250 and Counting

Oddly enough, having an episode about the Battle of Mamaroneck is one of those times when it pays to have grown up in New York. I saw that note in our common research document, then I clocked the date and said to myself, “No way is Mike going to know how to pronounce that.” So I gave him a little coaching. We’ve done this before, with each of us having to coach the other on pronunciation of locations when we have to report on events on the opposite coast (I get a lot of the Spanish West stuff,

Calling George Izard a “Nepo Baby” might be laying it on a little bit thick, but it’s pretty clear he came from some privileged people. His mother was Alice DeLancey. She was the niece of New York Governor James DeLancey and a descendant of Stephanus Van Cortlandt and Gertrude Schuyler. And if you’re paying attention as you move around New York, you’ll realize that those are some prominent names he’s got in his pedigree. George’s father was Ralph Izard, who was a delegate to the Continental Co

The Delaware Assembly was ahead of most other states in our fledgling nation, in part because they’d declared independence before anyone else. Back in June, as you may remember, Delaware declared its independence simultaneously from Britain and from Pennsylvania, of which it was considered a part. (This is why Pennsylvania is the only one of the thirteen colonies to be entirely landlocked, other than the access via the Delaware River.) So putting a government together would, of course, be the

Before I get into the events of New Rochelle, I have to confess that I’m kind of hating today’s artwork, and it’s not even published yet. Well, if I have to look at it then so do you. They can’t all be gems. The Battle at Pell’s Point had the Continental Army putting up more resistance than any reasonable British general should expect, so General Howe knew that reinforcements and supplies would be needed, so he camped out in New Rochelle for a few days while the bodies gathered for action. Lo

The Battle of Pell’s Point, also known as the Battle of Pelham, was an important battle of the Revolution that doesn’t get the attention that so many others get, largely because of the When and Where of the battle, and the fact that it wasn’t a huge win or loss for either side. What it did do, however, was provide some cover and distraction from the fact that Washington was still moving forces out of New York—that is, off of Manhattan Island—and onto the mainland, toward White Plains. As noted

When Washington’s Council of War (with a single exception) determined that sticking around New York City was a bad idea, the next step was deciding which way to go, and how to go about it. To a certain extent, the decision was made for them, because the British had pretty well sewed up the Hudson River, which meant that getting across and into New Jersey stealthily would be problematic. The other option was to move north, into the Bronx and the downstate area west and north of Pelham. There wo