His name might not be too familiar, but he has the distinction of signing three of the most important documents of the American Revolutionary period; the petition to King George III of 1774, the Declaration of Independence, and the United States Constitution. His name?
George Read.
Born in the colony of Maryland on September 18, 1733 in the county of Cecil, the young Read was shortly thereafter on the move. His family, while George was an infant, resettled in New Castle, Delaware. When of school age, he attended Reverend Francis Allison’s Academy in New London, Pennsylvania, and one of his classmates was Thomas McKean, a future Signer of the Declaration of Independence as well. George moved on to study law in Philadelphia under the tutelage of John Moland. In 1753, George was admitted to the bar and the next year had settled back in New Castle, Delaware to practice. Continue reading “Six Signers Signing”→
The financier. Those two words explain the importance of Robert Morris, the Liverpool, England born Pennsylvanian transplant. As George Washington engineered the pivotal campaign that culminated in the actions at Trenton on Christmas Day 1776 and Princeton in early January, Robert Morris was the man who made it happen.
Born on January 20, 1734, Morris was a 13-year old lad when he sailed for the British North American colonies. He was headed to Oxford, Maryland where his father had emigrated prior to. While living on his father’s tobacco-growing plantation, Morris was afforded the opportunity to have a tutor and showed his mental prowess, advancing rapidly in his studies.
Outgrowing his tutor, Morris was sent to a family friend in Philadelphia where it was arranged the young man would become an apprentice in the shipping and banking of future Philadelphia mayor Charles Willing. When Willing died in 1754, Morris was made partner. He was only 24 years old at the time.
After the establishment of Willing, Morris, and Company on May 1, 1757, Morris was set about establishing himself firmly in the upper society of Philadelphia, the largest city in the 13 British colonies. Yet, it was not until he was 35 years old in 1759 when he wed Mary White, who hailed from a prominent Maryland family. In time, the family grew to include five sons and two daughters. That same year, Morris and his partner Thomas Willing organized the first non-importation agreement in which the slave trade was ended for good in the Philadelphia region.
Robert Morris (courtesy of our friends at The Society of the Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, http://www.dsdi1776.com)
Even before his marriage, Morris was active in politics. In 1765 he had served on a committee comprised of local merchants. Formed in protest to the Stamp Act, Morris was chosen to mediate a mass town meeting of protesters. Even though he personally felt the new acts were unconstitutional, Morris was remained steadfastly loyal to Great Britain. Continue reading “Six Signing Signers”→
On August 2, 1776, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the majority of the 56 men who would forever be known as the “Signers of the Declaration of Independence” placed quill to ink and affixed their signature.
On September 17, 1787, the men who persevered, haggled, and agreed on the United States Constitution, dipped a quill into ink and placed their signatures on that famous document.
If one looks closely and reads the names of the signers, six gentlemen’s names would appear on both documents. If one hazarded a quick guess, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, John or Samuel Adams, George Washington, and Benjamin Franklin would most likely be the first names to spill off the tongue.
Only one of those names would be correct; Benjamin Franklin. This post, the first in the series, will shed light on whose these men were, who had the great fortune–or luck?–to sign both famous political documents. The first of the “Six Signing Signers” is…..
Part Three (click here for first two installments)
Determined to avenge his embarrassing defeat at Cowpens, Lt. Gen. Charles Lord Cornwallis set his army out in a determined pursuit of the American army. Knowing that he was too weak to face Cornwallis in a pitched battle, Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene, the Southern Department commander, retreated northeastward from Salisbury, North Carolina toward the Virginia state line, where he hoped that additional militia troops would reinforce his army and he would receive supplies. The British chased Greene to the Dan River, near the Virginia border, but Greene wisely put the river between his army and the enemy. Cornwallis and his weary soldiers arrived at the rain-swollen river on February 15, too late to catch Greene’s army, which had finished crossing earlier that day. Frustrated, Cornwallis withdrew to Hillsborough, North Carolina.
