Thomas Knowlton’s Revolution
byThe story of Thomas Knowlton in the American Revolution is brief but meaningful. He was only thirty-five at his death, arguably a full-fledged hero…
Benedict Arnold
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Timothy Matlack, Scribe of the Declaration of Independence
byThe scribe of the Declaration of Independence—and perhaps the first man to read it in public—was born on March 28, 1736 in Haddonfield, New…
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Virginia’s Swamp Fox: Captain Amos Weeks of Princess Anne County
byAnyone who has ever tackled genealogical or historical research knows that the process is very much like putting a jigsaw puzzle together or working…
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Wampum Belts to Canada: Stockbridge Indian Ambassadors’ Dangerous 1775 Peace Mission
byIn early May 1775, with the Revolutionary War not even one month old, western Massachusetts Patriot leaders and their Stockbridge Indian neighbors developed a plan…
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David Wooster Kept the Men at Quebec: Giving Credit to a Much-Maligned General
byMost modern historical treatments of the American invasion of Canada disparage Brig. Gen. David Wooster for his leadership in Canada. A detailed examination of…
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Sir Henry Clinton’s Generalship
by“My fate is hard,” Sir Henry Clinton remarked after learning that he had been named commander of the British army in May 1778, adding…
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Amicus Reipublicae; or, Abraham Bancker, Friend of the Republic
byAbraham Bancker gave in to temptation on September 10, 1789, when he petitioned George Washington for a federal appointment as compensation for his service…
This Week on Dispatches: Jonathan Bayer on the Fake News of Quebec’s Surrender
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews PhD student and JAR contributor Jonathan Bayer on his discovery of an account of the surrender…
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Fake News of the Surrender of Quebec: A Video Contribution
byIn 1776, the Pennsylvania Evening Post printed a letter, allegedly from Paris, which reported that American commander Benedict Arnold had captured the last major British…
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Incredible Insults and Hardships: The Hostage Experience of Ebenezer Sullivan
byWhen twenty-three-year-old Capt. Ebenezer Sullivan nobly volunteered himself as a prisoner-exchange hostage in the last weeks of the Canadian invasion, he had no way…
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Congress’s “Committee on Spies” and the Court-Martial Policies of General Washington
byIn the weeks before it declared independence, the Continental Congress was already hard at work building the institutions it would need to maintain the…
James Lovell: Schoolteacher, Prisoner, Patriot
byJames Lovell, delegate from Massachusetts to the Second Continental Congress and the Confederation Congress from 1777 to 1782, the only member of Congress to…
This Week on Dispatches: Kevin A. Conn on the Remarkable Career of Loyalist Soldier and Spy James Moody
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews AP History teacher and JAR contributor Kevin A. Conn on the remarkable career of New Jersey Loyalist…
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Contingencies, Capture, and Spectacular Getaway: the Imprisonment and Escape of James Moody
byOne of the most famous or notorious of Tory partisans in the American Revolution was the New Jersey soldier and spy James Moody. Moody…
Great Bridge Museum Opens Amid Pandemic
byFriday, June 19, 2020, proved an interesting day in Virginia. The governor, two days prior, issued an executive order declaring June 19, “Juneteenth” a…
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Oscar Bredenberg and the Lost Battle of Valcour Island Letter
byOne of the greatest thrills for any historian is coming upon an important but little-known document, either through one’s own research or the work…
This Week on Dispatches: Bridget Barbara on Retracing the Steps of Benedict Arnold and John André
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews video producer and JAR contributor Bridget Barbara on her recent video following footsteps of John André and…
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Tracing Major John André’s Steps Along the Hudson: A Video Tour
byIf you draw a 150-mile radius around New York City, you’ll find so many locations relevant to the American Revolution that it’s almost overwhelming….
