American Revolution Podcast

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Episode 065: Provincials Occupy Bunker Hill

In the last episode, Congress voted to authorize a Continental Army and chose George Washington to lead it. Before word of Congress’ decision reached Boston, the Provincial Army would clash with the regulars at the Battle of Bunker Hill.

British Want to Seize the High Ground

The Massachusetts Provincial Army had been besieging the regulars in Boston since the evening of April 19, 1775, when they chased the regulars back from Lexington and Concord. In Boston, Gen. Gage had assumed a defensive posture. With the arrival of Generals Howe, Burgoyne, and Clinton and their reinforcements, the British decided it was time to go on offense again.

On the southern side of Boston Harbor sat Dorchester Heights. This high ground would give the Provincials the ability to bombard both Boston and the fleet in the harbor. Similarly, on the northern side of the harbor on the Charlestown Peninsula, Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill provided attractive high ground which could threaten both Boston and the fleet.

Bunker Hill, artist's conception (from Smithsonian)

For months, the British had kept the provincials from occupying either high ground by threatening to attack if they dared attempt such an occupation. So far, those threats had worked, but there was no guarantee that would continue. The three new generals who had arrived recently were eager to prove that their leadership could put the militia on the run and that Gage was simply too timid to get the job done. In early June, Gage held a council of war at which his officers agreed on a plan to capture both of these key locations.

Gen. Howe, the senior officer below Gage, would lead the attack. On Sunday June 18th, British artillery on Boston Neck would open up on the provincials in Roxbury. Gen. Howe then would lead an infantry attack across the neck taking Roxbury and then Dorchester Heights behind it. From there, several regiments would move north to Cambridge, chasing off the Provincial Army command, then moving onto the Charlestown Peninsula where they could occupy Bunker Hill. The new officers assumed that the provincials would simply break and run in the face of the British regulars’ well-organized assault.

I can almost hear Gen. Gage thinking to himself: Yeah, good luck with that guys. These provincials fight a lot harder than you think. Still, Gage approved the plan. In truth, the provincials had not actually held any ground against the British at Lexington or Concord. They simply used a series of hit and run attacks to make life miserable during the march. It was not unreasonable to assume that even if there was a firefight, the British force would not have a problem capturing the unoccupied high grounds at both Dorchester Heights and Bunker Hill.

Occupying Breed’s Hill

Nothing in Boston stayed secret very long. Provincial leaders soon learned of the planned attack, and prepared a preemptive strike of their own. On June 15, General Artemas Ward convened his own council of war. The provincial officers voted to occupy Bunker Hill. This was the highest point on the Charlestown Peninsula, the farthest from the village, and the closest to the neck where they could call on reinforcements, or retreat if necessary

The Council gave field command to Massachusetts Colonel William Prescott for the occupation of the hill. Prescott had seen action in both King George’s War and the French and Indian War. His leadership in the assault of Nova Scotia in 1755 resulted in an offer of a commission with the British regulars, an offer he declined. After the French and Indian War, Prescott lived as a country farmer and an officer in his local militia.

William Prescott at Bunker Hill
(from American Military History Podcast)

His militia unit had marched to Concord after hearing the alarm on April 19th, but living way up on the New Hampshire border, about 40 miles from the battle, arrived too late to see any action that day. Prescott and his militia had participated in the ongoing siege ever since.

On the evening of June 16, Prescott led about 1000 Massachusetts militiamen onto the Charlestown Peninsula. He had orders to set up a defensive line on Bunker Hill. Joining the Massachusetts militia were about 200 Connecticut militia. Connecticut General Israel Putnam joined the Connecticut militia assigned to the mission. Although he outranked Colonel Prescott, Putnum did not assume command. Prescott remained in charge of the mission. Lt. Col. Richard Gridley, an engineer and head of artillery provided guidance on how best to fortify the hill against an attack.

For some reason, once the men arrived on the site, they fortified Breed’s Hill instead of Bunker Hill. Breed’s Hill was not as elevated. It also stood closer to Charlestown Village and the harbor. The Provincial’s presence there would present a threat to the British army and navy since heavy artillery could hit Boston from there, as well as ships in Boston Harbor. Breed’s Hill also made an easier target for British artillery. The new location made any retreat more difficult as defenders would have to retreat up Bunker Hill before they could cross the Charlestown Neck back to the main army. There is no good record why they made this last minute location adjustment. It may have been Gen. Putnam who encouraged the more aggressive position. That certainly seems in keeping with his character. In any event, the men began digging entrenchments and fortifications on Breed’s Hill around midnight.

If they hoped to go undetected until morning, they would be disappointed. In Boston, Gen. Clinton went for a late night walk, and heard the digging and construction taking place across the harbor. He alerted Generals Gage and Howe. The Generals, though, decided to wait for daylight when they could see for certain what was happening. Even if the provincials were up to something, no one wanted to consider a spontaneous nighttime attack without any preparation or planning.

Morning Artillery Assault

At dawn on June 17, the British saw the provincials hard at work fortifying Breed’s Hill. Admiral Graves positioned eight naval vessels and soon opened up an artillery barrage. But solid shot at that distance was pretty ineffective in taking out soldiers. Almost all of the balls simply sunk into the mud of Breed’s Hill. The men soon realized how ineffective it was, and got back to work. One lucky shot did manage to decapitate one unlucky militiaman, but that was it. The officers quickly and unceremoniously buried the solder on the hill, mostly so his comrades would not become unnerved by having to look at his decapitated body all day. Of course, if they had been fortifying Bunker Hill instead of Breed’s Hill as ordered, they would have been much more difficult targets for the naval artillery.

Charlestown Peninsula (from Wikimedia)

With the defenses mostly in place by late morning Col. Gridley left the field, before any combat started. Many of the militiamen also left the hill before things got too dangerous. All day, Col. Prescott would have to deal with a slow trickle of desertions.

Around 9 AM, Prescott called for reinforcements, expecting an all out attack. His men, who had been digging all night, were exhausted. Most also did not have provisions and were getting pretty hungry and thirsty as well. In Cambridge, Gen. Ward received a request for reinforcements at around 10 AM, but decided not to send any. Gen. Putnam, who had been on the hill all night, personally went to plead with Ward for more troops.