Lord Charles Cornwallis
After receiving both the expected supplies and reinforcements, and after an opportunity to rest his command, Greene soon marched back into North Carolina to face Cornwallis’ tired and poorly supplied army, which now numbered less than 2000 men. After several weeks of skirmishing with Loyalist militiamen and a great deal of maneuvering Greene assumed a defensive position around Guildford Courthouse (near modern Greensboro, North Carolina) on March 14, 1781. Greene had more than 4000 Continentals, militiamen and cavalry, meaning that his army outnumbered Cornwallis’ by more than twice their strength. Continue reading “Defense in Depth as a Revolutionary War Battlefield Tactic”→
I handed over a couple of one dollar bills to pay for my coffee. The image of George Washington caught my eye, and I smiled. It would be nice to relax for a moment and pick-up Valiant Ambition by Nathaniel Philbrick, the Revolutionary War history book I was reading. Settling into a comfortable chair, I soon immersed myself in the drama of the Battle of Princeton. Guided by the book’s text, my imagination created a vivid image of the unfolding conflict. George Washington – looking splendid on a large horse – galloped along, leading his men and shouting “It’s a fine fox-chase, my boys.”[i]
Startled, I closed the book. It seemed too difficult to accept that the “Father of His Country”, the dignified George Washington, and the reserved and diplomatic leader of the 1790’s could be riding recklessly, shouting in a full, commanding voice, and – on other occasions – struggling to keep his temper controlled when dealing with difficult subordinates. Then I felt foolish. My image of George Washington was based on the Gilbert Stuart presidential painting from 1797 that we’d studied in high-school art class!
The past few months of John Champe’s life were probably the most memorable. In the fall he was asked to go on a mission to capture the recent traitor Benedict Arnold. The mission was ordered by George Washington himself and only known to Washington and “Lighthorse” Harry Lee. Champe, a trusted member of Lee’s Legion, was promised a promotion for undertaking the daring mission. He successfully fled from the American camp, gained the trust of British General Sir Henry Clinton and Arnold and was given a commission in Arnold’s Loyalist regiment. He worked with patriots in New York and recruited others to help him in his plan to kidnap Arnold. Now it was December and the next day was the day to kidnap Arnold and return him to Washington.
Then the day before the kidnapping was planned, Clinton set into motion a plan to finally use Arnold militarily. Arnold would take his Loyalist troops and some British regulars and invade the Virginia Capes. Virginia had largely dodged the hardships of war and Clinton believed this would be a great opportunity for Arnold to prove himself. With only Virginia militia located in the colony, Arnold should have no problem wreaking havoc on the Commonwealth.
These new developments ruined Champe and Lee’s plans. When Arnold got orders from Clinton, he moved his headquarters – one day before Champe was to carry out his plan. Furthermore, Champe was also moved to another part of New York and was not able to get word to Lee that the plan was off. Lee and his dragoons waited and waited at Hoboken with no sight of Champe. Soon Lee returned to camp without any word on what happened to Champe. Lee and Washington worried that the worst had happened and Champe was “discovered.”[i]
Grave at John Champe, Prickett Cemetery, Fairmont, WV
Champe soon found himself on a transport in New York harbor with Arnold’s “American Legion.” The destination was unknown to most of the men. Soon though Champe learned that he was to be part of an invasion force against his native state! The thoughts that must have gone through his mind; he had risked everything to capture Arnold – labeled a deserter and now he would have to go into battle against his fellow Virginians. The two week trip to the Virginia Capes must have afforded Champe plenty of time to ponder how close he was coming to succeeding and now what he was called upon to do.
Champe was involved in most of Arnold’s campaign against Virginia. He was part of the force that captured Richmond and found himself in several battles and skirmishes against his fellow Virginians. Arnold was replaced by Gen. William Philips and soon Cornwallis’s army joined Philips in Virginia in May 1781. Sometime after this, Champe was able to “escape” the British army and headed west to the Blue Ridge Mountains. Champe then worked his way south and finally by July he was back with Lee who was then with Nathaniel Greene’s army in the Carolinas. Lee was delighted to see his devoted cavalryman. Surely Champe and Lee had a lot to discuss.
Though Champe was promised a promotion, it was believed by Lee and Washington that it would be too dangerous for Champe to take the field again. If he was captured, the British would surely execute him as a spy. Champe was offered an unknown sum for a reward and headed back home to Loudoun County. His legendary adventure was over.
