1
10
25
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https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/8e012032bf222392a8f4f80e18df2cde.jpg
36707bea88825c8c55f02b4bc1325d7e
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/7dfa8e7eb2faefa65d45a49c32d97113.jpg
39a8d883fd00093ab5b3c4bd49d83cdc
Dublin Core
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Title
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Flyleaf of Bible
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Title
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Historical Society of Greenfield
Description
An account of the resource
<img src="https://rhh.reclaim.hosting/themes/rhh-berlin/images/contributor-images/HSgreenfield.jpg" width="400" alt="HSgreenfield.jpg" />
<p>The Historical Society of Greenfield, Massachusetts, is a non-profit historical and educational resource institution maintaining and communicating the diverse history of Greenfield by promoting its archival collections, exhibitions of cultural artifacts, documents, publications, educational resources and programs accessible and targeted to area residents, the wider public and students of all ages.</p>
<p>We're located at: 43 Church St,<br />Greenfield, Massachusetts<br />413-774-3663 (please leave a message)</p>
<p>Email: <a>hsgreenfield1907@gmail.com</a><br /><a href="https://www.facebook.com/HSGreenfieldMA/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSG FaceBook Page</a><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZn0fRZJrtYv23uDjOKPbrw" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSG YouTube Channel</a></p>
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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<p>Prudence Hastings was 22, and 6 months pregnant when she and Ebenezer Graves were married on January 1st 1753. Eben wrote on the back of the title page of his Bible “bought in the 28th year of his age, which is the year 1753. Price 6 pound ten shillings." As their oldest son, also Ebenezer, was born in March 1753, it is highly likely that the Bible was bought in preparation for raising the family they anticipated. Their second son, Daniel Graves, was born in 1754. 10 more children followed, all recorded on the blank page between the Old and New Testaments.</p>
<p>The Bible's expense was a major investment in the family's future, equaling $1,930 in 2020 dollars. Having a Bible in the home would help the children learn to read, teach them the ethical and religious position of their parents, and bind the family together through daily prayers and reading aloud. The Holy Bible was the most commonly owned book in colonial America, with annual agricultural almanacs a close second. The Protestant emphasis on the Bible in liturgy, instruction and meditation played a major role in the high literacy levels that characterized early New England.</p>
<p>1753 was also the year Greenfield became a separate town from Deerfield. Eben and Prudence Graves were part of the excitement of forming a new township while they were raising a young family, and were part of America becoming a new country as well. The three oldest Graves brothers were eager to do their part to help bring about the birth of the new nation:</p>
<p>Daniel joined the fight first, and died in January 1776, in the very beginning of the war, but his service record is missing.</p>
<p>Job enlisted next. He started as a Private in Captain John Williams’ company in Colonel Timothy Robinson’s detachment of the Hampshire militia in December of 1776, fought with his unit at Ticonderoga, and served in several different units throughout 1777 and 1779, for a total of 209 days.</p>
<p>Eben Jr, the oldest child of Eben and Prudence, enlisted in February, 1777. He was a Private in Captain Timothy Child’s company in Colonel David Leonard’s regiment at Ticonderoga and in Colonel David Field’s regiment at Bennington, for a total of 1 month and 21 days in 1777.</p>
<p>The process of independence was not without great hardship and many losses, and the Bible would have been a comfort to the Graves family, even through the deaths of their children: Eben and Prudence lost two-year-old Moses in 1760, and Daniel, their second son, died in 1776 as a revolutionary in the very beginning of Revolutionary War, at age 22. Soldiers traveling through town were often sick, with smallpox and dysentery and other illness, and in 1777, 50 people out of 900 inhabitants of Greenfield died in an outbreak credited to sick soldiers, including Electa (age 2) on the 1st of August and Solomon (age 8) on the 23rd of September.</p>
<p>Imagine Eben and Prudence Graves in the summer of 1777, having lost one son to the war and worrying about two others currently away fighting, seeing young soldiers like their own sons come through town ill, and their baby daughter sickens and dies. This was part of the terrible price of what was, in many ways, a civil war playing out on the home front. Perhaps this Bible gave them some comfort.</p>
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01-01-1753
Text
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<span><span><strong>Page facing Bible’s title page:</strong><br /><br /></span></span>
<div>Ebenr Graves junr Born March ye 19 1753<br />Daniel Graves 2nd Boar November ye 23 1754<br />Job Graves Born December ye 26 1756<br />Moses Graves Born September 17th 1758<br />Moses Graves Dissest February ye 8 1760<br />Mother Graves Dissest April ye 21 1760<br />Brother Joel Graves Dissest April ye 16 1760 <br />Thankful Graves Born August ye 8 1760<br />Father Graves Dissest August ye 23 1756<br />Brother Daniel Graves Dissest September ye 8 1755 <br />Moses Graves Born September ye 29 1762<br />Joel Graves Born October ye 10th 1764<br />Elihu Graves Born June ye 16th 1766<br />Solomon Graves Born May ye 10th 1768<br />Rufus Graves Born June ye 27th 1770</div>
<div>Prudence Graves Born September 29th 1772</div>
<div>Lecta Graves Born August 4th 1775</div>
<div>Daniel Graves Dissest January 18th 1776</div>
<div>Lecta Graves Dissest August 1 1777</div>
<div>Solomon Graves Dissest September 23 1777</div>
<div>Prudance Graves consort of Ebenr Graves Dissest October 19 1804 in the 74 year of her age<br />Ebenzer Graves Dissest April 26 1814 Age 88 years and one month [written in a different hand]<br /><br /><strong>Flyleaf:</strong><br /><br /><span>Ebenr Graves His Bible bought in the 28th year of his age, which is in the year 1753, Price 6 pound ten shillings</span><br /><span>Ebenr Graves junr Born March ye 19 1753</span><br /><span>Daniel Graves Born November ye 23th 1754</span></div>
Dublin Core
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Title
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"Eben Graves, his Bible, bought in the 28th year of his age”
Description
An account of the resource
Leather-bound Bible, 10”x12”x4”
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1753
Contributor
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Historical Society of Greenfield