Ward was still worried that the British would begin their main assault against Roxbury on the provincial’s right flank. Gen. Percy had begun an artillery barrage across Boston Neck. This could have been a prelude to an assault on the still unoccupied Dorchester Heights. It was, however, simply a feint to keep the provincials occupied so they would not send more reinforcements to Bunker Hill on their left flank. It worked. Ward kept his reinforcements around Cambridge, in the center of the provincial line. From there he could deploy his forces south toward Roxbury or north toward Bunker Hill depending on what the enemy did. Putnam persuaded him to send another 200 New Hampshire militiamen, not even enough to replace the overnight desertions. The bulk of the more than 10,000 man provincial army simply sat around waiting in reserve.

Col. Prescott’s men continued to work on their defenses all morning. Around mid-day, several provincials arrived with cannons to place in the redoubt on Breed’s Hill. Unfortunately the defenders had made no provisions for cannons. Prescott had already sent his digging tools back to Bunker Hill. He did not want to send more men to bring them back. Those who took them away used the opportunity to flee the field and not return. If he sent more to collect them, those soldiers would likely flee as well. The men tried to dig holes in the mud by hand, but made little progress. Finally, they simply loaded a cannon and fired a ball through the mud embankment, thus creating a gun hole.

Breeds Hill Redoubt
(from Media Storehouse)

So far, the provincials had to face only a few cannon balls lobbed their way. At daylight, back in Boston, British Gen. Gage convened another council of war to decide how to respond to the Provincials. After some debate, the council agreed that Gen. Howe would lead about 1500 regulars across the harbor, to a point just south of Breed’s Hill and near Charlestown Village. From there, the main force would assemble and directly assault the unfinished entrenchments. A secondary force would make a flanking maneuver on the right against the undefended portion of Breed’s Hill.

Assembling the men would take time, and it would be difficult to land them at low tide. With high tide at around 3PM, they planned to land the men during the early afternoon, for a late day assault.

Throughout the early part of the day, the navy continued its fire on the provincials. The army would also fire from Copp’s Hill in Boston, too far to do much damage. British cannons kept up a constant, if relatively ineffective barrage against Breed’s Hill. Admiral Graves also maneuvered several gondolas mounted with cannons into the shallow waters just south of Charlestown Neck. This gave the navy a position to fire on any advancing reinforcements or retreating enemy who tried to cross the neck.

British Army Lands

By mid-afternoon, Gen. Howe had landed most of his force of 1600 east of Charlestown village, at Moulton Hill, just southeast of Breed’s Hill. His troops landed safely out of range of musket fire. By this time, he saw that his planned assault on the Provincial left would have to get through the defensive barrier that Prescott had spent the day building. Howe felt confident his men could take the defenses. To make certain though, he decided to bring over another 700 reinforcements so that he could hit the Provincials with overwhelming force. The regulars settled down to have an early dinner while they awaited the reinforcements.

Israel Putnam (from Wikimedia)

Meanwhile Prescott’s provincials continued to dwindle. Militiamen, hungry, tired, or just plain scared slipped away before battle even began. The extra time did give Prescott even more time to improve his defenses. But he needed reinforcements if he wanted to have any hope of standing up to the ever-growing army of regulars making their way across the harbor to Charlestown.

Howe’s landing showed Prescott that he was vulnerable on the provincial army’s left flank. Howe could simply march his men across the field to the east of Breed’s Hill, come around from behind, and capture the entrenchments. Prescot deployed Captain Thomas Knowlton of the Connecticut militia to set up a defense on the left flank. Knowlton began building up a breastwork around a rail fence. Even so, Knowlton did not extend his defenses all the way to the edge of the Mystic River. He left a pass open along the shore where Howe could send his grenediers and move up behind Prescott’s lines. Eventually though, Col. John Stark, who commanded the New Hampshire reinforcements that Ward had approved, saw this weakness and built a breastworks along the beach and used his infantry to protect against any British flanking maneuver. This would later prove critical to protecting the provincial lines.

Prescott also ordered Lt. Col. John Robinson and Maj. Henry Woods to take several companies forward on the American right. They advanced toward Charlestown, with orders to harass the British troop landings from there.

On Bunker Hill, Putnam found his artillery commanders, Captain Callender and Captain Gridley nephew of Lt. Col. Gridley, the engineer who had set up the entrenchments on Breed’s Hill the night before and then left the field. The officers had almost no experience firing their weapons. Upon finding their powder charges too large to fit down the barrels, they simply gave up on firing.

Troop positions at the beginning of the Battle
(from British Battles)

Putnam argued with them, showing them how they could ladle the powder into the cannon, then fire. Yes, it took a little longer, but better than doing nothing. He ordered them onto the field in front of Bunker Hill, where they could fire at the British landing. The artillery crews fired a few rounds but were horribly inaccurate. They eventually gave up again and tried to pull back. Putnam, angry at the unauthorized retreat, demanded they go back and fight. They succeeded in drawing away British artillery fire from Breed’s Hill and towards themselves. One British round hit and destroyed one of the Provincial cannon, killing several of its crew. That was enough for most of the artillerymen, who either slipped away to join the infantry, or deserted altogether.

Captain Callender tried to retreat with his guns, but ran into Gen. Putnam again. Callender first claimed he was out of ammunition. But when Putnam opened his ammunition boxes and found them full, he angrily demanded Callender return to the field. Then Callendar told him that as a Massachusetts militia officer, he had no obligation to obey the orders of a Connecticut officer. At that point, Putnam threatened to kill Callender unless he returned. The shamed Callender agreed to return, but as soon as Putnam rode off, Callender and his men abandoned their guns and fled from the field. Both Captain Callender and Captain Gridley would later face courts martial and leave the army.

Gridley was found not guilty, but apparently soon afterward resigned his commission The court martial found Callender guilty and dismissed him from the army. As a side note, after losing his commission, Callender continued to serve as a volunteer and hoped to redeem himself. He fought bravely the following year in New York, refusing to retreat. He was nearly killed by the enemy on Long Island. A British officer, noting his brave defense, prevented his troops from killing him. Callender spent more than a year as a prisoner of war in hellish conditions before being exchanged. After that ordeal, he had his commission and honorable reputation restored.

Provincial Reinforcements

By early afternoon, Gen. Ward realized a British assault on Roxbury looked less likely and decided to commit more provincials to Bunker Hill. However, as companies attempted to pass over Charlestown Neck, they felt the impact of the British navy’s gunboats that Graves had deployed to attack anyone attempting to cross the neck. Two larger ships also had cannons within firing range of the neck.

