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Butts Hill Fort Development: Rebel, British, French, American

June 6, 2021

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As we look to restoring Butts Hill Fort, one question that comes up is how the fort developed in the first place. The Diary of Frederick Mackenzie * in combination with the Revolutionary Era maps of the area give us an idea of how Butts Hill Fort (Windmill Hill Fort) developed over time. Military historians will have a better handle on construction methods, but the diary, maps and blueprints can help us to understand what we see at Butts Hill today.

December 8, 1776: as Mackenzie was arriving on the island as part of the British forces, he wrote: “The Rebels abandoned a well situated fort at the N. End of the Island yesterday, without attempting to defend it. It in some measure commands the passage to Bristol by the ferry.” My guess is that this is a reference to the Butts Hill (or Windmill Hill location as the British called it). The location does overlook the Bristol Ferry landing.

Dec. 30, 1776: The redoubt constructed by the Rebels above Bristol Ferry, and abandoned by them, is ordered to be repaired and a guard house to be erected therein for the accommodation of the advanced post. It is a much better situation for the advanced guard than that they are now in, and the troops on duty will not be liable to accidents from the wanton firing of the Rebels on the opposite side. This again I believe to be a reference to the Butts Hill Fort in the area “above Bristol Ferry.” The Rebels had fortifications across in Bristol and they would often direct fire at the troops stationed by the Aquidneck side of the Bristol Ferry crossing. The order here is to repair the redoubt and build a guard house.

Sept 12, 1777: As the works intended to be made for the defense of the North Part of the Island, require a good many workmen to complete them, and the duty of the Soldiers is rather severe, General Pigot sent a summons this day to the Inhabitants of the township of Portsmouth to assemble on the 15th instant at Windmill Hill in order to assist in carrying them on. They are required to work three days in the week.

Sept 15, 1777: In consequence of the General’s summons to the Inhabitants of the township of Portsmouth, to assemble in order to be employed to work on the Redouts, 17 only appeared this morning at the place appointed. The Majority of the Inhabitants being Quakers, they informed the General that it was contrary to their principles to assist, in any manner in matters of War, and that therefor they could not appear. They even refuse to be employed in constructing Barracks for the accommodations of the troops.

Sept. 17, 1777: We are at present very busy in fortifying different posts on the Island; and there are already more works planned and traced out, than can possibly be finished by the end of December. Those intended are a redoubt for 30 men and 2 cannon opposite Howland’s bridge. A fortified Barrick on Windmill hill for 200 men. A Redoubt on Barrington’s Hill for 80 men and 2 cannon. A redoubt at Fogland Ferry for the like numbers. A redoubt on Quaker Hill and a Barrack there for 200 men. A redoubt and Barrack for 60 men on Turkey Hill.

From these passages it appears the barracks at Windmill Hill were constructed beginning in September of 1777 with forced labor from the Portsmouth townspeople. Windmill Hill and Butts Hill are different names for the same area.

Nov. 11, 1777: The Barracks at Windmill-Hill go on so slowly for want of materials, that there is a prospect of the troops remaining in camp for three weeks to come.

Obviously the barracks were sorely needed but the construction was slow. Historian Walter Schroder in his book about the Hessian troops says that by the end of 1777 there was a battery with six guns at Windmill Hill as well as a redoubt for 100 men. A separate barracks for 300 men and officers had been constructed close to the other barracks. He writes: “The entire area encompassed earthworks some 700 feet long by 200-300 feet in width. Abbatis – an entanglement of cut tree limbs serving a role similar to barbed wire in modern times –had been placed outside the entrenchments and earthworks to slow down and harass advancing enemy foot soldiers. **

April 18th, 1778: As we have at present no camp equipage (except some old tents for about 500 men) I think we should immediately erect a respectable work on Windmill Hill, capable of containing a Regiment, and not to be taken without breaking ground against it. The enemy should by every means in our power be prevented from establishing themselves unmolested on Windmill Hill, or any part of the Northern extremity of the Island, for if they should we shall find it extremely difficult to dispossess them…

..A trifling temporary work should by no means be constructed on Windmill Hill; to as it is the best spot on the Island for a work of consequence, and such a work will at one time or other be found necessary there, the erection of a trifling work would be throwing away so much time and money.

It is clear that Mackenzie considered Windmill Hill (Butts Hill) and important location and thought it should be well developed as a defensive fort.

May 1, 1778: The 54th regiment are to construct a Redoubt round the Barrack at Windmill Hill, for the present security of that post.

May 5, 1778: The 54th Regiment is employed at Windmill Hill in throwing up a work round the large Barrack there.

Here it seems like there is a defensive perimeter built around the Barracks and guard House. This gives it the outline that we can even see today.

May 8th 1778: The regiments of Landgrave and Ditfourth to be posed at Windmill Hill; under the Command of Major General Losbert. They consist of near 1,000 men, their field pieces would be of great service there, they may be depended upon for the defense of the works. And Major General Losbert is the Second in Command on the Island.

It is hard to imagine a thousand soldiers at the fort. Some would be in the barracks and some would be encamped around it.

1780, July: The French arrived on Aquidneck Island. Before they had settled, there was news the British were planning to attack. Washington authorized Rochambeau “to call up the militia of Boston and Rhode Island to aid his army build the works for the defense of the island.”

