Years in the making, a decisive confrontation occurred on July 19th, 1771 at James Breakenridge’s farm in North Bennington, Vermont.
A New York sheriff’s posse, including the Mayor of Albany, lawyers, magistrates, and militia clashed with the emerging Green Mountain Boys militia near the current location of the Henry Bridge which crosses the Walloomsac River, stopping the serving of papers and blocking the New York surveyors. The success of Hampshire Grants settlers in resisting the New York land claims made July 19, 1771 the birth of the Green Mountain Boys, and in a sense, the birth of the state of Vermont. [Read more…] about NY-VT ‘Breakenridge Stand-off’ 250th Anniversary Being Marked