John Stark (from Wikimedia)

Units attempting to cross would take casualties. The inaccurate cannons would not kill many, but a few beheadings by chain shot was enough to intimidate most unseasoned militia from risking the crossing. As a result, many companies simply waited on the mainland side hoping they would not receive orders to march through the field of fire from the enemy cannon. Among those was a company commanded by Major Gridley, the son of Col. Gridley and cousin of Captain Gridley. Showing the same level of coolness under fire as the rest of his family, Major Gridley refused to cross Charlestown Neck and later faced a court martial for breach of duty and refusal to obey orders.

New Hampshire Colonel Stark, returning with more New Hampshire troops had to push his way around other companies too scared to make the crossing. Around the same time Joseph Warren also walked over the neck. Warren, who had been suffering from a migraine all morning, was determined to join the fight. The Provincial Congress President had recently been appointed a major general in the Provincial Army, and while retaining his appointment as President. His colleagues begged him not to go, but Warren insisted he would not demand others take risks that he would not. He met up with Prescott on Breeds Hill, insisting he would serve only as a volunteer soldier and would not take command. Other companies would also cross, but almost none joined the actual battle. Instead, most of those who crossed onto the Charlestown Peninsula watched events unfolding on Breed’s Hill from the relative safety of Bunker Hill.

Even Bunker Hill was too scary for some. Col. Samuel Gerrish took one look at the enemy from Bunker Hill and ordered his men to retreat. When Putnam attempted to force his men forward. Gerrish literally threw himself on the ground and claimed he was too exhausted. He would soon retreat with most of his men. Amazingly, Gerrish was not court martialed for his cowardice on this day, but would be court martialed a few months later for similar actions.

Aside from Stark’s reinforcements of the left flank, Prescott would receive almost no reinforcements on Breed’s Hill itself, other than the arrival of General Warren. In fact, his force on the hill had dwindled to about half its original size due to desertions. About 500 defenders on Breed’s hill had been there all night building the defenses, with little food, drink or rest. They now faced a force of over 2500 British officers and men, as well as 125 field artillery, not counting the artillery still firing from Copp’s Hill in Boston and from the fleet in the harbor.

- - -

Next Episode 66: The British Take Bunker Hill

Previous Episode 64: The Second Continental Congress Begins

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Thanks,
Mike Troy

Click here to see my Patreon Page

John Stark http://www.seacoastnh.com/framers/stark.html

Samuel Gerrish http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2016/06/samuel-gerrish-first-officer-of.html

Bunker Hill Courts Martial:
Capt. Callender: http://www.derekbeck.com/1775/info/callender-court-martial
Maj. Gridley: http://www.derekbeck.com/1775/info/maj-gridley-court-martial
Capt. Gridley: http://www.derekbeck.com/1775/info/capt-gridley-court-martial

Samuel Gerrish Court Martial: http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2016/06/samuel-gerrish-unworthy-officer.html

The Battle of Bunker Hill American Military Podcast, another podcast version of the same story: http://americanmilitaryhistorypodcast.com/the-battle-of-bunker-hill-part-i

VIDEO: Nathaniel Philbrick discusses his book, Bunker Hill: A City, A Siege, A Revolution, C-Span, 2013: https://www.c-span.org/video/?312873-1

Free eBooks
(from archive.org unless noted)

Bolton, Charles (ed) Letters of Hugh, Earl Percy, from Boston and New York, 1774-1776, Boston: Charles E. Goodspeed, 1902.

Dana, Elizabeth Ellery (ed) Barker, John John Barker diary - The British in Boston, 1774-1776, Cambridge: Harvard Univ. Press 1924.

French, Allen The Siege of Boston, New York: Macmillan, 1911.

Frothingham, Richard History of the Siege of Boston, Boston: CC Little & J. Brown, 1851.

Frothingham, Richard Life and times of Joseph Warren, Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 1865.

Lincoln, William (ed) The journals of each Provincial congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, and of the Committee of safety, Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, 1838.

Swett, Samuel History of Bunker Hill Battle: With a Plan, Boston: Munroe and Francis, 1826.

VIDEO: Uhlar, Janet Dr. Joseph Warren: Early American War Hero (1 hr) Bedford TV, 2016.

Books Worth Buying
(links to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted)

Beck, Derek, Igniting the American Revolution 1773-1775, Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks, 2015.

Borneman, Walter American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution, New York: Little, Brown & Co. 2014.

Fleming, Thomas Now We are Enemies: The Story of Bunker Hill, St. Martin’s Press, 1960.

Forman, Samuel Dr. Joseph Warren: The Boston Tea Party, Bunker Hill, and the Birth of American Liberty, Pelican Publishing, 2011.

Lockhart, Paul The Whites of Their Eyes, New York: Harper Collins, 2011.

Nelson, James L. With Fire and Sword: The Battle of Bunker Hill and the Beginning of the American Revolution, New York: St. Martin's Press, 2011.

Philbrick, Nathaniel Bunker Hill: A City, A Siege, A Revolution, New York: Penguin Books, 2013 (Book recommendation of the week).

Phillips, Kevin 1775: A Good Year for Revolution, New York: Penguin Books, 2012.

Sunday, September 30, 2018

Episode 064: The Second Continental Congress Begins

On the morning of May 10th, 1775, just hours after Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen stormed Fort Ticonderoga, and three weeks into the Siege of Boston, the Second Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia.

Getting Organized

The First Continental Congress, which I looked at back in Episode 48, had set this date to meet when it disbanded at the end of October in 1774. At that time, its purpose was to decide was steps to take next if the King and Parliament refused to take acceptable action on their petitions. Well, not only had London refused to consider the petitions, but now war had broken out. Congress had to play catch up with what was now a shooting war.

Many of the representatives were returning from the First Congress. There were some new faces though who would have major roles. John Hancock had joined the Massachusetts delegation. Benjamin Franklin, returned from London and sat with the Pennsylvania delegation. Thomas Jefferson joined from Virginia, replacing Peyton Randolph a few weeks into the session. Georgia had not sent a delegation to the First Congress, This time, one Georgia parish, sent a single delegate, Lyman Hall. A full delegation would arrive a few months later.

Congress met in Pennsylvania's legislative hall,
later known as Independence Hall. (from General Atomic)

The Second Congress seemed more willing to take more radical action than the First Congress. Part of that was the fact that several prominent Tories who had gone to the First Congress now decided that further participation could be seen as treason. Part of it also was that many moderates had seen intervening events and recognized that the outbreak of war required a new response.