Type
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Printed Document
Identifier
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3000-111-001
childhood
homefront
religion
soldier
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https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/7cf3135a727f9f5f24bab0f4521f731e.jpg
646121d34fa2fd8f028230fdbb21a0c6
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Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association and the Memorial Hall Museum
Description
An account of the resource
Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association <span>is a regional organization that maintains the </span><em>Memorial</em><em> Hall Museum, a research Library, Deerfield Teachers’ Center, Indian House Children’s Museum, </em><span>and </span><em>Community Outreach</em><span> projects.<br /><br /></span>Memorial Hall Museum's collection is comprised of artifacts, documents, maps, photographs and books from the Connecticut River Valley region of Massachusetts. The Collection spans a vast sweep of history: from the area's earliest Native American inhabitants to more recent early twentieth-century times. <a href="https://deerfield-ma.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PVMA's website</a>, <a href="http://americancenturies.mass.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">American Centuries</a>: PVMA/Memorial Hall Museum's online collection and more
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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Feelings against the British troops ran high in Boston in 1770. The fact that many English soldiers were moonlighting as dock workers and rope makers made them even less popular among residents whose jobs they were taking. On March 5, 1770 a group of men armed with rocks and clubs began harassing two soldiers on guard duty at the Customs House. Things got uglier when more troops came to assist the guards. The crowd swelled as more Bostonians joined in, among them Crispus Attucks, a multiracial formerly enslaved man of African and Wampanoag ancestry. When the hard-pressed soldiers fired into the crowd, killing Attucks and several others, Paul Revere turned tragedy into opportunity. Paul Revere was a Boston silversmith. He was also a member of the Boston Sons of Liberty and a master publicist. His widely distributed engraving depicting British soldiers firing into an unarmed, peaceful crowd of Bostonians roused American outrage throughout the colonies and made the British army still more unpopular.
The owner of the Old Bay Road Tavern, Jeremiah Stone is said to have tacked this print of the Boston Massacre on the bar room wall where patrons took turns toasting the martyrs who died in the Massacre.
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1770-03-05
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Title
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"The Bloody Massacre perpetrated on King Street, Boston on March 5th, 1770"
Contributor
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Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association
Date
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1770
Identifier
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CRR-B-28
Description
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engraving on paper, 9.31" x 10.5", printed by Paul Revere
Subject
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Boston Massacre
Source
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Collection of Memorial Hall Museum
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Printed Document
battle
Boston
soldiers
-
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/c66ac19208eb2013d74c06dbbe4a534d.JPG
c7543e76e85cfed5ddac253ed5f22463
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Title
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Hatfield Historical Society
Description
An account of the resource
<p><span>The Hatfield Historical Society (HHS) manages the museum collections of the Town of Hatfield, including the Hatfield Historical Museum and the Mary Lou & Robert J. Cutter Hatfield Farm Museum. The mission of HHS is to promote an understanding of the history of Hatfield, by collecting, preserving, interpreting and sharing that history and its relationship to the region.</span></p>
<p>The Hatfield Historical Museum, owned by the Town of Hatfield, is located at 39 Main St., Hatfield. Its collection consists of some 24,000 items.</p>
<ul>
<li>Visit the <a href="https://hatfieldhistory.weebly.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hatfield Historical Society website</a></li>
<li>Visit the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Hatfield-Historical-Museum-627515587293630/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hatfield Historical Museum on Facebook</a></li>
<li>Visit the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kEm_PGKCkqVInZezfZFJQ" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hatfield Historical Society and Museums on YouTube </a></li>
</ul>
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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Sometime in the period leading up to the Revolution, someone was strolling along the bank of the Connecticut River in Hatfield, MA. He might have been a stylish dresser, given the fancy engraving of this coat button, sometimes called a “dandy” button in the English fashions of the era. Colonists had deep connections to England, especially for trade goods and manufactured items, and continued to prefer and use British fashions like this button. It’s about the size of a quarter, and most likely not from a military uniform, as those often were either plain or had military-themed patterns. Not everyone in the Revolutionary era was involved in the war, and many of the men who did fight wore a combination of military issued uniforms and their own civilian clothing. Without the rest of the outfit, there’s no way to know if his overcoat was the red of the British Regulars, or Continental Line blue, or something else besides.
This button was cast in a mold, then spun on a lathe to dish out the back very slightly before soldering on the copper loop for the shank. The surface is carved or stamped with a stronger metal to scrape away the dark surface and reveal a brighter metal design. That it had a shank tells us the garment was a thicker fabric, likely layers of linen or wool. Clothing of the era had many buttons, some of them purely decorative. Did the owner even notice he’d lost it? Probably not right away, or he would have picked it up again!
Like all other parts of clothing production, buttons were often saved and repurposed for later use, worn up until they wore out. The wire shank on this one has broken, so it could have come loose by either the thread breaking or the shank giving way, leaving us to wonder what became of the rest of the set, and the man who wore them.
