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Rouse, Brave Citizens: An Appeal to New Yorkers to Support Revolution

September 10, 2026 by Dr. Bruce W. Dearstyne Leave a Comment

In December 1776, the American Revolution was just getting started and New York was in crisis. New York’s delegates to Philadelphia had signed the Declaration of Independence in July 1776.

But by the end of the year, though, New York was in peril – Long Island and the city of New York had been occupied by the British, the Westchester County region was not in control of either side, and British authorities were appealing to New Yorkers to abandon the rebels and support the Crown. [Read more…] about Rouse, Brave Citizens: An Appeal to New Yorkers to Support Revolution

New York’s Response to the Declaration of Independence

July 3, 2026 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Conscious of the new political status which the Province of New York had attained by the adoption of the text of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4th, the deputies of the New York Provincial Congress voted unanimously on July 10th:

“That the style or title of this House be changed from that of the Provincial Congress of the Colony of New York to that of the Convention of the Representatives of the State of New York.” [Read more…] about New York’s Response to the Declaration of Independence

New York’s Uncertainty Over The Declaration of Independence

July 2, 2026 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

At the outset of the emerging American Revolution there was no intent to overthrow the established social order, nor to subvert the government of the British Empire.

Most colonists wanted self-government, self taxation and direct representation within the empire, and professed to stand for their old and recognized rights as men and as Englishmen under the British constitution, which they believed a blind parliament and an obstinate ministry were violating. [Read more…] about New York’s Uncertainty Over The Declaration of Independence

New York’s Revolutionary Provincial Congresses 1775-1776

June 26, 2026 by Guest Contributor 2 Comments

By May 1775 civil war between the American colonies and the British government had begun. The Battles of Lexington and Concord, and the seizures of Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point told the story of an appeal to arms.

Town, county, city and state committees, as representatives of the people, assumed the functions of government, took the initiative in opposing the objectionable acts of the British parliament, and gradually, perhaps more or less unconsciously, prepared the people for the Revolutionary War. [Read more…] about New York’s Revolutionary Provincial Congresses 1775-1776

Critical Mass and the Road to Revolution, 1763-1776

April 3, 2026 by James F. Sefcik 4 Comments

According to Webster’s American Dictionary, “critical mass” is the time when a turning point is reached in a series of events leading to a major action. Scientifically, the term is used when sufficient size of matter leads to a chain reaction, as in a nuclear reactor.

Thus, “critical mass” can help explain the American Revolution. [Read more…] about Critical Mass and the Road to Revolution, 1763-1776

Dutch Arms Dealers & Military Engineers in the Revolutionary War

January 16, 2026 by Jaap Harskamp Leave a Comment

Modern international law prohibits a neutral nation from supplying arms, ammunition, or equipment to any warring party, either directly or indirectly.

Eighteenth-century Dutch legal minds argued the opposite case. They stuck to the principle of “free ships make free goods,” dictating that a vessel under a neutral flag cannot be captured or confiscated.

Neutrality was driven by self-interest, a desire to achieve economic advantage without being involved in hostilities. [Read more…] about Dutch Arms Dealers & Military Engineers in the Revolutionary War

Pontiac’s Uprising: The American Indian War for Independence

January 7, 2026 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

In April 1763, the American Indian War for Independence (1763-1766) — also called Pontiac’s Rebellion or Pontiac’s Uprising for the Ottawa Nation leader who organized a coalition against European colonial powers — started with the siege of Fort Detroit.

In July 1764, an English colonial force that included 500 Native fighters departed from Oswego for operations against Pontiac’s forces to the west. Attacks by Native forces spread east and south as a result of continued European colonists’ trespassing and settlement on Native lands. [Read more…] about Pontiac’s Uprising: The American Indian War for Independence

John Jay’s Early Leadership in the Revolutionary Era

July 13, 2025 by Dr. Bruce W. Dearstyne Leave a Comment

Now that we are beginning to note the 250th anniversary of the Revolution, we will have a good opportunity to highlight New York’s role – and the roles of individual New Yorkers.

One leader whose role is often overlooked or slighted is New York’s John Jay (1745-1829). He was an important “founding father” – member of the Continental Congress, lead writer of the New York State Constitution, first Chief Justice of the state and later of the nation, and New York’s second governor. [Read more…] about John Jay’s Early Leadership in the Revolutionary Era

Complaints of Tyranny: Excerpts from the Declaration of Independence

July 3, 2025 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. [Read more…] about Complaints of Tyranny: Excerpts from the Declaration of Independence

NY’s Sixth Attorney General Josiah Ogden Hoffman

June 10, 2025 by Historical Society of the New York Courts Leave a Comment

Born on April 14, 1766, in Newark, New Jersey, Josiah Ogden Hoffman was destined for a life that intertwined law, politics, and a significant legacy.