Congress essentially broke down into three factions. The most conservative faction led by men like John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, still wanted to return to the relationship that the colonies had with Parliament at the end of the French and Indian War. Parliament held authority over the Empire, but essentially respected the rights of the colonies to govern and tax themselves. Even these most conservative delegates would be considered radicals by Parliament’s standards though.

Most delegates probably fell into the middle moderate category. They believed that Parliament could not be trusted to govern the colonies. They still hoped to fashion a compromise with London that would allow the colonial legislatures to govern and tax themselves, but still operate as loyal subjects to the King. They wanted a new power sharing arrangement that would keep them within the protection of the Empire. Most of the southern delegates fell into this category, as well as some from other regions.

Finally, the most radical faction accepted the idea that with war having come, there really was no option other than full independence. John Adams and a few other New Englanders had reached this conclusion, but they dared not express it openly in Congress yet. They realized they needed the moderates to bring the other colonies into the fight. They could not afford to scare them away. As events progressed, they hoped others would accept that nothing would work but independence.

Peyton Randolph of Virginia, who had presided over most of the First Continental Congress, received unanimous reelection to the Second. Randolph a lawyer from one of the wealthiest and most prominent families in Virginia was a well respected moderate. Within weeks, he had to return home though. Congress then elected John Hancock to preside over Congress.

The first few weeks of Congress were a scene of chaos and confusion for the delegates as they received the depositions from Lexington and Concord. The siege of Boston involving tens of thousands of armed militia was only one issue. Congress soon began to receive reports about the capture of Fort Ticonderoga. All over the Continent, colonists rose up, formed armies, and confiscated arms and ammunition from public armories. They forced royal governors, and even outspoken Tories, to flee for their lives. The small contingent of British regulars in New York were stuck on navy ships in the harbor. The soldiers dared not set foot on land.

Royal governors up and down the continent found their positions completely untenable. Absent arrival of British Regulars, each governor realized his options were becoming limited to being asked to leave, being taken prisoner, or joining the Patriot cause. No governor with a royal appointment took the third option, not even Gov. William Franklin of New Jersey, who split permanently with his father Benjamin, now in the Continental Congress. Only the elected Governor of Connecticut, Jonathan Trumbull transitioned to the patriot leadership.

More Negotiations or War?

One of Congress’ first decisions was whether their goals had changed. Were they seeking independence? Were they supporting an armed rebellion? Or were they simply trying to get the King and Parliament to move back to the status quo.

John Dickinson gave a lengthy speech urging Congress not to go too far too fast. His views really had not changed much since he wrote the Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania years earlier to stir up opposition to the Townshend Acts. Dickinson thought they had three options. One was to stop talking to London and simply fight the war. Dickinson raised fears of British-incited slave revolts in the south, using the French and Indians against New England and devastation by regular army and navy as making this option far too dangerous.

John Dickinson
(from American History Central)

His next option was to continue military opposition while petitioning the King and Parliament once again. Although previous petitions fell on deaf ears, now that Lexington and Concord had shown the colonists would fight, perhaps London would be more amenable to petitions. The third option would be to send negotiators to London to work out a solution in person. To Dickinson, this seemed like the best option.

Dickinson’s position requesting that Parliament simply restore the status quo put him squarely within mainstream patriot thought from five years earlier. Others though, had moved on. Most delegates realized that they could never trust Parliament to support their best interests. They wanted complete autonomy over domestic affairs, with only a shared loyalty to the King. A few did not even want that, but they were keeping quiet, at least for now. Several delegates spoke in opposition to Dickinson, including Patrick Henry. Even that outspoken Virginia radical did not propose Independence. John and Samuel Adams both opposed Dickinson’s ideas in letters written afterwards. They did not want to appear too radical to the rest of Congress in the debates quite yet. The Massachusetts delegation still feared, the rest of the colonies saying you guys are nuts and leaving them to fight a war on their own.

The Dickinson debates resulted in four votes, the first three nearly unanimous, referring to themselves as “his majesty’s most faithful subjects” had been put in a precarious situation that unfortunately resulted in the battles at Lexington and Concord, that all the colonies would work toward defending their fellow citizens in Massachusetts, and that they hoped for a restoration of harmony between the colonies and the mother country, though they stayed away from any specifics about what that “harmony” might entail. The fourth vote passed only narrowly, to submit another petition to the King calling for negotiations to work out an acceptable power sharing plan.

The fact that the last vote was so controversial says that most delegates accepted that the time for talk really was over. Based on the next few weeks, it seems clear that even many of those who supported another petition, did not see much coming from it. They would prepare for war, but if you want to send another document to the King, knock yourself out.

The final votes on the debate took place on May 26, just one day after the HMS Cerberus landed in Boston, bringing the first military reinforcements from London.

News of Fort Ticonderoga

During the debates on a petition, word reached Congress about Allen and Arnold capturing Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point. Unlike Lexington and Concord, which could be portrayed as self defense against British aggression, capture of these forts clearly constituted an aggressive act of war. For the moderates and conservatives still looking for a negotiated peace, this was a nightmare.

John Adams
(from Journal of Am. Rev.)

Although Allen claimed his capture in the name of the Continental Congress, no one in Philadelphia heard of the attack before it was over. It is almost certain Congress never would have approved it ahead of time. Not only did it create a divide between the war factions and negotiation factions in Congress. It started a big colonial dispute as well.

New York was probably the most pro-loyalist colony among those attending the Congress. The fact that extra-legal committees from Massachusetts and Connecticut approved an invasion into New York without notice or consent did not sit well with many New Yorkers. The fact that Ethan Allen was involved only made things worse. Many NY delegates considered the man a terrorist.

To keep New York happy and prevent any further conflict, Massachusetts agreed to turn over the Fort to New York, but asked that the cannon be shipped to Boston for use in the Siege. There is actually very little in the Congressional records about Ticonderoga. Apparently most of the discussions were done in committee and without much written record. What we do know though, shows that Congress simply was not ready to start managing a war before it even decided to create an army.

Creating an Army

With the Dickinson debates over, Congress in early June finally turned to the matter of creating an army. It was clear that the Massachusetts Provincial Congress was in over its head. The Massachusetts delegation had been pushing all along to get the other colonies more involved in the fighting. When Benjamin Church arrived with news from Boston and Joseph Warren’s request that Congress take control of its army, Congress got down to business.

