NYC at the time of the RevWar...Jedediah was writing from King's Bridge, which was at the north end of the island (in today's Harlem) and was quite rural at the time.
The RevWar/Colonial History/General Washington ping list...
When the Continentals escaped NYC in the south and stayed in the northern part of the island, General Washington stayed at the Jumel Mansion which still stands today and you may visit. Worth a trip uptown to see where the General stood on the balcony as he watch NYC burn.
His appearance was striking and unmistakable making his presence noticed and remarked upon everywhere he went. .
Just a little remembrance of reading long ago.
Isn’t that the truth? Reading first-hand accounts from the front and recent engagements brings it truly alive. There is a lot of intelligence in the letter that I imagine would have been very useful to the enemy if it had fallen into their hands. Were there any censors of letters during the Revolution?
The description of the British treatment of NYC citizens is awful — throwing people into the flames, binding their legs and cutting their throats. Were these true? Or the normal rumors of enemy brutality? I recall similar rumors spread after the battle at Concord and on the King’s Road retreat to Boston.
Thanks for the ping! BTTT
Liberty: The American Revolution - PBS:
LIBERTY! is a six-part series of one-hour documentaries for PBS. It describes how the American Revolution evolved and how a new nation was born in the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, using actors, Revolutionary era scholars, and eyewitness accounts of the time. LIBERTY! is hosted by award winning journalist and ABC news anchor, Forrest Sawyer. Edward Herrmann is the narrator. It was originally broadcast Nov. 23 - 25, 1997.
EPISODE 1: “The Reluctant Revolutionaries” 1763-1774
In 1763, the capitol city of America is London, George Washington is lobbying for a post in the British army, and no one thinks of Boston harbor when they hear talk of tea parties. In a dozen years, the colonies are on the brink of rebellion. What happens to bring this country so quickly near war with England?
EPISODE 2: “Blows Must Decide” 1774-1776
A total break from Great Britain remains hard for Americans to imagine, even after shots are fired at Lexington and Concord. Words push matters “Over the Edge” in 1776. Common Sense argues that it is the natural right of men to govern themselves. The Declaration of Independence declares this same idea a “self-evident” truth. For Americans, there is no looking back. There will be war with England.
EPISODE 3: “The Times That Try Men’s Souls” 1776-1777
Days after the Declaration of Independence is signed, a British force arrives in New York harbor. Washington and his troops are driven to New Jersey. With only a few days of enlistment left for many of his volunteers, a desperate Washington leads his army quietly across the Delaware River on the day after Christmas, 1776, to mount a surprise attack on a sleeping garrison in Trenton.
EPISODE 4: “Oh Fatal Ambition” 1777-1778
The “united” states remain in dire need of funds and military support. Congress dispatches Benjamin Franklin to France in hopes of creating an alliance which will provide both. Meanwhile, a British army marches down the Hudson River trying to cut off New England from the other colonies. The British are crushed by Americans at Saratoga. The French enter the conflict on the American side.
EPISODE 5: “The World Turned Upside Down” 1778-1783
The British hope to exploit the issue of slavery and to enlist the support of loyalists in the south. They fail. After a series of brutal engagements, the British army heads for Virginia, only to be trapped by the miraculous convergence of Washington’s army and the French fleet at Yorktown. The end of the war is at hand.
EPISODE 6: “Are We to Be a Nation? 1783-1788
Peace comes to the United States, but governing the world’s newest republic is no simple task. Congress is ineffectual and individual states act like sovereign nations. By the time the Constitutional Convention convenes in 1787, many wonder if the country can survive. The long ratification process helps define what sort of nation the United States is to be—a process that continues to this day.
http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/liberty_episodes.html
You can watch the first 5 (of 6) episodes here:
http://libertymaven.com/2008/03/23/liberty-the-american-revolution-from-pbs-video/984/
A WALKING TOUR OF THE BATTLEFIELD IN OUR MIDST
From
THE BATTLE FOR NEW YORK:
The City at the Heart of the American Revolution
by Barnet Schecter
The Battle For New York Walking Tour:
http://www.thebattlefornewyork.com/walking_tour.php
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The Battle For New York Home page:
http://www.thebattlefornewyork.com/home.php
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Memorial to Revolutionary War patriots shines anew in Brooklyn
November 15th 2008:
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/11/15/2008-11-15_memorial_to_revolutionary_war_patriots_s.html
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The Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument in Brooklyn's Fort Greene Park (PDF File):
http://www.fortgreenepark.org/pages/ASP_0307_PrisonShips.pdf
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"Fort Greene Park is located in Brooklyn, New York, on a hill overlooking Wallabout Bay and downtown Brooklyn. It is both a popular neighborhood park and a historically significant site. The thirty acre park is home to tennis courts and playgrounds, and is host to events such as concerts, poetry readings, and other civic gatherings. It is also the site of a Revolutionary War fort and a monument to Revolutionary War prisoners, who were held by the British in unbearable conditions aboard prison ships in Wallabout Bay. Today, a monument stands in the park commemorating these Prison Ship Martyrs.
