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| Fort Schuyler Garrisoned | The former Fort Stanwix was renamed Fort Schuyler, in honor of General Philip Schuyler. American Colonel Dayton and his New Jersey Regiment, who started rebuilding the fort, garrisoned it. Colonel Elmore's Connecticut Regiment was sent to protect the Mohawk Valley. |
| February 27, 1776 | Moore's Creek Bridge. Loyalists looking for British Regulars were ambushed by rebel troops, and set to flight. |
| March 17, 1776 | The British evacuated Boston. They sailed to Halifax. Washington thought they may be going to New York (City), and he took his army there. |
| Declaration of Independence | July 4, Congress accepted Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence. The declaration stated that the colonies are free from England's rule, America is Independent. |
| Fort Moultrie | Fort Moultrie, Charleston, SC was defended by American General Lee, from British General Clinton. |
| August 17, 1776 | Hessions in America Additional British forces arrived in America, they bought many Hession (German) Mercenary soldiers to fight. This brought their force to about a 32,000-man army, and a 10,000-man navy. Washington's total force was about 8,000-men. |
| Battles for New York (City) | New York was desirable by both sides for a base of operations because it offered: a central location, and a good harbor. Washington was routed from New York, and Long Island and was pursued by Cornwallis into Pennsylvania. On September 15, New York City became the British Headquarters for the remainder of the war. |
| December 26, 1776 | Battle of Trenton, NJ. The Continental Army's enlistments were again expected to expire. Washington planned an attack on Trenton Barracks, garrisoned by Hessions, before the year's end. Christmas day he crossed the Delaware. Early December 26, he had a victory over Colonel Rall, and his Hession army. |
| January 3, 1777 | Battle of Princeton, NJ. Washington led an attack on Cornwallis's rear guard at Princeton. |
| Campaigns 1777 | During the winter two British Generals sent plans to England for a quick end to the war, both were granted permission. Howe's original plan was to fan troops out, to; Boston, up the Hudson River, and to Philadelphia. Burgoyne's plan was concentrated on The Northern Department of the American army at Albany. He would use Howe's force coming up the Hudson. |
| Northern Campaign | The British General John Burgoyne planned a campaign to capture the colony of New York. This plan consisted of General Burgoyne leading forces south from Canada to Albany through the Lake Champlain, Lake George, and Hudson River Valley; Colonel Barry St. Leger moving south with forces by way of Lake Ontario, and the Oswego and Mohawk Rivers to Albany; and General Howe moving North along the Hudson River from New York City to Albany. By capturing New York, the British could divide the colonies, capitalize on New York's Loyalist population, and supply food and materials from New York to the British army and Navy in America. However the bulk of General Howe's forces went South to capture Philadelphia and only a small diversionary force went as far North as West Point. Colonel St. Leger's Army was forced to retreat after suffering losses; at the Battle of Oriskany, because of Willet's sortie, and because of learning that General Benedict Arnold was leading a relief force to besieged Fort Schuyler. This led to General Burgoyne's capitulation at Saratoga on October 19th. |
| Philadelphia Campaign | Howe decided to concentrate his efforts on Philadelphia, and Washington's army. Howe crossed Brandywine Creek, and garrisoned Philadelphia and Germantown. October 4, Washington attacked Germantown, but because of poor visibility lost the battle. The British captured Forts Mifflin and Mercer, then they had control of the Delaware River. Howe wintered comfortably in Philadelphia, while Washington's army suffered at Valley Forge. |
| February 6, 1778 | French Alliance. America had opened alliances, with France and other European countries, partly because of the victory at Saratoga. These alliances provided America with a strong navy, additional soldiers, money and weapons. |
| Baron Von Steuben | German General Steuben instituted the first recognized universal system of drill and discipline for the Continental Army. |
| June 28, 1778 | Battle of Monmouth Courthouse, NJ. Clinton led his army out of Philadelphia, resting them at Monmouth courthouse. Washington rallied his troops for an attack on Clinton. The heat of the day ended the battle because both sides were exhausted. |