After a few days of debate, Congress agreed to support a 10,000 man army in Massachusetts and a 5000 man army in New York. The Army in Massachusetts already far exceeded 10,000 men, so I guess not all of them would be able to go on the Continental payroll. Many of those besieging Boston were happy to stay in their militia and not join this new Continental Army. The New York Army would need to incorporate New York militia, which had not flocked to Boston in significant numbers. But with the capture of Crown Point and Ticonderoga, New York would likely have to defend against a British invasion from Canada. Congress also made an effort to ensure some of the middle colonies at least got involved in the conflict. It called for six companies of riflemen to be raised in Pennsylvania, still one of the most reluctant Colonies to commit to the cause. Maryland and Virginia would also raise two companies of riflemen each.

Spanish Silver Dollar broken into pieces of eight
(from the2nomads).

To pay for all this, Congress authorized raising $2 million Spanish dollars. This act alone probably needs explanation on multiple levels. First, why are we now using Spanish dollars instead of pounds? The spanish silver dollar had become common currency throughout the Americas. Spanish colonial gold and silver mines sent their product to mints, also in Latin America, meaning that lots of this hard money circulated all over the western hemisphere. A shortage of British hard currency in America caused colonists to turn to spanish dollars. About four Spanish dollars was worth about 1 British pound. Spanish dollars were often broken into eighths. They literally broke the coin into pieces. This is where we get the term “pieces of eight” sometimes used in pirate movies. The pieces were often called “bits” which is why today we still call a quarter of a dollar “two bits”. Calculating the authorization in Spanish dollars, meant that no single colonial currency would be involved and that the authorization would likely hold its value, unlike colonial currencies which often sank with inflation.

Where did Congress get the authority to do this? The Continental Congress really was just a meeting of colonial delegations to discuss foreign policy. It had no authority to raise taxes or spend large sums of money. Congress simply decided to act on its own. It called upon each of the colonies to pony up the necessary funds. Success in collecting that money was mixed at best, and would prove an ongoing problem for the next decade or so. But for now, Congress would issue paper notes, essentially IOUs promising to pay the bearer in Spanish hard currency, at some point, when they could get their hands on it. For now, we cannot worry about the money, we’ve got a war to fight. Maybe we’ll all be dead before the bills come due anyway.

Picking a General

Having approved the creation of an army, Congress next had to select someone to lead it. Doing this was no easy task. First, there were no experienced Generals in America, unless you count militia generals who may never have seen combat, or those guys in Massachusetts who the Provincial Congress made Generals a few weeks earlier. This new leader would have to create a whole new army and put it into battle against British regulars almost immediately.

But military ability was only one consideration. Another was loyalty to Congress. Next to defeat, The greatest fear of many delegates was that they would create a successful General who would become the next Cromwell, the Puritan General who overthrew King Charles I and then Parliament a century earlier. Armies had a way of turning into dictatorships. Any military leader could not have anything even hinting at such an inclination.

Another consideration was diversity. Political leaders wanted to make sure the new commanders would represent many different colonies. If all the colonies were going to participate in the fighting, they simply could not be seen to be joining a Massachusetts army. The Continental Army had to be truly continental, with leaders from North, south, and middle.

Congress considered a number of people. Although this debate did not make it into the records, we know from letters and other recollections what delegates were debating among themselves, probably mostly in evening discussions at taverns over a few beers.

One of the top military leaders allied with the patriot cause was Charles Lee, who had served as at Lt. Col. in the British Army. He had seen combat in America and Europe during the Seven Years War, and had served in the Polish and Portuguese armies to get more battlefield experience when Britain was a peace. Unable to secure a full colonelcy, Lee retired from the Army and moved to Virginia in 1773. Now, he was in Philadelphia, offering his services to Congress. Despite his battlefield experience, Lee was a professional soldier, and a bit of a mercenary, having served in several foreign armies. Congress was not ready to hand over command to someone who might not be completely dedicated to the political cause.

Charles Lee
(from Wikimedia)

Artemas Ward, the Commander and Chief of the Massachusetts Provincial Army was another top contender, since he was essentially already doing the job. But Ward was old, and had already proven sickly on several occasions. Besides, Congress really wanted to look outside of Massachusetts. Not even the Massachusetts delegation was pushing for Ward.

John Hancock had been the titular commander of the Massachusetts militia at one point. But he really had not commanded men in combat. Besides, he seems to have taken the political route, becoming the President of Congress. He was from Massachusetts at a time when everyone seemed to be looking for someone from another colony.

Horatio Gates also got serious attention. Like Lee, he had served for many years in the British Army, rising to Major, and eventually retired to Virginia. Gates was old enough to have fought in the War of Austrian Succession. He followed Gen. Braddock to America at the beginning of the Seven Years war, marching alongside fellow officers Thomas Gage and Charles Lee, along with militia officer George Washington, at the Battle of the Monongahela in 1755. He served throughout the war and as a peacetime officer through the 1760’s. Eventually, however, he realized he did not have the money nor influence for further promotions and retired to a farm in Virginia. Again, Congress liked his experience but was not sure about his dedication to the cause and Congress to make him overall commander.

Finally, there was George Washington. The delegate from Virginia, in a classic case of dressing for the job you want, not the job you have, began attending Congressional sessions in his Virginia Militia uniform. Although Washington had experience from the French and Indian War, he had done little to distinguish himself during the war. He lost most of the battles in which he fought. He had tried to get a commission in the regular army and failed. He had been commander of the Virginia militia, but had been primarily a ceremonial leader for the past decade, pursuing instead the life of a gentleman farmer and part time politician. He had not even taken up arms when Virginia had fought Lord Dunmore’s war against the Indians a year earlier.

All that said, Washington seemed to meet all the criteria. He had decent military experience. He was from Virginia, which would help bring the south into the war. He seemed dedicated to the idea of civilian rule and to Congressional authority. According to some, the tall silent Washington just looked like a military commander. Perhaps it’s not the best reason to choose a commander based on looks, but it seems like it was a factor.

Congress select George Washington as Commander in Chief
(from Wikimedia)

John Adams rose on June 15 to propose a new Commander in Chief. Evidently, he had not discussed his choice even with the members of the Massachusetts delegation. As he began his speech, according to several witnesses, John Hancock thought he might be the nominee. After a few minutes, he realized Adams was talking about Washington, which his change of expression made known to everyone in the room.

Washington immediately left the room so delegates could debate without him present. After surprisingly little debate, Congress unanimously selected Washington.

