; a group of later documents reveals efforts by Worcester officials to obtain funds from New York to pay for the detention of New York Loyalists in Worcester. The collection contains a large number of official military documents including returns (for troops, provisions, arms, etc.), lists of prisoners, hospitial patients, etc., guard reports, and documents pertaining to courts-martial and courts of inquiry. One such case for which there are many documents is that of the trial of Worcester militia captain Ebenezer Lovel (1730-1817). Included also is a document written in Old German script pertaining to the quarterly meeting of the German Society of the City of New York, 3 January 1785, with a list of its members, including Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Ludolf Gerhard Augustin von Steuben (1730-1794). There are a series of town resolutions enacted by Massachusetts towns and concerning the propriety of forming a new state government. There is also an interesting group of letters from Henry Marble ( -1841) to Breck Parkman (1749-1825), some correspondence of William White ( - ) of Boston, and several documents of George Webb (1740-1825). Among the more notable individual documents in the collection are those with accounts of battles. Two Ethan Allen (1738-1789) letters relate to the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, while another by Joseph Hawley (1723-1788) of Northampton stresses its strategic importance. There are several accounts of the action at Lexington and Concord and an excellent report of the Battle of Bunker Hill attributed to Peter Thacher (1752-1802). Other documents describe the siege of Boston, the campaigns which culminated in the Battle of Saratoga, the Battle of Trenton, and other actions. The collection also includes _four_uncataloged_folio_volumes_, one cataloged folio volume, and _four_uncataloged_octavo_volumes_. The four uncataloged folio volumes and three of the uncataloged octavo volumes contain records of the Continental Army. Folio volume 1 contains, for the most part, weekly strength returns for the period 4 September 1779 to 16 June 1781 for the Third Massachusetts Brigade of Foot (consisting of the 1st, 5th, 7th, 10th, 11th, 12th, and 14th Massachusetts Regiments, and, for a time, the 1st New York Regiment). The brigade was stationed at various times at West Point, Peekskill, Steenropie(?), Orangetown, and Camp Totowa. This volume also contains returns for the period 9 July 1781 to 27 October 1781 for the First Massachusetts Brigade of Foot (consisting of the 1st, 4th, and 7th Massachusetts Regiments). This brigade was stationed at Peekskill. Folio volume 2, a continuation of folio volume 1, contains, for the most part, weekly strength returns for the period 3 November 1781 to 25 October 1783 for the First Massachusetts Brigade of Foot (consisting of the 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 7th Massachusetts Regiments). The brigade was stationed at various times at York Hutts, West Point, Camp Verplancks, and New Windsor. Folio volume 3 is a record book of the 6th Massachusetts Regiment for the period 1777 to 1783. There are lists of field, staff, and commissioned officers, descriptive lists of non-commissioned officers and privates (noting age, physical characteristics, occupation, residence, birthplace, term and date of enlistment), records of courts-martial proceedings, lists of the dead and deserters, and registers of furloughs and discharges. This regiment was also stationed in the West Point area in the early 1780s toward the close of the war. Folio volume 4 is the Record of the Committee to Settle Pay of Soldiers, 1779-1782, with Extracts of Massachusetts Laws, 1782-1784. It contains resolves of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and the minutes of the Committee appointed by the Massachusetts Line of the Continental Army, concerning the army's request for an adjustment in and settlement of the pay of the officers and soldiers because of currency depreciation. Also included are suggested means of obtaining the adjustment (e.g., by determining current prices of beef, corn, wool, and leather), a list of the committee's appointees and their duties, methods of raising taxes to cover the adjustment, and a series of Resolves and Committee Remonstrances over a controversy concerning the House's insistence on deducting from the proposed payment the original bounties given those who enlisted. The Extracts of Massachusetts Laws include the Confession Act of 1782, Marriage and Divorce, Larceny, and Executions. Folio volume 5, a _cataloged_folio_folder_, contains copies of letters of the Massachusetts Committee of Safety, 29 April 1775 - 25 June 1775, including circular letters to Massachusetts towns calling for military preparedness in response to a possible British march from Boston, letters containing proposals for the seizure of Fort Ticonderoga, as well as those ordering supplies for Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) during the Ticonderoga expedition. Many letters reflect emergency efforts to raise troops from neighboring colonies, the unrest in the new army (including differences over appointments of officers and poor behavior of troops), and the Committee's refusal to seek cessation in hostilities. All the items in this folder are cited on the catalog card as "U.S. Rev. Coll. Letterbook." Octavo volume 1 contains the same records as folio volume 4, in different handwriting, concerning the Report of the Committee to adjust salaries of officers and soldiers, although the folio volume includes additional memorials. Octavo volume 2 is an orderly book, 1782-1783, kept by Joseph Russell (1757-1837) for Captain Benjamin Heywood's (1746-1816) 5th Company, 6th Massachusetts Regiment. Included are lists of "stipulated prices" for work performed by tailors, shoemakers, and washerwomen; weekly and provision returns; rosters; inspection returns; and a copy of orders issued by Major-General Robert Howe (1732-1786), 17 November 1782, concerning the need to "restrain the marauding" spirit among the soldiers towards the inhabitants. Several provision returns mention women and children as drawing specific amounts of supplies. Octavo volume 3 contains extracts from several Congressional Resolutions (e.g., proclamation of peace, 1783); provisions to be distributed among wounded officers, 1776; salary scales, 1782; duties of the quartermaster-general and his subordinates. The volume includes examples of forms to be followed for recording returns and subsistence-allowance. Also copied into the volume is the Constitution of the Society of the Cincinnati (a fraternal organization of veteran officers), 1783, as well as a list of officers at the New Windsor Cantonment, 1783. This volume may have been kept by Lt. Col. Thomas Cogswell (1746-1810). Octavo volume 4 is the receipt book, 1781, of Capt. Abraham Tuckerman ( - ), Quartermaster of the 1st Massachusetts Brigade. The volume contains receipts for specific supplies sent to regiments at West Point and Peekskill, New York, and Philipsburg, Pa. There are also a few provision returns for Capt. Tuckerman, carpenters, blacksmiths, and others.