The Black Regiment was split between guarding munitions in Providence and guard duty on Aquidneck Island. Sixty-four members of the regiment were sent to Newport and were incorporated into the “Rhode Island Six Months Battalion.” The Black Regiment veterans were among the 600 men encamped in Portsmouth guarding Butts Hill Fort, Howland Ferry and Bristol Ferry. One white recruit, Peter Crandall, wrote: “We landed on the north end of the island near Butts Hill Fort and pitched our tents on a height of land near Butts Hill Fort …. our duty was to go through the manual exercise, keep up quarter guard, and work on the fort.” This remnant of the Black Regiment and The Six Month Battalion were there until Nov. 1780. They remained at Butts Hill to work on the fort after the remainder of the Continental Battalion joined French troops in marching to join Washington’s army. *** In the summer of 1780 they connected the redoubt and the former British barracks into one structure.

Sources:

*Diary of Frederick Mackenzie Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard Press, 1930.

**Schroder, Walter. The Hessian Occupation of Newport and Rhode Island 1776-1779. Westminster, Maryland, Heritage Books, 2005. pg. 102.

***Kopek, Daniel M. They “fought bravely, but were unfortunate:” The True Story of Rhode Island’s Black Regiment.

Abbass, D. K. Rhode Tour: Butts Hill Fort: https://rhodetour.org/items/show/50

Maps and Blueprints

Edward Fage – Plan of the Works at Windmill Hill, Dec. 31, 1777 (facsimile in PHS collection)

Plan de Rhodes-Island, et position de l’armée françoise a Newport. Library of Congress Collection.

Plan de Rhode Islande, les differentes operations de la flotte françoise et des trouppes Américaines commandeés par le major général Sullivan contre les forces de terre et de mer des Anglois depuis le 9 Aout jusqu’a la nuit du 30 au 31 du même mois que les Américains ont fait leur retraite 1778

Butts Hill Fort: A Land History – From War for Independence to Today

May 28, 2021

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During the War for Independence the hill that was known as Butts Hill or Windmill Hill became the location of Butts Hill Fort. The location provided a commanding view of the Eastern and Western sides of Aquidneck Island including East Main Road and West Main Road. It was a prime location for defensive fortifications.

North view from Butts Hill (postcard from PHS collection)

1776 – Americans built small battery at Butts Hill.

1776 – December 8th. British occupation of island begins and American forces escaped via the ferries. British forces take over the battery at Butts Hill.

1777 -September: British General Pigot forced Portsmouth residents to work three days a week on the construction of the earthworks that remain today. Butts Hill Fort became the most important position because it guarded locations where Patriot forces might invade the island – Bristol Ferry, Common Fence Point, Howland’s Ferry and Fogland Ferry. It was a fortified barracks for up to 200 troops.

1778 – July 29th: The French fleet was expected in Newport so the British abandoned the fort to reinforce lines around Newport. American General Sullivan and his troops were waiting in Tiverton for an opportunity to cross to Aquidneck Island.

1778,- August 9 – 11th. On the morning of August 9th during a drill for the crossing, General Sullivan discovered that the British had abandoned fortifications at Ft Butts. He sent troops across because he knew the ferries were unguarded and they could cross safely. By August 11, American troops took over Butts Hill Fort.

Edward Fage – Plan of the Works at Windmill Hill, Dec. 31, 1777 (facsimile in PHS collection)

1778, August 20th, General Sullivan hears that the French fleet had gone to Boston for repair and resupply. The Americans were shocked by this news.

1778, August 24th. General Sullivan begins to make preparations for a retreat from the island.

1778, August 29-30th – Battle of Rhode Island. The British came after the American troops to prevent them from retreating from the Island. This battle came to be known as the Battle of Rhode Island. The heights of Butts Hill Fort provided the American Commanders with a view of the battlefield – Butts Hill, Quaker Hill and Turkey Hill. Although the Americans occupied the fort for only 17 days, it was their command post during the battle. The Americans successfully retreated.

1778, September 1st. The British return to Butts Hill Fort.

1779, October. British forces leave Butts Hill Fort and Aquidneck Island. The Americans again occupied the fort, and in the summer of 1780 they connected the redoubt and the former British barracks into one structure.

Plan de Rhodes-Island, et position de l’armée françoise a Newport. Library of Congress Collection.

1781, June: French troops leave Butts Hill Fort. Fort is abandoned. As Portsmouth recovers after the war, this land is unusable for agriculture and remains deserted.

1781, August: Five 18 pound guns with their carriages removed from Butts Hill to Easton Point

1783, June: RI assembly authorized sale at public auction of the gates, buildings and other installations

What happened to the land after the war is still somewhat of a mystery.

1850s Ward Map shows Butts Hill Fort, but no development of the land and no clear ownership. Butts family genealogy reveals that the Butts family moved away to Providence and other locations to practice their craft of rope making. They note that some of the land passes down through a daughter whose married name was Cook.

Civil War Era: There are reports that some militias use the fort for training purposes.

After the Civil War: Maps from the 1870s and 1885 clearly show the Fort as a prominent feature. During this time land evidence records show Charles Hicks Dyer and Charles Henry Dyer with ownership of the land around the fort. B. Hall Jr. also has a segment of Fort land.

1900: Notices appear in the newspapers for house lots for sale by Benjamin Hall Jr.

1908: The state of Rhode Island shows interest in making the land at Butts Hill Fort a state park.

1920s: Roderick Terry conveyed to Newport Historical Society, pieces of the land in 1923, 1924, and 1932.