There is no evidence that Washington wanted or sought the position directly. Some historians have argued it would have been unseemly to campaign for the job, which is true, and that Washington was subtly jockeying for it by wearing his uniform to Congress and working on all the military committees there.

Washington did see himself as a military expert, and probably expected to get some high ranking commission. But his reaction immediately following the appointment indicates that even he questioned his own ability to serve as commander. In his acceptance speech, he said that he did not seek the job and questioned his own capacity and experience to fulfill its duties. Perhaps this was false modesty, but Washington repeated his own self doubt in numerous letters, including to his wife in the days following his appointment. Still, he accepted the job, and spent the next few days getting his affairs in order and preparing to make the trip to Boston. Washington further endeared himself to Congress by refusing to take the proposed $500/month salary, and instead agreeing to seek only reimbursement for his expenses.

Unlike the First Continental Congress, which sat for less than two months, the Second Continental Congress continued in session for the next six years. It then morphed into the Confederation Congress. We will leave it now in June 1775 and come back later to discuss its ongoing debates.

- - -

Next Episode 65: Provincials Occupy Bunker Hill

Previous Episode 63: Buzzard's Bay and Machias

Click here to donate

Click here to see my Patreon Page

Lincoln, William (ed) The journals of each Provincial congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, and of the Committee of safety, Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, 1838.

Lodge, Henry Cabot George Washington, Vol. 1, Boston: Houghton Mifflin & Co. 1898.

Morse, John T. John Adams, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1912 (original 1889).

Stillé, Charles The Life and Times of John Dickinson, Philadelphia: Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1891.

Van Doren, Carl Benjamin Franklin, New York: Viking Press, 1938.

Books Worth Buying
(links to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted)

Beck, Derek, Igniting the American Revolution 1773-1775, Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks, 2015.

Beeman, Richard R. Our Lives, Our Fortunes and Our Sacred Honor: The Forging of American Independence, 1774-1776, New York: Basic Books, 2013.

Borneman, Walter American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution, New York: Little, Brown & Co. 2014.

Chernow, Ron Washington: A Life, New York: Penguin Press, 2010.

Isaacson, Walter Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, New York, Simon & Schuster, 2003.

McCullough, David John Adams, New York, Simon & Schuster, 2001.

Morgan, Edmund Benjamin Franklin, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001.

Phillips, Kevin 1775: A Good Year for Revolution, New York: Penguin Books, 2012.

Sunday, September 23, 2018

Episode 063: Buzzards Bay and Machias

The Siege of Boston in 1775-76 mostly involved the Regulars and Provincials staring at each other across the water. The regulars had a pretty solid defensive position in the city itself, which the Provincial army did not dare attack. At the same time, British General Gage did not seem terribly confident that he could do anything offensively until he had received more reinforcements. Even the few regiments that followed Generals Howe, Clinton, and Burgoyne to Boston, along with additional regiments from New York and Halifax did not give Gage confidence that he could conquer New England.

But if the colonists had neutralized the regular army, they could do little to threaten the British navy. The colonists had no vessels capable of taking on a British warship at this time. Some New Englanders had lightly armed merchant vessels with swivel guns or a few cannons for defense against pirates, but nothing that could pose much of a challenge to the navy.

They navy’s main job in America was to catch smugglers. It would confiscate their ships and cargo to be sold at auction. While catching smugglers was difficult, given the small number of naval vessels patrolling hundreds of miles of coast, those officers tasked with the job did there best to seize as many as possible. The officers and crew received a percentage of the prize money from any ships sold at auction.

At this time, the navy’s other important task involved keeping supplies from reaching the Provincial army. It also had to ensure that the regular army at Boston received necessary food and supplies to sustain the soldiers.

Battle of Buzzards Bay

In mid-May Admiral Samuel Graves ordered the HMS Falcon to the far side of Cape Cod, about 70 miles south of Boston, looking to interdict colonial shipping. Graves had intelligence that the merchant ship Champion, was delivering food supplies from Baltimore up to the Provincial army around Boston.

John Linzee
(from find-a-grave)

Captain John Linzee, commander of the Falcon, successfully intercepted and seized the Champion and its cargo. But since he was out this way anyway, Linzee decided to see if he could collect a few more prizes as well. The Falcon spotted a small sloop bringing firewood from Nantucket Island. While technically in violation of British maritime laws, the navy often let slide using small ships for moving around needed supplies locally.

Linzee told the captured colonials he would release their ship if they gave him some intelligence about real smugglers operating in the area. Although the captured Captain of the ship Thomas Wing refused, one of his crew spilled the beans about another ship from the West Indies that was unloading cargo at Buzzards Bay.

Linzee, however, was concerned that if he sent the Champion back to Boston on its own, it might be recaptured. Taking both ships to search out this new one also presented some risks.

So, instead of releasing Wing and his ship, Linzee assigned his Midshipman, Richard Lucas and a crew of 13 or 14 sailors to Wing’s ship to go out in search of the new ship at Buzzard’s Bay. They put several cannons on the small ship as well. The Falcon and Champion would remain out at sea while the smaller ship went in search of the new prize.

On May 13, 1775, the crew found the ship, with its contents already unloaded. They seized the ship anyway and began sailing both ships back toward the Falcon near Martha’s Vineyard. However, they hit fog and decided to anchor overnight before completing their trip back to the Falcon. The two ships anchored about three miles from each other

Back on shore, the owner of the newly captured ship, Jesse Barlow, figured that given the small size and crew of the ship that had captured his, he might be able to retake his ship and capture a few of the enemy.

Buzzard's Bay (from Wikimedia)

Barlow was in luck that the provincial army was recruiting in the area and had about two companies of recruits available. Barlow agreed to finance half the expedition, with the understanding that he would get his ship back if successful. One of the company captains, Daniel Egery, took command of another available merchant ship, the Success and took thirty or so men armed with muskets, as well as several swivel guns. Egery sailed off after the two ships..

Poor weather and visibility prevented any of the ships from making much progress, but the next morning the Success spotted Wing’s smaller ship, sailed up and boarded, taking the small crew by surprise and without firing a shot. Most of the crew on this ship were colonists who had been forced into this raid and had no desire to put up a fight. The other ship was anchored about three miles away.

