there in little bands to condole with each other, and talk over the
unhappy situation. Later, the boom of distant artillery awakened their
worst fears, for now were they sure that those dear to them were engaged
in a mortal conflict with the enemy. The shades of evening closing
around, brought no relief to their burdened hearts; but, on the
contrary, the most torturing suspense as to the issue of the battle. To
make the situation more depressing, there came on a cold rain, and the
dreariness without was a fit index of the desolate hearts within. At a
late hour Mrs. Van Arsdale retired to her sleepless pillow; but her case
found its counterpart in many an anxious household over a large section
of country.
At length morning broke upon that unhappy neighborhood, and with it came
persons from the battle bringing the appalling news that the Americans
had been defeated, and many of them slain, or made prisoners, and that
the enemy were in full possession of the forts. Then other parties
arrived whose woe-stricken faces only confirmed the sad intelligence.
Soon anxious inquiries sped from house to house where any lived who had
escaped from the slaughter, to learn about this one and that, who had
gone to the battle, but had not returned. Jennie could get no tidings of
her husband, though she spent the greater part of the day in watching
on the road, and several times even fancied that she saw him coming; but
alas! only to find it a delusion. It added to her fears for her husband,
when a neighbor named Monell, at whose house she called, met her with
the sorrowful news that his brother, Robert Monell, first lieutenant in
Capt. Van Keuren's company, had been killed in the battle. At length the
apprentices arrived, their faces begrimed with powder, and one of them
crying for his brother, who had been shot down by his side, and died
instantly.[17] The other, who was Joseph Elder, before spoken of, a
young man of giant frame, had narrowly escaped death, having his hat and
jacket pierced with bullets in the engagement! But having been separated
from Mr. Van Arsdale, they had not seen him since the battle, and so
were ignorant as to his fate. The wretched woman was in despair; many of
her neighbors had now returned and the prolonged absence of her Tunis
seemed to forbode that he had either been killed or captured by the
enemy. But now still others arrive, and she is led from their
statements, to hope that Tunis has escaped, and is making his way
homeward through the mountains. Her heart leaps with joy, and she
returns to the house, and even indulges a laugh as her eye gets a sight
of the mush kettle still hanging on the trammel, as she placed it there
in the morning; no meal stirred in, and she having eaten nothing the
whole day. Towards night Tunis arrived, on horseback, with his
brother-in-law William Wear, who at Jennie's request, had gone out some
distance to look for him.[18] He was fast asleep from exhaustion when
they reached the house, (Wear behind him and holding him on the horse),
and his face so blackened with powder that his wife hardly knew him. He
was much depressed in spirits, but grateful to God who had preserved and
restored him to his family and friends. That evening brought in his
captain, Van Keuren, who for some cause was not in the fight, with his
minister, Rev. Andrew King, and many other neighbors--a house
full,--some to congratulate Van Arsdale on his escape, others, with
anxious faces to inquire after missing friends, and others still to
learn the particulars of the battle. The account he gave of what
happened after leaving home for the scene of conflict, was briefly as
follows:
A walk of several hours brought them to a little stream at the foot of
the hill upon which Fort Montgomery stood, and where they had intended
to stop and eat their dinner; but hearing a great deal of noise and
bustle in the fort, they only took a drink from the brook, and hastened
up into the works, when they soon learned that a large body of the enemy
had landed below the Dunderbergh, and were advancing by a circuitous
route to attack the fort in the rear. About the middle of the afternoon
the British columns appeared, and pressed on to the assault with
bayonets fixed. But our men poured down upon them such a destructive
fire of bullets and grape shot that they fell in heaps, and were kept at
bay till night-fall, when our folks, being worn out by continued
fighting, and overpowered by numbers, were obliged to give way. Then
Gov. Clinton told them to escape for their lives, when many fought their
way out, or scrambled over the wall, and so got away. It must have fared
badly with the rest, as the enemy after entering the fort continued to
stab, knock down and kill our soldiers without pity. Favored by the
darkness, Tunis attempted to escape through one of the entrances, though
it was nearly blocked up by the assailing column, and the heaps of
killed and wounded; but presently, as an English soldier held a
militiaman bayoneted against the wall, Tunis, stooping down, slipped
between the Briton's legs, and escaped around the fort toward the river.
