Hero of Fort Schuyler

In August 1777, Peter Gansevoort, Jr., defended Fort Schuyler (also known as Fort Stanwix) during a three-week siege by 1,700 British soldiers, Tories and Indians commanded by Colonel Barry St. Leger. Gansevoort won the distinction of successfully resisting a British siege in a period when every other continental post in New York was either evacuated or surrendered. His valiant effort led to the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga, a crucial point of the war.
Born to an affluent Dutch family in Albany County, New York, Gansevoort was active in several theaters of Revolutionary War operations, including General Montgomery’s Canadian campaign (1775), the Champlain-Hudson–Mohawk Valley defense against Burgoyne’s northern invasion (1776–1777), the Sullivan-Clinton campaign (1779) and the New York–Vermont insurrection (1781). After the war, he was active in both military and civic arenas, rising to the position of brigadier general of the U.S. Army in 1809. Before his death, he presided over General James Wilkinson’s court-martial in 1811.
This documentary edition provides 279 pieces of correspondence to and from Gansevoort (and a few others) from 1775 to 1812.

David A. Ranzan is the University Archivist and Special Collections Librarian at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York.
Matthew J. Hollis is a Ph.D. candidate in early American history at Binghamton University, SUNY. He lives in Vestal, New York.

Peter Gansevoort, Jr.
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 280
Bibliographic Info: 21 photos, 4 maps, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2014
pISBN: 978-0-7864-7948-1
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1680-3
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Preface 1
Chronology 5
One. 1775: Invading the North 7
Two. 1776: Defending the Lake 13
Three. 1777: The Siege of Fort Schuyler 35
Four. 1778: News of the War 90
Five. 1779: Expedition into Indian Country 120
Six. 1780: Preparing for Imminent Attack 143
Seven. 1781: The Albany Militia Brigade 157
Eight. 1782: Protecting New York State 190
Nine. 1783: Organization After the War 203
Ten. 1784–1812: Service After the War 212
Appendix 231
Chapter Notes 235
Bibliography 263
Index 269