Terry stipulated

That the fort would serve as a memorial or monument to the memory of those who fought in the American-Revolutionary War.
That said premises shall always retain the name of “Butts Hill Fort”.
That said premises shall never be used to make money.
That if the Newport Historical Society doesn’t take care of the fort, it would be transferred to the State of Rhode Island.
These provisions continue to control the property to this day!

1968 the State of Rhode Island transferred the property to Town of Portsmouth.

Sources:

Butts, Francis B. “The Butts Family of Rhode Island – Genealogy and Biography” 1891

McBurney, Christian. The Rhode Island Campaign. Yardley, PA, Westholme Publishing, 2011.

Dearden, Paul. The Rhode Island Campaign of 1778: Inauspicious Dawn of Alliance, Providence, Rhode Island Publications Society, 1980.

The French in Newport – Newport Historical Society, Fall 2003-spring 2004.

Neimeyer, Charles P. The British Occupation of Newport Rhode Island 1776–1779. Army History No 74, Winter 2010.

Abbass, D.K. “Butts Hill Fort” https://rhodetour.org/items/show/50

** Kopek, Daniel M. They “fought bravely, but were unfortunate:” The True Story of Rhode Island’s Black Regiment.

Bloomington, Indiana, AuthorHouse, 2015.

Reilly, James. Significance of Butts Hill in Portsmouth. July 1971 – Report submitted to the Rhode Island Historical Society.

Briggs Hill, Windmill Hill, Butts Hill: Part 1 of A Land History

May 21, 2021

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As we look to preserving the earthworks Butts Hill Fort, I wondered about the land history. Who owned this piece of land we are trying to preserve? How has this tract of land been used throughout Portsmouth history. Finding the answers to those questions is not so easy. Although Portsmouth has kept excellent land records, my skills in tracking back ownership are somewhat lacking. Let me share what I have gleaned through maps, historical records and secondary sources. I have tried to confirm as much as I could through Portsmouth land records and genealogical records. This is a work in progress, so maybe those knowledgeable in family genealogies can help me to find confirmations or missing links.

Part 1 – From Land Grant to War for Independence

Land grant: I usually start research by looking at West’s Land Grant maps to identify the original owners. Looking at these maps led me to believe that the land was town owned for many years. I do have a confirmation of the Durfee family on that land because town records show that in February of 1729 Thomas Durfee left “a parcel called the Wind Mill Hill land” to son Gideon Durfee.

1638 to after 1708: The Town of Portsmouth retained the property we know as Butt’s Hill. The Town, however, permitted a windmill to be erected so that the windmill was owned by other familiar Portsmouth families. The handing down of the Windmill and the land around it was recorded in the town records.

1657: William Cory and William Earl applied to the town council to trade a piece of land for land on Briggs Hill to build a windmill.

1665: The hill land (or pieces of it) was owned by Caleb Briggs.

1668: A windmill is erected by William Earle and William Cory. Cory is known as a carpenter and miller. Cory and Earle are brothers-in-law.

1682 (Feb 24, 1682). William Cory (carpenter and miller) in his will gave the windmill to his wife Mary.
Mary traded land back to the town.

1721: Caleb Bennett inherits the windmill from father Robert Bennett. Robert had married Anne Cory. Perhaps the windmill and land came from her family.

Will – To Caleb Bennett from father Robert: Transcription of Land Evidence Record in Rhode Island Genealogical Biographies

1725 January 15, John Butts bought of Caleb Bennett the windmill and about one rood of land (about a quarter of an acre) on Windmill Hill. This I was able to confirm through Portsmouth land evidence.

Sale – Bennett to Butts – Land Evidence Records of the Town of Portsmouth

At this point the area was known as Windmill Hill or Butts Hill. The Fage Maps called it “Windmill Hill.” In the family genealogies I don’t find evidence that John Butts or his son John Butts, Jr. were millers or farmers. There was a Butts family homestead that was torn down in the 1870s. Before the War for Independence some members of the Butts family, including John Butts, Jr., were ship owners.

According to a Butt’s family genealogy: “The name of the fort was given in honor of John Butts and his family for their loyalty, and aid given patriot Army during the struggle for independence. John Butts occupied the homestead of the Butts family, and was engaged in the shipping interests of the Island. The *War of the Revolution” was a great disaster to him; the British warships captured or destroyed his little fleet of vessels and the army swept everything from his land. He was greatly respected by the people among whom he lived, and the soldiers of the Patriot Army. To his honor and patriotism the fort which they struggled to defend was named, and from that time has been known as “Fort Butts.” It is also said that the industry of the Island is largely due to his energy and influence. He married Susanna, daughter of William and Susanna Cornell, of Portsmouth, August 17, 1767.” **

Looking at their genealogies, the family didn’t seem to come back to the land at the end of the War. Family members were active in rope making not milling or farming and moved to other parts of the state.

** (Source: Francis Butts, 1891 The Butts Family of Rhode Island, a genealogy and biography. http://rs5.loc.gov/service/gdc/scd0001/2007/20070619024bu/20070619024bu.pdf )

Occupied Portsmouth: The Redcoats Chopped all the Wood in Sight

May 16, 2021

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A number of years ago I was privileged to take a tour of the Glen with arborist Matt Largess. He commented that the Glen itself was one of the few areas on the island with old growth trees because the British were not able to easily cut down the trees during the occupation of the Island. That explained why in the 1850s the Glen would be an attraction because its natural beauty had been preserved.