Sergeant Major John Champe Memorial, Aldie, VA
After the war, Champe did not seek fortune or fame from his exploits. He led a simple life and was a middle class farmer. He struggled to support his family and continuously looked for cheaper and more fertile land to the west. It was due to his desire for new land that he was on a trip looking at land near Morgan Town (modern day Morgantown, WV) in 1798 where he became ill and died. Washington did not forget Champe. In 1798 Washington was appointed by President John Adams commander of the American army in preparation for war with France. Washington called on Champe to be an officer in his army, only finding out that he had recently died.[ii]
Though Champe disappeared mostly from the history books in 1781, his family fought for nearly 100 years to gain the compensation that was due to Champe. Champe was never paid a pension nor given bounty lands that were owed to him for his service. Plus, his promised promotion was never given and they argued that the owed pension should be based off of the rank that was promised him personally by Washington. Unfortunately, the mission was so secret, that very few could confirm it. In petitions filed with Congress in 1818 and 1839, Champe’s widow was finally given a life time pension, though in an amount not reflecting his rank. Finally in 1847, a Congressional act provided for compensation in the amount of $1,200 to the heirs of John Champe and granted him the promotion that was promised to him by Washington. [iii]
Champe has remained a local hero in Loudoun County. In 1861, a local Confederate unit went off to war as the “Champe Rifles” (8th VA Infantry). In the early 20th century, the location of his home was marked with a small obelisk (reportedly made by stone from the foundation of the home). Today the monument sits on the south side of Route 50 a few miles west of Aldie.
In 2001, his grave was finally properly marked with a head stone and a full ceremony. Most recently Champe has been bestowed the highest honor a local hero can be given, a high school in his honor. John Champe High School was opened in Aldie in 2012 and one hopes that his name and legacy will be no longer be forgotten.
Lyrics from Sergeant Champe, ca. 1781
Come sheathe your swords! My gallant boys, And listen to the story, How Sergeant Champe, one gloomy night, Set off to catch the tory
[i]The Revolutionary War Memoirs of General Henry Lee; DeCapo Press, 1998, 409.
Emerging Revolutionary War is honored to share the open letter below from the Society of Cincinnati. This open-letter has not been shared with the public. Thank you to Meg Martin, of Civil War Trust / Campaign 1776 for passing it to ERW.
Symbol of the Society of the Cincinnati, est. 10 May 1783, by Continental officers of the American Revolution. (Courtesy of the George Washington Papers).
Members of the Society of the Cincinnati — the nation’s oldest historical society, whose members are descendants of the officers of the American and French forces that won the Revolutionary War — are calling on the Institute for Advanced Study of Princeton, New Jersey, to halt the development of a critical part of the Princeton battlefield. They are appealing to the Institute to work with the Society and the Civil War Trust, which are working together to preserve the remaining battlefields of our War for Independence.
Eight hundred and fifty members of the Society have signed an Open Letter to the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Advanced Study appealing for the Institute to halt construction that will destroy the site of the charge personally led by George Washington that won the battle. The victory was a turning point in the Revolutionary War.
The signers of the Open Letter include descendants of George Washington, Nathanael Greene and other generals, colonels and other officers of the Continental Army.The signers include men whose ancestors were killed at the Battle of Princeton and others who were wounded in that turning point of the Revolutionary War.
The Institute for Advanced Study, an independent scholarly organization, owns the land over which George Washington led the charge that won the battle and saved the American cause from imminent defeat. “Defeat at Princeton would probably have spelled the end for Washington’s army and with it, our bid for independence,” says Jonathan Woods, president general of the Society of the Cincinnati. “The Declaration of Independence, which the nation will celebrate in a few weeks, would have become a footnote in the history of the British Empire.”