| Loyalist Raids | Loyalist soldiers, and Indians raided, looted, killed and burned Western settlements. Related topics; Wyoming Valley, Cherry Valley, Mohawk Valley, and Unadilla. |
| February 25, 1779 | American George Rogers Clark captured the British outpost at Vincense. |
| July 15, 1779 | Anthony Wayne captured Stony Point, NY. from the British under cover of darkness. |
| Sullivan's March | Washington chose General John Sullivan to lead Continental troops to raid Iroquois territory. They destroyed about forty villages and great quantities of food. These raids tested the alliance with the Oneida Nation, because the Oneida pleaded with Washington not to destroy non-hostile villages of the Onondaga Nation, but Sullivan did destroy them. These raids were in retaliation for Butler's raids the year before. |
| West Point | Benedict Arnold in command of West Point planned to turn it over to the British. For recognition, pay and rank in the British army, the former hero turned traitor. |
| The Southern Campaign | British shifted their emphasis to a campaign for the Southern colonies. Clinton led a series of coastal raids, destroying American stores and disrupting their ability to wage war. There were many continued outbreaks of Guerilla warfare. British captured Savannah, Ga. American General Lincoln on Land, and Count D'Estaing on water tried to recapture it, but were forced to abandon their efforts when hurricane season approached. |
| Charleston | Clinton and Cornwallis went on to capture Charleston, and other positions in South Carolina. |
| October 7, 1780 | The British suffered a loss at Kings Mountain, SC. to frontiersmen. |
| January 17, 1781 | British Dragoon, Tarleton "The Butcher" lost to Daniel Morgan's force at the Cowpens. Morgan's clever tactics accounted for this American victory. |
| March 15, 1781 | While Cornwallis was in pursuit, Greene took up a position at Guilford Courthouse, NC. Cornwallis attacked and pushed the Americans from the field, but at a heavy casualty loss. |
| Yorktown | Clinton gave Cornwallis ambiguous orders. April 25, Cornwallis decided to take the option to fortify Yorktown, VA. DeGrasse sailed for Virginia with the French Fleet. On August 14, Washington's army arrived in Virginia with LaFayette and Rochambeau. By September 5, French gained control of the sea, blocking escape routes for Cornwallis. Washington started siege operations, including trenches and bombardment of the British fortifications. On October 19, 1781 Cornwallis surrendered his army at Yorktown. |
| September 3, 1783 | Treaty of Paris. There was a peace treaty to end the war with England, America, France and others, called the Treaty of Paris. |
| 1784 Treaty of Fort Stanwix | The Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1784, ended the war between the Iroquois Confederacy and the Americans. All Iroquois Nations, including the American allies the Oneida and Tuscarora Nations, were forced to give up major portions of their lands. |
Ft. Stanwix was built by the British in 1758 to protect the Oneida Carry and the settlements to the east of it from attacks by the French during the French and Indian war. The fort, named for General John Stanwix, replaced smaller forts; Bull, Craven, Newport, and Williams. These forts were constructed earlier on the carry's landings.
In 1768, Sir William Johnson, the Superintendent of Indian affairs, brought together the various leaders of the Iroquois Shawnee and Delaware nations, at Fort Stanwix to settle local colonial and Indian land disputes. The Boundary Line Treaty signed at the fort established a clear line between colonial settlement and Indian land. The British reduced the size of the garrison and by 1774, only a trader remained within the fort.
With the beginning of the American Revolution in 1775, American leaders recognized the importance of the area. In 1776 the former Fort Stanwix was rebuilt and renamed Fort Schuyler, in honor of General Philip Schuyler. American Colonel Dayton and his New Jersey Regiment, who started rebuilding the fort, garrisoned the fort. Colonel Elmore's Connecticut Regiment was sent to protect the Mohawk Valley.
In August of 1777, the fort successfully withstood a 21 day siege by a mixed force of British, German, Canadian, Loyalist, and Indian troops. This helped to make possible the American victory at Saratoga. The fort continued to be garrisoned by American troops until the spring of 1781, when a combination of heavy spring rains and fire destroyed a good deal of the fort and rendered it indefensible.
