New York in the American Revolution
A Source Guide for Genealogists and Historians Eric G. Grundset
for the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
New York in the American Revolution: A Source Guide for Genealogists and Historians by
Eric G. Grundset
for The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
Š2012 National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
No portion of this publication may be copied, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recorded, digital image, or otherwise, without the express written approval of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. As a copyrighted work, this pdf is licensed for your limited, personal, non-assignable, and non-transferable use only to view and use a single copy of the content on your personal computer/laptop for non-commerical, home use only. It may not be re-sold, posted online on any website, or given away to others.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter One: Developing a New York State Research Strategy Decentralization of Records and Sources and the Difficulties of Accessibility of Materials People Compare New York with New England. Geography General New York Research Guides Special New York Research Considerations: Names New York Probate Records and the American Revolution Chapter Two: Major Research Centers in New York State and Elsewhere with Revolutionary War Collections New York State Library, Albany New York State Archives, Albany New-York Historical Society, New York City New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, New York City New York Public Library, New York City New York State Historical Association, Cooperstown Adriance Memorial Library, Poughkeepsie Brooklyn Historical Society, Brooklyn Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, Buffalo Columbia University, Butler Library, New York City Crandall Public Library, Glens Falls East Hampton Library, East Hampton Elting Memorial Library, New Paltz Fraunces Tavern Museum, New York City Historic Huguenot Street (Huguenot Historical Society), New Paltz Hudson River Valley Institute, Poughkeepsie Monroe County Library System, Rochester Montgomery County Department of Archives and History, Fonda Old Fort Niagara, Youngstown Old Stone Fort Library, Schoharie Queens Library (Queens Borough Public Library), Queens Senate House State Historic Site, Kingston Stevenson Library, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson Suffolk County Historical Society, Riverhead United States Military Academy Cadet Library, West Point Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site, Newburgh Useful Websites Major Research Centers Outside of New York State with New York Revolutionary War Materials Chapter Three: Geographical Factors Affecting Research in New York State Suggested Sources for New York Geography to Help Determine Place of Residence of Individuals Maps and Atlases Travel to Revolutionary War Sites in New York State
i iii 1 1 1 1 2 3 4 9 9 11 11 13 13 14 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 16 17 17 17 17 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 19 19 21 23 24 25 27
Table of Contents
Chapter Four: Pre-Revolutionary Events in the Province of New York: A Brief Sampling General History The Sons of Liberty Chapter Five: General Histories of the American Revolution in New York State Basic Bibliography Economic and Business History of New York during the Revolutionary Era Agricultural Conditions in New York in the Revolutionary Era Chapter Six: General Revolutionary War Sources Published Guides, Abstracts, and Transcriptions Original Documents from the National Archives and Records Administration Records of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution Records of the National Society of the Daughters of the Revolution of 1776 Records of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Other Major Records Chapter Seven: The Government of New York Colony and State in the Revolutionary Period New York’s Colonial Government at the Beginning of the Revolution The Governor of the Province of New York The Legislative Council of the Province of New York The Colonial Assembly of the Province of New York New York’s Revolutionary Government and Its Records New York Government and Politics (Generally) New York State and the Continental Congress The Governor of the State of New York