Fage Map shows woods near Fogland Redoubt

When Maj. Frederick Mackenzie of the British forces arrived on the island in December of 1776, the winter was mild and he writes little about woodcutting in his diary. But the winter of 1778 was extremely cold. On June 15, 1778 Mackenzie wrote: “The consumption of Wood for the Garrison last winter was about 300 cords per week. It would be less expensive to send Coals from England.” A cord of wood measures 8 feet long, 4 feet high and 4 feet wide. It wasn’t only the troops that needed wood to survive a cold winter – it was also needed by those colonists who stayed on the island. Timber in Portsmouth was not always easy to cut. Mackenzie records: “Officer and 36 British went into the Country today, to be employed in cutting wood in a large Swamp on this side of Fogland Ferry, for the use of the Garrison. It is computed that there are about 400 Cords in the Swamp, but it cannot be got at but during a hard frost.” Figuring out where that swampy area was is difficult for us, but Edward West’s article “Lands of Portsmouth” notes two Swamps in the area of Mint Water Brook on either side of East Main Road.

At first the British and Hessians felled the trees closest to their camps. The Hessians had a camp above Fogland Ferry. They continued to cut further away until there were no trees to cut and burn. Mackenzie records that they then turned to cutting down orchards next on Common Fence Point and other locations. After the orchards, all other sources of wood were eyed. Vacant houses, wood carriages, and even wooden farm tools went into the wood supply. Mackenzie writes on December 6th, 1778: Every step is being taken to supply fuel: All the timber trees on the island are cutting down and the old wharves will be broken up.” Vacant houses were taken apart and the wood was used for fuel. Rail fences were taken apart and burned. On December 13th his diary entry reads: “All the carriages that can be collected on the Island are employed in bringing in the wood which is cut by the party out on the island.” “Turf” was cut on Brenton’s Neck and used for fuel. When the island was exhausted, they sent fleets out to collect wood on Conanicut, Block Island and Long Island.

When the Occupation was over, those remaining on the island had a difficult time rebuilding homes and barns. Many Portsmouth farmers turned to wood from Tiverton to begin to restore their buildings.

Sources:

Diary of Frederick Mackenzie
Giving a Daily Narrative of His Military Service as an Officer of the Regiment of Royal Welch Fusiliers during the Years 1775-1781 in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York, Volume II

Edward West: ” The Lands of Portsmouth, RI” – Rhode Island Historical Society Journal, July, 1932.

Herbert E. Slayton: newspaper clipping November 12, 1937: They’d Keep Warm Enough – in collection of Portsmouth Historical Society. https://portsmouthhistorical.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Scrapbook-Part-5-p41-49-p50-Blank.pdf

Fage, Edward: Plan of Rhode Island and the Harbour. 1778. Available online: https://collections.leventhalmap.org/search/commonwealth:hx11z3134

Anne Hutchinson School Dedication 1928

May 9, 2021

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Anne Hutchinson School has been in the news lately. I had little information about the school itself, but I have been looking through a folder of old clippings on loan from Jim Garman, and I came across an article about the dedication. There were familiar names in the article. H. Frank Anthony was the chairman of the school board. Howard Hathaway was the President of the Town Council. The Weyerhaeuser Lumber Company provided the land for the school.

The dedication ceremony itself began with the children of Quaker Hill School singing patriotic songs. From the article it appears that 150 students had been crowded into Quaker Hill School with half day lessons and they would be attending the new school. The representative of the Rhode Island Department of Education, Dr. Charles Carroll, expressed pleasure that the school was named for Anne Hutchinson. Anne, he said, “established the first class for home education in the United States”. Carroll noted that the town voted to establish a school in 1716 (Southermost School built int 1725) and in 1916 the town built Quaker Hill School (now the current administration building) which was considered the finest rural school house in the state. Town Clerk George Hicks noted that Weyerhaeuser had conveyed the three acre property to the town as a free gift. Hicks talked about attending Bristol Ferry School and how careful the students were to not mar any surfaces.

Every room of the school had potted plants and cut flowers from Mr. Vanderbilt’s Oakland Farm greenhouses. Pictures were loaned by noted Portsmouth artist Sarah Eddy.

The article describes the building:

“The new building, completed and up-to-date in brick, with four classrooms, teachers sitting room and office for the superintendent. In the basement are the coatrooms, with arrangements for children’s coats, and a playroom large enough for all the pupils. The sanitary arrangement are the best. The artesian well was put down by Whitworth and Bridge. Charles F. Grinnell and Son of Tiverton were the contractors for the entire building. The many large windows make the lighting in the class rooms perfect. These rooms are two west of the corridor, and two east, with office rooms branching from the classrooms. The building cost, completed, approximately $35,000. The grading on the lawn was by Howard Hathaway.”

Occupied Portsmouth: British and Hessian Encampments from Mackenzie’s Diary

May 1, 2021

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The diary of Frederick Mackenzie gives us a remarkable record of what was happening in Portsmouth during the British Occupation of Aquidneck Island (December 8, 1776 to October 1779).

Mackenzie provides a very readable account of what was going on with the American side as well as the British and Hessian. He spent much of his time in the Portsmouth area. A short time after he arrived he provided this glowing account of Quaker Hill before the destruction began.