The site remained abandoned until August of 1783 when Col. Marinus Willet was directed to build three blockhouses in the area of the old fort. In 1784, the site was again chosen as a meeting place. Representatives of the new United States, under the Articles of Confederation, and the Iroquois Confederacy met to end the Iroquois's part in the American Revolution. In 1788 New York State negotiated a treaty with the Oneida Nation, purchasing more of their lands.
In 1794, the State of New York built a blockhouse for storing military supplies on the parade ground of the old fort. By 1815 it was already in disuse. In the 1830's the last remains of Ft. Stanwix were covered over by increasing development, bringing the military history of the site to a close.
| 1758 | Building of Fort Stanwix, to replace smaller forts on Oneida Carry landings. |
| 1768 | Local boundary line treaty demarcating Colonist - Indian border. |
| 1774 | British abandon fort. |
| 1776 | Continental Army takes, rebuilds and renames the fort, Fort Schuyler. |
| 1777 | 21 day siege, by British and allied forces of the 3rd New York Regiment garrisoned fort. |
| 1781 | Fire and Flood destroying portions of fort. |
| 1784 | Peace treaty with Iroquois. |
| 1788 - 1790 | Additional land treaties with Iroquois. |
| 1935 | Congress enacts legislation for Fort Stanwix National Monument. |
| 1960 | Urban renewal of Rome, NY begins; city donates land to NPS. |
| 1970 - 1973 | Archeological investigations, over 400 thousand artifacts discovered. |
| 1973 | Fort reconstruction begins. |
| 1976 | Fort Stanwix National Monument opens for American Bicentennial. |
The Oneida Carry was the English name for the portage path between the Mohawk River and Wood Creek. This path was part of the major water route between New York City and Canada. It was between one to five miles in length depending on the season of the year.
The Iroquois had known this area as the De-o-wain-sta. This waterway became very important as a commercial route for the Iroquois, English and the French. By 1755, the Oneida Carry had become a militarily strategic area for the British in the Seven Years War with the French.
Between 1755 and 1756, the British constructed a series of small forts on the landings of both sides of the carry. These forts; Bull, Williams, Craven and Newport, met with varying degrees of success. In 1758, after the forts were abandoned due to French attacks Fort Stanwix was constructed, in the center of the carrying place. This gave the British a dominant position overlooking the Oneida Carry.
The Iroquois people call themselves the "Haudensaunee" when translated means people of the longhouse. Long before Europeans arrived the Peacemaker came to unite the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk nations to form the Iroquois Confederacy. These nations buried their weapons of war beneath the Great Tree of Peace to symbolize that they would not war against each other again. Early in the 1700's the Tuscarora joined the Confederacy as the sixth nation, after being forced to leave North Carolina.
Before the Revolutionary War the Iroquois lived from northern Pennsylvania, throughout New York State and parts of southern Ontario. They had vast fields of corn and great orchards.
The various European empires understood that they needed to maintain Indian alliances to keep their empires. Two British officials, called Indian Superintendents maintained the British/ Indian relations. The superintendent in the Iroquois territory was Sir William Johnson. He was friend and relative to a Mohawk leader Joseph Brant.
During the Revolutionary War the Iroquois had to decide with whom they would ally. By not having a unanimous consensus their peaceful relationship turned into a civil war. Many of the Oneida and Tuscarora broke from the confederacy to ally themselves with the Americans.
The Revolutionary war was devastating to the entire Iroquois Confederacy. Their corn, orchards, food storage and homes were destroyed, in raids of the areas.
The Revolutionary war did not end with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, for the Iroquois. The 1784 Treaty of Fort Stanwix established the peace between the Iroquois and the Americans. Lands of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca were ceded to the Americans.
The 3rd NY Regiment that defended Fort Schuyler against the British in 1777 had been reorganized and established from other NY regiments on January 26, 1777.It's commander was Col. Peter Gansevoort, with Leiut. Col. Marinus Willet second in command. The regiment consisted of men from Dutchess and Ulster counties and the New York City area. The regiment was first posted on Constitution Island, on the Hudson River opposite West Point, and it's first taste of battle came on March 22, 1777 when it helped to drive off a British raiding party at Peekskill. In April and May of 1777, the regiment arrived at Ft. Schuyler and successfully defended the fort against a British attack in August of that same year. The 3rd NY was to remain at Ft. Schuyler until December of 1778. In 1779 the regiment received a gift from Col. Gansevoort in the form of a regimental flag. This flag, which the regiment carried for the rest of the war, later served as the basis for the present-day New York State flag.