The Society of the Cincinnati, which has its international headquarters in Washington, DC, has allied itself with the Civil War Trust and other members of the Save Princeton Coalition in an effort to save the Princeton battlefield and the other endangered battlefields of the Revolutionary War. The Civil War Trust has made repeated overtures to the Institute for Advanced Study to discuss the purchase of the land by the Trust for a price well in excess of its appraised value. More than 20,000 concerned citizens have signed petitions and sent letters to Institute officials and Governor Chris Christie, urging that the Institute for Advanced Study find alternatives to destruction of this hallowed battlefield site. A copy of the Open Letter is attached.
CONTACT: Jack D. Warren, Jr. Executive Director, The Society of the Cincinnati Office: 202-785-1716 Cell: 202-531-9278 jwarren@societyofthecincinnati.org
*From our friends at Civil War Trust and Campaign 1776*
If you have been following the ongoing saga regarding the Institute of Advanced Study’s plans to build 15 faculty houses on the historically hallowed ground of Princeton Battlefield, there is another update to track.
“The British Are Coming.”
Living historians portraying the British 17th Regiment of Foot at the Battle of Princeton. The 17th Regiment, under Lt. Col. Charles Mawhood, bore the brunt of General George Washington’s famous counterattack during the January 3, 1777 Battle of Princeton. Image taken March 2016. (Source: US Civil War Trust).
The rectitude of the decision John Champe made on that October night to “desert” his men and “join” the British must have weighed heavily on his mind as he approached the Hudson River. The mission, offered by “Lighthorse” Harry Lee, to capture the traitor Benedict Arnold was a serious one. The only hesitation Champe felt was how his reputation and honor would be injured by his desertion. No one but Lee and Washington could know the truth, the success of the mission counted on secrecy.[i]
As Champe reached the Paulus Hook area of the Hudson River, the details are murky. Some accounts have Champe jumping into a boat along the shore and pushing off into the river and rowing to a British war ship. Other claims have Champe clearing a British patrol along the river and escorted by the patrol to a nearby ship. [ii] Either way, Champe eluded his American pursuers and accomplished the first goal of his mission, to reach the British lines.
Lee, already having established a spy network, lined up a system of couriers to communicate with Champe. By October 25th, Lee had heard from Champe and wrote to Washington that “my friend got safe to New York; he was before Sir Henry Clinton and has passed all the forms of the garrison; he accidentally met General Arnold in the street which has paved a natural way for further acquaintance; the party entertains high hope of success…”[iii]
Clinton and Arnold expected many other American officers to be inspired by Arnold and
Sir Henry Clinton
join the British army. Champe, a modest officer in a fabled unit was just the kind of man that Clinton wanted to attract. The fact that Champe was fleeing his own men who were in hot pursuit of him made the deception complete. Clinton questioned Champe about the condition of the American army and morale. Champe informed Clinton that other officers were sure to desert and Washington’s ranks were thinning with men heading home. Clinton soon trusted him to be a deserter and attached him to a unit of Loyalists that Arnold was raising.[iv]
Champe became close to Arnold and spent a lot of time with him. Champe spent a lot of time at Arnold’s headquarters at the King’s Arms Tavern on Broadway in New York City. He would take the next several weeks to study Arnold and his habits. Champe also watched for other deserters joining the British army in New York. The fear by Washington was that Arnold was acting with other American officers in defecting. Soon Champe realized that Arnold had acted alone in his treason.
Finally in early December Champe informed Lee that his plan was to kidnap Arnold one night as Arnold took his nightly walk in a garden next to his headquarters. Champe was even able to recruit fellow patriots to assist him in the kidnapping of Arnold. On the selected night, Champe would have a boat waiting for him at a nearby landing. He also had loosened some of the fence boards around the garden area so he could sneak Arnold out of the garden. After getting Arnold onto the boat, Champe would take him to Hoboken (western side of the Hudson River). There Lee and three of his dragoons would wait for Champe and his cargo. Washington insisted to Lee and then to Champe that Arnold was not to be harmed. Champe was sure of his success and spent days and weeks in planning the capture of Arnold. [v]
As the evening approached, everything was in place. He had earned the confidence of Clinton and Arnold. He was now a sergeant in the British army and spent countless hours preparing and making the necessary connections to fellow patriots in New York. The boat was prepared and waiting, Lee would be at Hoboken with his dragoons. Everything was in place to bring home the traitor Arnold.