There is a hill about 7 miles from Newport, and on the Eastern side of this Island called Quaker Hill, from there being a Quaker meeting-house on it, from whence there is a very fine view of all the N. part of the Island, and the beautiful bays and inlets, with the distant view of towns, farms, and cultivated lands intermixed with woods, together with the many views of the adjacent waters, contribute to make this, even at this bleak season of the year, the finest, most diversified, and extensive prospect I have seen in America. The Ships of War are in such positions as to make it appear as if they were placed there only to add to the beauty of the Picture. In the beginning of summer this must be a delightful view, and I should think hardly to be equalled in America, or any other country.

Mackenzie comments on troop movements throughout his diary, but in one particular place he gives us a detailed account of the stations of the British and Hessians. As you will see from the map I have marked, the troops were stationed throughout Portsmouth.

June 13 1778

The following are the present stations of the troops on this Island. – Bunau’s Regt – At Windmill hill: ( Butt’s Hill). This Regt furnishes all the posts at the North End, in front of a line drawn from their right & left to the Shore.

22d Regt At Quaker hill on the East road, their right to the Seconnet. They furnish the posts on the East shore, from Ewing’s, as far as McCurrie’s. (Our McCorrie Beach area know as Sandy Point at that time.)

43rd Regt On the left of the West road, near Turkey hill: four Companies with their right to the W. Road; and four Companies, 200 yards to their left. They furnish the posts on the West shore, from the left of Bunau’s Regt as far as the Creek of Layton’s Mills (Lawton Mills).

A Detachment of 80 Hessians from the three Battalions in Newport, at Fogland Ferry (End of Glen Road). This detachment furnishes the post at Fogland, and Patroles as far as little Sandy-point, on their right (Little Sandy Point is what we call Sandy Point today).

54th Regt At the Blacksmith’s on the E. road. Their right to the road, and to that which leads up from Lopez’s house (Aaron Lopez’s house and bay (Greenvale area today); furnishing the posts from Sandy point to Black point.

All the abovementioned Troops report to General Smith, and furnish a chain of post and patroles from Black point on the E. side, round to Layton’s (Lawton’s) Creek on the West.

Later in the summer he writes of Hessians moving from their encampment at Bowler’s House to Mr. Overing’s House (Overing – Prescott House at the Portsmouth Middletown line). The 54th Regiment moves to the artillery redoubt at Bristol Ferry, Common Fence and Howland’s Bridge. The rebels had guns on Gould Island in hopes of covering a retreat through Howland Neck. The frigate Sphinx is moored off Arnold Point.

I have placed numbers on the Blaskowitz Map to give you an approximation of the encampment areas mentioned.

Windmill Hill (Butts Hill)
Bristol Ferry
Howland Bridge
Common Fence
Unmarked
Howland Neck
Quaker Hill
Arnold Point
McCurry (McCorrie Point) called Sandy Point in those days
Turkey Hill
Fogland Ferry (end of Glen Road)
Lopez Bay (Greenvale area)
Metcalf Bowler’s House
Overings House (Prescott)
Layton (Lawton) Mill Creek
Black Point

From Diary of Frederick Mackenzie Giving a Daily Narrative of His Military Service as an Officer of the Regiment of Royal Welch Fusiliers during the Years 1775-1781 in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York, Volume II

Mary Almy’s Journal: The Battle of Rhode Island from a Loyalist View

April 25, 2021

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In a recent trip to a museum I came across Mary Almy’s miniature portrait and journal as part of a display on American art at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas. The two items aren’t usually viewed together. The portrait is in the Rienzi Collection in Houston and the diary is in the Redwood Library collection. Viewing those two items reminded me that Mary’s journal gives us a Loyalist view of what was happening during the British Occupation and the Battle of Rhode Island.

Mary Almy is an interesting figure in history. She was born into the Gould family in Newport in 1735. Her great grandfather, Walter Clarke, served three terms as Governor of Rhode Island. Mary married Captain Benjamin Almy in 1762. Mary was a Loyalist, but Benjamin had volunteered to serve with the militia forces that were supporting the American Continental forces. One wonders how many families on Aquidneck Island were split between Loyalist and American sympathies. Mary ran a boarding house on Thames Street in Newport. Christian McBurney in his book “Spies in Revolutionary Rhode Island” portrays Mary as hosting a Tory spy ring passing information on French movements once the French occupied Newport.

Mary’s journal is written to her husband and relates what was happening in British occupied Newport during August of 1778. Basically it tells about the fears of the coming of the French Navy and ends with the outcome of the Battle of Rhode Island. She writes to him September 2, 1778 – “I am to give you an Account of what Past during the Seige–but first Let me tell you it will be done with Spirit — for my dislike to the Nation that you call your friends..” Mary believed the Patriot cause would end with the “discredit of the Americans.”

The focus of this blog will be her entries on the Battle of Rhode Island.

Mary Almy’s Diary – I have converted this somewhat with modern spelling and punctuation.
August 22, 1778

Sent a light horse man to call the 38th back. (38th Regiment of Foot with 334 men in Newport). By this time all was horror and confusion. The Hessians overtook a Party in the West Road (West Main Road, Portsmouth) near Mr. Redwood’s farm. They pursued with violence. The other retreated with prudence leaving the roads strewn with dead bodies. The East Road (East Main Road, Portsmouth) was a scene of blood and slaughter from Cousin Almy’s down the foot of Quaker Hill. All the crossroads filled with them and they kept up a smart fire up until 2 o’clock. Then they began to bury the dead and bring in the wounded. Oh how many wretched families were made that day! It would have softened the most callous heart to see cartloads of wretched men brought in. Their wives screaming at the foot of the cart in consort with their groans. Fine youths with their arms taken off in a moment. In short it is too far beyond my description. The horrors of that day will never be quite out of the remembrance. I quitted company and hid myself to mourn in silence for the wickedness of my Country. Never was a heart more differently agitated than mine. Some of my good friends in the front of battle here and heaven only knew how many of the other Side. Instead of inquiring news or asking after a soul, a stupidity took hold of me at last. I shut myself from my family to implore heaven to protect you and keep you from imprisonment and death. Every dejected look and every melancholy countenance trembled for fear they would say – “your husband lies among the slain” or that he is wounded and a prisoner. Think you what a life I live owing to your violence of temper – which I knew would lead you to all things dangerous.