In the summer of 1779, the 3rd NY Regiment made up part of General Clinton's Brigade in the Clinton-Sullivan expedition against the Iroquois Confederacy. On its return from the expedition, the regiment joined the main army under Washington for the hard winter encampment of 1779-80 at Morristown, NJ. The year of 1780 saw the 3rd NY posted in the Mohawk and upper Hudson River Valleys, at West Point, and in the lower Hudson River Valley.
In December of 1780, the 3rd NY Regiment became part of the 1st NY Regiment, as the five New York regiments were consolidated into two for the remainder of the war. As part of the 1st NY Regiment men of the old 3rd took part in the siege of Yorktown, which led to an American victory in October of 1781. On November 15 of 1783, the 1st NY Regiment was disbanded.
In 1777, the regiment was assigned to garrison Fort Dayton, which is in the area of modern-day Herkimer, NY. On July 30, with the approach of St. Leger to the Mohawk River Valley and Fort Schuyler, 150 men in the regiment
Under the command of Major Bedlam reinforced the 3rd NY troops at Fort Schuyler. On August 2, another detachment of Wesson's regiment arrived at Fort Schuyler with supplies. They were scheduled to return to Fort Dayton that day, but were not able to leave because the first section of St. Leger's army arrived that afternoon. They served with the 3rd NY for the entire siege, and as soon as Col. Gansevoort was sure that the danger had passed, the Massachusetts troops returned to Fort Dayton.
Numbers are approximate; between 1,660 and 2000 men. They consist of the following units.
8th Regiment of Foot, two companies - 100 men
34th Regiment of Foot, two companies - 100 men
Royal Artillery Detachment - 40 men
Hesse-Hanau JŠgers - 87 men
King's Royal Regiment of New York - 133 men
Canadian Militia / Boatmen - 100 men
Indian Department Rangers - 100 men
Indians of various nations - 1000 men
Two companies of the "Kings" Regiment were detached from Fort Niagara, where they guarded this post on the Great Lakes, to join St. Leger's expedition against the Mohawk Valley.
St. Leger's own regiment (he was Lt. Col.), One of the garrison regiments of Canada. It had initially formed part of the army that pushed the Americans out of Canada and invaded the Champlain Valley in 1776.
These men would have been detached from the various companies serving in Canada. St. Leger's artillery consisted of two 3 Pounder and two 6 Pounder cannon, and four 4.4 " Coehorn" mortars.
Of the 342 men of this unit assigned to St. Leger's force, only 87 had arrived in Canada in time to take part in the expedition. It is believed that they were a standard German rifle unit, armed with short Jager rifles.
This unit was raised and commanded by Sir John Johnson, the son of Indian Superintendent Sir William Johnson, who had died in 1774. Most of the initial recruits for this unit had been tenants on Sir John's lands or were other Loyalists forced to flee the Mohawk Valley. They were organized along the lines of a regular British regiment.
Believed to be mostly of French-Canadian background, this unit's primary job was to act as axe-men, boatmen and laborers for the expedition.
Though these men were commanded by Col. John Butler during the expedition, they should not be confused with the famous "Butler's Rangers" unit which was not raised until 1778. The Indian Dept. Rangers were a loose organization of white officers and soldiers that helped to direct Indian operations in the field, and coordinated operations between British units and Indian war parties.
Indian groups and Nations that can be positively identified include Ottawas, (from Canada), Missasugas (a grouping of Indian Nations from the Great Lakes area) and Seneca,
Mohawk, and Oneidas from the Iroquois Confederacy. They used weapons such as trade-muskets, rifles, spears, tomahawks, knives and clubs.
From the beginning of the American Revolution, the British had understood the importance of gaining control of the Lake Champlain-Lake George-Hudson River water route to effectively cut off the colonies North of New York from those in the South. In 1776 General John Burgoyne had attempted to carry this out; but failed. In 1777 he proposed this plan be tried again, this time with himself in command.
