Posted on Dec 5, 2017
Revolution Henry Knox brings cannons to Boston
3.46K
56
17
17
17
0
Henry Knox Begins Organizing the "Noble Train of Artillery" for Transport to Boston
By Siggurdsson
Today in Military History: December 5, 1775
Today's journey into military history involves a little-known incident which advanced the American cause, and demonstrated the extent to which the rebellious colonists would go to obtain their independence.
Background
In the first year of the American War of Independence, the main theatre of operations was in New England – specifically Boston, Massachusetts – which was considered the center of the rebellion. The battles at Lexington and Concord brought the differences between the colonies and the mother country into sharp definition.
Boston had been an occupied city since early 1774, as a result of the "Boston Tea Party." By early 1775, 4000 British troops had been quartered in Boston to keep order. The events of April in that year eventually had the effect of shutting up these personnel in a trap. The siege of Boston dragged on throughout the year. When George Washington of Virginia was appointed commander-in-chief of the newly-formed Continental Army, he faced a number of problems. Among these were:
Poorly trained soldiers with low morale, many of them unpaid with their enlistments set to expire at the end of the year;
Lack of weapons and gunpowder; when gunpowder supplies were very low, Washington was forced to issue spears to his soldiers in case of British attacks; and,
Lack of cannon and similar ordinance to bombard the city and threaten the British supply lines through Boston harbor.
The lack of artillery was particularly galling to Washington, who felt that a proper siege needed cannon to harass British supply ships and disallow the occupiers from feeling to secure in the city.
Henry Knox, Bookseller-Turned-Artilleryman
Shortly after George Washington arrived in Boston on July 3, he made the acquaintance of Henry Knox. Knox was a 25-year-old Boston area bookseller. He worked in a bookstore to support his family from age 12, eventually opening a shop of his own in 1771. Knox's shop was stocked mainly with volumes on military history, and he constantly questioned any and all soldiers who came to his establishment. He joined a local militia artillery company called The Train at age 18. Several years later, he established a grenadier company as an offshoot of The Train, serving as the unit's second-in-command. Shortly before his 23rd birthday, he accidentally shot two fingers off his left hand with a shotgun.
In 1773, he witnessed the Boston Massacre, and testified at the later trial. He also became involved with the Sons of Liberty, and likely had some role in the Boston Tea Party. He married in 1774, against the wishes of the lady's father because of their differing political views (and the fact that his brother-in-law was an officer in the British Army).
Knox and his wife left Boston shortly after the fights at Lexington and Concord. He joined the fledgling army, and put his artillery and engineering skills to work. Washington recognized the self-made artillerist in Knox, and the two men became lifelong comrades-in-arms. By October of 1775, the need for artillery to bolster the colonial siege lines became apparent. Many historians believe it was Knox who suggested to Washington that artillery from Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York could be brought to Boston and have a decisive impact on the situation.
Washington put Knox in charge of securing the Ticonderoga artillery, saying that "no trouble or expense must be spared to obtain them." On November 16 Washington issued orders to Knox to retrieve the cannon (and authorized £1000 for the purpose), and wrote to General Philip Schuyler, a native New Yorker recently commission by the Second Continental Congress, asking him to assist Knox in the endeavor. Washington's call for the weapons was echoed by the Congress, which issued Knox a colonel's commission in November that did not reach him until he returned from the expedition.[
Knox departed Washington's camp on November 17, and after traveling to New York City for supplies, reached Ticonderoga on December 5. He immediately began to inventory the artillery in the fort and its nearby bastion at Crown Point. Knox selected 59 pieces of equipment – including 43 heavy brass and iron cannon, six cohorns, eight mortars, and two howitzers. The pieces ranged in size from four to twenty-four pounds. He estimated the total weight to be transported at 119,000 pounds (about 60 tons). The largest pieces, the twenty-four pound "Big Berthas", were 11 feet long and estimated to weigh over 5,000 pounds.
