Here is what we have been up to!

Over the winter Brian Hollingshead, a descendent of Lieutenant Anthony Hollingshead of the New Jersey Volunteers & Loyal Refugee Volunteers, inquired as to Todd's availability for speaking at the Hollingshead Family Reunion to be held near Toronto in July.

Although it was a considerable distance from home and bumped right up against a major reenactment in Fort Ticonderoga, the logistics were worked out to permit Todd to attend and speak on this unheralded Loyalist.

Arriving in Toronto a couple days early allowed a day's research in the Archives of Ontario, something Todd had not done in person since the early 1990s. Brian very generously allowed him to speak at the very beginning of the program so that he would be able to get on the road to Ticonderoga, which turned out to be an almost ten hour trip.

The lecture was done in the Heintzman House in Thornhill, Ontario. This is a 19th Century house on the grounds originally owned by Anthony Hollingshead.

The Hollingshead family members present could not have been nicer or more attentive to the one-hour lecture, which included several excellent questions at the end.

Todd brought a copy of John André's poem The Cow Chase for each attendee. This work, of course, commemorated the defense of the Bull's Ferry blockhouse in 1780 by a group of Loyalists which included Anthony Hollingshead.

Thanks very much to Brian and all his kin for their kindness and hospitality and for this opportunity to share our work.

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In the Battles and Campaigns area, we have added two accounts of the little studied Battle of Crooked Billet, Pennsylvania.

Fought in 1778 north of Philadelphia, a detachment of British troops, along with Loyalists, defeated a detachment of militia and captured a large quantity of baggage. It was typical of the petit guerre fought around there and New York City later in the war.

Military Section:

We have been extra busy in the Regimental History area of the site in recent weeks!

British Legion. With the release of the movie The Patriot starring Mel Gibson, we thought we'd add some more material concerning the British Legion, given they are the basis for the movie's "bad guys."

Among the documents you will find a return of the killed, wounded and prisoners of the Rebels from the Battle of Waxhaws, South Carolina. This was the engagement that later historians (and the filmmakers) would cite as Tarleton's "policy" of taking no prisoners, hence the term "Tarleton's Quarter." You will see Tarleton actually summoned the Rebel commander Colonel Buford to surrender upon somewhat generous terms, but was refused.

The return of casualties also clearly shows that a majority of the Rebels actually survived the battle, either wounded or as unhurt prisoners. To be sure it was a bloody affair, but hardly a massacre of unarmed, peaceable people.

East Florida Militia. Admittedly not much, but there were a few hundred men in this non-rebellious colony that provided for its security throughout the war. While not nearly as active as the Rangers below, they were important in supplementing the British forces in the province.

East Florida Rangers. We have fleshed out this corps with more documents, including a return of the unit from 1776/1777. We have not been able to locate any muster rolls or pay lists for the unit, which is unfortunate. This unit was disbanded in 1779 and mostly reenrolled as a Provincial regiment, the King's (Carolina) Rangers, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Brown.

Georgia Artillery. A volunteer company of Georgia Militia, raised in 1781 to serve heavy artillery pieces at Savannah.

Independent Highland Volunteers. A volunteer company of the New York City Militia. Established in October of 1776 they served in the city the whole war, without seeing any combat.

Indian Department. A section that will continue to grow over the years. The Indian Department refers to those officers and men of European descent who commanded, advised, supplied, translated for or served alongside the Indian tribes throughout North America. The majority, however, served in the North out of Canada, Niagara, or Detroit. Some of the new items we have added here include correspondence from the Niagara area and a list of some men who served under Daniel Claus in Quebec.

King's American Rangers. A difficult group to track, particularly for those new to Loyalist research. This regiment was to consist of two battalions, but ended up having them serve in separate commands - one in the Northern Army, and one for the Army in America. We have added a new document showing a number of the officers, formerly from other regiments, who in 1779 had traveled from New York City to Quebec City and were in terrible need of support.

King's American Regiment. While traveling to a reenactment in Williamsburg, VA, Todd had an opportunity to stop at the Virginia Historical Society in Richmond. There he found some items concerning Colonel Edmund Fanning and Ensign John Wickham (his nephew). We have added some of them in here.

King's County, New York Militia. Brooklyn's contribution to the British cause! From one of the five surrounding counties of New York that were under British control, this militia regiment mounted guards and occasionally fended off Rebel whale boat raids from New Jersey.

McAlpin's Corps of Royalists & the King's Royal Regiment of New York. We were very fortunate to have recently made a new friend, an amateur collector by the name of Alan Shields. Alan is the creator behind The War for American Independence website and owner of the American Colonies Web Ring.

Alan had purchased a document that he graciously scanned and sent to us, a letter from the British commander in Canada, General Frederick Haldimand, to Sir John Johnson, concerning the men in Captain McAlpin's Corps. We were fortunate in having the return letter from Johnson to Haldimand, found in the latter's papers in the British Library.