Discovered and donated by Robert Osley, 2020
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1770
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A Dandy of a Button
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Hatfield Historical Society
Date
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c.1770
Identifier
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2020-060-001
Description
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White metal, 1" diameter
Source
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Hatfield Historical Museum
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https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/38188268d13e0fb0190d1cbb9b453a92.jpg
57ab0811ea3bb648af4a37eafd4676ff
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Historic Northampton
Description
An account of the resource
<span>Historic Northampton focuses on local history and the local community. We preserve objects and documents that illuminate the lives of past residents while creating structures through which contemporary residents can preserve</span><span> and celebrate their own histories in ways that honor both tradition and change.</span><br /><br />46 Bridge Street Northampton, Massachusetts 01060 <a href="https://www.historicnorthampton.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.historicnorthampton.org</a>, info@historicnorthampton.org, 413-584-6011
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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<p>Being the child of a prominent loyalist during the American Revolution was a challenge. Growing up in Northampton, Anna Stoddard experienced childhood during a time when crown-appointed officials such as her father were “not only deposed, but denounced” by the general populace.</p>
<p>Anna was 12 or 13 years old when she made this sampler dated 1782. Born on March 24, 1769 to Solomon Stoddard (1736-1827) and his first wife Martha Partridge (1739-1772), Anna was born into a family that for just over a century held various religious, political or military appointments governing Hampshire County. In 1774, her father was appointed High Sheriff of Hampshire County, the very year when this authority could no longer match the collective will of the governed.</p>
<p>Solomon Stoddard’s appointment came at a time when the governor and the crown attempted to implement the Massachusetts Governance Act. This act made changes to town and county government that curtailed the rights of citizens. Among its provisions, it allowed the governor to appoint county sheriffs, without the consent of the council, to serve at his will. The citizens of Hampshire County directly challenged this act. In August 1774, grassroots activists gathered to close the court in Springfield and asked Stoddard to sign a document promising to never hold office under this act. In February 1775, citizens surrounded his house on Prospect Street and brought him to trial in Hadley. In 1776, he was jailed overnight in Northampton and later asked to sign an affidavit of “pledging to report all conspiracies or other movements inimical to the cause of liberty.”</p>
<p>Solomon Stoddard apparently maintained his loyalty to the crown. And in 1782 - the same year the sampler was made - a large gambrel-roof house for the Stoddard family was built, fronting the smaller circa 1730 house that had been surrounded by citizen activists.</p>
<p>Anna’s brother, Solomon Stoddard, born in 1771, would describe his childhood during the war in an 1837 recollections as follows:</p>
<blockquote><em>I was born, as you all know, in 1771, and of course was a boy in troubled times. My mother died when I was twenty months old; so that figuratively speaking, I had no Mother. Here was a deprivation which you never experienced. A mother, if intelligent, judicious & affectionate, is every thing among children. Without some details, you would have a very imperfect idea of the difficulties which the youth of that day, & especially the sons of the Tories, had to encounter. The war of the revolution, altho’ of a national character, was, nevertheless, as respected many of its immediate evils, more like a civil war. After the Declaration of Independence, those holding offices under the old Dynasty, were not only deposed, but denounced. A new race came forward, under the name of whigs, led on generally by violent, and frequently unprincipled men. Contributions for the public service were levied by Town Committees; and if the Tories questioned at all the amount, or called for the law under which they acted, a mob was at hand to silence complaint by violent measures, as the exigency, in their opinion, might require. These outrages were experienced by my Father at different times (in common with others who had been deposed) from these mobs; sometimes to gratify party feelings, and at others to show their zeal in the cause of Liberty. These things were going forward occasionally from 1776 to 1783. For most of the time between these dates, we were without law and without Courts, and every effort was making to prejudice the community against those men who were previously in Office, and who had too much conscience to violate the Oath of Allegiance, by which they were bound. Of these, my Father was one, being High Sheriff under the King. At such a time, and under such circumstance, little attention was paid to education. Even Yale College was broken up for a considerable period-our Town Schools were nothing, and the sons of Tories, owing to the prejudices alluded to, were practically excluded from their benefit, if any benefit was derivable. Of course I had no schooling in early life, except that one summer, when eight or nine years old, I attended a girl’s school kept by Mrs. Henshaw, at the house where she now lives. This school I could hardly attend without being insulted in the street as the son of a Tory. You might suppose that I enjoyed good advantages at home, but it was not so. Without a mother, as I before observed, and my Father, otherwise occupied & frequently in a state of agitation, was not favorably situated to instruct his children…. The first ten or eleven years of my life I spent at home, almost wholly excluded from the company of boys of my age, and groping my way under the circumstances I have stated.</em></blockquote>
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1782
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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A Loyalist Childhood: Sampler Made by Anna Stoddard, 1782
Subject
The topic of the resource
childhood
Description
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Sampler, cross-stitch on linen, approximately 7.5" H x 5.75" W
Type
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Artifact
Identifier
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68.465
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1782
Contributor
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Historic Northampton
childhood
children
craft
loyalist
needlework
Tory
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https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/6e3308940164d91e18c5226c42728332.jpg
3df85e0e0530535f3c9c8603dd547dff
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/4187c696e488bec86820ec5331a16f56.jpg
d2b026b7d06bb096c2989d26df23aed1
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Title
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Belchertown Historical Association
Description
An account of the resource
The <a href="http://stonehousemuseum.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Belchertown Historical Association</a> exists to preserve historical artifacts pertaining to the Town of Belchertown; to maintain the Stone House Museum; and to foster knowledge of and interest in the history of Belchertown by opening the Museum to the public and by offering educational programs, lectures and events. The Stone House Museum contains superb examples of furniture, china and decorative accessories made in the 1700s and 1800s. Its textile collection contains samplers, early crewelwork, linens, quilts and an extensive selection of period clothing. The archives contain a collection of early town and church documents, diaries, manuscripts, ledgers, genealogical records, military records, records of town organizations, early business establishments and a large collection of photographs. History lives in the records of the past. The Association still continues to pursue its original mission in collecting and preserving the history of Belchertown.
Revolution Happened Here
Custom item type including project metadata fields.