Journey of the "Noble Train of Artillery"
The equipment was first carried overland from Ticonderoga to the northern end of Lake George, where most of the train was loaded onto a scow-like ship called a gundalow, a type of flat-bottomed cargo vessel. On December 6, the gundalow set sail for the southern end of the lake, with Knox sailing ahead in a small boat. Ice was already beginning to cover the lake, but the gundalow, after grounding once on a submerged rock, reached Sabbath Day Point. The next day they sailed on, again with Knox sailing ahead. While he reached Fort George in good time, the gundalow did not appear when expected. A boat sent to check on its progress reported that the vessel had foundered and sunk not far from Sabbath Day Point. While this at first appeared to be a serious setback, Knox's brother William, captain of the ship, reported that she had foundered, but that her gunwales were above the water line, and that she could be bailed out. This was done, the ship was refloated, and two days later the gundalow arrived at the southern end of the lake, just as it was beginning to freeze over.
On December 17 Knox wrote to Washington that he had built "42 exceeding strong sleds, and have provided 80 yoke of oxen to drag them as far as Springfield [Massachusetts]," and that he hoped "in 16 or 17 days to be able to present your Excellency a noble train of artillery." [However, if one reads Knox's diary, he was unable to initially hire sufficient oxen, so was forced to use horses instead.]
Knox was ready, but he could not move. A good base of snow was needed to drag the heavy sleds, and the ground was bare. Finally, on Christmas morning, Knox awakened to several feet of fresh snow. It was now too much of a good thing, since it was difficult to cut a new path through such deep snow. Still, Knox and his men began to push on toward Boston.
By January 5, the artillery had reached Albany, but once again, nature did not cooperate. The ice on the Hudson was not deep enough to support the weight of the sleds. During each of the first two attempts at crossing, Knox saw a precious cannon lost to the river. But by the evening of January 8, he was able to write in his diary, "Went on the ice about 8 O'clock in the morning & proceeded so carefully that before night we got over 23 sleds & were so lucky as to get the Cannon out of the River, owing to the assistance the good people of the City of Albany gave."
Details of the remaining journey are sketchy, as Knox's journal ends on January 12. He reached the vicinity of Claverack, NY on January 9, and proceeded through the Berkshires, reaching Blandford, MA two days later. There the lead crew refused to continue owing to a lack of snow and the upcoming steep descent to the Connecticut River valley. Knox hired additional oxen and persuaded the recalcitrant crew to continue. As the train moved further east, news of its travel spread, and people from area towns came out to watch it pass. In Westfield, Knox loaded one of the big guns with powder and fired it to the applause of the assembled crowd.
Continuing eastward, Knox and his men crossed the border into Massachusetts and struggled on to Springfield. At Springfield Knox had to hire new work crews, as his New York-based crews wanted to return home. John Adams reported seeing the artillery train pass through Framingham on January 25. Two days later, Knox arrived in Cambridge and personally reported to Washington that the artillery train had arrived. According to Knox's accounting he spent £521 on an operation he had hoped would take two weeks, which instead took ten weeks to complete.
Aftermath
Six weeks later, the "noble train of artillery" was deployed on Dorchester Heights, south east of Boston, with entrenchments to protect them, which was accomplished virtually in one night. The next day the cannon began to fire into the city, causing a great stir among the British. Less than two weeks later, the British decided to evacuate the city. British troops and American Loyalists – including Henry Knox's father- and mother-in-law – left the port to the Americans.
Footnote #1: Knox served under Washington for the remainder of the Revolutionary War. When Washington was elected President, he appointed Knox the first Secretary of War, serving until 1794.
Footnote #2: Knox died in 1806, leaving an estate heavily in debt.
Footnote #3: In 1926, the states of New York and Massachusetts set up 56 historical markers to commemorate the progress of the Knox Expedition. In 1972, some of the New York markers were repositioned when further historical research revealed changes in the assumed route. A new marker (pictured below) was added near Boston, to mark one of the last stops of Knox's expedition. It was dedicated on March 17, 2009 which is the 233rd anniversary of the British withdrawal from Boston, known locally as "Evacuation Day."
http://www.burnpit.us/2012/12/henry-knox-begins-organizing-noble-train-artillery-transport-boston
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/war-for-independence/resources/dragging-cannon-from-fort-ticonderoga-boston-1775
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_train_of_artillery
Additional video footage :
https://youtu.be/AM5zWQvXpEw
https://youtu.be/63vQrYR5VQo
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc wayne LTC Wayne Brandon @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc jeff LTC Jeff Shearer @ maj william Maj William W. 'Bill' Price @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsmgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ ssgt robert SSgt Robert Marx @ sra christopher SrA Christopher W. @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ ssg robert SSG Robert Webster @ sgt jim SGT Jim Arnold @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sgt david SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski @ spc margaret SPC Margaret Higgins
By Siggurdsson
Today in Military History: December 5, 1775
Today's journey into military history involves a little-known incident which advanced the American cause, and demonstrated the extent to which the rebellious colonists would go to obtain their independence.
