The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1896-08-07
NEW YORK IN THE REVOLUTION.


The Part Taken by What Was Not Then
the Empire State.
The population of the state of New
York, at the breaking out of the revo-
lutionary war, was less than 100000,
and New York was Sixth on the list OF
states in respect to population, Vir-
GINA being the first, with more than
100000; Pennsylvania second, North
Carolina third, Massachusetts, fourth
and Maryland fifth. After New
York came South Carolina, then
Connecticut, with New Jersey not
far behind. Not only was New
York precluded by the sparse
ness of its population from partici-
pating very actively in the patriot
ic uprising, but other conditions were
also adverse to such course. The city
of New York, the main city of the New
York colony, was tory in its sympathies,
and the population of the colony was
distributed along the Hudson river, The
western part of the state, remote from
the interference of the British ships,
being a huge forest. Nevertheless, and
despite these disadvantages,2,0 75 Amer
lean patriot soldiers were enlisted in
New York for service In the war; Vir-
ginia's quota at the beginning of hostil-
tiles in ITS being 3,1O0. North Caro-
lina's 1000 and Georgia's 1000. The
two states which came forward most
actively with volunteer soldiers after
the firing of the shot at Lexington,
(which was heard all around the
world" were Massachusetts,, with 49,
600 troops, and South Carolina with
1000. Pennsylvania, at the beginning
of the war, was very tardy in coming
forward. 1t Jagged behind the other col
onies with less than 500 recruits.
a short time ago request for the
loan of the revolutionary muster of
New York state was made by the Wash
ington war department through Gov.
Morton to the state board of regents,
and was refused. The request was made
by Lieut.. Col. Ainsworth, who had
charge of collecting revolutionary data
for the national government, and was
referred to the regents, because they
are the custodians of the states revoln-
tionary records. The regents agreed TO
allow Lieut.. Col. Ainsworth access to
their muster rolls if he would send a
corps of persons to Albany to copy
them. The regents of the New York
university are, by a law passed in 1ol4,
not only the custodians of the state Ii
brary, but the state museum as well,
and upon them depends the protection
of the state archives.
In the second year of the revolution
airy war New York's addition to The
quota of troops was 5000, and in all
there were $4,000 enlistments in New
York. One IF the most important bat
ties of the war of the revolution, the
battle of Saratoga, in October, 1777, was
fought within the boundaries of New
York land ten days later Burgoyne's sur
render took place atSaratOga- From that
time on much of the fighting was done
in New ork, and the New York soldiers
took a very active part. The culminat-
ing scenes of the war, however, were
in Virginia, rather than in New York,
and in the subsequent legislative pro
ceedings taken to found the republic on
a Arm basis and provide for the presi.
Dental succession New York took q
much less active part than either Vir-
ginia, Massachusetts, or Pennsylvania.
Several New York men, however, dis
tipguished themselves as commanders
in the revolutionary army, and before
the next succeeding foreign war, that of
1912, New York, with population of l :
100000, stool first among the states
a position of supremacy it has never
lost since.-N. Y. Sun.