The aegis & intelligencer., 1895-02-08
OUR LOCAL MILITIA, MINUTE MEN
AND FLYING CAMP OF'T6
PREPARED BY DIR. GEO. W. ARCHER.
I From the Original Lists. |


by the provincial convention which met at
Annapolis on December 8, 1774 and ad journ-
ed ON the 18th of the same month. AS, how
ever there had as yet been no armed conflict
with the mother country, the convention did
not take upon itself to order, but merely re-
commended, that certain preparations be
made to resist encroachments that were con-
tinually increasing and must soon, to all ap-
pearance, end in actual war. One of these
recommendations was, that all persons be-
tween the ages of sixteen and fifty should en-
roll themselves into companies OF about sixty
eight men, choose officers, equip themsel, es
with arms, and engage assiduously in military
exercise, and that the county committees raise
ten thousand pounds by voluntary subscrip-
tions, to purchase arms and ammunitions for
the use of the companies so raised, the amount
expected from Hartford county, being four
hundred and sixty-six pounds.
The next convention which met in April,
l775, did little beyond urging the carrying out
OF the previous recommendations. The con-
vention, however, which met in July, 1775,
after several battles had been fought in the
Eastern colonies, and which sat until the 14th
of August assumed authority proportionate
to the still increasing public peril, and estab-
lished form of government, which, though
temporary, was effective for its purposes, aud
endured until March, 1777 when the province
passed to the dignity of State. This con-
vention of July, rs, issued positive orders,
llSIeau Vi ucFo auu lLS re
solutions became at once laws, with power to
enforce their execution.
Among the measures adopted was one for
the enrolment of the militia. All able-bodied
freemen from sixteen to fifty years of age, eX-
cept clergymen, practicing physicians and
persons religiously scrupulous about bearing
arms, were required to enroll before the 18th
of September ensuing, in companies not ex-
ceeding "a, nor less than so men. If they
exceeded the former number, .'all above 6S
were to be void" These companies were to
serve in any part of the province. When a
company reached fifty men in number, they
were to elect officers, unless this had al
ready been done in which, case those already
elected were to be confirmed, and before the
1st of October the captain of each company
was required to send their names to the Com
mittee of Observation (the county committee),
who were to transmit them to the Council of
Safety at Annapolis to be commissioned.
Each company was to exercise one day In every
week and each battalion, into which the COM
panies were to be formed, not oftener than
once q month, nor less than once in two
months.
The same convention ordered that forty
companies of Minute men, numbering Is
privates each, be enrolled in the province al
once, to serve until the lst of March, '76, "to
consist of those who voluntarily offered them
selves, to be strong and effective aud conven.
lent for ready assembling and exercising to-
gether." OF these, three companies were to
be raised in Hartford county, which, with five
companies required from Baltimore county,
were to form a battalion, to be exercised two
days in each week; eight men to be drafted
from each company, to act with the battalion
as company of light infantry. There were
to be. in all, eight battalions of minute men,
who were required ''to serve in this or the
neighboring Colonies The militia were to
serve only in Maryland.
As yet no penalties had been prescribed for
refusal to enroll. But ON the 4th January, '76,
the convention ordered that all who had not
enrolled before the 10th March ensuing should
give up all their arms except pistols, to be
paid for and distributed among the militia.
Minute men were also required to enroll after
their term expired (lst March, and all per-
sons who had not enrolled by the 1st Septem-
ber were to be fined from forty shillings to
flO, to be paid within one month after notice.
from this fine all were exempt who had not
f3O worth of property, if loyal. 1t was also
ordered that latter the 10th of May no uni
form except hunting shirts be worn at the ex-
ercises Officers to be distinguished by feath-
ers, cockades, &C." This restriction upon
uniforms was probablyan economical measure.
On the 9th January, '76, sixteen companies
of the Hartford county militia were formed by
the Committee of Observation into two battal-
ions-the Upper and the Lower, of eight COM
panies each. Field officers were recommend
Aquila Hall, Colonel John Love, Lieut., Col
onel DIR. Josias Carvil Hall, First Major; Dr.