Background
In the first year of the American War of Independence, the main theatre of operations was in New England – specifically Boston, Massachusetts – which was considered the center of the rebellion. The battles at Lexington and Concord brought the differences between the colonies and the mother country into sharp definition.
Boston had been an occupied city since early 1774, as a result of the "Boston Tea Party." By early 1775, 4000 British troops had been quartered in Boston to keep order. The events of April in that year eventually had the effect of shutting up these personnel in a trap. The siege of Boston dragged on throughout the year. When George Washington of Virginia was appointed commander-in-chief of the newly-formed Continental Army, he faced a number of problems. Among these were:
Poorly trained soldiers with low morale, many of them unpaid with their enlistments set to expire at the end of the year;
Lack of weapons and gunpowder; when gunpowder supplies were very low, Washington was forced to issue spears to his soldiers in case of British attacks; and,
Lack of cannon and similar ordinance to bombard the city and threaten the British supply lines through Boston harbor.
The lack of artillery was particularly galling to Washington, who felt that a proper siege needed cannon to harass British supply ships and disallow the occupiers from feeling to secure in the city.
Henry Knox, Bookseller-Turned-Artilleryman
Shortly after George Washington arrived in Boston on July 3, he made the acquaintance of Henry Knox. Knox was a 25-year-old Boston area bookseller. He worked in a bookstore to support his family from age 12, eventually opening a shop of his own in 1771. Knox's shop was stocked mainly with volumes on military history, and he constantly questioned any and all soldiers who came to his establishment. He joined a local militia artillery company called The Train at age 18. Several years later, he established a grenadier company as an offshoot of The Train, serving as the unit's second-in-command. Shortly before his 23rd birthday, he accidentally shot two fingers off his left hand with a shotgun.
In 1773, he witnessed the Boston Massacre, and testified at the later trial. He also became involved with the Sons of Liberty, and likely had some role in the Boston Tea Party. He married in 1774, against the wishes of the lady's father because of their differing political views (and the fact that his brother-in-law was an officer in the British Army).
Knox and his wife left Boston shortly after the fights at Lexington and Concord. He joined the fledgling army, and put his artillery and engineering skills to work. Washington recognized the self-made artillerist in Knox, and the two men became lifelong comrades-in-arms. By October of 1775, the need for artillery to bolster the colonial siege lines became apparent. Many historians believe it was Knox who suggested to Washington that artillery from Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York could be brought to Boston and have a decisive impact on the situation.
Washington put Knox in charge of securing the Ticonderoga artillery, saying that "no trouble or expense must be spared to obtain them." On November 16 Washington issued orders to Knox to retrieve the cannon (and authorized £1000 for the purpose), and wrote to General Philip Schuyler, a native New Yorker recently commission by the Second Continental Congress, asking him to assist Knox in the endeavor. Washington's call for the weapons was echoed by the Congress, which issued Knox a colonel's commission in November that did not reach him until he returned from the expedition.[
Knox departed Washington's camp on November 17, and after traveling to New York City for supplies, reached Ticonderoga on December 5. He immediately began to inventory the artillery in the fort and its nearby bastion at Crown Point. Knox selected 59 pieces of equipment – including 43 heavy brass and iron cannon, six cohorns, eight mortars, and two howitzers. The pieces ranged in size from four to twenty-four pounds. He estimated the total weight to be transported at 119,000 pounds (about 60 tons). The largest pieces, the twenty-four pound "Big Berthas", were 11 feet long and estimated to weigh over 5,000 pounds.