5 boxes.1 box ; oversize.5 v. ; folio.4 v. ; octavo.

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 6957822

Gadsden Public Library

Related Entities

There are 33 Entities related to this resource.

Beaumarchais, Pierre-Augustin Caron de, 1732-1799

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w64r8mx7 (person)

French composer and playwrite, 18th century. From the description of Letter to Mme de Pankouke. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122398229 Pierre Beaumarchais, playwright. From the description of The barber of Seville : or, the useless precaution : typescript, 1972, 1 - 22 September. (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 122597946 French dramatist and financier. From the description of Account of Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, ...

Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm Ludolf Gerhard Augustin, Baron von, 1730-1794

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w68m82t4 (person)

Baron Friedrich von Steuben; Prussian military officer; reformed and disciplined the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, subsequently regarded as one of the fathers of the United States Army. Steuben took part in several battles in the Seven Years' War (1756–63), rose to the rank of captain, and became aide-de-camp to Prussian King Frederick the Great, abruptly discharged from the army in 1763. Awarded title Baron in 1771 from his service to Hollenzollern-Hechingen earned him...

Great Britain

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6wj3fx1 (corporateBody)

This historic document, considered by many to be the cornerstone of English liberty, was the result of demands made by the English barons at the beginning of the 13th century for rights and guarantees against the exactions of the m̀onarchy' in the person of King John. It consists of a preamble and 63 clauses. Also includes facsimile of Magna Carta from Salisbury Cathedral (acquired 1964). From the description of Magna Carta [manuscript]. 1215. (Libraries Australia). WorldCat record i...

Society of the Cincinnati

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6mq5tk3 (corporateBody)

The Society of the Cincinnati was formed on 10-13 May 1783 by American Revolutionary Army officers who met at Mount Gulian, the American Army's cantonment on the east bank of the Hudson River. After resigning his post as General, George Washington (1732-1799) accepted an invitation to become the society's first president. Major General Henry Knox (1750-1806) was the secretary and for years the guiding spirit of the organization. Membership extended to those officers of the Continental Army and N...

Allen, Ethan, 1738-1789

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w61s7fnm (person)

Ethan Allen (1738-1789), Revolutionary War officer and Vermont leader, achieved a place in history by capturing Fort Ticonderoga in 1775. He championed Vermont's drive for statehood. Ethan Allen was a distinct type of frontier soldier. His influence on the settlers of Vermont was comparable to that of John Sevier on the inhabitants of Watauga, East Tennessee, and of Thomas Sumter on the up-country men of South Carolina. Frontier people possessed clan-like loyalties, and they looked to strong men...

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 11th.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6b33450 (corporateBody)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 6th

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62c2qtf (corporateBody)

Regiment created November 1, 1776, under the command of Colonel Thomas Nixon; disbanded June 12, 1783. From the description of Orderly books, 1779-1781. (New York University, Group Batchload). WorldCat record id: 58770472 ...

Howe, Robert, 1732-1786

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w66h4r65 (person)

Robert Howe (1732-1786) was a major-general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He served as justice of the peace in Bladen and Brunswick counties, N.C., and member of the North Carolina Assembly. From the guide to the Robert Howe Papers, ., 1776-1853, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.) Army officer. From the description of Papers of Robert Howe, 1776-1783. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 710...