Officials (Generally) General Government and Legislative Records Peter Force’s American Archives: Guide to the Contents Relating to Early New York State Government The Provincial Congress The Associations and Associators (1775) New York’s Revolutionary Committees (Generally) The Committee of Safety (1775-1777, intermittently) The Committees of Correspondence (1775-1777) The Committee of Observation (1775-1776) The Committee/Commission for Detecting (and Defeating) Conspiracies (First and Second Commissions) The Committees of Forfeiture, Commissioners of Forfeiture Sequestration The Committee on Disaffected Persons (1776) The Convention of Representatives (1776-1777) The New York State Constitution of 1777 The General Assembly The Legislature and Laws Elections and Suffrage Oaths of Allegiance Oaths of Allegiance to New York State Oaths of Allegiance to King George III The Council of Safety (1777-1778) The Council of Revision (1777-1821) The Commissioners to Explore Mines of Lead, Sulphur, etc., 1777-1779
29 29 30 31 31 36 36 39 39 41 42 43 44 44 45 45 45 46 46 47 47 48 50 52 52 54 56 61 62 63 64 66 66 68 76 76 77 77 77 80 80 80 81 83 83 84
Table of Contents
The Council of Appointment (1777-1822) The Commissioners to Procure Specie (1781, 1782) Chapter Eight: New York Finances and Taxation during the Revolutionary Era Bibliography on New York Financial History and Records New York Tax Records of the Revolutionary Period Tax Acts Pertinent to Patriotic Service during the Revolution New York “Supply” Taxes 1779 New York “Supply” Tax Assessments by County and DistrictTown/Precinct Exonerations/Exemptions from Quit Rents following the Revolution Chapter Nine: New York Land Records New York Land Records (generally) Specific New York Land Records Relating to the American Revolution New York Bounty Land Grants for Revolutionary War Service The Old Military Tract (Clinton, Essex, and Franklin Counties) The (New) Military Tract in Central New York/New York Military Bounty Land Tract Gorham and Phelps Purchase from Massachusetts Vermont Sufferers Chapter Ten: New York Military Records Colonial (i. e. Pre-Revolutionary War) New York Military Records Useful for Researching Some Revolutionary War Soldiers New York’s Military Records of the Revolutionary War General Exemption from Military Service Military and Military-Related Laws of New York Forts and Fortifications Military Units General Listings Continental Line 1st New York Regiment 2nd New York Regiment 3rd New York Regiment 4th New York Regiment (aka “The Kingston Regiment”) 5th New York Regiment Lamb’s Artillery/2nd Continental Artillery Malcolm’s Additional Regiment (1777-1779) Marinus Willett’s Levies Loyalist Units Analysis and Annotations to James A. Roberts’ New York in the Revolution as Colony and State, Volume 1, and Erastus C. Knight and Frederick Gregory Mather’s New York in the Revolution as Colony and State, Volume 2: Supplement Battle Flags of New York during the American Revolution Supplying the Army in New York State: The Quartermaster General and Related Procurement Functions Medicine and Medical Treatment in New York State during the Revolutionary War British and Hessian Deserters Chapter Eleven: Spies and Espionage in New York during the Revolution General Activities John André and the Treason of Benedict Arnold
84 85 87 87 88 88 91 93 98 103 104 104 112 112 118 119 121 121 122 122 130 130 142 143 143 144 146 150 154 157 160 162 164 164 164
164 167 168 175 177 177 179
Table of Contents
Chapter Twelve: Naval and Maritime Records of New York during the Revolutionary Period Naval Activity in and around New York State (Generally) Fleet Prison, Kingston Harbor Lake Champlain, Lake George and the American Revolution Lake Ontario, Fort Ontario, and the American Revolution Privateers Smuggling Whaleboat Warfare Chapter Thirteen: Prisoners of War, Prisons, and Prison Ships in New York Harbor General Prisons in New York City Prison Ships in New York Harbor and Wallabout Bay, King’s County Chapter Fourteen: Records and Sources Relating to Veterans of the American Revolution in New York Pension Records, Claims, and Petitions Pensions for New York Veterans (generally) New York State Pensions for Revolutionary War Service Claims and Petitions to the New York Legislature from Revolutionary War Veterans Claims to the United States Congress: Pension Records (New York Federal