Battle of Golden Hill

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Print from 1884 commemorating the Battle of Golden Hill
Battle of Golden Hill, by Charles M. Lefferts, circa 1919–1920

The Battle of Golden Hill was a clash between

Gaspée Affair, the event was one of the early violent incidents in what would become the American Revolution.[1]

Background

During the imperial crisis with Britain in the 1760s, the

red coats" also posted their own handbills which attacked the Sons of Liberty as "the real enemies of society" who "thought their freedom depended on a piece of wood".[2]

Event

On January 19, 1770, six weeks before the Boston Massacre, Isaac Sears and others tried to stop some soldiers from posting handbills at the Fly Market at the foot of Maiden Lane. Sears captured some of the soldiers and marched his captives towards the mayor's office, while the rest of the British soldiers ran to the barracks to sound the alarm. A crowd of townsfolk arrived along with a score of soldiers. The soldiers were surrounded and badly outnumbered. Fellow soldiers tried to rescue them but were ordered to their barracks. As they were being escorted to their barracks, they reached John Street between William Street and Pearl Street. This area was known as "Golden Hill",[4] after a nearby wheat field.

An officer then said, “Soldiers, draw your bayonets and cut your way through them."[5] More soldiers arrived and a group of officers arrived to disperse the soldiers before the situation got totally out of hand.[5] Several of the soldiers were badly bruised and one had a serious wound.[1] Some of the townsfolk were wounded and according to some sources, there was one death, though this is disputed.[2]

Effects

Although several people were wounded in the event, no one was killed.[5] It also made Alexander McDougall famous in the area and later a general in the Continental Army.[6] After the battle, the last Liberty Pole was raised on February 6, 1770. Though the event was not as famous as the Boston Massacre, it was remembered in 1898 with a plaque on the site of the battle, in current day Eden's Alley.[3] However, the building was demolished and the plaque disappeared.[7]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0805061207
    . Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e Ruppert, Bob (October 21, 2014). "The Battle of Golden Hill –Six Weeks Before the Boston Massacre". Journal of the American Revolution. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  3. ^ a b Ulmann, Albert (September 17, 1898). "The Battle of Golden Hill.; Fought in John Street in 1770 in Defense of New York's Liberty Poles -- The First Blood Shed in the Revolution" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  4. ^ Post, John J (1882). "Old streets, roads, lanes, piers and wharves of New York. Showing the former and present names, together with a list of alterations of streets, either by extending, widening, narrowing or closing". R. D. Cooke. p. 20. Archived from the original on April 10, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c ""First Blood": The Battle of Golden Hill" (PDF). New York. January 19, 1770. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  6. ISBN 978-1402740862
    .
  7. ^ Young, Michelle (July 4, 2013). "Daily What?! Lost Plaque at the Battle of Golden Hill, First Battle of the American Revolution". untappedcities.com. Retrieved December 25, 2015.

External links

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