Cogswell, Thomas, 1746-1810

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6gt75bn (person)

German Society of the City of New York

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w63f8hgr (corporateBody)

United States. Continental Army. New York Regiment, First

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6fv3cwt (corporateBody)

Regiment formed June 28, 1775, as a regiment of the Continental Army, dissolved 1783. From the description of Book of monthly returns, 1779-1781. (New York University, Group Batchload). WorldCat record id: 58770034 Regiment first raised in 1775 under Colonel Alexander McDougall; underwent two major reorganizations between then and 1783. From the description of Orderly books, 1776. (New York University, Group Batchload). WorldCat record id: 58770690 Chapt...

Massachusetts. Committee of Safety

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62r8gs5 (corporateBody)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 1st.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w64225q0 (corporateBody)

White, William B., 1953-

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6vt1v9m (person)

Thacher, Peter, 1752-1802

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6223zrq (person)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 12th

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The 12th Massachusetts Regiment was created on Nov. 6, 1776 and served until disbanded on Jan. 1, 1780. From Sept. 28, 1779 to Jan. 1, 1781, the regiment was under command of Lieutenant Colonel Ebenezer Sprout. From the description of Orderly book of the 12th Massachusetts Regiment, 1779, Aug. 10 - 1780, Feb. 6, West Point, Highlands, Fishkill, N.Y. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 86129815 ...

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 5th

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6mm1nq8 (corporateBody)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 7th.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w67x1mqj (corporateBody)

Tuckerman, Abraham.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6gt74th (person)

Russell, Joseph, 1757-1837.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w61560tw (person)

Lovel, Ebenezer, 1730-1817.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6cz4qht (person)

Heywood, Benjamin, 1746-1816

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6s19jp9 (person)

Benjamin Heywood (1746-1816), son of Phineas, a prominent Shrewsbury farmer, served an apprenticeship to a housewright and ran his own carpentry business for a year or two, until he decided to prepare for attending Harvard in 1771. At the university, where he excelled in math, Heywood joined fellow students in the Marti-mercurian Band, which eventually, with other troops, fought the British on April 19, 1775. Heywood soon joined the army, rose to Captain in 1776, and was...

Hawley, Joseph, 1723-1788

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6dr3fn5 (person)

Resident of Hadley, Mass. From the description of Will of Joseph Hawley, 1775, 1778. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70979256 American Revolutionary patriot and statesman. From the description of Autograph letter signed : Northampton [Mass.], to Moses Bliss at Springfield, 1766 Apr. 11. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 270471283 Resident of Northampton, Mass.; known as Major Joseph Hawley; considered a colonial radical. From the description of L...

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 10th.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w61g5vvd (corporateBody)

Arnold, Benedict, 1741-1801

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6bq0rsk (person)

Revolutionary patriot, Continental Army general, and traitor. From the description of Benedict Arnold papers, 1761-1794. (New Haven Colony Historical Society Library). WorldCat record id: 432702702 Prior to the U.S. Revolutionary War Arnold was a merchant and trader in the West Indies. He served in the Revolutionary Army, but defected to the British in 1780 and served until the War was over. He then went to Canada and eventually to England. He was married to Margaret Mansfie...

Roderigue Hortalez & Co.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6810bmv (corporateBody)

United States. Continental Army

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w66m6x5k (corporateBody)

In response to the expansion of the Continental Army the number of staff was increased and reorganized in 1776. Changes included the creation of a new unit to supplement George Washington's personal staff. This special unit, the Commander in Chief's Guard, was formed on March 12, 1776 with Captain Caleb Gibbs (formerly adjutant of the 14th Continental Regiment and appointed Aid to Major General Greene) as commander. The unit protected Washington, the army's cash, and official papers. ...

Marble, Henry, d. 1841.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w67d4bkd (person)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, Fourth

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The 4th Massachusetts regiment was created on January 1, 1777 and served until November 3, 1783, under command of Colonel William Shepard (Jan. 1, 1777 - Jan. 1, 1783) and Colonel Henry Jackson (Jan. 1, 1783 - Nov. 3, 1783). From the description of Orderly book of the 4th Massachusetts Regiment, 1783, Sept. 28 - Dec. 4, West Point, N.Y., Brookline, Mass. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 122499794 The regiment was created Janu...

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 14th.

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Parkman, Breck, 1749-1825.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6n603v7 (person)

United States. Continental Army. Massachusetts Regiment, 3rd.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w64225rf (corporateBody)

Webb, George, 1740-1825.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6x654xx (person)