It is fun when you can marry up to and from correspondence, particularly when one is in private hands. We thank Alan very, very much for his kind donation, and for additional items he has sent us which we will be putting online in the next couple of weeks.

We also have a new document in here describing the earliest formation of the regiment. This was kindly provided for us by one of the site's first visitors, all the way from Switzerland, our friend Sandra Naehrig. Thank you Sandra!

Todd also brought back some new material from the Archives of Ontario, found in a couple of their collections.

Nova Scotia Volunteers. Sandra has once again provided us a document, this one being the authorization to Governor Legge to raise this corps.

Royal Fencible Americans. The first Provincial regiment authorized, these were the folks who defended Fort Cumberland in 1776 against the invasion of Nova Scotia by Jonathon Eddy and his small horde of Acadians, New Englanders, Indians and rebellious Nova Scotians. Commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Goreham, the corps served the entire war in Nova Scotia (including modern New Brunswick), while recruiting parties served at Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Newfoundland, Island of Saint John's and even on the Burgoyne Campaign!

While we're on the subject of the Fencibles, Todd bought a book called Siege of Fort Cumberland by Ernest George Clarke. We'll try to do a review of it and put it on the site in the near future.

Our friend Sandra likewise donated a document for the Fencibles, for which we thank her.

South Carolina Royalists. We have at long last set up a page for one of the largest regiments raised in the south. Formed as early as May of 1778, this regiment, commanded by Colonel Alexander Innes, served through the end of the war, in East Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. It was disbanded in Nova Scotia in the fall of 1783.

At one time it consisted of two weak battalions, but in 1780 it was consolidated into one. In June of 1781 it became a mounted cavalry regiment, serving as such until ordered to East Florida in October of 1782.

Several smaller units were drafted into it, namely the South Carolina Light Dragoons, South Carolina Rangers, and the North Carolina Independent Dragoons.

The regiment served in such battles as the Sieges of Savannah and Charlestown, Enoree, and Hobkirk's Hill.

West Florida Provincials. We were very happy to discover a number of excellent financial documents from West Florida in 1778, located in the Public Record Office. They have greatly added to our understanding of the corps raised there, and we look forward to adding more of these documents in the future. For starters, we have added one concerning a rather short-lived corps commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John McGillivray. One need only compare the number of commissioned officers to the number of other ranks to understand why it was quickly disbanded by the British.

Slowly, but surely, we are filling in the Muster Rolls area of the site. New this time around we have added rolls for:

Butler's Rangers. Rolls for this unit are few and far between, but we are happy to present this 1778 muster. While these are not true muster rolls, they are close enough!

New Jersey Volunteers. There are more rolls in existence for this regiment than for any other. We have set up rolls for the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 6th battalions, and hope over the next month or so to present the remaining two battalions. We have tried to provide a variety of time periods as well.

We have a number of interesting additions to the Courts Martial area, including a pair of very hard to find Regimentals Courts.

The vast majority of existing cases are of the highest level offenses, tried by a General Court Martial. More minor offenses were handled by the regiments to which the offenders belonged.

The Judge Advocate of the Army, a high ranking officer in England, only reviewed and preserved those cases tried by a General Court Martial. Given how few regimental records survive, it is not surprising there are so few Regimental Courts around.

Below are the cases we have added.

British Legion. A fascinating and gruesome tale of Quarter Master John Tuck, who killed a would-be assassin with his sword after the man had been taken prisoner by the cavalrymen under his command.

Emmerick's Chasseurs. A case of four soldiers who were accused of stealing and selling cattle to Hessian soldiers. Interestingly, one of the accused, Thomas Stanley, would go on to become an officer in this corps and later the British Legion.

King's Royal Regiment of New York. Two cases here, both on the regimental level. These were discovered in the Malcolm McMartin Papers in the Archives of Ontario. They deal with minor crimes while the soldiers were garrisoned in Montreal in the winter of 1782/1783.

New Jersey Volunteers. We were very happy to be able to put the case of Jacob Wood on-line, as his descendent has become a regular visitor to our site. Jacob deserted from a detachment of the 2nd battalion that was stationed at Fort Knyphausen, for the stated purpose of fetching his family from New Jersey. This case certainly touches on some of the legal complexities of desertion and has somewhat of a surprise ending.

Prince of Wales American Volunteers. Three cases here. Two, the cases of Ensigns Garrison and Leech, are related, as they are for these officers fighting with each other. The third case involves a soldier, Patrick Moore, caught in the act of deserting but apprehended by some alert militia.

Queen's American Rangers. We are very pleased to present not only a fascinating and lengthy murder trial, but some modern expert analysis of it as well!

Captain Job Williams and Lieutenant Peter Augustus Taylor exchanged views one night after consuming a quantity of adult beverages. The conversation was accentuated by Captain Williams smashing a pair of chairs over the head of Lieutenant Taylor, who died a number of days later.

What actually caused his death though? Why did a team of surgeons treat him as they did?