Sunday morning August 23, 1778

The Provincials encamp on the Wind Mill Hill. Little or no firing from either party. More regiments ordered out. Something great is intended if you should not slip away too soon. Constant riding from Quaker Hill every hour expecting a general battle. My whole heart is sick with melancholy story. Every hospital is crowded with wounded men. No church (services.) No appearance of anything but horror and distress. The Country people will plunder. In the midst of all the confusion some were going to eternity while others were robbing. Innocent farmers houses – death and destruction was before their eyes from every quarter until the officers heard what was doing. They directly ordered guards to every house – whose kind protection was the saving of them. And to do justice to the British, their humanity and leniency was beyond all conception to the wounded prisoners. There was a hospital on purpose for them. Nurses were chosen from amongst the inhabitants that they might have every indulgence that their unhappy situation needed – doctors whose goodness, understanding and compassion might never be forgotten. Whenever justice is done at the end of war, I hope this instance will be in your records. Night is coming on – everything I suppose will be left for daylight.

Monday August 24th, 1778

By daylight, the trampling of horses, the different sounds of voices, brought to her thoughts a poor creature who had scarcely had sleep enough to compose her distracted brain but had brought her self willing to hear the worst. Seven o’clock – a light horseman with news. They are retreated – quite gone over Howland ferry. At eight o’clock a messenger. They began to decamp early in the evening and before day. Their artillery, baggage , wounded men and part of the Army were over. At 10 o’clock Thomas Hill came in. He told me he saw you on Friday – that you desired him to let me know by daylight on Monday morning you should be at home at breakfast with a number of gentlemen. Oh, Mr. Almy. What shocking disappointment to you. Can you keep up your spirits? Heaven I hope will support you. So positive, so assured of success. And remember in all your difficulty and trials of life that when the all wise disposer of human events thinks we have been tried, then our patience is waiting. We will be amply repaid by a joyful meeting.

And a joyful meeting they must have had. After the Occupation and War Mary’s Tory leanings didn’t seem to be held against her. She continued with her boardinghouse and hosted Thomas Jefferson in 1784 and George Washington in 1790.

References

McBurney, Christian. Spies in Revolutionary Rhode Island. Charleston, History Press, 2014.

Hattendorf, John B. Mary Gould Almy’s Journal 1778. Published for the Rhode Island Society Sons of the Revolution, 2018.

Town Pond Through the Years

April 18, 2021

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Have you walked by Town Pond lately? It is so quiet and nature filled it is hard to imagine that Town Pond was once a hub of the early Portsmouth settlement. Many people assume Anne Hutchinson and those traveling with her came from the Tiverton side, but they didn’t.

There is much debate about whether Portsmouth was founded by Anne Hutchinson. What cannot be debated is that Portsmouth was founded because of Anne. When Anne was banished from Boston, a group of her followers decided to come with her. The idea was to make a settlement where there was not a state religion – a settlement where people would be free to follow their individual ways of worshipping God.

About March 7, 1638, while in Boston, a group of men signed what is now known as the Portsmouth Compact. It was an agreement to join together as a “Bodie Politik.” Will and Edward Hutchinson (Anne’s son) traveled to Providence to Roger Williams who arranged a meeting with Narragansett Sachems Miantonomo and Canonicus. On March 24th they gave the sachems “a gratuity” of forty fathoms of white wampum beads, ten coats, and twenty hoes. Randall Holden represented the Hutchinson group. The men continued south on ships to a new home Aquidneck Island in Narragansett Bay. They agreed to make the first settlement on the flat northeastern end which had a natural spring saltwater cove. Their first homes resembled what the Native Americans used. They pitched tents and built huts to live in while they cleared land. The men chose two to three acre house lots between the cove and spring and began framing simple houses.

Anne walked from Boston to Portsmouth. On April 1, 1638 she began a six day walk. With her were children Edward (24), Bridget (19), Francis (17), Anne (12), Mary (10), Katherine (8), William (6), Susan (4 and a half), and Zuriel (2). Anne’s daughter Bridget carried month old son Eliphal. They walked from Wollaston to Quincy, through Braintreee, Brockton, Tauton, and Pawtucket. They slept in wigwams and makeshift shelter along the way to Providence. Providence had about a hundred settlers at the time and was a maritime center. The group with Anne traveled the last sixteen miles by ship to Aquidneck. Their landing spot was Town Pond.

Although the intention was to make a traditional community where the house lots were together. In a short while they would abandon this idea. A segment of the group left in 1639 to found Newport. Those who stayed in Portsmouth regrouped to lots along Founder’s brook. At this time Town Pond was in the middle of activity. There were two springs that provided water – one to the right of Town Pond near the Common Fence that held their animals. The other was by Founder’s Brook and that provided a central gathering spot and washing area. Baulston’s Tavern was located at the southern tip of the Pond. The Training Ground was across the way by the brook.