The park is named for Revolutionary War General Nathaniel Greene (1742-1786) who oversaw the construction of Fort Putnam at the summit of the park in 1776. During the battle of Brooklyn, Fort Putnam defended General Washington's retreat across the East River to safety before being left to the British. Once again, in 1812, patriotic citizen volunteers fortified the top of the hill in anticipation of a British attack, digging trenches and laying out barriers. The attack never came, but the fortification was named for General Greene.
In 1814, regular ferry service connected the village of Brooklyn to the City of New York. The connection led to extensive development, and Brooklyn was incorporated as a city in 1834. Brooklyn continued to grow by leaps and bounds as immigrants streamed into the city. By 1846, Walt Whitman, the celebrated poet and then editor of The Brooklyn Daily Eagle was writing almost daily urging for a park in Brooklyn. The park would be a "lung" to provide the densely populated city with free circulation of air and where the people could spend a few grateful hours in the enjoyment of wholesome rest. As a result, Washington Park on the site of Fort Greene was established as Brooklyn's first park in 1847.
In 1864, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who had achieved fame for their design for Central Park, were engaged to prepare a design for the park. Their design approach called for a park with a "somewhat rural character", consisting of "a series of shady walks that will have an outlook of open grassy spaces at intervals." A vine covered arbor was placed at the top of the park to take advantage of the cool breezes of the summit. A military salute ground was located in front of the Arbor, and two cannons were placed at the corners that overlooked the East River. Flowering Chestnut trees were planted around the perimeter of the park, and the site was graded and pathways constructed.
The park's master plan also included a monument to the prison ship martyrs. The Revolutionary War prisoners who died aboard the wretched prison ships were buried in shallow graves on the shore of Wallabout Bay. As time passed, their remains were uncovered or washed out to sea. Their bones were collected by Brooklynites and ceremoniously buried in a vault on Hudson Street, near the Brooklyn Navy Yard. By the 1860's, this vault was in a state of disrepair, and Olmsted and Vaux's plan created a final burial place and monument for the Martyrs.
As Brooklyn continued its growth into the twentieth century, the park was long overdue for a renovation. The effort to raise funds to create a permanent monument to the Prison Ships Martyrs was finally successful, and the leading Architectural Firm of McKim, Meade and White won a competition for the design of the new monument. Their design for the Prison Ships Martyrs' Monument called for a huge doric column crowned with a bronze urn in a square plaza atop the hill. The urn would be lit as an "eternal flame" to the memory of the martyrs. Also proposed for the plaza were two 190 foot long pergolas to replace Olmsted and Vaux's popular seating areas. Their new monument was unveiled in a grand ceremony in 1908.
While the park has changed much over the years, its historic value remains undiluted. Currently, restoration efforts are underway to bring the park to a state of good repair, for the preservation of history and for the enjoyment of future generations."
http://www.fortgreenepark.org/pages/history1.htm
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From the NYC Parks dept website...
Mcgowan’s Pass, Central Park
McGowan’s Pass, part of the escarpment that crosses Manhattan around 106th Street, consists of two rock outcrops located on either side of Kingsbridge Road. The Pass takes its name from a popular local tavern owned by the McGowan family during the late 17th and early 18th centuries.
After his early Revolutionary War defeat at the Battle of Brooklyn (1776), General George Washington (1732-1799) moved most of his troops north of McGowan’s Pass, leaving only a small contingent to the south. Hoping to trap the Continentals, on the morning of September 15, 1776, British troops landed from dozens of transport ships anchored in Kips Bay (near present-day 34th Street). Washington, headquartered at the Morris Mansion on West 160th Street and Edgecombe Avenue, charged southward through McGowan’s Pass, directing his men to counter the invading force.
Rallying a small force of soldiers, Washington ordered them to march westward across Manhattan Island, then north on Bloomingdale Road into Harlem Heights. A small band of Maryland militiamen (near present-day 92nd Street and 5th Avenue) kept the British from advancing westward. As in the Battle of Brooklyn, the Marylanders held the line against superior forces, securing the American retreat. The British Army wisely built a small fortification over the pass to control the flow of troops in and out of the city. Seven years later, at the war’s successful conclusion, colonial soldiers under the command of General Henry Knox (1750-1806) marched back through the pass and down Manhattan Island to liberate the city.
During the War of 1812 (1812-1814), McGown’s Pass was a lookout point for the Americans who anticipated a British invasion. When the British bombarded Stonington, Connecticut in August 1814, the American command began to fear that the British might attack from the north, and a massive mobilization attempt by civilians contributed to the building of a chain of fortifications on the high bluffs of Upper Manhattan and Central Park. Several structures were built. Connecting all of these fortifications were four-foot high defensive walls (breastworks) made of earth, but the British never invaded.
Although the original plan for Central Park terminated at 106th Street, the northernmost section was purchased in 1863, and remnants of these earthwork fortifications remained. The designers of the park, Calvert Vaux (1824-1895) and Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903), decided to leave the structures and earthworks as they stood. In 1990, the Central Park Conservancy, while preserving the north end of the park, worked with archaeologists to identify the breastworks that had eroded over time. The remains of McGowan’s Pass stand as a reminder of the role that New York City played in the early history of the American Republic.
http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=12377