Text
A text transcription of the manuscript
Side 1:
This may serve to warn the inhabitants of Belchertown to meet at the Meetinghouse in sd town on Tuesday the 25th Day of June inst. at 3 o Clock afternoon to Consider and Determine –– Whether should the Hon'ble Congress for the safety of the American Colonies Declare them Independent of the Kingdom of Great Brittain they the Inhabitants will Solomly Ingage with their Lives & Estates to Support them in the measure. This meeting is Warned in Obedience to a Resolve of the Gen'l Court.
Belchertown July 21: 1776
Nath'l Dwight, Zachariah Eddy, Daniel Smith, Benjamin Morgan, Select Men of Belcher
Side 2:
At full Meeting of the Inhabitants of Belcherstown Held at the Meetinghouse in sd Town on the 25th Day of June 1776 the Question was put by the Moderator whether should the Hon'ble Continental Congress for the Safty of the Colonyes Declare them Independent of [the] Kingdom of Great Brittain, whether they the sd Inhabitants will firmly Ingage with their Lives and Fortunes to Support them in the Measure and it passed in the affirmative by a univercel vote.
attn Nath'l Dwight Town Clerk
Story
Interpretive text about the resource
<p>In early 1776, Belchertown, like most of Massachusetts was caught up in the spirit of independence. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense had been published in January, the Massachusetts Provincial Government had drafted a new constitution, and towns and cities were preparing to declare their position on the issue of independence from Great Britain.</p>
<p>On June 25, 1776 a town meeting was held to consider this last question and by “a univercel vote” the residents voted to support independence and pledged to “firmly Ingage with their Lives and Fortunes” to assist the cause. This document memorializes that event.</p>
<p>Prominent among the names recorded on this document is Nathaniel Dwight, who was a scion of the town’s influential Dwight family. An innkeeper, he was a member of the Board of Selectmen and also Town Clerk, at the time. A month earlier, he had been chosen by a town meeting as a delegate to the Watertown Congress. At that time, it was also “voted that said Nathaniel Dwight shall go armed as there is every danger of invasion by the King’s troops that are now stationed at Boston, there being about 4000 men and the Governments of Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Hampshire have 30,000 men that are stationed round about Boston.”</p>
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1776-06-25
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Title
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Belchertown Votes for Independence
Description
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Meeting Notes, 10" X 8" ink on paper, two-sides
Date
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1776-06-25
Contributor
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Belchertown Historical Association/Stone House Museum Archives, Belchertown
Type
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Manuscript
Identifier
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Box 35A; Folder 27
town meeting
voting
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https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/39ebd045dd07a84fcf0d3623ddffed56.jpg
4b553bb696840aa072b8c23971785e96
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/82ebb452980a6c50afc89a9efb1dd861.jpg
e3957387571ba8703dae4352e5be12bf
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Title
A name given to the resource
Fife detail
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Historical Society of Greenfield
Description
An account of the resource
<img src="https://rhh.reclaim.hosting/themes/rhh-berlin/images/contributor-images/HSgreenfield.jpg" width="400" alt="HSgreenfield.jpg" />
<p>The Historical Society of Greenfield, Massachusetts, is a non-profit historical and educational resource institution maintaining and communicating the diverse history of Greenfield by promoting its archival collections, exhibitions of cultural artifacts, documents, publications, educational resources and programs accessible and targeted to area residents, the wider public and students of all ages.</p>
<p>We're located at: 43 Church St,<br />Greenfield, Massachusetts<br />413-774-3663 (please leave a message)</p>
<p>Email: <a>hsgreenfield1907@gmail.com</a><br /><a href="https://www.facebook.com/HSGreenfieldMA/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSG FaceBook Page</a><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZn0fRZJrtYv23uDjOKPbrw" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSG YouTube Channel</a></p>
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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<p>Daniel Severance was about 25 years old, dark-complected, light-eyed, and working as a blacksmith in what is now Washington, New Hampshire when the talk of revolution began. He enlisted as a private in Captain Ezra Towne's Company, Colonel James Read's Regiment on April 23, 1775. Less than 2 months later, he fought with his regiment at the pivotal Battle of Bunker Hill. In September of 1776, Daniel reenlisted as a private in Captain Abijah Smith's Company, part of Colonel Loammi Baldwin's 26<sup>th</sup> Massachusetts Continental regiment.</p>
<p>We know this was Daniel’s fife, but as there is no concrete record of him serving as a fifer, many questions remain. The military companies that made up the larger militia and continental army regiments during the Revolution included at least one fifer and one drummer. The owner of this fife had to master all the musical calls that told the members of his company when to get up, where to muster and when to go to bed, as well as providing the music on the march that helped the company keep the cadence and hopefully lift the army’s spirits. In battle, fifers and drummers used special tunes and drum beats to cut through the din of battle and communicate officers’ orders, including when to advance or retreat. Did Daniel ever learn or play these special tunes? How did this fife come into his care? What else might he have played?</p>
<p>Before the Revolution, music was already an important part of the colonial social experience. Although the early Puritans of the 1620s were less inclined to song, by 1776 there were not only the everyday lullabies and work songs and tavern anthems, but sacred hymns and public concerts as well. In 1770, William Billings, of Boston, printed The New-England Psalm-Singer, the first book of music written in colonial America, with a frontispiece engraving by Paul Revere. A few pieces were new words written to familiar tunes, but most were entirely new, like <em>Chester</em>, which was extremely popular in the 1770s, and started off boldly, thus:</p>
<blockquote>Let tyrants Shake their Iron rod<br />And slav'ry Clank her galling Chains<br />we fear them not we trust in god<br />New englands god for ever reigns.<br />(Billings, New-England Psalm-Signer)</blockquote>
<p>This was everyday music, the type anyone could play or sing, in a type of book anyone could buy. The type Daniel could have picked up during his time in Boston.</p>
<p>After the war, Daniel bought land in New Hampshire, married Betsy Safford, and raised two sons, Benjamin and Jeremiah. The fife went to his oldest son, who passed it to his son Ben Jr, who passed it to his son, B. F. Severance, who donated it to the Historical Society of Greenfield in 1910. What tunes might this little wooden fife played all those long years!</p>
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04-23-1775
Dublin Core
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Title
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Blacksmith Soldier with a Musical Flair?