Pensions for Revolutionary War Service) (Examples of Petitions to Congress for Revolutionary War Pensions) Other Records Relating to New York Veterans: Lists, Compilations, Individual Soldiers and Their Papers, Family Papers, Obituaries, etc. Lists of Veterans in the Counties and Towns of New York State Representative Listings of Sources for Obituaries or Death Notices of Revolutionary War Veterans Studies and Documents on Some Individual Revolutionary War Veterans of New York State Located and Marked Graves of New York Revolutionary War Veterans Grave Markings and Compilations of Service Records of New York Veterans: National Lists of Grave Markings Commemorations of the American Revolution in New York State The Archaeology of the American Revolution in New York State Chapter Fifteen: Regions, Counties, and Localities in New York State and the American Revolution Local Records in New York State for the Period of the Revolution, 1775-1783 Civil Service New York County Records (generally) New York Town/Precinct/District Records (generally) New York City, New York County/Manhattan The Challenges of Researching the Activities of Individuals in New York County during the Revolution 1775 and 1776 Militia Rolls from New York County and Other Patriotic Activities of New York County and City Residents during the War Establishing Residence of an Individual in New York County Establishing Residence of an Individual in New York County in 1780 The 1776 Oath of Loyalty and New York County, New York Refugees from British-Occupied New York County
185 185 187 187 188 189 189 190 191 191 193 195 201 201 201 204 204
204 209 209 217 219
231 244 245 249 249 249 249 249 251 251
251 253 254 254 255
Table of Contents
Bibliography for New York City, New York County/Manhattan Harlem (Town) and Harlem Heights Battle of Harlem Heights/Harlem Plains (1776) Fort Washington Evacuation Day, November 25, 1783 Richmond County/Staten Island The Challenges of Researching the Activities of Individuals in Richmond County during the Revolution Establishing Residence of an Individual in Richmond County in 1776 The July 9, 1776 Oath of Loyalty and Richmond County, New York Refugees from British-Occupied Richmond County Bibliography for Richmond County Westchester County Bibliography for Westchester County Westchester County 1779 Tax Records Westchester County’s Manors and Towns in the Revolutionary Period Bedford Cortlandt Manor Eastchester Harrison Mamaroneck Mount Vernon New Rochelle North Castle Pelham Philipsburgh Manor Pound Ridge Rye Scarsdale Manor South Salem Westchester (Borough Town) White Plains (County Seat) Battle of White Plains, 1776 Westchester County – Modern Bronx County Portion Long Island (Generally) (See also the individual counties.) Kings County The Challenges of Researching the Activities of Individuals in Kings County during the Revolution 1775 and 1776 Militia Rolls from Kings County (before the British Occupation; April 19, 1775-September 1, 1776) The Aftermath of the Battle of Long Island/Brooklyn, August 1776: British-Occupied Long Island The 1777 Oath of Loyalty and Kings County, New York Refugees from British-Occupied Kings County Sources and Studies for Kings County Brooklyn Battle of Brooklyn/Battle of Long Island Bushwick Flatbush Flatlands Gravesend
256 277 277 278 278 281 281 281 281 281 282 285 285 294 295 295 296 298 299 299 299 299 300 300 301 304 304 305 305 305 305 306 307 308 318 318 318 318 319 319 320 324 325 328 329 329 330
Table of Contents
New Utrecht Queens County (Includes Modern Nassau County.) The Challenges of Researching the Activities of Individuals in Queens County during the Revolution 1775 Association Lists and Other Early Political Activities for and against the Revolution 1775 and 1776 Militia Rolls from Queens County Establishing residence of an individual in Queens County in 1774-1776 The 1776 Oath of Loyalty and Queens County, New York Refugees from and to British-Occupied Queens Sources and Studies for Queens County Generally Flushing Jamaica Newtown Queens County (Modern Nassau County Portion) Hempstead Oyster Bay Suffolk County The Challenges of Researching the Activities of Individuals in Suffolk County during the Revolution Early (1775 and 1776) Revolutionary War Military and Patriotic Service by Suffolk County Residents 1775 Association Lists Committees of Safety in Suffolk County 1775 and 1776 