He said he had gone but a little way, when a cry of distress, evidently
from a young person, arrested his attention. A poor boy, in making his
escape, had fallen into a crevice in the rocks, and was unable to
extricate himself. Tunis, at no little risk, crept down to where the lad
was and drew him out, but in doing so hurt himself quite badly, by
scraping one of his legs on a sharp rock. He then gained the river and
found a skiff, in which he and two or three others crossed over. Then a
party of them travelled in Indian file, through the darkness and cold
drizzling rain, stopping once at the house of a friendly farmer, where
they got some food, and as the day broke entered Fishkill; whence they
crossed to New Windsor, and there met Gov. Clinton and many more who had
made good their escape. All felt greatly dispirited, but the Governor
tried to cheer them, remarking: "Well, my boys, we've been badly beaten
this time, but have courage, the next time the day may be ours." Without
much delay Mr. Van Arsdale set out for home, as fast as his lameness
admitted of, knowing how great anxiety would be felt on his account. But
of his brother John; he had no knowledge of what had befallen him, and
indulged the worst fears as to his fate.
Such in brief was Van Arsdale's account of that sanguinary affair,
divested of many little particulars of the battle and its sequel. But
his limited observation could include but a small part of what passed on
that most eventful day, as we are now able to gather it from many
sources.
With a view to cooperate with General Burgoyne, who had invaded the
State from the north, Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Clinton, having a
force of about 3,000 men, sailed from New York on the 4th of October,
with the design of reducing the forts in the Highlands, and, if
possible, open communication with Burgoyne's army. The same night their
advance as far as Tarrytown was known at Fort Montgomery, and that they
had landed a large force at that place. The next morning (Sunday)
advices were received that they had reached King's Ferry, connecting
Verplank's and Stony Point. That afternoon they landed a large body of
men on the east side of the river, to divert attention from the real
point of attack, but they re-embarked in the night. An extract from Sir
Henry Clinton's report to General Howe, dated Fort Montgomery, October
9th, will begin at this point, and form a proper introduction to our
side of the story. Says he:
"At day-break on the 6th the troops disembarked at Stony Point. The
_avant-garde_ of 500 regulars and 400 provincials,[19] commanded by
Lieut.-Col. Campbell, with Col. Robinson, of the provincials, under him,
began its march to occupy the pass of Thunder-hill (Dunderbergh). This
_avant-garde_, after it had passed that mountain, was to proceed by a
detour of seven miles round the hill (called Bear Hill), and _deboucher_
in the rear of Fort Montgomery; while Gen. Vaughan, with 1200 men,[20]
was to continue his march towards Fort Clinton, covering the corps under
Lieut.-Col. Campbell, and _a portee_ to cooperate, by attacking Fort
Clinton, or, in case of misfortune, to favor the retreat. Major-Gen.
Tryon, with the remainder, being the rear guard,[21] to leave a
battalion at the pass of Thunder-hill, to open our communication with
the fleet.
"Your Excellency recollecting the many, and I may say extraordinary
difficulties of this march over the mountains, every natural
obstruction, and all that art could invent to add to them, will not be
surprised that the corps intended to attack Fort Montgomery in the rear,
could not get to its ground before five o'clock; about which time I
ordered Gen. Vaughan's corps, _a portee_, to begin the attack on Fort
Clinton, to push, if possible, and dislodge the enemy from their
advanced station behind a stone breastwork, having in front for half a
mile a most impenetrable abatis. This the General, by his good
disposition, obliged the enemy to quit, though supported by cannon; got
possession of the wall, and there waited the motion of the cooperating
troops,--when I joined him, and soon afterwards heard Lieut. Col.
Campbell begin the attack. I chose to wait a favorable moment before I
ordered the attack on the side of Fort Clinton, which was a circular
height, defended by a line for musketry, with a barbet-battery in the
centre, of three guns, and flanked by two redoubts; the approaches to it
through a continued abatis of four hundred yards, defensive every inch,
and exposed to the fire of ten pieces of cannon. As the night was
approaching, I determined to seize the first favorable instant. A brisk
attack on the Fort Montgomery side, the galleys with their oars
approaching, firing and even striking the fort, the men-of-war at that
moment appearing, crowding all sail to support us, the extreme ardor of
the troops, in short, all determined me to order the attack; Gen.