His 1777 plan was to defeat the Northern Department of the Continental Army, headquartered in Albany. Then open up lines of supply and communication between his force and the main British army in New York City. Also, General Howe was to assist by sending a detachment from New York City up the Hudson River, to ease the way. A smaller British force under Col. Barry St. Leger was to move down the Mohawk River Valley and join Burgoyne in Albany. St. Leger while moving through the Mohawk River Valley was to profit from both the rich agriculture fields of the valley for food, and the prevalent Loyalist climate for troops.
The plans of the British were to be thwarted once again, however. By late August, St. Leger was in retreat after having been stopped at Fort Schuyler, and Howe did not follow his original plans of support up the Hudson River Valley. Burgoyne was forced to capitulate his army to American General Horatio Gates on October 19, at Saratoga.
August 3, 1777 British Col. Barry St. Leger besieged Fort Schuyler. The siege was to continue for the next 21 days.
St. Leger's force consisted of 800 British, German, Canadian and Loyalist troops and 1000 Indians, mostly of the Mohawk and Seneca Nations. Col. Peter Gansevoort, the fort's commander, had a force of 800 men of the 3rd NY and Col. Wesson's 9th MA Regiments.
St. Leger gained initial success by stopping the Tryon County Militia commanded by General Nicholas Herkimer on the way to aid Gansevoort. This took place during the battle of Oriskany on August 6. A sortie party led by the 3rd NY regiment's second in command, Lt. Col. Willett was sent to aid Herkimer's militia. Willett did not find Herkimer, but instead found the British Indians' encampment. Willett raided the camp and returned to the fort.
St. Leger soon found that his small caliper artillery had little effect on weakening the fort's defenses. By August 19 the British were able to push their siege lines within 150 yards of the northwest corner of the fort, trying to destroy the powder magazine.
St. Leger's Indian allies being upset from their losses at Oriskany, and Willett's raid, grew restless as the fort continued to resist the advances of the British. Rumors started circulating in the Indian and Loyalist camps that a large body of troops commanded by General Benedict Arnold was coming to relieve the fort. The British Indian allies decided that further support of the British in the siege was useless and they began to leave in large numbers.
Without the support of the Indians St. Leger did not have enough troops to stop Arnold's men and maintain the siege of the fort. St. Leger was forced to end the siege on August 22 and retreat back to Canada. Thus ended the Siege of Ft. Stanwix, an American victory.
Most people think of the Continental army as being made up only of men. For the most part, the soldiers were only men, but there was quite a large supporting force of women.
When the war began, there were to be no dependents attached to the army. However, as the British began burning and occupying large cities, the refugee families of the soldiers had nowhere to live. This led to problems for the army. Forces were being depleted as soldiers deserted o help their wives and children. In turn, the army allowed the families of the soldiers to travel with them, however the dependents were expected to earn their living while with the army.
The Campfollowers, as the ladies were called in some instances, had several duties assigned to them. They were considered to be an important part of the Continental army. Such things as carrying water to the soldiers on the battlefield, caring for the sick and wounded, and tending to gardens, were expected of the women. Other duties, such as cleaning for the officers, cooking for soldiers (other than their husbands), and making clothes were rewarded by either a small payment or extra rations. The ladies were also expected to follow the same time schedule as the soldiers. Reveille at sunup, and not returning to quarters until retreat at around 6 o'clock in the evening.
Since the Continental Army had enough problems with finding suitable living space and providing adequate rations for the soldiers, the families of these soldiers were put anywhere there was room. For instance, at Fort Stanwix we know that there were tents and huts set up in the ditch surrounding the fort, so the women and children were most likely quartered there. Although this did not provide the shelter of the barracks, it was wonderful compared to what was at home. The rations for the families were also smaller than what the soldiers received. The ladies's received half a man's ration, and children received one quarter of a man's ration. These rations were drawn by means of a camp pass, which showed that the bearer was a dependent of a soldier in the regiment. This pass also served as identification to pass through a sentry post.
The ladies of the American Revolution weathered many hardships throughout their terms of service. Although the army was hesitant to allow them into a man's realm, the officers soon found that the support from the ladies far outweighed the extra strain it put on the army.
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