Dispatches From White Plains
On October 28, 1776, General William Howe’s British and Hessian army attacked Washington’s lines at White Plains, striking first at Chatterton Hill, held by about 1,600 Continentals and militia under General Alexander McDougall. As British regiments climbed the hill’s steep face, Colonel Johann Rall’s Hessian brigade swept around the American right flank, breaking the militia and forcing the defenders from the height.
Dispatches From Pell’s Point
On October 18, 1776, General William Howe landed British and Hessian troops at Pell’s Point to get behind Washington’s army, and Colonel John Glover’s Massachusetts brigade of about 750 men met them with a delaying action from behind stone walls. The skirmish slowed the British advance and helped give Washington time to withdraw his army toward White Plains.
Dispatches From - Valcour Island
On October 11, 1776, Benedict Arnold hid his fleet in the narrow channel behind Valcour Island, so the British sailed past him and had to fight their way back against the wind. They fought until dark, and that night Arnold slipped through the British line in the fog. Two days later he burned the last of his ships in what is today called Arnold’s Bay, possibly the only place in the country that carries his name. After taking Crown Point late in the fighting season, the British turned back to Canada.
Dispatches From Brooklyn
On August 27, 1776, General William Howe marched his army around the American left in the dark and attacked at daybreak from the rear. The line broke, and a few hundred Maryland and Delaware men held at Gowanus Creek long enough for the rest to get away.
Tobacco in Everyday Life
The Economy of Tobacco Tobacco was central to colonial life and economy. A major cash crop (especially in Virginia), it functioned as currency and helped fuel trade tensions leading to the war. Production shifted toward food crops during the conflict, but the leaf remained a cultural constant.
4th Light Dragoons – Moylan’s Horse
At the Putnam County Heroes Battle the Redcoats event on June 6, 2026, at Veterans Memorial Park in Carmel, NY, members of the 4th Light Dragoons – Moylan’s Horse provided a striking mounted escort for George Washington. Their green uniforms created a vivid presence amid the local 250th commemoration, offering excellent opportunities to document cavalry in action during drills, formations, and escort duties.
The Galloper's Bite: Small Guns, Big Impact in 1776–77
At the recent Putnam County Heroes Battle the Redcoats event in Carmel, NY, a compact iron 3-pounder cannon from 1777 roared to life once more. Nicknamed “gallopers” or “grasshoppers” (depending on the side) for their lively recoil and nimble movement across fields, these light field pieces delivered outsized punch in the fluid, hard-fought battles of the American Revolution.
Wethersfield 250: Memorial Day in a New England Town
In May 1781, General George Washington met with French commander Comte de Rochambeau at the nearby Joseph Webb House to finalize plans for the Yorktown campaign — the decisive maneuver that effectively ended the war.
Green-Wood Cemetery - Brooklyn
Atop Battle Hill stands the Altar to Liberty, crowned with a bronze statue of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare.
Six Children of Abijah & Sarah Childs
In the space of eighteen days in August–September 1778, Sarah (13), Eunice (12), Abijah (11), Abigail (7), Benjamin (4), and Moses (3) all died—most likely from smallpox or a similar epidemic that ravaged even rear-area towns during the Revolutionary War.
He Would Not Run: Jonas Parker on Lexington Green, April 19, 1775 (Reenacted, Patriots’ Day 2026)
In the cold dawn light on Lexington Battle Green, Jonas Parker — farmer, father, and one of the first Americans to fall — stands his ground. He had promised he would never run. He kept that promise.
Launching Rev250
This post announces the launch of a personal street photography project focused on the REv250 celebrations and the amazing people that participate in presenting the living history of the nations founding.