Author: William Matthews

William Matthews is a historian, educator, and public historian specializing in the history of New York, New Netherland, and the American Revolution. A former history department chair and AP U.S. History teacher, he serves as President of the Board of the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site. He has presented his research at History Camp, the New York State History Conference at Marist University, and the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era at the College of Charleston. He also hosts the history podcast "New York, Quebec, and the Water Route to the Center of the World."

Prewar Politics (<1775) Posted on November 12, 2026

The Dames of Philipse Manor Hall: Revolutionary Women and Illicit Dutch Tea

In the late summer of 1776, a New York grocer named John Arthur encountered an unusual mounted party on a Westchester road. Roughly thirty women from Sing Sing, Tarrytown, and Wicker’s Creek were riding toward his house near New Castle. Alerted to his presence and wares, the women sought to extract the Bohea stores he […]

by William Matthews