Vaughan's spirited behavior and good conduct did the rest. Having no
time to lose, I particularly ordered that not a shot should be fired; in
this I was strictly obeyed, and both redoubts, &c., were stormed.[22]
Gen. Tryon advanced with one battalion to support Gen. Vaughan, in case
it might be necessary, and he arrived in time to join in the cry of
victory!
"Trumback's Regiment was posted at the stone wall to cover our retreat,
in case of misfortune. The night being dark, it was near eight o'clock
before we could be certain of the success of the attack against Fort
Montgomery, which we afterwards found had succeeded at the same instant
that of Fort Clinton did; and _that_ by the excellent disposition of
Lieut. Col. Campbell, who was unfortunately killed on the first attack,
but was seconded by Col. Robinson, of the loyal American Regiment, by
whose knowledge of the country I was much aided in forming my plan, and
to whose spirited conduct in the execution of it, I impute in a great
measure the success of the enterprise."
From this official account by the British commander, we shall better
understand the statements (including Gov. Clinton's report) left us by
the brave defenders of the two beleaguered fortresses; and which will
properly begin upon the day preceding the battle.
On Sunday night Gov. Clinton, who had just arrived and taken command at
Fort Montgomery, (the defense of Fort Clinton being intrusted to his
brother Gen. James Clinton), sent out a party of about 100 men under
Major Samuel Logan of the 5th, or Dubois's regiment, across the
Dunderbergh to watch the motions of the enemy. The party returned in the
morning and reported that they had seen about forty boats full of men
land below the Dunderbergh. The real intention of the enemy was now
apparent. Hereupon the Governor sent out another party of observation,
consisting of 30 men, under Lieut. Paton Jackson (5th regiment) who took
the road that led to Haverstraw; when at about ten o'clock in the
forenoon, having reached a point some two miles and a half below Fort
Montgomery, they suddenly came upon a concealed party of the enemy,
within five rods distant, who ordered them to club their muskets and
surrender themselves prisoners. They made no answer, but fired upon the
enemy and hastily retreated. The fire was returned and our people were
pursued half a mile; but they got off without losing a man, and retired
into Fort Clinton. Soon after, intelligence was received at Fort
Montgomery that the enemy were advancing on the west side of Bear Hill
to attack that work in the rear. Upon this Gov. Clinton immediately sent
out 100 men under Lieut. Col. Jacobus Bruyn (5th regiment) and Lieut.
Col. McClaughry, to take the road around Bear Hill to meet the
approaching enemy; and at the same time dispatched another party of 60
men, of Lamb's Artillery, with a brass field piece, to occupy a
commanding eminence on the road that diverged westerly to Orange
Furnace, or Forest of Dean. They were not long out, before both parties
were attacked, about two o'clock in the afternoon, by the enemy in full
force. The party under Cols. Bruyn and McClaughry, fell in with them two
miles from the fort, when the enemy hailing McClaughry, who took the
lead, inquired how many men he had. "Ten to your one, d----n you,"
replied the undaunted colonel. But the enemy being so superior in
numbers, our people had to retreat, as of course they had expected, yet
keeping up a galling fusilade upon the foe. While doing so, the ground
being very rough and in places steep, Capt. James Humphrey, McClaughry's
brother in law, lost his gun (for then the American captains carried
both a gun and sword), or as others say, and which seems most correct,
had it broken by a shot from the enemy. In this dilemma he asked
McClaughry what he should do. "Throw stones like the devil," replied the
latter in thunder tones! The party on the Furnace road were strengthened
to upwards of an hundred, and kept their field piece playing lively upon
the cautiously advancing foe, doing great execution, till the cannoniers
were driven off with the bayonet, the enemy almost surrounding them. But
spiking the gun, they retreated in good order to a twelve pounder, which
by the Governor's direction had been placed to cover them, and also
keeping up the engagement with small arms, till most of them got within
the breastwork of the fort. The late Lieut. Timothy Mix, of Lamb's
Artillery, and who died at New Haven in 1824, aged 85 years, was of this
party. While in the act of firing the cannon his right hand was disabled
by a musket shot. Instantly seizing the match with his left, he touched
off the piece!