Description
An account of the resource
Wood (walnut), six holes, brass fittings, 14.5 in.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1775
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Historical Society of Greenfield
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Artifact
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
3000-035-050
-
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/06a3319f9ee9603c8c70d288c6352746.jpg
3a2709ea247a416451a540a3a0efd507
Dublin Core
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Title
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Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association and the Memorial Hall Museum
Description
An account of the resource
Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association <span>is a regional organization that maintains the </span><em>Memorial</em><em> Hall Museum, a research Library, Deerfield Teachers’ Center, Indian House Children’s Museum, </em><span>and </span><em>Community Outreach</em><span> projects.<br /><br /></span>Memorial Hall Museum's collection is comprised of artifacts, documents, maps, photographs and books from the Connecticut River Valley region of Massachusetts. The Collection spans a vast sweep of history: from the area's earliest Native American inhabitants to more recent early twentieth-century times. <a href="https://deerfield-ma.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PVMA's website</a>, <a href="http://americancenturies.mass.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">American Centuries</a>: PVMA/Memorial Hall Museum's online collection and more
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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<p>As the British Empire spread around the world, so too did the “Brown Bess” flintlock musket. From the early 18th century to the mid 19th century, it was the ubiquitous weapon of the British infantry. Known officially as the Land Pattern Musket, it marked the start of the era of standardization of arms across the British infantry.<br /><br />To operate it, <em>all</em> a soldier had to do was:<br />1. Bite open the cartridge.<br />2. Open the musket pan.<br />3. Pour in a small amount of powder.<br />4. Close the pan.<br />5. Hold the musket vertically.<br />6. Pour remaining powder down the barrel.<br />7. Push the cartridge paper into the barrel.<br />8. Remove the ramrod.<br />9. Ram the paper and bullet down the barrel.<br />10. Put the ramrod back.<br />11. Aim.<br />12. Fire.</p>
<p>British soldiers were trained to reload and shoot every 20 seconds, even while under enemy fire. Under 50 yards, the Brown Bess was devastatingly effective. However, at distances of 100 yards or more, it was wildly inaccurate. It was said, derisively, that it took a man’s weight in bullets to kill him. Although it could never be as accurate as a gun with a rifled barrel, its accuracy improved in the hands of more highly trained, experienced soldiers.</p>
<p>The fate of this musket’s original owner is unknown. After General John Burgoyne’s surrender at the Battle of Saratoga, militia Captain John Fellows of Shelburne picked it up off the battlefield. Fellows carved his initials into the brass plate alongside those of the original owner “RD 1777.”</p>
<p><strong>Story Addendum</strong><br />The musket's story, however, did not end when Captain Fellows brought it home from Saratoga. Nor did it end when it was donated to Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association in 1882 by John Fellows, grandson of Captain Fellows. The decision to donate the musket would be a point of contention in the Fellows family for decades to come.</p>
<p>By the early 1900s, John Fellows' great-grandson, Allen, was particularly incensed by his father's decision to donate the musket, which he considered a family heirloom. When confronted, John conceded that he believed he had only loaned the musket to PVMA for safe keeping. Thus Allen went to the museum to retrieve the musket. But when he attempted to do so, he was turned away by PVMA's founder, George Sheldon, who provided the legal documentation proving the transfer of ownership.</p>
<p>Just one generation later, Robert Fellows Wood lamented John's "impulsive" decision to donate the musket to "keen, old" George Sheldon. Robert had the opportunity to see it on exhibit in 1930 at PVMA's Memorial Hall Museum. However, on a return visit to the museum in 1954, Robert and his wife, Elizabeth, were unable to locate the musket in the case where it had been exhibited 24 years earlier. The museum's curator then missidentified the musket they were looking for, leading to confusion and fear that the musket had been mislabled, altered, or worse.</p>
<p>Today the musket is exhibited in Memorial Hall Museum's Military Gallery, correctly labeled and unaltered, thanks to the foresight of John Fellows.</p>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Brown Bess Flintlock Musket
Contributor
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Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association's Memorial Hall Museum
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1768
Identifier
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1882.81
Description
An account of the resource
"Brown Bess", Tower musket, Crown and "G.R." on lockplate, caliber .75, Saratoga Springs, NY, Shelburne
Subject
The topic of the resource
Arms
arms
soldier
weapon
-
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/f12cff3db9a9325a40e50df8909cf0a9.jpg
0ad1d22c8fe4a127be8a100b8ac0cee5
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/0abb759db80e1a0c7491e077fbf6b1f2.jpg
2a13861b4c5def5298528511867d4f00
Dublin Core
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Title
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Back of payroll document
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Historic Northampton
Description
An account of the resource
<span>Historic Northampton focuses on local history and the local community. We preserve objects and documents that illuminate the lives of past residents while creating structures through which contemporary residents can preserve</span><span> and celebrate their own histories in ways that honor both tradition and change.</span><br /><br />46 Bridge Street Northampton, Massachusetts 01060 <a href="https://www.historicnorthampton.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.historicnorthampton.org</a>, info@historicnorthampton.org, 413-584-6011
Revolution Happened Here
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Story
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Did you know that soldiers received travel reimbursement based on how far they marched from home? This document lists how much was paid to thirty-seven soldiers who served the Continental Army for the month of July 1778. They served in Albany, New York, and then marched back to their homes in western Massachusetts. These men, who were members of their local militias in western Massachusetts, were temporarily attached to General Timothy Danielson’s Brigade (he was from Deerfield) to do a special service for the Continental Army in Albany.