We asked our very good friend Mike Williams, who knows more about 18th Century medicine than anyone else we know. Mike in turn reviewed the data with a modern physician, so we were able to explore both the most likely cause of death and why the surgeons acted as they did.

We thank Mike and Dr. Marshall McCoy, both of the U.N.C. Hospitals in Chapel Hill, NC, very much for taking the time to assist us with this.

We have also added an unusual case of a private in the Rangers tried for attempting to entice British soldiers to desert with him to Pennsylvania. None of the soldiers were interested, though, much to the detriment of the ranger involved, one Peter Brady.

Genealogy Section:

In the Female Ancestors area, we have added another in our series of personal letters written by or to women during the war. This one is a letter from the distinguished Colonel Edmund Fanning, commander of the King's American Regiment, to his sister, Mrs. Hannah Wickham in 1778.

Another donation from our friend Alan Shields, an address to the American Loyalists by the officers of the King's Rangers, dated Prince Edward Island, 1782, has been posted to the Post-War Settlement area.

In addition to being of interest on its own merits, this document provides us with an interesting comparison of the same material from two different, but contemporary, sources.

We happened to have a copy of the document from the Colonial Office of the Public Record Office in Kew, while the copy donated by Alan is one that was published in a 1783 issue of Rivington's Royal Gazette. While they are clearly the same item, there are subtle differences between the two.

Reenacting Section:

It has been a busy year for reenacting. Todd's group, the 4th Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers, has been especially busy of late.

They recently completed two important shows, one in Virginia and the second in northern New York State. We have added pictures from both in the Photo Gallery.

The first event was a program entitled "Under the Redcoat" at Colonial Williamsburg. This involves a force of about 125+ British, Hessian and Loyalist soldiers, plus their dependents, occupying the town at about the exact time of year when Lord Cornwallis and his army did in 1781.

The troops mount guard duty, patrol the streets, perform maneuvers, receive pay, draw provisions, etc. We have four sets of photos from that event now up in the gallery.

The second event was held in July at Fort Ticonderoga, New York. This was the national Grand Encampment of the Brigade of the American Revolution, and it involved about 700 participants on both sides.

The weekend involved each side garrisoning the fort for one day, courts martial, drill, battles, and a night at the sutler's. There are three sets of photos in the gallery, all taken on the Saturday of the event.

In the Reenactment Groups area there have been a few additions to the calendars of Major Timpany's and Captain Hayden's Companies of the 4th Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers. We've also added a new address for the contact person of the 2nd Battalion, DeLancey's Brigade, Brewerton's Company.

If your Loyalist reenactment group does not have a page on our site, get one! We do the work and there is no cost to your group. Contact either Nan or Todd for info.

&c &c &c Section:

In the Internet Links area we have added several new Reciprocal Links. We are very pleased to see that folks are starting to link to us, and we're happy to be able to link back to them when we know about it.

Last, but not least, we have added two pages of information and subscription instructions for our new monthly chat. We hope that those of you who have been attending are having as much fun at these sessions are we are! What a terrific and knowledgeable group of folks!

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In early July, the History Channel presented a special on the 1780 battle at King's Mountain, South Carolina. This is the NPS site where Todd spoke this past May, and the special features, among others, our new friend and Park Ranger, Chris Revels!

The Loyalist troops there, the American Volunteers, were led by the famous Patrick Ferguson, inventor of the breech-loading Ferguson rifle. Ferguson was shot and killed during the course of the battle and is buried atop the mountain in a well marked grave.

We have two videotapes of the show that are available for loan to anyone who would like to borrow them (first come, first served). Our only request is that you reimburse us for the cost of mailing the tape out to you if you elect to borrow one of them.

If you are interested in participating in our videotape "lending library," just drop us a line at Todd Braisted with your request. Should the tapes both be out on loan by the time you reach us, we will put your name on a waiting list and notify you when they are available again.

Chat Lecture Transcripts Available Online

We have had any number of requests for transcripts of the lectures that Todd has been giving in our monthly Wednesday night chats (2nd Wednesday of each month, 8 p.m. Eastern time!).

Unfortunately, it is not possible to log the chats as they are taking place, but we have managed to capture the lecture portion of the last two chats and have made them available online in the Files area of our chat page at for those of you who are registered there.

If you are not registered for our chats, you can remedy that situation by following the instructions at http://www.royalprovincial.com/chat1.htm.

The two lectures that are currently available are a brief history of the 3rd Battalion New Jersey Volunteers and a talk on Rebels who deserted and joined the Loyalist ranks.

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Our friend, Dr. Marianne Gilchrist, writes that e-Groups has a new mailing list devoted to discussion of Banastre Tarleton, commander of the British Legion. No doubt an outgrowth of the interest created by The Patriot... You can visit the webpage and subscribe, if you are so inclined, at http://www.egroups.com/group/Banastre_Tarleton.

Until next month.....Happy Hunting!

Your Most Humble & Obedient Servants,
Todd & Nan

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