John Archer, Second Major Richard Dallam
Quarter Master For the Lower Battalion,
Benjamin Rumsey, Colonel Thomas Bond,
Lieut., Colonel Abraham Jarrett, First Ma
jor; John Taylor, Second Major Robert
Amoss, Quarter Master
On the 25th June, '76, the convention order
ed "that 3, ,405 of the militia of the province
be formed into "Flying Camp" to act in the
middle department, which embraced New
York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware
and Maryland. They were ''to volunteer and
serve until the lst Of December unless sooner
discharged" The object of the flying camp
was to reinforce the army until additional
regular troops could be raised. Harford's
quota was two companies, of 6S men each,
which, with four companies from Baltimore
county, were to form battalion, to be com
manded by Col. Josias Carvill Hail. of the
former county.
Before presenting the twenty lists still ex-
tant-several Others being missing-of the
militia companies enrolled in the county, |
will explain that there seems to have been a
contention among the captains of some of the
earliest companies, as to the order in which
they were to stand upon the record for the
contemplation of posterity, as early and ar
dent patriots. And although the Committee
of Observation have transmitted their opinion
on the subject by endorsing an ordinal figure
upon each list, it must be owned that the in
teresting question of priority is left in doubt.
l will, however, in presenting them, observe
the order endorsed by the official body, though
think it open to criticism. They seem to
have determined the order of enrolment by
the date on which each return was made to
them, although some of the companies
which were returned later, are shown, by the
dates affixed, to have been enrolled consider
ably earlier than those to which the priority is
accorded.
With but two exceptions, which will be not
ed in the proper places, the following is the
paper subscribed in every case, and it is there
fore deemed superfluous to repeat it at the
head of each list.
"We whose names are subscribed do hereby
enroll ourselves into company OF militia,
agreeable to the resolutions of the Provincial
Convention held at Annapolis the 26th day of
July ITS, and we do promise and engage that
We will respectively march to such places
within this province, and at such times, as We
shall be commanded by the convention or coun
Gil of safety Of this province, or by our officers
in pursuance of the orders of the said conyen-
tion or council and there, with our whole power,
fight against whomsoever we shall be com
manded by such authority as aforesaid"
"Josias Carvil Hall's Company.-No l.
"Witness our hands this
18th day OF Sept, 1775
''Josias Carvel Hall, Captain; William
Young, First Lieutenant; John Beadle Hall,
Second Lieutenant Thomas Hall, Ensign.
Later John Beadle Hall was made First
Lieutenant and Francis Holland. Second
Lieutenant.l James Webster, Freeborn
Brown, Michael Gilbert, Jr., Edward Hall,
Edward Carvel Tolley, John Patterson, Thos.
Peregrine Frisby, Richard Ruff, Richard Will
mott, Jr., Garrett Garrettson, IN. p; George
Young, Aquila Paca, Jr., Francis Holland,
[see above j Benedict Edward Hall, Thomas
Giles, William Smith, Jr.,- John Copeland,
John Diemer, Bennett Mathews, Josas Hall,
James White Hall, Gabriel Christie, John
Rumsey, Samuel Cover, James Holmes, Will
liam Amin, Arthur McCann, James Mathews,
Joseph Butler, John Lee Webster, Aquia
Hall, Jr, William Loney, Joseph Finley. James
Osborn, Jr., Robert Morgan, Phil. Henderson,
George Presbury, Joshua Browne, Robert
Stokes, Daniel Richardson, William Hollis,
Jr., William Hall, Thaddeus Jewett, James
Paca William Bradford, Jr., Larkin Ham
mond, Roger Mathews John Carlisle, Joseph |
Wheeler, Parker Lee, Bennett Wheeler, Hen
ry Neill, Alex. Lawson Smith. John Mathews,
William Hall Of Aquila, Josias Wheeler,
Thomas Orr, James Perkins, William Young, |
[see ahove.]
ITO be continued 1