In this detachment, there were seven officers and thirty privates. Daniel Pomeroy, the captain, was paid six times as much as the privates, (12 pounds to 2 pounds), and the lieutenant was paid four times as much as the privates (8 pounds to 2 pounds). At this time, the Americans used the British currency system of pounds-shillings-pence. There were twelve pence in a shilling, and twenty shillings in a pound. A pound contained 240 pence. During the War, inflation was high and rising, so the soldiers’ pay may not have amounted to as much as they had hoped.
Everyone was paid a penny per mile for their march home. By looking down the list you can see that several of the men marched the same distance, so they must have come from the same towns. The closest to Albany was sixty miles and the furthest was 115 miles. It is a puzzle to figure out which town was sixty-six miles east of Albany, which one was one hundred miles, and if these are names of men who lived in these towns.
We know that the captain, Daniel Pomeroy, was from Northampton so all the men who marched eighty miles must also have come from Northampton. He stayed on to serve until October 31, 1778. Before and after the war, Daniel Pomeroy ran a tavern, called the “red tavern” on Northampton’s Main Street. He was the fourth generation of Pomeroys to live on Main Street and own a tavern.
This payroll shows that many men participated in the American Revolution, even if they were part of a local militia and even if they served for only a short time. July would have been an okay time to leave their farms for a month. Their crops were already growing in the fields. The soldiers would be home in August in time to harvest them. While they were gone, their wives and children worked the farm.
Every company had a clerk whose job it was to keep detailed records, like this payroll. He used his good math skills to add up the long column of figures, and then he copied the record several times so that everyone in charge had a copy.
Date Sort
Please enter a single date using the format YYYY-MM-DD
1778-07
Text
A text transcription of the manuscript
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>A Pay Roll of Capt. Daniel Pomeroy Company Being A Detachment from Genll Danielson Brigade in The Continental Service for the Month of July 1778</td>
<td>A Mileage Account For Each man in this Pay Roll Sett opposite Their names from Their Respective homes To Albany</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Mens Names</td>
<td>Rank</td>
<td>Time Entered</td>
<td>Time Service to</td>
<td>Amount For Month</td>
<td>Remarks</td>
<td>Whole Amount Lawfull Money</td>
<td>Number of Miles Marched</td>
<td>The Whole Amount At one Penny Per Mile</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Daniel Pomeroy</td>
<td>Capt</td>
<td>July 1st</td>
<td>August 1<sup>st</sup></td>
<td>12-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>£12-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Ezekiel Foster</td>
<td>Leut</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>8-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>8-0-0</td>
<td>115</td>
<td>0-9-7</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Eliphaz Wright</td>
<td>Sergt</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>3-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>3-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Martin Severance</td>
<td>Sergt</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>3-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>3-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jonathan Pomeroy</td>
<td>Corpl</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>William Turner</td>
<td>Corpl</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Samuel Turner</td>
<td>Corpl</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-4-0</td>
<td>115</td>
<td>0-9-7</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Nathan Strong</td>
<td>Private</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Eleazer Root</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Moses Hendrick</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Moses Danks</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>David Wood</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>David Frisby</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Enoch Beats</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jesse Woolcot</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>John Fobes</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Simeon Higgins</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Samuel Hamilton</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Ezekiel Thomas</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>66</td>
<td>0-5-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>David Ingram</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Benjn Parker</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>80</td>
<td>0-6-8</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jonas Leonard</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>60</td>
<td>0-5-0</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>John Howard</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>60</td>
<td>0-5-0</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Daniel Morse 3rd</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>60</td>
<td>0-5-0</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Joseph Allen</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>63</td>
<td>0-5-3</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Gideon Howard</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>63</td>
<td>0-5-3</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jonathan Taylor</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>63</td>
<td>0-5-3</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Thomas Ford</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8-4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Moses Smith</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8- 4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Jonathan Lions</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8-4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Francis Gooding</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8-4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>John Oldin</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8-4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>John Gant</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>115</td>
<td>0-9-7</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Thomas Wallis</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>100</td>
<td>0-8-4</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Rubin Casmorhugh??</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Eli Gold</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Eldad Corbit</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>Do</td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>2-0-0</td>
<td>90</td>
<td>0-7-6</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td>92-12-0</td>
<td></td>
<td>12-13-10</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Captain Daniel Pomeroy's Payroll
Subject
The topic of the resource
soldiers, money
Description
An account of the resource
document, approximately 14 3/4" (37.6 cm) x 9 5/8" (24.6 cm)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
July, 1778
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Historic Northampton
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Manuscript
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
A.R.W.17.9
march
money
soldier
-
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/3339d1e2bd7f864b7a1fc38a2ceb4d0c.jpg
2ed2a1053b623d6b1cb5a97d0f7d3f03
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Longmeadow Historical Society
Description
An account of the resource
<p>697 Longmeadow Street<br />Longmeadow, MA<br />413-567-3600</p>
<p>Website: <a href="http://www.LongmeadowHistoricalSociety.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.LongmeadowHistoricalSociety.org</a><br />Facebook Page: <a href="http://www.Facebook.com/LongmeadowHistoricalSociety" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.Facebook.com/LongmeadowHistoricalSociety</a><br />Email: <a href="mailto:LongmeadowHistoricalSociety@gmail.com">LongmeadowHistoricalSociety@gmail.com<br /></a></p>
<p>The Georgian House that was to become <em>The Storrs House Museum</em> was built in 1786 for the Reverend Richard Salter Storrs (1763 – 1819), the second pastor of the First Church of Christ in Longmeadow, MA. The property was donated to the town in 1907 for a library. When the present library was built in 1930, the Storrs House was moved a short distance to its present location and became the home of the collections of the Longmeadow Historical Society. Many objects in the museum collections belonged to Rev. Storrs, his family and his descendants and Rev. Stephen Williams (1693 – 1782), the first minister in Longmeadow and his family. The Longmeadow Historical Society’s archives contain many original maps, diaries, account books, old photographs, documents and family histories of Longmeadow’s earliest families.</p>
<p>The Storrs House is open by appointment. Please look for upcoming events co-sponsored by the Storrs Library on our <a href="http://www.longmeadowhistoricalsociety.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">website</a> and <a href="http://www.Facebook.com/LongmeadowHistoricalSociety" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Facebook page</a>.</p>
<p>Please note: The Storrs House Museum is not handicapped accessible.</p>
Revolution Happened Here
Custom item type including project metadata fields.
