Nine-Months Men at Fishkill 2

HUBBARD, Samuel, Palmer.

• Receipt dated Blandford, May 11, 1778, for bounty paid said Hubbard by the Selectmen for enlisting into the Continental Army for the term of 9 months; 
• also, list of men raised in Hampshire Co. for the term of 9 months from the time of their arrival at Fishkill; residence, Palmer; 
• arrived at Fishkill June 9, 1778;  
• also, list of men returned as received of Jonathan Warner, Commissioner, by Col. R. Putnam, July 20, 1778. 

JUDD, Arunah, Blandford.

• Corporal, Capt. Samuel Walcott's co., Col. John Ashley's (Berkshire Co.) regt.; entered service Sept. 19, 1777; discharged Oct. 18, 1777; service, 30 days, under Brig. Gen. John Fellows; company ordered out by Gen. Gates to reinforce Northern army;  
• also, receipt dated May 11, 1778, for bounties paid said Judd and Samuel Hubbard by the Selectmen of Blandford to serve in the Continental Army for the term of 9 months, agreeable to resolve of April 20, 1778;  
• also, descriptive list of men raised in Hampshire Co. for the term of 9 months from the time of their arrival at Fishkill; Capt. Cannon's co., Col. Moresley's (Moseley's) regt.; age, 29 yrs.; stature, 5 ft. 8 in.; complexion, light; hair, brown; residence, Blandford; 
• arrived at Fishkill June 16, 1778;  
• also, list of men returned as received of Jonathan Warner, Commissioner, by Col. R. Putnam, July 20, 1778.

KIBBY, Stephen, Blandford.

• List of men raised in Hampshire Co. for the term of 9 months from the time of their arrival at Fishkill, agreeable to resolve of April 20, 1778, returned as received of Jonathan Warner, Commissioner, by Col. R. Putnam July 20, 1778 ; residence, Blandford ; engaged for town of Blandford ; 
• arrived at Fishkill June 22, 1778.

KNOX, David, Blandford.

• Descriptive list of men raised in Hampshire Co. for the term of 9 months from the time of their arrival at Fishkill, agreeable to resolve of April 20, 1778; 
• Capt. Knox's co., Col. Moresley's (Mosely's) regt.; age, 20 yrs.; stature, 5 ft. 6 in.; complexion, light; hair, brown; residence, Blandford; 
• engaged for town of Blandford; arrived at Fishkill June 16, 1778;
• also, list of men returned as received of Jonathan Warner, Commissioner, by Col. R. Putnam, July 20, 1778;
• also, Private, Capt. J. Holden's (4th) co., Col. Nixon's (6th) regt.; Continental Army pay accounts for service from Nov. 2, 1779, to Dec. 31, 1779;
• also, Capt. Abel Holden's co., Col. Thomas Nixon's regt.; pay rolls for Aug.-Oct., 1779;
• also, Capt. John Holden's co., Col. Nixon's regt.; pay rolls for Nov. and Dec., 1779;
• also, descriptive list of men belonging to 6th Mass. regt. who enlisted for the war subsequent to Sept. 30, 1779, as returned by Col. Thomas Nixon, dated Highlands; age, 20 yrs.; stature, 5 ft. 5 in.; complexion, light; engaged for town of Blandford;
• also, Capt. A. Holden's co., Col. Nixon's regt.; Continental Army pay accounts for service from Jan. 1, 1780, to Dec. 31, 1780;
• also, (late) Capt. John Holden's co., Col. Nixon's regt.; pay roll for Jan.-June, 1780; reported transferred to Capt. Abel Holden's (Light Infantry) co. Feb. 4, 1780;
• also, Light Infantry co., 6th Mass. regt.; return of men in need of clothing, dated Peekskill, July 31, 1780;
• also, Capt. Abel Holden's (Light Infantry) co., Col. Nixon's regt.; pay abstracts for July-Dec., 1780;
• also, descriptive list dated West Point, Jan. 29, 1781; Capt. Holden's co., Col. Thomas Nixon's (6th) regt. commanded by Lieut. Col. Smith; rank, Private; age, 20 yrs.; stature, 5 ft. 5 in.; complexion, light; hair, dark; occupation, farmer; enlisted Nov. 2, 1779, by Lieut. Frost; enlistment, during war; also, Capt. Peter Clayes's (Light Infantry) co., commanded by Capt. John K. Smith until May 1, 1781, Lieut. Col. Calvin Smith's (6th) regt.; returns for wages; wages allowed said Knox for Jan., 1781-Dec., 1782, 24 mos.;
• also, list dated Boston, Feb. 18, 1804, returned by John Avery, Secretary, and J. Jackson, Treasurer, of men who furnished satisfactory evidence of their service as soldiers and were entitled to gratuities under resolves of March 4, 1801, and June 19, 1801; 5th Mass. regt.

SMITH, Peter, Blandford.