As the pond began to silt up, the town grew to the South. The leaders set up a new center for the town called “Newtown.” Newtown never gained in popularity because the residents preferred to live on their farm lots rather than together in a town. Portsmouth really has not had a town center – we have neighborhoods such as Common Fence Point, Bristol Ferry, Newtown and Island Park. The Walling Map from the 1840s shows only a few homesT near Town Pond but many more around the Bristol Ferry neighborhood. The 1870 Ward map has a railway running across the mouth of the pond and we can still see the bridge today. The 1921 Sanborn map shows houses along Bristol Ferry Road, but few near the Town Pond. Lots from Bristol Ferry property go across to the Pond.

Town Pond remained a tidal (or Salt) pond until 1949 or 1950 when dredged material from the Fall River navigation improvement was deposited in the Pond. It became a mudflat and brush covered the area. By the 1990s there were efforts to restore the pond. The Narragansett Bay Estuaries Program, with the help of Senator John Chaffee got the Congress to authorize a “Narragansett Bay Ecosystem Restoration Study.” Restoration began in 2005 and was completed in 2008.

During the monitoring of the project, the Army Corp of Engineers recorded the wildlife that they saw around 2010.

“The following list of fauna was directly observed by monitoring crews and is not to be construed as a definitive list of organisms present within the project site:
Invertebrates: Mud crabs, green crabs, blue crabs, blue mussels, fiddler crabs, mud snails, moon snails, oysters (introduced);
Birds: great blue heron, black-crowned night heron, snowy egret, peregrine falcon, redwing black bird, mallard duck, herring gull, laughing gull, killdeer, cormorant, and semipalmated sandpiper;
Fish: silversides, killifish, rock eel;
Mammals: raccoons, white tail deer, red fox.”

In summary, the report states: “The main goal of the Town Pond restoration project was to restore a salt marsh ecosystem by recreating the former habitat in the project area for associated flora and fauna. Based upon the monitoring results we have documented in this report, the restoration project functions physically as an intertidal salt marsh with areas of mudflats and permanent open water. The monitoring indicates that the project met the pre-construction restoration objectives.”*

Today we can take a walk by one side of the Pond and imagine what it was like when the first settlers landed there in 1638.

Reference

https://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Portals/74/docs/Topics/TownPond/FinalMonitoringReport.pdf

Blaskowitz Map: Southern Part of Portsmouth at Pre-Revolutionary Times

April 16, 2021

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What does the Blaskowitz Map tell us about Portsmouth in the days before the War for Independence? We continue our exploration of the map south of Sprague Street.

What features are marked on the map?

Natural features:

There are two points labeled “Black Point.” One is in the Newtown area and the other is what we call “Black Point” today. “Sandy Point” is what our modern day McCorrie Point is labeled. “Little Sandy Pt.” is our Sandy Point beach area today. Coggeshall Point and Arnold’s Point are on the map. There are two Weaver’s Coves – one in Portsmouth and one at Middletown. The Cove in Portsmouth is by the entrance to Lawton’s Valley.

Man-made features:

There is a Tavern around East Main and Dexter Street. The 1700 Quaker Meeting House is on the map. During the Occupation it was used to house British troops and ammunition was stored in the basement. A fulling mill (to wash and dress wool) was located off of Union Street in the Lawton area. Fogland Ferry is off of Glen Road and heads across to Tiverton. A grist mill (to grind grain) is located within the Glen. Butts Hill is not labeled, but there seems to be troops located there. The orderly rows of dots around the Butts Hill area and to the south of what would be McCorrie Lane today suggest Patriot reinforcements. Blaskowitz’s text mentions that he has included works and batteries raised by the Americans. The location between McCorrie Lane and Glen Road would be a defense against invasion from across the narrow strait of Fogland Ferry. We know that Hessian troops were encamped around there during the Occupation.

Roads: These are listed with the modern names because Blaskowitz did not label the roads.

Dexter Street, Power St. (heading to “Black Point”), Hedley Street, Freeborn Street, Church Lane, Middle Road, Mill Lane, Stub Toe, School House, Locust Avenue, East Main, West Main, Braman’s Lane, Mitchell’s Lane, Union Street, Jepson Lane, part of Sandy Point Ave.

Neighborhoods: Where are the homes distributed?

Newtown area on East side, West Main Road has clusters, South Portsmouth (Wapping Road area) has a number of homes. East Main Road from Quaker hill to Union has dwellings as does Union Street itself.

Slave Owners, Slave Traders: Redwood, Overing and Lopez

April 14, 2021

portsmouthhistorynotes Portsmouth History Slave Trade in Rhode Island, Triangular Trade 3 Comments

When you think of “prominent Portsmouth farmers” do you think of slave owners and slave traders engaged in the Atlantic Triangle Trade? One purpose of Blaskowitz’s 1777 map was to detail the farms of prominent Aquidneck Island farmers. In doing light research into the stories of the “farmers” listed on the map, I became keenly aware that many of Portsmouth’s most important landholders were heavily involved in slavery. We may know Redwood as a philanthropist, Lopez as a merchant and Overing as a loyalist, but their business interests were dependent on the slave trade. As a student of farming in Portsmouth, this saddened me. I should not be surprised, but it is an element of our colonial history that we need to understand.