Story
Interpretive text about the resource
<p>Sometime around 1799, a family register was made to record the births, marriages, and deaths in Samuel Colton's family. This printed and hand-colored register was almost certainly created by Richard Brunton (1750-1832), a notorious engraver, counterfeiter and British deserter. Born in 1750 in Birmingham, England, he apprenticed with an engraver before enlisting in the British Army Grenadiers. He served from 1774-1779 in America during the Revolution, and saw heavy action, including the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Battle of Brandywine, and the British retreat from Philadelphia before deserting in New York in 1779. His career in engraving included counterfeiting currency, which landed him in prison on more than one occasion, including a two-year sentence at hard labor served at Connecticut's New-Gate prison, where he earned money to repay the costs of his prosecution as well as better living conditions by painting portraits of the warden and his family and by creating engravings. In 1807, Brunton was arrested again, this time in Massachusetts, and was given a life sentence. Four years later, the state granted his petition for release due to ill health. In exchange for the early release, he promised to return to his native England, but instead went to live in Groton, Massachusetts, where he died in the poorhouse in 1832.</p>
<p>One of Brunton's legitimate, and perhaps more lucrative creations, were family registers--documents with decorative borders that often included depictions of Faith, Hope, Charity, and Peace, and left room for the recording of the family births, deaths and marriages. These pre-printed family registers are considered some of the earliest American examples. The Colton register includes Samuel and Flavia Colton's marriage, the births (and deaths) of their children, his second marriage to Lucy Colton and their family. These types of family registers were considered proof for official documentation.</p>
<p>Samuel Colton (1727-1784) was a well-known wealthy Longmeadow merchant, earning him the nickname, "Marchant" Colton. His impressive large home, built circa 1754, stood on a rise just south of the Longmeadow town green. When the house was demolished in the early 20th century, parts of the house were salvaged as souvenirs, including the very imposing "Connecticut River God" front doorway, which now resides in a place of honor in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In 1776, a kind of local "tea party" took place at Samuel Colton's shop. Unhappy with Colton's prices for the West India goods he imported (essentials such as rum), townspeople, including his brother-in-law, dressed up as Native Americans and raided his shop. They removed the disputed goods, calculated what they felt to be fair prices and left that sum in exchange. Colton's suit for legal redress failed, and he is said to have remained bitter for the rest of this life about the "theft."</p>
<p>To learn more about Richard Brunton's fascinating life, see Deborah Child's book, <span style="text-decoration:underline;">Soldier, Engraver, Forger: Richard Brunton's Life on the Fringe in America's New Republic.</span> For more information about Samuel Colton, see Barbara Smith's book, <span style="text-decoration:underline;">After the Revolution</span><em>.</em></p>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Colton Family Register
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Longmeadow Historical Society
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1750-1799
Description
An account of the resource
7.75" X 10.75" hand-colored, engraved family register
Subject
The topic of the resource
family, counterfeiter, British
British
counterfeit
family
Tory
-
https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/original/6b32680e0de6379b0307345470d273c7.jpg
5f57a27bf6aad76b56afcfcd3fa33965
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Belchertown Historical Association
Description
An account of the resource
The <a href="http://stonehousemuseum.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Belchertown Historical Association</a> exists to preserve historical artifacts pertaining to the Town of Belchertown; to maintain the Stone House Museum; and to foster knowledge of and interest in the history of Belchertown by opening the Museum to the public and by offering educational programs, lectures and events. The Stone House Museum contains superb examples of furniture, china and decorative accessories made in the 1700s and 1800s. Its textile collection contains samplers, early crewelwork, linens, quilts and an extensive selection of period clothing. The archives contain a collection of early town and church documents, diaries, manuscripts, ledgers, genealogical records, military records, records of town organizations, early business establishments and a large collection of photographs. History lives in the records of the past. The Association still continues to pursue its original mission in collecting and preserving the history of Belchertown.
Revolution Happened Here
Custom item type including project metadata fields.
Story
Interpretive text about the resource
Disease killed more than twice the number of American troops that died in combat during the Revolution. Historian Joseph Ellis suggests that Washington's decision to have his troops inoculated against smallpox was one of his most important decisions. Dr. Estes Howe, one of Belchertown’s first physicians, was a surgeon in Rufus Putnam’s regiment during the first years of the conflict and these notebooks provide an interesting look into 18th century field medicine. Book I records the treatments he dispensed, with the names of the soldiers who were sick or wounded. It includes a list of the troops he inoculated against smallpox. Both notebooks contain important and detailed notes about units and commanders, troop movements, and the day to day life of a soldier.
Dr. Estes Howe was a major figure in Belchertown’s history. He served as Town Clerk, Selectman and in many other positions of responsibility. Book II also contains his Clerk’s notes, 1782-1783. He and his second wife gave the town the land that is now the north part of Belchertown Common.
Local legend – likely true, but not recorded in any known contemporaneous account – relates that when the Marquis de Lafayette passed through Belchertown on his way to the dedication of the Bunker Hill Monument, he was told of an ailing doctor who had given great service during the Revolution. Lafayette asked his driver to stop at Dr. Howe’s home and he visited with him, briefly, paying his respects, before continuing his journey through Massachusetts. Whether true or not, Dr. Howe was among the early doctors in Belchertown (some say the first) and he resided here until his death in March of 1826. His portrait, painted by Chester Harding, proudly hangs in the Stone House Museum.
