Whaleboat Wars On Long Island Sound Virtual Lecture

Press release from the Weston Historical Society:

October 1 2020

WESTON, CT— Historian Ed Hynes will present a virtual lecture, “Whaleboat Wars on Long Island Sound During the American Revolution,” hosted by the Weston Historical Society on Wednesday, October 14, 2020 at 6:30 pm via Zoom.

The event is free, but registration is required. Register at www.westonhistoricalsociety.org. The Zoom link will be emailed 24 hours before the event. Please help the Weston Historical Society, a non-profit organization, continue its community programming with a suggested donation of $5. Donate at: www.westonhistoricalsociety.org.

This lecture will explore the dramatic, but little-known naval activities on Long Island Sound during the American Revolution. Connecticut sent licensed privateers to intercept British ships, while other enterprising men, from both sides, engaged in smuggling banned goods. As 1777 progressed, the Loyalists continued to be pushed out of Connecticut and the Patriots were forced out of Long Island. Subsequently, the naval action on Long Island Sound grew more heated and intense.

For most of the colonies, the Revolutionary War ended in 1781. But for the adversaries on both sides of the Sound, the fear and bitterness of war only intensified throughout 1782 and into 1783. Whaleboats were often used to carry out raids designed to steal goods and to kidnap and kill opponents. Mr. Hynes’s lecture will bring this action to life. Viewers will have a chance to ask questions following the presentation.

As a child growing up in Wilton, Mr. Hynes first became interested in the Revolutionary War when he learned that a neighbor’s house had been partially burned by the British in 1777 on their march through Westport, Weston and Wilton to raid the Patriot stronghold in Danbury. Mr. Hynes and his wife are fascinated by history and have visited many important battlefields both here and abroad. He graduated from George Washington University (Washington D.C.) with a B.A. in Political Science and is a financial analyst with Merrill Lynch in Westport.

The Weston Historical Society would like to thank its annual sponsors: Fairfield County Bank and KMS Partners at Compass. The Weston Historical Society is 501(c)3 non-profit organization. For more information and to donate, please contact the Weston Historical Society at info@westonhistoricalsociety.org, 203-226-1804 or visit www.westonhistoricalsociety.org

This press release was produced by the Weston Historical Society. The views expressed here are the author’s own.