Join the Lincoln Depot Museum for a compelling presentation by U.S. Military Academy History Professor Col. Seanegan P. Sculley on the Hudson Valley's pivotal role in the American Revolution. Explore the history of local battles, key military figures, and the strategic importance of the Hudson River.
In many ways, New York’s Hudson Valley was the key to the revolution. Military historians may study details of the battles of Saratoga, Trenton and Yorktown – but it was here, in our backyards, that Gen. Washington escaped with his army intact after his loss at the Battle of White Plains in the fall of 1776, where they suffered the terrible loss of Forts Clinton and Montgomery in 1777, and where Anthony Wayne’s successful surprise attack captured British forces at Stony Point in 1779. It was here that Benedict Arnold committed his Treason of the Blackest Dye by conspiring with British Major Andre for the capture of West Point, where Arnold escaped and Andre was hanged, and here where the black and indigenous Troops or the 1st Rhode Island suffered tremendous losses at the Battle of Pines Bridge in 1781.
The area north of Westchester became the supply depot of the Continental Army, while Westchester itself became a volatile no-man’s land – with bands of highwaymen claiming alignment with both sides, and no side. Meanwhile, control of the greatest superhighway in North America – the Hudson River, remained the military objective of nearly every action and decision.
Join The Lincoln Depot as we welcome United States Military Academy History Professor COL Seanegan P. Sculley for a look at many of the varied roles played by the Hudson Valley region during this tumultuous time, as well as some of the evidence we can still see today!