Text
A text transcription of the manuscript
<p>Please note, this transcription is still under construction. The "Remedies" notes are still being researched. If you have any expertise in 18th century medicine, please contact us!</p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Capt. Name</td>
<td>Persons Sick</td>
<td>Rank</td>
<td>Disorders</td>
<td>Remedys Applyd.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Angle</td>
<td>Isaac Whord</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii Ipecac d. albis</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Roundsevel</td>
<td>Lemuel Tabor</td>
<td>Lieut.</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Rhii. Ial. Niter d. albis</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jepther Ashley</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Slow Fever</td>
<td>Sal. Niter Dilut Tea</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>August 4</td>
<td>Timathy Ingrums</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii Cort??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jacob Laisdell</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Eonatick??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Abner Cody</td>
<td>Sergt</td>
<td>Dys on decl</td>
<td>Bitters with ??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Wm. Allen</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Bardwell</td>
<td>James McClantick</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Rh??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jona. Olds</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“ as above—</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Stuard Key</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Rumitism</td>
<td>Bill Cache of ??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Elijah Knights</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Wounded</td>
<td>Dressing Peculars</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>August 5</td>
<td>Lemuel Tabor</td>
<td>Lieut.</td>
<td>gone home</td>
<td>———</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Roundsevel</td>
<td>Timathy Ingrums</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhis Cat do Albis??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Daniel Ward</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Slow Fever</td>
<td>??Bitters</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Daniel Giles</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Ematick??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Walbridge</td>
<td>Asher Nickels</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Slow Fever</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Robert Parkes</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Oint Cont.??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>——Parker</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“—Rhiis Sal Nitre?</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Esm. Mungar</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Epelepsey</td>
<td>Pell???</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Danforth</td>
<td>Elijah Mason</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dys on decl</td>
<td>Rhii Car??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Daniel Bullock</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Billius Collick</td>
<td>Pell Cache ??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Isaac Goff</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dys on decl</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Aaron Millar</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Ematick d’albis??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Simeon Whelan</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“—“ “—“</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>[?]allen</td>
<td>—— Ingalsen</td>
<td>Capt.</td>
<td>Hypondrical</td>
<td>“—“ “—“</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>——Gutterage</td>
<td>Lieut.</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Capt. Name</td>
<td>Persons Sick</td>
<td>Rank</td>
<td>Disorders</td>
<td>Remedys Applyd.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>August 5</td>
<td>Jacob Lasdell</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Bardwell</td>
<td>James McClentick</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Rhii Sal Niter??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jona. Olds</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“——“ ”——“</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Wm. Allen</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“——“ ”——“</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Elijah Knights</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Wounded</td>
<td>Dress and Dressings</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>King</td>
<td>Job Dean</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii d’albas at Nite??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Colton</td>
<td>Benj. Colton</td>
<td>Drummer</td>
<td>Dyerhea</td>
<td>Ematick ——“—</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Richard Fairman</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Cold</td>
<td>Betrl Bolis d’albis</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Henry</td>
<td>David Picher</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii ??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Azariah Holloway</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Pain in abdomen</td>
<td>Pill Cache</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Angel</td>
<td>Isaac Hoard</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii Sal Morab del albis??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jedediah Jewett</td>
<td>Corp.</td>
<td>“——“</td>
<td>Ematick??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Peckard</td>
<td>John Potama</td>
<td>Negro</td>
<td>“——“</td>
<td>Rhii d’albas??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Jedediah Gilbart</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Slow Fever</td>
<td>??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>6th</td>
<td>Israel Gaff</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Dyst. on decline</td>
<td>Rhii??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Danforth</td>
<td>Aaron Millar</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Inflam. Fever</td>
<td>Rhii Sal Niter d Albis</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Elisha Mason</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Rhii Sal Niter</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Stephen Ingals</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dyst. on decline</td>
<td>Tint Cort??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Roundsevel</td>
<td>Timathy Ingram</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Gone to the Horspittal</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Wm. Parker</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>Ematick??</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Peckard</td>
<td>Joseph Wood</td>
<td>Corp.</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Gone to the Horspittal</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Josiah Wood</td>
<td>Privet</td>
<td>Foul Stomach</td>
<td>Ematick——</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Lemuel [?]</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“—“</td>
<td>“—“—“—</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Henry</td>
<td>Elisha Hocam</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>Dysentary</td>
<td>Ematick?? at Night</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>David Picher</td>
<td>—“—</td>
<td>“——“</td>
<td>Dectan Cortet Elix???</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Date Sort
Please enter a single date using the format YYYY-MM-DD
1782-07-01
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Doctor Estes Howe’s Revolutionary War Notebooks
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Belchertown Historical Association
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
July 1775 - 1784
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Object ID = Box 004, Folder 03
Description
An account of the resource
<p>These two notebooks contain the Revolutionary War Record and Accounts of Dr. Estes Howe, 1775-1785. Book I is entitled, “Estes Howe, his book, Peeks Kill, June 7, 1777, Belcherton [sic], May 14” and is 56 pages, 6x7½ in., paper cover, stitched. Book II has no cover, but contains his Revolutionary War Records, 1775-1776, and his notes as Belchertown Town Clerk, 1782 – 1783. It is 68 pages, 6x7¼ in., stitched paper. Also available: <a href="https://revolutionhappenedhere.org/files/fullsize/Howes-journal-finding-aid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a partial list of other content found in the journals</a>.</p>
Subject
The topic of the resource
field medicine, small pox, soldier's life
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Manuscript
Belchertown
doctor
journal
medicine
remedies
soldiers