• Descriptive list of men raised in Hampshire Co. to serve in the Continental Army for the term of 9 months; Capt. Knox's co., Col. Moseley's regt.; age, 17 yrs.; stature, 5ft. 6in.; complexion,light; hair, light; residence, Blandford; engaged for town of Blandford; 
• arrived at Fishkill June 16, 1778; 
• also, list of men raised in Hampshire Co. for the term of 9 months from the time of their arrival at Fishkill, agreeable to resolve of April 20,1778, returned as received of Jonathan Warner, Commissioner, by Col. R. Putnam July 20, 1778.

- from Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors

Nine-Months Men at Fishkill 1

The State of Massachusetts-Bay, in the House of Representatives, on April 20, 1778 passed a "Resolve for filling up and compleating the fifteen battalions of Continental troops, directed to be raised in the state of Massachusetts-Bay." According to Blandford Soldiers and Sailors, seven men were "enlisted to Serve in the Continental Army for the term of Nine Months" and started arriving at Fishkill in mid-June 1778. Their enlistments would have expired mid-March 1779. I'm posting on each of these men.

The Nine-Month's men:

• Samuel Hubbard
• Arunah Judd (1747-1836)
• Stephen Kibby
• David Knox (1758-1852)
• Peter Smith(1751- ? )
• William Kennedy
• James Morton

Kennedy and Morton were never actually required to fulfill this duty. Hubbard and Judd were taken from Capt. William Cannon's company, when Cannon retired in 1778. Kibby, Knox and Smith were taken from Capt. William Knox's company. Of these seven men, only David Knox is mentioned (and it's a brief mention) in Ulster Scots and Blandford Scouts.

Here's what I've learned about Abel Holden, captain of the company posted at Fishkill to which our nine months Blandford recruits were assigned. I'm also including the two older captains whose companies contributed these soldiers.

Capt. Abel Holden (1752-1818), of Sudbury.

• Sergeant, Capt. John Nixon's co. of Minute-men, Col. Abijah Pierce's regt., which marched on the alarm of April 19, 1775; service 5 days;
• also, Adjutant; list of officers of Col. John Nixon's regt.; resolved in Committee of Safety at Cambridge June 5, 1775, that said officers be approved and recommended to Congress for commissions;
• ordered in Provincial Congress June 5, 1775, that commissions be delivered said officers; also, Adjutant Col. John Nixon's regt.; engaged April 24, 1775; service to Aug. 1, 1775, 3 mos. 15 days; roll dated Camp at Winter Hill;
• also, Col. Nixon's (5th) regt.; list of field and staff officers appearing on a return of Capt. Joseph Butler's (1st) co., dated Winter Hill, Sept. 30, 1775;
• also, receipt given to Benjamin Heywood, Paymaster, 4th regt., dated Camp Mt. Washington,  Sept. 27, 1776, signed by said Holden, Adjutant, and others, for money for enlisting recruits;
• also, 2d Lieutenant, Capt. Micajah Gleason's (3d) co., Lieut. Col. Thomas Nixon's (4th) regt., regimental return dated North Castle, Nov. 9, 1776; reported acting as Adjutant;
• also, Lieutenant and Adjutant, 4th regt.; receipts given to Benjamin Heywood, Paymaster, for wages for Sept.-Dec., 1776;
• also, Captain, Col. Thomas Nixon's regt.; Continental Army pay accounts for service from Jan. 1, 1777 to Dec. 31, 1779;
• also, Captain, 7th co., Col. Nixon's (4th) regt.; muster roll of field, staff, and commissioned officers dated Van Schaick's Island, Sept. 2, 1777, and sworn to in Camp near Stillwater; appointed Jan. 1, 1777; reported recruiting;
• also, same co. and regt.; muster roll of field, staff, and commissioned officers for Nov. and Dec., 1777, dated Albany;
• also, same regt.; abstract for rations allowed between July 1, 1777, and Jan. 1, 1778, certified at Albany; said Holden credited with 113 days allowance;
• also, same regt.; return of officers for clothing, dated Boston, April 30, 1778;
• also, 7th co., Col. Nixon's regt.; muster roll of field, staff, and commissioned officers made up from Jan. 3, 1778, to May 4, 1778; reported furloughed by Maj. Thompson for 40 days from March 10, 1778;
• also, same regt.; return of officers, dated Boston, Nov. 24, 1778, and who had not been absent subsequently except on furlough, certified in Camp at Peekskill, Feb. 16, 1779;
• also, Col. Nixon's (5th) regt.; muster roll for May, 1779, dated Highlands;
• also, Captain, 6th Mass. regt.; list of settlements of rank of Continental officers dated West Point, made by a Board held for the purpose and confirmed by Congress Sept. 6, 1779; commissioned Jan. 1, 1777;
• also, Captain, Light Infantry co., Col. Nixon's 96th) regt; Continental Army pay accounts for service from Jan. 1, 1780, to Dec. 31, 1780;
• also Lieut. Col. Calvin Smith's (6th) regt.; return for wages; wages allowed said Holden for Jan.-April, 1781, 4 mos.; reported discharged May 1, 1781, and succeeded by Capt. Mason Wottles;
• also, order on Benjamin Heywood, payable to Lieut. Levi Holden, dated Marlborough, Feb. 21, 1784, signed by said Holden, for wages and subsistence for service in (late) 6th Mass. regt.