Militia Rolls from Suffolk County Establishing Residence in Suffolk County, 1774-1776 Aftermath of the Battle of Long Island/ Brooklyn: British-Occupied Long Island Establishing Residence in Suffolk County in 1778 The 1778 “Tryon” Loyalty Oath and Suffolk County Refugees from British-Occupied Suffolk County Privateers Smuggling and Piracy Whaleboat Warfare General Bibliography for Suffolk County Brookhaven East Hampton Huntington Islip Shelter Island Smithtown Southampton Southampton – Sag Harbor Southold The Hudson River Valley in the American Revolution Generally Chains across the Hudson Albany County and City Albany (town/city) Albany County – Modern Columbia County Portion Claverack District
330 331 331 331 332 333 333 333 334 338 338 339 340 340 341 344 344 344 344 345 345 347 347 347 347 348 350 351 351 351 359 362 363 366 366 367 368 369 369 372 372 376 379 387 390 391
Table of Contents
Kinderhook District Kings District Manor of Livingston District Albany County – Modern Greene County Portion Coxsackie District Great Imboght District Albany County – Modern Rensselaer County Portion Hoosick District Battle of Bennington/Walloomsac/Walloomscoik Rensselaer Manor District Schagticoke District Albany County – Modern Saratoga County Portion Ballston District Half Moon District Saratoga District Burgoyne’s 1777 Campaign, the Battle of Saratoga, the “Convention of Saratoga, and the Convention Army Albany County – Modern Schenectady County Portion Albany County – Modern Schoharie County Portion Albany County – Modern Washington County Portion Cambridge District Salem District White Creek District Dutchess County 1775 Association Bibliography for Dutchess County Amenia Precinct Beekman Precinct/Pawling Charlotte Precinct Clinton Precinct Crum Elbow Precinct Northeast Precinct/Little Nine Partners Poughkeepsie Precinct Red Hook Rhinebeck Rombout Precinct Dutchess County – Modern Putnam County Portion Fredericksburg(h) Precinct Colonel Henry Ludington and Sybil Ludington Philipse Precinct Constitution Island Continental Village Southeast Precinct Orange County 1775 Association Bibliography for Orange County Goshen Precinct New Cornwall Precinct Forts Montgomery, Clinton, and Putnam West Point and the American Revolution Orange County – Modern Rockland County Portion
392 393 394 395 397 397 399 400 400 403 403 404 405 406 407 407 423 425 433 433 434 434 435 435 435 441 441 441 443 443 443 443 445 445 446 448 449 449 450 450 451 452 453 453 453 458 460 461 463 468
Table of Contents
Bibliography for Rockland County Haverstraw Precinct Battle, Storming, and Capture of Stony Point Orangetown Precinct Ramapo Region Claudius Smith Iron Industry Ulster County 1775 Association Bibliography for Ulster County Hanover Precinct Hurley Kingston Marbletown (New) Marlborough Precinct New Paltz Precinct New Windsor Precinct New Windsor Cantonment Newburgh Precinct Rochester Shawangunk Precinct Walkill Precinct Ulster County – Modern Delaware County Portion Ulster County – Modern Sullivan County Portion Mamakating Precinct Battle of Minisink Northern and Western Frontiers General Henry Knox’s 1775-1776 Expedition Fort Stanwix/Fort Schuyler Battle of Oriskany, 1777 Charlotte, Cumberland, and Gloucester Counties Charlotte County Lake Champlain Lake George Argyle Fort Edward Kingsbury Queensbury Salem Whitehall Fort Ticonderoga and the American Revolution Cumberland County Gloucester County Tryon County and the Central Mohawk Valley The Niagara Frontier Chapter Sixteen: Distinctive Groups in New York State during the American Revolution African American New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era Canadian and Nova Scotian Refugees to New York Dutch New Yorkers Freemasons
468 471 472 474 475 476 476 478 478 478 483 484 484 486 486 486 487 487 488 490 491 491 493 495 495 496 498 501 502 505 508 508 508 509 509 509 509 509 509 510 510 512 512 513 517 521 521 523 524 524
Table of Contents
