The Oneida County History Center has announced a virtual lunchtime lecture with Alexis Albright, curator of the Oriskany Museum, who will look at the Battle of Oriskany, General Nicholas Herkimer and the Tryon County Militia.
The Battle of Oriskany was one of the bloodiest battles of the American Revolution. Loyalists and several hundred Native American allies ambushed an Patriot military party attempting to relieve the siege of Fort Stanwix.
On August 6, 1777, General Nicholas Herkimer and about 800 men of the Tryon County militia, plus about 60 Oneida warriors, were ambushed by a British Loyalist and Native American force of about 450-500 men about six miles east of Fort Stanwix. Herkimer was mortally wounded, and the battle cost the Patriots about 450 casualties, while the Loyalists and Native Americans had approximately 150 dead and wounded.
The site is known in Iroquois oral histories as “A Place of Great Sadness.” The site has been designated a National Historic Landmark; it is marked by a battle monument at the Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site.
The presenter of the program on August 4, Alexis Werchowski Albright, is the curator of the Oriskany Museum in Oriskany. She is an alumna of Oriskany Central Schools and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in History from Clarkson University. Alexis specializes in genealogy and primary source research.
This free online presentation is set for Tuesday, August 4th from 12:30 to 1:30 pm. To view the stream or for more information, visit the Oneida County History Center website.
The Oriskany Museum is currently open by appointment as permitted by NYS pandemic guidelines.
Illustration: Herkimer at the Battle of Oriskany, August 6 1777 by Frederick Coffay Yohn.
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