The alarm mentioned April 19, 1775 we know as the Battle of Lexington and Concord.

Mount Washington is in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Stillwater is a town on the Hudson river, north of Albany. Highlands refers to the Hudson Highlands, between Fishkill and Peekskill. Van Schaick Island, at the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson rivers, was the camp from which Learned's brigade, under the command of Benedict Arnold, went to the aid of Colonel Peter Gansevoort at Fort Schuyler (Stanwick) at what is now Rome, NY. All of these locations, except Mount Washington, are located along the Hudson river. From which I conclude that this unit was protecting the north-south corridor leading to Albany.

Capt. William Knox (1722-1802), of Blandford

• Captain, 6th co., Col. John Mosely's (3rd Hampshire Co.) regt. of Mass. militia; list of officers chosen in said regiment, endorsed "April 26, 1776;" reported commissioned April 26, 1776; 
• also Captain, Lieut. Col. Timothy Robinson's detachment from 3rd Hampshire Co. regt., which marched to Ticonderoga Oct. 21, 1776, by order of Gen. Skyler (Schuyler) to reinforce army at that place; (service not given); 
• also petition dated Blandford, Jan 5, 1779, signed by said Knox, stating that he had served for a considerable time as a Captain of a militia company in Col. John Moseley's (Hampshire Co.) regt., and asking permission to resign his commission on account of age, lameness, and infirmity.

Capt. William Cannon ( ? - 1786), of Blandford

• Captain, 12th co., Col. John Moseley's (3d Hampshire Co.) regt.; list of officers of Mass. militia; commissioned April 26, 1776;
• also, same regt.; company marched to Ticonderoga Oct. 21, 1776, under command of Lieut. Col. Timothy Robinson to reinforce Continental Army; service, 28 days;
• also, petition dated Blandford, Sept. 30, 1778, signed by said Cannon, asking for a discharge from his commission as Captain of the 12th (Blandford) co. in Col. Moseley's (3d Hampshire Co.) regt.; allowed in Council, Oct. 6, 1778. 

This William Knox was father to David Knox of our seven Nine-Month's Men, and himself a veteran of the French and Indian War. Knox quickly volunteered again in May 1776, after the Massachusetts General Assembly declared independence in the name of "The Government and People of the Massachusetts Bay in New England" -- anticipating the Second Continental Congress' more famous declaration by two months. 

Prisoners Taken near Philadelphia

While they held Philadelphia in the winter of 1777-1778, it became necessary for the British to open the Delaware River to their shipping. Over a period of weeks the large army garrisoned there became increasingly desperate for resupply. And so they set to work taking the mutually reinforcing fortifications on the river held by the Americans: Fort Mifflin (also called Mud Island, on the west bank) and Fort Mercer (also called Red Banks, on the east bank).

They laid siege to Fort Mifflin, beginning in early October. They built a large artillery battery on nearby Providence Island and launched an enormous bombardment November 10 that ended 5 days later when the Americans evacuated the fort.

Meanwhile, on October 10 they attempted to put a gun battery on Carpenter's Island, also nearby but closer, and easily fired on from Fort Mifflin and from the part of the river protected by the fort's guns. The British force charged with defending the new battery was quickly trapped, and forced to surrender the next morning. The captives were grenadiers from the 1st, 10th, 17th, 23rd, 27th, and 28th Regiments, and 4 men from the Royal Artillery: 300 to 400 men became prisoners. Including John O Dirlam?? Some prisoners were sent to Trenton.

At any rate, they surrendered to Lieut. Col. Samuel Smith of the 4th Maryland Regiment. The regiment fought at Brandywine in September, and Germantown in October 1777, and assigned to the 2nd Maryland Bridgade. Capt. Samuel Smith (1752-1839) had been promoted to major, Dec. 10, 1776; lieutenant colonel, Feb. 22, 1777; was wounded at Fort Mifflin on the Delaware River, Oct. 22, 1777 and presented with a sword by Congress, Nov. 4, 1777, for his gallant defense at that fort; resigned in May, 1779. He served in the Maryland State Legislature, 1790-1792; US House of Representatives, 1793-1803 and 1815-1822; US Senate, 1803-1815 and 1822-1833. He became a major general of Maryland Militia in the War of 1812, and served as mayor of Baltimore from 1835 to 1838.

Meanwhile, the British sent a largely Hessian force to attack Fort Mercer on October 22, 1777, and that attack failed badly. However, after Fort Mifflin was lost and 5000 British troops were sent to take Fort Mercer, the Americans abandoned it.

Providence Island and Carpenter Island both consisted of marshy land somewhat dried by dikes. They lay along the west bank of the Delaware River, south of the mouth of the Schuykill River. Hog Island and Mud Island lay in the river just to the east. All were eventually absorbed by Hog Island, and eventually by Philadelphia International Airport.