Now in command of two armed ships, Egery found the ship that had been captured exchanged gunfire with the British crew. The attackers wounded the British commander, Midshipman Lucas and two other British sailors. They then pulled alongside, boarding the ship and forcing the British crew to surrender. Before the Falcon could discover what had happened, Egery sailed all three ships to Fairhaven, Massachusetts. There, the men turned over the British sailors as prisoners of war and returned all three ships to their rightful owners.

Captain Linzee got the Falcon and Champion back to Boston, but had to explain to Admiral Graves about the loss of some of his crew and guns.

A few months later, the provincials built a fort at Buzzards Bay to protect the area from future British raids.

Trading with Machias

Back in Boston, as the weeks wore on, Gage’s regular army began having more trouble getting enough food and supplies. A couple of weeks ago, I discussed the fighting on Grape Island, as well as Hog and Noddle Islands in Boston Harbor as regulars and provincials fought over supplies. Bringing everything over from London was expensive, and in the case of fresh food, impossible. The navy had to find sources for food, hay and wood, and they had to extend their search beyond Boston Harbor.

Around the same time the regulars and provincials were fighting over islands in Boston Harbor, Ichabod Jones arrived in Boston Harbor aboard the Unity and the Polly, two merchant sloops full of lumber. The British with a growing desperation for lumber, needed for firewood and a host of other things, welcomed Jones into town.

Jones had sailed down from Machias, a small town of less than one hundred families on the coast of what is today Maine, but was at the time part of the Massachusetts Bay colony. This was an isolated community, with nothing around them but miles of wilderness, and not always friendly Indians. Jones appears to have lived in Machias and still had family living there. But when the Port of Boston closed, Jones also had family living in Boston. Evidence suggests he may have been supplying the army regularly, during the time the port was closed to other commercial traffic and was known as a friend of the Crown to both Gen. Gage and Admiral Graves.

If the Regulars in Boston were hurting for supplies, the people in Machias were downright desperate. A few weeks earlier they had sent a petition to the Massachusetts Provincial Congress expressing their desperation. The town had suffered a drought the prior year. They had no food or supplies and could not find anyone to trade with them. They wanted to sell the only product they had, wood, to the Provincial Congress in exchange for food and supplies.

Jones had sailed his two ships to Boston in hopes of trading wood. It is not clear if his friends and neighbors back in Machias knew that he intended to trade with the British rather than the Provincials. His decision may have been less ideological and more to the fact that he had family who had gotten stuck in Boston and wanted to leave. They also had a fair amount of furniture they wanted to take with them.

Machias (from tide-forecast)

Now with the Provincial army besieging Boston, he hoped to leverage the British need for firewood and lumber to get an exception to the closure of the Boston Port and remove his family and personal property. The trade would also help Machias with some desperately needed food, salt pork and flour He also offered to bring additional shiploads of wood from Machias to sell for hard currency or anything else of trade value, if the British were interested. Whether his motivation was more financial or political, Jones’ decision to trade with the Boston garrison made him a Tory in the eyes of any patriots.

Gen. Gage and Adm. Graves allowed Jones to sell his wood, and also to take his personal property out of Boston on his ships, something forbidden under the Port Act. But needing merchants who would provide much needed supplies, Gage permitted the transaction. As part of the deal, Jones also agreed to return to Machias, to bring back more wood for trade.

Although Jones was willing to trade with the army, it was unclear whether he could convince the rest of Machias to go along. Like most colonists, the people of Machias supported the Provincial government and had no desire to violate any of the rules against trading with the British. Jones was certain, however, that the desperate situation of the people would force them to go along with any trade they could get.

To ensure Jones performed as promised, and to make sure other naval vessels did not detain him, the navy sent one of its ships, the Margaretta, along with him to return to Machias. The Margaretta was a small tender ship. She had a crew of between twenty and forty (accounts differ). Its normal use was as a tender ship, a smaller ship that stayed with larger warships to handle tasks that the larger ship could not, like bringing men to shore in a shallow area. One source I read said it only had a few swivel guns, another, which I tend to believe more, said it had at least four small cannon as well. Either way, it was intimidating enough for most merchant vessels, but not much more than that.

As part of the mission, Admiral Graves tasked the Margaretta’s commander, Henry Moore, to recover some cannon from a small ship that had sunk there a few months earlier. The HMS Halifax had gone down in February after hitting some rocks. Some say a local pilot deliberately sank the ship. Other accounts hold the pilot was simply incompetent. Since the pilot fled the ship and disappeared, no one ever discovered his true motivation. The Halifax went down with several cannon. Graves was concerned the patriots might recover the cannon for use against the British military.

On June 2, the convoy arrived in Machias. It took several days before Jones could call a town meeting to get approval to trade with the British army in Boston. Though the town generally supported the Patriot cause, it had been hard hit by a drought and the closing of Boston Harbor. With the outbreak of war, few traders were even stopping there. Without this trade, they might starve over the winter.

A good negotiator might have been able to convince the town to go along with the trade. Jones, however, was not a good negotiator. He was afraid that patriots would attack him or his property for trading with the army. He insisted that the townspeople sign a document approving of his actions in trading with the regulars and agreeing to protect him and his property against anyone who might take action against him for his trades. Jones also called on Moore to move the Margaretta up the river closer to town so that the ship’s guns could intimidate anyone who decided to take action against Jones or his ships.

On June 6, the town held a meeting at Burnham’s Tavern to discuss the matter. The town was divided. Faced with the very real possibility that the Margaretta would level their town or that they might starve for lack of supplies, a majority of the town voted in favor of Jones.

With that Jones docked his ships and offloaded supplies. However, Jones would only provide food to those who voted in his favor. Those who voted against got nothing.

The Battle of Machias

The hard core patriots in town who had voted against Jones decided they really had nothing to lose. Without food, their families would starve. They had no reason not to take action against these collaborators. Benjamin Foster was a Lieutenant of militia and sometimes business partner of Jones. He and another prominent patriot, Jeremiah O’Brien, organized a group of patriot militiamen with the goal of capturing the ships and taking the British crew prisoner.

Without any comparable arms to use against the cannons, they needed the element of surprise. June 11 was Sunday. Both Jones and Moore attended church services in town. The patriots intended to capture the men on land and then demand the surrender of their ships.

About thirty patriots formed the militia party to capture the men. They were not however, able to execute the plan as intended. Those in the church saw the men advancing and had time to escape. Moore and his first mate escaped out of a window and returned to their ship. Jones fled to the woods and hid.

