What an amazing learning opportunity to participate in the reenactment of the 250th anniversary of the Powder Raid on Fort William & Mary in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. So much of our history is lost to common knowledge. I strongly feel it is important to remember what our ancestors went through, lest we forget the sacrifices others made for our freedom.
Here’s a little video on what I learned at the event.
Paul Revere’s Warning
The New Hampshire colonists considered themselves British subjects and were loyal supporters of the King. Therefore, they were little trouble to the British-appointed Royal Governor John Wentworth, a born and raised New Hampshire man.
Based on the prior year’s Boston Tea Party actions and the subsequent boycott on the shipment of supplies to Boston, stories of Boston colonists starving reached local New Hampshire folks who sent food and supplies to assist. The NH colonists were aware of the challenges their neighbors faced at the hands of the British Red Coats or “Regulars”.
On December 13th, 1774, Paul Revere rode from Boston to Portsmouth, NH warning the townsfolk of a secret edict from King George III to confiscate all gunpowder and munitions from the colonists. Ships were already on the way to Portsmouth! The local Fort William & Mary was there to protect the colonists from attack and was also the storehouse for their personal gunpowder and munitions.
The local Committee of Correspondence, led by Samuel Cutts, John Langdon, and Josiah Bartlett, quickly met and gathered a crowd of over 150 men to discuss options at the Liberty Pole in the Town Common. The colonists were very concerned and decided to take immediate action.
They went peacefully to the lightly manned Fort to have a reasonable discussion with the Fort’s Captain John Cochran, requesting to take leave of their gunpowder. After all, they had always been respectful neighbors and the powder was rightfully theirs.
Raid on the Fort
When Captain Cochran denied their entrance and fired over their heads with a cannon, the crowd decided to force entry armed with wooden sticks and no muskets. Cochran’s wife was indeed a force to be reconned with, brandishing a bayonet to protect several invalids who were taking refuge in the Fort, including her elderly father-in-law.
Being fired upon by cannons enraged the colonists. They rushed the Fort and were able to capture it without bloodshed. They removed over 100 barrels of powder and struck the King’s colors – taking down the huge British flag – to indicate the Fort was no longer under British rule.
The following day, citizens gathered again as they were concerned about this rebellious act of treason against the King. Since they’d already removed the gunpowder, colonist leader John Sullivan gathered over 400 local militia and returned to the Fort. This time, they readily gained access and removed 16 cannons, along with muskets, cases of shot, and other munitions with the King’s cartouche or seal on them.
Hiding the Powder
The powder and munitions were loaded into gondolas and sent inland via icy waterways to be scattered across the New Hampshire countryside and hidden until needed. Some powder barrels were stored in secret compartments under the pulpit at local meeting houses. Historic records indicate this happened in the little town of Newmarket, NH.
With this attack against the Fort, Governor John Wentworth sent drummers to the town squares to summon local militia to take up arms against these instigators. Since all of the local militia were involved as instigators in the Powder Raid… nobody showed up at his beckoning. The next morning, Governor Wentworth awoke to find a cannon in front of his house aimed at the front door. He immediately took his family and went to live in the safety of the Fort.
Death by High Treason
On December 26, 1774, Governor Wentworth posted a Proclamation for “Death by High Treason”, naming the leaders of the Powder Raid. However, that same day, the leaders – Cutts, Langdon, Bartlett, and others had already burned their British documents and elected themselves as delegates to NH’s Provisional Congress in Exeter. Wentworth’s decree for dismissal was too little too late, as these influential colonists had already become delegates in the New Republic.
In early 1775 Governor Wentworth and other loyalists who had sought refuge in the Fort set sail on the very ship that came to confiscate the gunpowder. Wentworth stopped briefly in NH on his way to England, posting warrants for the arrests of the traitors. He never returned to America.
All of this happened in New Hampshire months before the infamous “shot heard around the world” at Lexington and Concord. Many consider the raid on Fort William & Mary to be the first overt act of revolution in the Revolutionary War.
Though the brave New Hampshire militia fought many battles over the subsequent 9 years, this was the only one waged on New Hampshire soil.
A Little History for Context:
April 17, 1775 – Battle of Lexington & Concord, “shot heard around the world” begins the American Revolutionary War.
May 17, 1775 – The 4th Provincial Congress met in Exeter to create the New Hampshire Committee of Safety.
June 14, 1775 – The Continental Army was created, commanded by George Washington.
June 17, 1775 – Battle of Bunker Hill – short on gunpowder, they needed to conserve, hence the phrase: “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes!” Some of the confiscated NH gunpowder is said to have been used at the Battle of Bunker Hill.
June 21, 1775 – The NH Committee of Safety ordered select provincial gunpowder stores to be sent to the frontier.
August 25, 1775 – The NH Committee of Safety ordered a detailed accounting of all Towns and Parishes, including men, women, slaves, powder, and munitions.
April 12, 1776 – The NH Committee of Safety posted this association text:
“We the subscribers, do hereby solemnly engage, and promote that we will, to the utmost in our power, at the risque of our lives and fortunes, with arms oppose hostile proceedings of the British fleets and armies against The United American Colonists.”
164 men between the ages of 10 and 50 signed this document from the town of Newmarket, NH.
Nine Intense Years Later:
September 3, 1783 – Treaty of Paris ends the American Revolutionary War.
November 25, 1783 – Washington returns home from the Continental Army.
December 23, 1783 – Washington resigns as Commander-in-Chief.
1808 – The government renames Fort William & Mary to Fort Constitution.
Always remember the freedom we enjoy that our ancestors risked everything for.
Blessings of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness,
Lois Hermann
Find information here: America250