Journey of the "Noble Train of Artillery"
The equipment was first carried overland from Ticonderoga to the northern end of Lake George, where most of the train was loaded onto a scow-like ship called a gundalow, a type of flat-bottomed cargo vessel. On December 6, the gundalow set sail for the southern end of the lake, with Knox sailing ahead in a small boat. Ice was already beginning to cover the lake, but the gundalow, after grounding once on a submerged rock, reached Sabbath Day Point. The next day they sailed on, again with Knox sailing ahead. While he reached Fort George in good time, the gundalow did not appear when expected. A boat sent to check on its progress reported that the vessel had foundered and sunk not far from Sabbath Day Point. While this at first appeared to be a serious setback, Knox's brother William, captain of the ship, reported that she had foundered, but that her gunwales were above the water line, and that she could be bailed out. This was done, the ship was refloated, and two days later the gundalow arrived at the southern end of the lake, just as it was beginning to freeze over.
On December 17 Knox wrote to Washington that he had built "42 exceeding strong sleds, and have provided 80 yoke of oxen to drag them as far as Springfield [Massachusetts]," and that he hoped "in 16 or 17 days to be able to present your Excellency a noble train of artillery." [However, if one reads Knox's diary, he was unable to initially hire sufficient oxen, so was forced to use horses instead.]
Knox was ready, but he could not move. A good base of snow was needed to drag the heavy sleds, and the ground was bare. Finally, on Christmas morning, Knox awakened to several feet of fresh snow. It was now too much of a good thing, since it was difficult to cut a new path through such deep snow. Still, Knox and his men began to push on toward Boston.
By January 5, the artillery had reached Albany, but once again, nature did not cooperate. The ice on the Hudson was not deep enough to support the weight of the sleds. During each of the first two attempts at crossing, Knox saw a precious cannon lost to the river. But by the evening of January 8, he was able to write in his diary, "Went on the ice about 8 O'clock in the morning & proceeded so carefully that before night we got over 23 sleds & were so lucky as to get the Cannon out of the River, owing to the assistance the good people of the City of Albany gave."
Details of the remaining journey are sketchy, as Knox's journal ends on January 12. He reached the vicinity of Claverack, NY on January 9, and proceeded through the Berkshires, reaching Blandford, MA two days later. There the lead crew refused to continue owing to a lack of snow and the upcoming steep descent to the Connecticut River valley. Knox hired additional oxen and persuaded the recalcitrant crew to continue. As the train moved further east, news of its travel spread, and people from area towns came out to watch it pass. In Westfield, Knox loaded one of the big guns with powder and fired it to the applause of the assembled crowd.
Continuing eastward, Knox and his men crossed the border into Massachusetts and struggled on to Springfield. At Springfield Knox had to hire new work crews, as his New York-based crews wanted to return home. John Adams reported seeing the artillery train pass through Framingham on January 25. Two days later, Knox arrived in Cambridge and personally reported to Washington that the artillery train had arrived. According to Knox's accounting he spent £521 on an operation he had hoped would take two weeks, which instead took ten weeks to complete.
Aftermath
Six weeks later, the "noble train of artillery" was deployed on Dorchester Heights, south east of Boston, with entrenchments to protect them, which was accomplished virtually in one night. The next day the cannon began to fire into the city, causing a great stir among the British. Less than two weeks later, the British decided to evacuate the city. British troops and American Loyalists – including Henry Knox's father- and mother-in-law – left the port to the Americans.
Footnote #1: Knox served under Washington for the remainder of the Revolutionary War. When Washington was elected President, he appointed Knox the first Secretary of War, serving until 1794.
Footnote #2: Knox died in 1806, leaving an estate heavily in debt.