After receiving his legal education in his uncle’s law office, Hoffman rose to prominence as a skilled litigator, often crossing paths with notable figures like Alexander Hamilton and steamboat pioneer and one-time Chancellor of New York James Kent. [Read more…] about NY’s Sixth Attorney General Josiah Ogden Hoffman

The Griggs Family and the Loyalist Migration to Canada

April 10, 2025 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

Alexander Griggs (1717-1801) was 58-years-old and living in Dutchess County, NY, when he, by order, signed the Articles of Association in Poughkeepsie in 1775. Not soon after, he moved to Halfmoon, in Saratoga County, with his wife Hester Freer Griggs (1727-1801) and their three sons, Abraham, John and Simon.

It appears that although Alexander had been forced to declare his allegiance to the Patriot cause, all three of his sons remained loyal to King George III during the Revolutionary War. They were indicted and convicted of crimes against New York, and as a result, Abraham had his Halfmoon property was confiscated. [Read more…] about The Griggs Family and the Loyalist Migration to Canada

Fake News: Augsburg, New York City & The American Revolution

July 25, 2024 by Jaap Harskamp Leave a Comment

Augsburg is spectacular city in Bavaria with a rich history in finance and culture. It was home to the Fugger family of bankers who rose to become a global powerhouse of capitalism in the space of just three generations. Wealth was translated into cultural splendor. [Read more…] about Fake News: Augsburg, New York City & The American Revolution

Hessians: German Soldiers in the American Revolutionary War

April 25, 2024 by Dr. Liz Covart Leave a Comment

In this episode of Ben Franklin’s World, Friederike Baer, an Associate Professor of History at Penn State Abbington College, joins us to explore the lives and wartime experiences of the 30,000 German soldiers the British Crown hired and dispatched to North America during the American War for Independence. [Read more…] about Hessians: German Soldiers in the American Revolutionary War

Oneida County’s Coxe Patent: Some History

March 28, 2024 by Richard Williams Leave a Comment

To really understand the Oneida County‘s 1770 Coxe Patent, we should start with Heath Patent, granted some 140 years earlier by King Charles I. The 1629 document gave Sir Robert Heath (1575-1649) the patent for the Province of Carolana (Carolina) “to enlarge the Christian religion as our empire and increasing the Trade and Commerce of our Kingdom.” [Read more…] about Oneida County’s Coxe Patent: Some History

The Land System of Colonial New York

January 25, 2024 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

What follows is a 1917 essay, “The Land System in Colonial New York” by Charles Worthen Spencer published in the Proceedings of the New York State Historical Association, (Vol. 16). At the time Spencer was Professor of Political Science at the University of Nevada. It has been annotated by John Warren.

Adequate description, even in outline, of the land system of any community would comprise so much detail, both of governmental policy and practice and of the community’s reaction there-to, that in a paper of this compass only selected features may be referred to. It will be necessary, also, to confine the treatment mainly to the period between 1691 and the opening of the intercolonial war [the French and Indian War] in 1755. [Read more…] about The Land System of Colonial New York

The Revolution’s First Bloodshed, New York’s Liberty Poles & The Battle of Golden Hill

July 21, 2023 by Johanna Porr 2 Comments

After the end of the French and Indian War, there was tension over King George III and Parliament’s plan to tax the Colonies to pay off the war debt. John Wilkes, editor of The North Briton newspaper and a member of Parliament, opposed the King in his publications.

Wilkes’ most critical editorial was printed in 1763 in Issue # 45, a number highlighted to evoke memories of the Jacobite Uprising of 1745, commonly referred to as “The 45 Rebellion” or simply “45” in political culture. The King was personally offended and issued a warrant for Wilkes’ arrest. [Read more…] about The Revolution’s First Bloodshed, New York’s Liberty Poles & The Battle of Golden Hill

Sean Kelleher: Toasts as Cultural History

March 8, 2012 by Sean Kelleher Leave a Comment

Today’s traditions is to raise a glass and offer a toast to celebrate a wedding and a new year. In the 17th through the early 19th century, public toasting was very common and many of these toasts are documented in old newspapers. “Toasts were efforts to draw all present into an agreeable fellowship, whether they wanted to be drawn in or not. At the best. the practice knitted together people from different classes into a comity of good cheer,” explains historian Peter Thompson in And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails. [Read more…] about Sean Kelleher: Toasts as Cultural History

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