HMS Margaretta
(from today in history blog)

Once back aboard his ship, Moore threatened to destroy the town unless they returned Jones. Unimpressed, the patriots swarmed onto one of Jones’ ships, most think it the Polly, and plundered it of anything of value. They also demanded that Moore strike his colors and surrender. His refusal led to a brief firefight with small arms. As night fell, the British captain decided things were getting out of control. Moore weighed anchor and began to float downstream.

The patriots meanwhile stormed Jones’ other ship, the Unity and began to pursue the Margaretta. Some locals pursued the ship in smaller boats and canoes. The two ships began a running firefight in the dark. The Margaretta was not fast enough to escape, and had to stop several times to effect repairs. The British found another ship about a half mile downriver loaded with lumber. The crew boarded thes ship and put part of the cargo on the Margaretta’s deck for to build defenses for the expected fight.

At first light the following morning, Moore abandoned Jones and made his escape. The Margaretta cast off and sailed for open sea. Jeremiah O’Brien took command of the Unity and with a crew of about 40 volunteers, sailed after the Margaretta. The pursuers were armed only with muskets and swords.

The other colonial leader, Benjamin Foster, also decided to enter the fray. Another small merchant vessel, the Falmouth Packet had docked at Machias a day or two earlier. Foster commandeered the ship and took another 20 patriot volunteers aboard to pursue the British.

The Margaretta had a few miles head start and probably could have escaped. But the ship accidentally turned into the wind, causing the sails to swing wildly across the deck and slammed into another part of the ship thus damaging the sails and crippling the Margaretta.

Luckily, the crew spotted another small merchant ship. Moore sent over a boarding crew to take the ship and force it alongside his damaged one. The crew removed the boom and gaff from the ship to replace their damaged parts. Just as they were finishing the repairs, the Unity and Falmouth Packet came into sight.

The ships exchanged fire in a running firefight. The patriots called on Moore to surrender, but he refused. The slower moving Margaretta was better armed with its swivel guns and grenades, but the Patriots ships were faster and had more men.

Margaretta, left and Unity, right (Artist's conception)
(from Sandsquiggles)

Eventually the Unity rammed into the Margaretta’s starboard while the Falmouth Packet pulled alongside the ship’s port side. The crew of both ships jumped aboard the Margaretta and began hand to hand combat.

The fighting finally ended when Moore took two bullets to his chest and stomach. His first mate, also shot, but not as seriously, ran below deck and hid. The crew finally surrendered and all three ships returned to Machias. There, Captain Moore succumbed to his wounds the following day.

Again, I’ve seen contradictory casualty rates. The highest I’ve seen say the British lost five killed and nine wounded. The patriots may have suffered ten killed and three wounded.

The Patriots used the guns of the Margaretta to arm the Polly and renamed it the Machias Liberty, under the command of O’brien. They would use it to capture two more navy schooners later that summer. The patriots took Jones prisoner, confiscated all of his property, and sent him with the surviving crew of the Margaretta down to the Provincial Congress as prisoners of war.

British Seizures

The British Navy did have a few successes. I mentioned earlier the capture of the Champion, a merchant vessel from Maryland bringing food supplies to the Provincial Army. Its capture brought hundreds of barrels of flour and corn to the Boston garrison. Although it did not get Jones’ promised shiploads of wood from Machias, the navy did capture to other merchant vessels loaded with wood that they took to Boston.

The navy realized, however, that their smaller schooners out alone might find themselves outmatched and captured by angry locals, as happened with the Margaretta. Collecting supplies, let alone enforcing maritime laws, would not be simple tasks with a people at war with them.

Lexington of the Seas

Years later, James Fenimore Cooper referred to the battle at Machias as the “Lexington of the Seas” being the first real naval battle of the war. This, of course ignores Arnold’s earlier capture of British ships on Lake Champlain and the Battle of Buzzards Bay, both of which happened earlier. Machias as a full ship to ship battle, which Arnold’s raid really was not, and also resulted in the capture of navy ship, not just prize ships like those at Buzzards Bay. But even after Machias, the colonists were really in no position to challenge the British navy. At best, the provincials might capture the occasional merchant vessel or a small tender ship like the Margaretta. They were an inconvenience to the navy, but not a real challenge. It would be some time before the Americans would have a proper navy. They would mostly have to await the arrival of a French fleet to pose much of any challenge at sea.

- - -

Next Episode 64: Second Continental Congress Begins

Previous Episode 62: Three Headed Cerberus in Boston

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Further Reading

Websites:

Recapture of Falcon’s Prizes: The First Naval Encounter of the War 14 May 1775: http://www.awiatsea.com/incidents/1775-05-14%20Recapture%20of%20Falcon's%20Prizes.pdf

Beck, Derek “The First Naval Skirmish of the Revolution” Journal of the American Revolution, 2013: https://allthingsliberty.com/2013/10/first-naval-skirmish-revolution

Dunn, Daniel S. "The Capture of the Margaretta" ABA Journal June 1975 https://books.google.com/books?id=ses6bBWD54wC&pg=PA727

August 1775 letter to George Washington referencing the prisoner Ichabod Jones: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-01-02-0193

Free eBooks
(from archive.org unless noted)

Allen, Gardner W. Naval Documents of the American Revolution, Vol. 1, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1913.

Drisko, George Narrative of the town of Machias, Machias: Press of the Republican, 1904.

French, Allen The Siege of Boston, New York: Macmillan, 1911.

Frothingham, Richard History of the Siege of Boston, Boston: CC Little & J. Brown, 1851.

Frothingham, Richard Life and times of Joseph Warren, Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 1865.

Lincoln, William (ed) The journals of each Provincial congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, and of the Committee of safety, Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, 1838.

Books Worth Buying
(links to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted)

Beck, Derek, Igniting the American Revolution 1773-1775, Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks, 2015.

Borneman, Walter American Spring: Lexington, Concord, and the Road to Revolution, New York: Little, Brown & Co. 2014.

Forman, Samuel Dr. Joseph Warren: The Boston Tea Party, Bunker Hill, and the Birth of American Liberty, Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing, 2011.

Lockhart, Paul The Whites of Their Eyes, New York: Harper Collins, 2011.

Nelson, James George Washington’s Secret Navy, New York: McGraw Hill, 2008.

Philbrick, Nathaniel Bunker Hill: A City, A Siege, A Revolution, New York: Penguin Books, 2013.

Phillips, Kevin 1775: A Good Year for Revolution, New York: Penguin Books, 2012.