Abraham Redwood, Jr: West Main Road

The Redwood family had a large sugar plantation in Antigua. Abraham Redwood, Jr. was born in 1709 and he was active in the family sugar business from his teenage years. When his father died, the planation – along with the over 200 slaves that worked it – were signed over to Abraham Redwood, Jr. Some sources say he settled on his father’s estate in Portsmouth in 1727. It was known as Redwood Farm. Other sources say that in 1743 he purchased 140 acres of land in Portsmouth that was part of the Coggeshall land grant. It may be that he added to the land he had inherited from his father. He had a great interest in horticulture and he cultivated rare plants, shrubs and trees. He built a greenhouse, hothouse and a serpentine walk through a meadow. From the West Indies he imported orange and fig trees along with guava and pineapple roots.

Redwood developed a friendship with Bishop George Berkeley and he participated in philosophical discussions with others in Newport. He was instrumental in the founding of Redwood Library “with nothing in view but the good of mankind.” Forty-five others joined in the effort to create a “gentleman’s library” that also included practical books. Redwood was a dedicated member of the Friends Church and donated money for Quaker schools. Redwood is known for his philanthropy and care for the poor, but he declined to free his slaves in Antigua or his Rhode Island slaves – Sampson, Abby, Jenny and Charles.

Henry Overing: West Main Road at the Middletown line

Through the efforts of Barbara Norman Cook (Kittymouse) and Doris Duke’s Newport Restoration Foundation, we still have the Overing House in our community. Few people call it the Overing House. They call it the Prescott House because General Prescott was captured there in July of 1777 by Patriot forces led by William Barton. Henry Overing was a Loyalist, wealthy slave owner, rum distiller and sugar baker in Newport. The house was probably built by the Nichols family and Overing bought the property in 1770. At the time of the sale the property was described as having 55 and a half acres, partly in Middletown and partly in Portsmouth. It bordered the land of John Jepson to the East. The 1774 census lists 3 black slaves on the property. Overing’s Newport household lists 8 slaves. Overing’s business of producing sugar would rely heavily on the infamous Atlantic Triangle Trade. During colonial times, Rhode Island was one point of this “triangular trade.” In the Caribbean slaves worked the plantations that produced sugar and molasses. Ships carried the sugar and molasses to Rhode Island where it was made into rum. The rum was traded in West Africa and exchanged for slaves.

Vintage image of Overing Farm (Prescott Farm) from the collection of the Portsmouth Historical Society

Aaron Lopez: Wapping Road

Aaron Lopez’s family came to America to flee the persecution of the Jews in Portugal. In 1752 he moved to Newport and developed diverse business interests. He traded in Caribbean goods such as sugar, molasses and cotton. He later traded in spermaceti wax for candles that were made from sperm whale oil. In 1756 he had a business that manufactured the candles themselves, and later spread out to the manufacture of barrels, rum, and ships. With his father-in-law Jacob Rivera he entered the slave trading business with up to 20 ships in the slave trade from Africa to the Caribbean as well as The Atlantic coast of the colonies. They carried on this trade from 1761 to 1774.

In writing to one of his captains, Lopez instructed: “Our orders to you are, that you Embrace the first fair wind and make the best of your way to the coast of Africa,” wrote merchant Aaron Lopez to Capt. William English. “When please God you arrive there . . . Convert your cargo into good Slaves” and sell them “on the best terms you can,” ordered Lopez, who outfitted four slave ships that year.” * (reference below)

One estimate is that their ships brought over 1100 slaves from West Africa to the West Indies and southern colonies. With the War for Independence his businesses suffered. He moved from Newport to his farm in Portsmouth. Greenvale Vineyard owns some of land that once was Lopez’s property. The owners have found evidence that he grew grapes there for wine that would be used at religious ceremonies. He fled to Massachusetts and was known for sheltering Jewish families.

Lopez, Overing and Redwood all had personal slaves. All three benefited from the infamous Triangle Trade. Lopez actively traded in slaves. Redwood was a West Indies plantation owner whose fortune was made on the backs of slave labor. Overing’s business relied upon the Triangle Trade for raw materials for the sugar business. In viewing Portsmouth history we have to acknowledge that our town benefited from the money brought in through this trade. Newport was the primary market for Portsmouth produce and much of the money that paid for that produce was earned through the slave trade somehow. Lopez and Redwood are known for the good they have done in establishing libraries and synagogues that have lasted until this day. We need to acknowledge all aspects of their impact on our community.

______________________________

“Captives on the Move: Tracing the Transatlantic Movements of Africans from the Caribbean to Colonial New England.”
Author: Kerima M. LewisSource: Historical Journal of Massachusetts, Volume 44, No. 2, Summer 2016, pp. 144-175. Published by: Institute for Massachusetts Studies and Westfield State University

portsmouthhistorynotes

Butts Hill Fort Development: Rebel, British, French, American

Butts Hill Fort: A Land History – From War for Independence to Today

Briggs Hill, Windmill Hill, Butts Hill: Part 1 of A Land History

Part 1 – From Land Grant to War for Independence

Occupied Portsmouth: The Redcoats Chopped all the Wood in Sight

Anne Hutchinson School Dedication 1928

Occupied Portsmouth: British and Hessian Encampments from Mackenzie’s Diary

Mary Almy’s Journal: The Battle of Rhode Island from a Loyalist View

Town Pond Through the Years

Blaskowitz Map: Southern Part of Portsmouth at Pre-Revolutionary Times

Slave Owners, Slave Traders: Redwood, Overing and Lopez

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