Clinton immediately posted his men in the most advantageous manner for
defending the works, and before many minutes the enemy, advancing in
several columns, reached the walls and invested them on every side where
possible to do so. Cannon planted at the entrances mowed them down as
they ascended the hill, but the breach was immediately closed up, and
they pressed on to the assault. The attack now became general on both
forts, and was kept up incessantly for some time; though the smallness
of our numbers (about 500, in both forts), which required every man to
be upon continual duty and demanded unremitted exertion, fatigued our
people greatly, while the enemy, whose number was thought to be at least
4,000, continued to press us with fresh troops. Yet notwithstanding
their utmost efforts, the enemy were many times repulsed and beaten back
from our breastworks with great slaughter. Col. Mungo Campbell fell in
leading the first attack on Fort Montgomery, his place being taken by
Col. Beverly Robinson, of the Loyal Americans. This caused a temporary
check. About half-past four, they sent a flag, which Lt.-Col. William
Livingston was deputed by the Governor to go out and receive. They
demanded a surrender in five minutes, to prevent the effusion of blood,
otherwise we should all be put to sword! The gallant young colonel
answered, with irony, that he would accept their proposals if _they_
meant to surrender, and could assure them good usage; that _we_ were
determined to defend the fort _to the last extremity_! Then the action
was renewed with fresh vigor on both sides; our officers aiding and
encouraging their men to every possible effort. Col. McClaughry was one
of the most active; full of fire, he fought like a tiger; his white coat
was seen, now here, now there, as he kept going about among his men,
inspiring them with his own invincible spirit. The conflict went on
until the dusk of evening, when the enemy stormed the upper redoubt at
Fort Montgomery, which commanded the fort, and after a severe struggle,
and overpowering us with numbers, got possession of it, when our men
were forced to give way. The first to enter the fort were the New York
Volunteers (led by Capt. George Turnbull), a provincial corps, whose
commander, Major Grant, was killed before the assault. At the same time
they stormed and got possession of Fort Clinton, in which, besides a
company of Lamb's Artillery, were none but militia, but who nobly
defended it, till they also were obliged to yield to superior force. The
garrisons, or as many as could, bound not to surrender, gallantly fought
their way out, those of Fort Montgomery retreating across the gully on
the north side; while many others, including Gov. Clinton, escaped over
the south breastwork, and making their way down to the water's edge,
crossed the river on the boom. The darkness of the evening much favored
the escape of our soldiers, as did their knowledge of the various paths
in the mountains, and a large number, with nearly all the officers, got
away. But many were taken prisoners, and about 100 were slain; among the
latter was a son of Colonel Allison, and Capt. Milliken, of McClaughry's
regiment (Mr. Sears' captain); also James Van Arsdale, of Hanover
Precinct, a kinsman of Tunis and John, and a private in Dubois's
regiment. John Thompson was killed, who was nearly related to the
Clintons, and cousin to William Bodle, Esq., late of Tompkins County, N.
Y.[23] The enemy paid dearly for their conquest, both in officers and
men, the total being 41 killed and 142 wounded. Among the officers
killed, besides Col. Campbell, Majors Grant and Sill, and Capt. Stewart,
was Count Grabouski, a Polish nobleman acting as aid-de-camp to Sir
Henry Clinton; and Sir Henry himself narrowly escaped our grape-shot, as
also Maj. Gan. John Vaughan, whose horse was shot under him.
Many incidents are related of those who met with hair-breadth escapes.
Gen. James Clinton was among the last to leave Fort Clinton, and escaped
not until he was severely wounded by the thrust of a bayonet, pursued
and fired at by the enemy, and his attending servant killed. He slid
down a declivity of one hundred feet to the ravine of the creek which
separated the forts, and proceeding cautiously along its bank reached
the mountains at a safe distance from the enemy, after having fallen
into the stream, by which, the water being cold, the flow of blood from
his wound was staunched. The return of light enabled him to find a
horse, which took him to his house, in Little Britain, where he arrived
about noon, covered with blood, and suffering from a high fever. Capt.
William Faulkner, of McClaughry's regiment, had a bayonet driven in his
breast with such force that, being unfixed at the same moment, it stuck
fast, when he himself drew it out, and threw it back with all his might,
and his man fell. The enemy were pressing into the fort, and the captain
made his way on the ground by the side of the column and got out.
Walking a mile or so he lay down to drink at a brook, the draft stopped
the blood, but he was too weak to rise. He "made his peace with God" (to
use his own expression), and expected there to die. But a man came along
on horseback, who placed him on his horse, and took him to an inn two
miles beyond. There he found a dozen of his own men, by whom he was
taken to his own house on the Walkill, and he finally recovered.[24]