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L’Expédition Particuliere: Winter 1780 and the Battle of Cape Henry
byIn July 1780, after three and half months at sea, nearly 6,000 thousand men[1] and supplies crammed on four frigates, seven ships of the…
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A “Truly Noble” Resistance: The Sons of Liberty in Connecticut
byThe role of Connecticut’s Sons of Liberty is one that exemplifies the state’s rich history of self-governance and fiercely independent spirit. Their swift reaction…
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Orders Issued by Benedict Arnold, Commander-in-Chief, to the Captain of the Liberty
byJust weeks after war broke out at Lexington and Concord, Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold, working in grudging consort,captured Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain,…
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Top Ten Demolished Houses of Revolutionary War-Era Connecticut
byThis story is the unfortunate flip side of “Top Ten Revolutionary War Patriot Homes in Connecticut”: the most significant Connecticut houses demolished in the…
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General Isaac Gregory’s Fictitious Treason
byCol. Josiah Parker of Virginia was at a loss at what to do. He had just arrived outside the British outpost at Great Bridge…
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The Life of John André: The Redcoat Who Turned Benedict Arnold
byThe Life of John André: The Redcoat Who Turned Benedict Arnold by D. A. B. Ronald (Havertown, PA: Casemate Publishers, 2019) On one level,…
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Picking Up the Pieces: Virginia’s “Eighteen-Months Men” of 1780–81
byThe first half of 1780 had gone disastrously for Virginia. The surrender of Gen. Benjamin Lincoln’s army at Charleston and the destruction of Col….
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Monuments to the American Revolution
byAlong with the Civil War, the American Revolution is one of the two most iconic events in American history. The Revolution has inspired countless…
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This Week on Dispatches: Gene Procknow on Benedict Arnold and James Wemyss
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews long-time JAR contributor Gene Procknow on the fascinating parallel lives of Continental officer Benedict Arnold and British…
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“Under God:” Understanding its Revolutionary Usage
byThe words “under God” have been part of America’s fabric since its inception; any school child will recognize the words in the Pledge of…
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Les Habitants: Collaboration and Pro-American Violence in Canada, 1774–1776
byThe fleeting invasion of Canada in 1775, though often consigned to a bit-part in the American Revolutionary drama, proved vital to the emergence of…
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Benedict Arnold and James Wemyss: Similar Experiences Contrasting Legacies
byOften, a person’s legacy is defined by decisions made at pivotal moments rather than a lifetime of previous accomplishments. The is especially true for…
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The Liberty: First American Warship, Among Many Firsts
byOne might think that the first American warship, named the Liberty, would be showered with accolades and articles touting its significant place in American…
Revisiting B. E. Griffiths: Former Slave, Queen’s Ranger, and “Son of Africa”
byIn a recent article, Todd Braisted reconstructed the remarkable story of a black Loyalist soldier, “Trumpeter Barney” of the Queen’s Rangers.[1] Through meticulous archival…
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The Thunderer, British Floating Gun-Battery on Lake Champlain
byThe radeau (French, singular for “raft”) was co-opted for eighteenth century warfare on and along Lake George and Lake Champlain, to deal with the challenges…
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Remembering the Lives and Sacrifices of General Richard and Janet Montgomery
byAlmost forty years ago, I led a team of nautical archaeologists in the study of the steamboat Phoenix, which had burned on Lake Champlain…
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Daniel Morgan: A Revolutionary Life
byDaniel Morgan: A Revolutionary Life by Albert Louis Zambone (Westholme Publishing, 2018) Few figures in the American Revolution contributed more towards victory over Great…
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Continental Congress vs. Continental Army: Strategy and Personnel Decisions
byWhen the American Revolution became a shooting war, it was left to the Continental Congress to become the body of state for the thirteen…
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Continental Congress vs. Continental Army: The Officer Corps
byWhen the Continental Congress first met it was intended to bring the American colonies together to find a solution to the growing disputes with…
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Daniel Granger, Thirteen-Year-Old Soldier
byDuring the American Revolution children were no strangers to the realities of war, but some would find themselves in the very center of the…
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Finding Edward Wigglesworth’s Lost Diary
byCol. Edward Wigglesworth took part in some of the most consequential actions of the American Revolution, but, like so many such men, we know…