Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1875-05-14
VINO Planned The TIeOnderosa Expedition {.

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The writer Of the lively and interesting
article CA The Hero Of Tieonderoga, which
We have co; led from the New York Tunes,
asserts that the expedition for the capture
Of Tieonderoga 90 can be traced back 10
Samuel Adams On what proof this asser-
ton i based does not appear. 1t i true
that Bancroft in his history says that
Samuel Adam. and John Hancock met the
Governor and Council of Connecticut at
Hartford, April ooh, l775, to promote
the surprise Of Tconderoga" But Nh
Bancroft, adds that the surprise had been
planned by the Green Mountain Boys The
earliest mention Of the project on record ap-
pears 70 be in letter QUOTED from Forces
archives by Coy. Hal) which was written
by Col. John Brown, of Pittsfeld, Mas.
from anada, in March, l777j. Brown had
been sent to Canada by the Massachusetts
Committee Of Safety to investigate the state
Of feeling u the people Of that province,
and wrote thence to Samuel Adams that
Ticonderosa must be seized il hcstilities
broke out Brown ADDS The people of
the New Hampshire Grants have engaged 10
do tbs business, and, in my opinion, are the
proper persons for the job, The Green
Mountain Boys were thus prominent in con
necton with this early suggestion Of the
! - - Tb~o1-- .has
Brown obtained the suggestion originally
from Iermonter, Capt. Peleg Sunderland,
the associate Of Ethan Allen, who was
Browns cuide and companion in his ex-
petition 10 Canada
Bat to whomsoeyer the idea of the cay
tuTe OF the fort first occurred-and it may 4
have occurred 10 many at once-we suppose
the credit Of the actual planning II the expe- /
dition belonged not to Adams or Hancock or
the Governor and Council Of Connecticut,
but To '- certain Connecticut gentlemen,
acting on their individual responsibility.
This Is the deliberate conclusion Of Gov
Hilanl Hail. Is expressed in his His
tory and it Is sustained by numerous
quotations from documents in the posse
sion Of the Connecticut Historical Society,
cited by J Hammond Trumbull, Of Hart
ford, in paper read before that Society
in January, 1869. These show that Col.
Samuel Parsons, Of Middletown, CT; Col
Samuel WHY'S, Of Hartford, and Silas
Deane, Of Wethersfeld, Ct, FIRST under
took and projected taking that fort The
receipts FOR the money borrowed from the
treasury of the Colony for the purpose
were signed by these three, and by three
Others, Christopher Lefingwell, of Norwich,
and Thomas MumfOrd and Adam Babcock,
Of New Haven. Noah Phelps and Bernard
Romens lefs Hartford with the money for
Salisbury, april 2sth. They were there
Joined by Captain Edward Mott, who with a
few volunteers went on TO Pittsfeld and "lell
in company with John Brown -who perhaps
suggested Alien TO them for commander, it
being plain that from the first they relied
va tAAD wv lSilII 10 !
furnish the nen Tor the expedition. At any
rate they Immediately despatched an e4-
press to the intrepid Col. Ethan Allen, de-
string him t. he ready to join them with
company Of his valiant Green Mountain
Boys" Ii was thus that Ethan Allen be-
came associated with the enterprise. lie
was not. 50 far as appears, the selection of
Samuel Adams, nor is there any evidence
that Adams 50 much as knew of the expe-
dition til two days alter it was in process of
execution. Samuel Adams has enough else
to his credit, without this; and while these
matters are being revived, they may as well
be stated correctly.
The remark of the Times writer. that
Ethan Allen did nothing notable after his
expedition to Montreal and Quebec is also
hardly correct. lie took no more forts, it
is true, for be was not exchanged, after
his capture by the British, till some months
after the surrender of Burgoyne, which
practically ended the fighting in this par. ,