Footnote #3: In 1926, the states of New York and Massachusetts set up 56 historical markers to commemorate the progress of the Knox Expedition. In 1972, some of the New York markers were repositioned when further historical research revealed changes in the assumed route. A new marker (pictured below) was added near Boston, to mark one of the last stops of Knox's expedition. It was dedicated on March 17, 2009 which is the 233rd anniversary of the British withdrawal from Boston, known locally as "Evacuation Day."
http://www.burnpit.us/2012/12/henry-knox-begins-organizing-noble-train-artillery-transport-boston
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/war-for-independence/resources/dragging-cannon-from-fort-ticonderoga-boston-1775
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_train_of_artillery
Additional video footage :
https://youtu.be/AM5zWQvXpEw
https://youtu.be/63vQrYR5VQo
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc wayne LTC Wayne Brandon @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc jeff LTC Jeff Shearer @ maj william Maj William W. 'Bill' Price @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsmgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ ssgt robert SSgt Robert Marx @ sra christopher SrA Christopher W. @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ ssg robert SSG Robert Webster @ sgt jim SGT Jim Arnold @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sgt david SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski @ spc margaret SPC Margaret Higgins
War of Independence
Military History
American History
Artillery
Boston
Posted 7 y ago
Responses: 6
7
7
0
The Beatles 1 Video Collection is Out Now. Get your copy here: http://thebeatles1.lnk.to/DeluxeBluRay “When you talk about destruction, don’t you know that y...
Thanks for sharing the background and video focused on revolutionary war colonial future General Henry Knox who departed Washington's camp on November 17, 1775 and after traveling to New York City for supplies, reached Ticonderoga on December 5. He immediately began to inventory the artillery in the fort and its nearby bastion at Crown Point. Knox selected 59 pieces of equipment – including 43 heavy brass and iron cannon, six cohorns, eight mortars, and two howitzers. The pieces ranged in size from four to twenty-four pounds. He estimated the total weight to be transported at 119,000 pounds (about 60 tons). The largest pieces, the twenty-four pound "Big Berthas", were 11 feet long and estimated to weigh over 5,000 pounds.
Moving the artillery during the winter presented a lot of difficulties. This was in the days before trains and river barges were useless when the rivers were frozen. That meant the cannon needed to be hauled overland. Knox had sleds built and the trek took until January 27, 1776 to bring the artillery to the vicinity of Boston and six weeks later the cannon were deployed to Dorchester Heights, south east of Boston .
When I saw Revolution at the beginning if your discussion title IO was reminded of the song Revolution by the Beatles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGLGzRXY5Bw
FYI LTC Bill Koski CW5 (Join to see) MSG Brad Sand SGM Steve Wettstein SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SP5 Mark Kuzinski SrA Christopher Wright PO1 William "Chip" Nagel PO1 John Miller SP5 Robert Ruck SPC (Join to see) PO3 Steven Sherrill SN Greg Wright Maj Marty Hogan SCPO Morris Ramsey TSgt Joe C. Cpl Joshua Caldwell SGT Michael Thorin SP5 Dave (Shotgun) Shockley SPC Margaret Higgins
Moving the artillery during the winter presented a lot of difficulties. This was in the days before trains and river barges were useless when the rivers were frozen. That meant the cannon needed to be hauled overland. Knox had sleds built and the trek took until January 27, 1776 to bring the artillery to the vicinity of Boston and six weeks later the cannon were deployed to Dorchester Heights, south east of Boston .
When I saw Revolution at the beginning if your discussion title IO was reminded of the song Revolution by the Beatles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGLGzRXY5Bw
FYI LTC Bill Koski CW5 (Join to see) MSG Brad Sand SGM Steve Wettstein SSG James J. Palmer IV aka "JP4" SP5 Mark Kuzinski SrA Christopher Wright PO1 William "Chip" Nagel PO1 John Miller SP5 Robert Ruck SPC (Join to see) PO3 Steven Sherrill SN Greg Wright Maj Marty Hogan SCPO Morris Ramsey TSgt Joe C. Cpl Joshua Caldwell SGT Michael Thorin SP5 Dave (Shotgun) Shockley SPC Margaret Higgins
(7)
(0)
5
5
0
SGT John " Mac " McConnell
Good morning Mark. It was 84 degrees yesterday here in north central Texas. Broke a record ! Cold front today. It will be in the 40s and 50s with the wind at 15 to 25 mph. Only to keep dropping in temperature then pick back up....
(3)
(0)
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
SGT John " Mac " McConnell - 70 in Kansas City Yesterday, was Out Pruning in the Garden today and it is Only 31.
(1)
(0)
4
4
0
Morning SGT John " Mac " McConnell great historical share. American ingenuity at its best...
(4)
(0)
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google