The U.S. Navy celebrates its 250th birthday this Monday, October 13. Coincidentally, that day also marks the official celebration of Christopher Columbus’s discovery of America on October 12, 1492. These two events, centuries apart, show how this month celebrates our nation’s connection to the water, first through exploration and then through protection.
Columbus has long been revered as a patron saint of our country, long before he became the symbol of pride for Italian immigrants. By the 400th anniversary of his landing in 1892, you’d be hard-pressed not to find evidence of Continue Reading “Sails of Discovery, Anchors of Defense Celebrate Two Birthdays, One Destiny”
Washington’s Gamble – The Sullivan–Clinton Campaign
Zebulon Butler, who led the defense (and retreat) during the Wyoming Massacre, attested to continued incursions. In a letter to General Hand on March 23, 1779, the Pennsylvanian wrote, “…after severe skirmishing for two hours and a half, the enemy carried off sixty head of horned cattle, 20 horses, and shot my riding horse, which they could not catch, and burnt five barns that were partly full of grain and hay, and 10 houses, which the inhabitants had deserted. They shot a number of hogs and sheep, that they left lying.” He asked that the information be relayed to General Washington.1
Even before Butler’s letter to Hand, Congress had received letters from the governors of Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New York. On February 25, 1779, they appointed their Commander-in-Chief to raise five companies of rangers. The resolution directed Washington to Continue Reading “Washington’s Gamble – The Sullivan–Clinton Campaign”