German New Yorkers/Palatine German New Yorkers Irish New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era Jewish New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era King’s College/Columbia College Students and Faculty Legal Profession and Professionals Loyalist/Tory New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era The King’s Royal Regiment of New York/Queens Loyal New Yorkers The Six Nations: Native Americans in New York State The Sullivan-Clinton Expedition against the Iroquois, 1779 Quakers/Friends New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era Refugees from and within New York State Religious Groups/Individuals in New York during the American Revolution Scottish New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era Women and Girl New Yorkers in the Revolutionary Era Chapter Seventeen: Lineage Societies in the State of New York Related to the American Revolution New York State Organization, Daughters of the American Revolution National Society of the Daughters of the Revolution (not the NSDAR) National Society, Sons of the American Revolution The St. Andrew’s Society of the State of New York Society of the Cincinnati in the State of New York Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York Chapter Eighteen: Prominent New Yorkers of the Revolutionary Era Arnold, Benedict, 1741-1801, in New York Armstrong, John, Jr., 1720-1795 Banyar, Goldsbrow 1724-1820 Benson, Egbert, 1746-1833 Brant, Mary/Molly/Konwatsi’tsiaienni Degonwadonti, ca. 1735-1796 Brant, Joseph/Thayendanegea, 1742-1807 Broome, John, 1734-1810 Burr, Aaron, 1756-1836 Clinton, George, 1739-1812 Clinton, James, 1736-1812 Cochran, Catharine Van Rensselaer Schuyler Malcolm, b. 1781? Colden, Cadwallader, 1688-1776 Colden, Cadwallader, II, 1722-1797 Colden, David, 1733-1784 Cornplanter/Jonösde:gëh Gy-ant-wa-cha, 1730s-1836 Crèvecoeur, J. Hector St. John de, 1735-1813 (aka Michel Guillaume Jean de Crèvecoeur) DeWitt, Simeon, 1756-1834 Duane, James, 1733-1797 Duer, William, 1747-1799 Eustace, John Skey, 1760-1805 Fish, Nicholas, 1758-1833 Floyd, William, 1734-1821 Gano, John, 1727-1804 Gansevoort, Peter, 1749-1812 Gilbert, Benjamin, 1755-1828 Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804 Haring, John, 1739-1809
525 526 526 527 528 529 543 544 549 558 558 560 561 561 565 565 565 565 566 566 567 569 569 570 570 571 571 572 572 572 573 575 575 575 576 576 576 577 578 579 579 579 580 580 580 581 581 582 582
Table of Contents
Hart, John, ca. 1711-1779 Hay, Ann Hawkes, 1745-1785 Hay, Udney, 1738-1806 Heath, William, 1737-1814 Herkimer, Nicholas, ca. 1728-1777 Holt, John, 1721-1784 Hughes, Hugh, d. 1804 Humphreys, David, 1752-1818 Jay, John, 1754-1829 Johnson, John, Sir, 1742-1830 Johnson, Henry Johnson, Jeremiah, 1756-1852 Johnson, William, Sir, 1715- 1774 Kirkland, Samuel, 1741-1808 Kosciuszko, Tadeusz, in New York Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul, Marquis de, in New York Lamb, John, 1735-1800 Lewis, Francis, 1713-1802 Lewis, Morgan, 1754-1844 Livingston, Henry, 1751-1833 Livingston, Henry Beekman, 1750-1831 Livingston, Philip, 1716-1778 Livingston, Robert R., Jr., 1746-1813 Livingston, William, 1732-1790 Loudon, Samuel, 1727-1813 Low, Isaac, 1735-1791 Ludington, Henry, 1739-1817 Ludington, Sybil, 1761-1839 McCrea, Jane, d. 1777 McDougall, Alexander, 1732-1786 Machin, Thomas, 1744-1816 McKesson, John, 1734-1798 Montgomery, Richard, 1738-1775 Mooers, Benjamin (1758-1838) Morris, Gouverneur, 1752-1816 Morris, Lewis, 1726-1798 Parsons, Samuel Holden, 1737-1789 Putnam, Rufus, 1738-1824 Red Jacket/Sagoyewatha, 1751?-1830 Rivington, James, 1724-1802 Rochefontaine, Stephen (Etienne Nicolas Marie BĂŠchet, Sieur de Rochefontaine), 1755-1814 Romans, Bernard, 1741-1784 Sayre, Stephen, 1736-1818 Schuyler, Philip John, 1733-1804 Scott, John Morin, 1730-1784 Smith, Josiah, 1723-1786 Smith, William, 1728-1793 Smith, William Stephens, 1755-1816 Tallmadge, Benjamin, 1754-1835 Ten Broeck, Abraham, 1734-1810
582 582 583 583 583 584 584 585 585 585 586 586 586 587 587 587 587 588 588 588 589 589 589 589 590 590 590 590 590 590 591 591 592 593 593 593 593 594 594 594 594 594 594 594 596 597 597 598 598 598
Table of Contents
Thomas, Thomas, fl. 1770s Troup, Robert, 1736-1832 Tyron, William, 1729-1788 Van Cortlandt, Philip, 1749-1831 Van Gaasbeek, Peter, 1754-1797 Van Schaack, Peter, 1742-1832 Varick, Richard, 1753-1831 Von Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm August Heinrich Ferdinand (Friedrich Wilhelm Ludolf Gerhard Augustin), 1730-1794 Warner, Seth, 1743-1784 Washington, George, 1732-1799, in New York Willett, Marinus, 1748-1830 Wisner, Henry, ca. 1720-1790 Woodhull, Nathaniel, 1722-1776 Woolsey, Melancthon, fl. 1770s Yates, Abraham, 1724-1796 Addendum Maps Index
598 598 598 599 599 600 600 601 601 601 602 603 603 604 604 607 611 635