Stacy Students Discover a Local Hero

Nick Liberto, a fifth grade social studies teacher at Stacy Middle School, has enough energy and enthusiasm to bring an all-but-forgotten Revolutionary War hero to life.

He did just that Tuesday for about 45 fifth-grade students at .

In a 30-minute lesson, Liberto had his students hanging on every fact he produced about Alexander Scammell. If the name doesn't sound familiar: that was Liberto's point.

The American soldier born and raised in Milford, who went on to play a significant role in several key battles of the American Revolution, faded into near-obscurity because he died in British hands, Liberto said, before he could leave a mark on the new government.

Liberto spent several years in college researching Scammell, once he realized the soldier was from Milford. His burial place, near Williamsburg, Va., was destroyed some time during the Civil War. His birth place, Liberto said, is near the  on West Street.

Scammell is best known for his leadership roles in the Battle of Monmouth and the Battle of Trenton, the latter conflict made famous by the 1851 portrait "George Washington Crossing the Delaware." In real life, Liberto told students, Scammell was seated beside the future president. In the artist's work, he didn't exist.

Liberto used kid-friendly terms to explain the significance of Scammell's achievements. The "mystery hero," as he called him, until revealing his identity at the lesson's end, was promoted to Adjutant General of the American Army under Washington.

Liberto explained that this new position put Scammell in charge of the daily operations of the army. He compared the position to the job held by Stacy Middle School Principal Nancy Angelini.

"Pretty much, it's like Mrs. Angelini with a sword."