[i]The Revolutionary War Memoirs of General Henry Lee; DeCapo Press, 1998, pg. 399.
[ii] “Sergeant John Champe and Certain of His Contemporaries”, William and Mary College Quarterly, April 1937, pg. 153.
Emerging Revolutionary War is honored to share the post below by guest historian Kerry Mitchell
Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Richard Henry Lee, George Mason, Patrick Henry…when thinking about the period before and during the American Revolution these names come up as some of the great Virginians who were involved in the founding of our nation. While these men were great on their own accounts, there were other Virginian men who helped shaped our nation. Thomas Blackburn of Prince William County is one of these who history tends to glance over even though during the 1760s and 1770s, he was an important figure in American history.
Rippon Lodge in Prince William County, Virginia, home of Colonel Thomas Blackburn
Thomas was born in Prince William County around 1742 to Richard and Mary (nee Watts) Blackburn. Richard Blackburn was a native from Ripon, England who came over in the early 1700s and settled in Gloucester County, Virginia before moving to Prince William County in 1733. In addition to being a carpenter and farmer, Richard was involved in Prince William County politics and served as a Justice of the Peace. Not much is known about Thomas’s early childhood. He inherits his family home and farm, Rippon Lodge in 1760. That same year he marries Christian Scott with whom he has six children with. By 1762, Thomas receives a captain’s commission from the governor. With the French and Indian War ending it is unclear to what extent he served. We do know that in September 1766 he was serving as a Justice of the Peace for Prince William County. In 1772, Thomas was elected to be one of the Prince William representatives to the House of Burgesses.
A photo of the interior of one of the rooms of Rippon Lodge
Thomas’s election to the House coincided with the brewing unrest brewing between the colonists and Great Britain. After the Boston Tea Party and Britain’s passage of the intolerable Acts, Thomas was amongst the group of members who drafted the resolution that would call for a day of prayer and fasting for the people of Boston. Lord Dunmore believed the resolution was an insult to King George III and he dissolved the House on My 26th. Thomas was among the 22 ex-members who met at Raleigh Tavern and decided they would support a continental boycott of British goods. He went back to Prince William County to have the resolution passed by county leaders (which they did on June 6th). From 1774-1776, Thomas served in the first four Virginia conventions and involved himself in many committees dealing with the unrest. He was part of the committee offering George Washington the command of Virginia’s militia and as well as the committee with George Mason and Henry Lee II raising troops to defend Virginia. In the spring of 1776, Thomas lost his seat to attend the 5th Virginia Convention to Cuthbert Bullitt.
Gravestone and D.A.R. marker for Colonel Thomas Blackburn
After losing his seat to Bullitt, Thomas was appointed as a Lt. Colonel of the 2nd Virginia State Regiment. After being passed over for a promotion, Thomas gave in his resignation on June 10, 1777. While he was out of the army officially, Thomas did not stay out of the fight for long. He rejoined the Virginia Militia as a volunteer. He fought at the battle of Germantown, Pennsylvania in October 1777. During this battle, he was wounded in the leg which ended his military career. He returned to Rippon Lodge in Woodbridge, Virginia to continue farming and entertaining his many friends. This included George Washington whom Thomas became related to through marriage when his daughter, Julia Ann, married George’s nephew, Bushrod Washington. On July 7, 1807, Thomas passed away at Rippon Lodge where he is buried in the family cemetery.
Thomas Blackburn Obituary, Virginia Gazette, August 29, 1807
*Originally from New York, Kerry Mitchell is currently the Historic Interpreter at Rippon Lodge Historic Site, part of Prince William County’s Historic Preservation Division. She has a B.A. in Historic Preservation from the University of Mary Washington, a M.A. in American History from George Mason University and a graduate certificate in Museum Collection Care and Management from The George Washington University. She has previously worked at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, Reston Historic Trust, and the Fire Island National Seashore.*
went off to war as the “Champe Rifles” (8th VA Infantry). In the early 20th century, the location of his home was marked with a small obelisk (reportedly made by stone from the foundation of the home). Today the monument sits on the south side of Route 50 a few miles west of Aldie.
Emerging Revolutionary War Era 