Located between British occupied New York City and patriot Connecticut, Westchester County, New York has sometimes been referred to as Revolutionary War “neutral ground.” Yet, neutral did not mean without conflict: as one author described, from 1777 to the end of the War, “[…], there was no systematic campaign in Westchester county, but continuous fighting.” Many residents decided to leave the county: the population dropped permanently by more than 1000.
Residents supported both sides of the conflict. The Fowler family exemplified the divide: Jonathan Fowler, the father, was a Loyalist, while, Theodosius Fowler, the son, entered the American Army.
As much of the property in the county had been owned by Loyalists, there was significant land redistribution after the War, including the property of the Philpse family.
Resources:
- Revolutionary War sites in Westchester County today:
- “American Revolutionary Trail.” Visit Westchester County NY. https://www.visitwestchesterny.com/things-to-do/history/american-revolutionary-trail/
- RevolutionaryWestchester 250. https://www.rw250.org/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKETctleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFucFJiejI2cTdVRU5nQWVDAR7PIvI0o9tHrRwNlu2S20RmaRxSfwGiXnjC9z_4Ez6dJjZngQNSK1rs9PcQPA_aem_2TiRFbBh_fY50zg9uylF3g. This site also includes historical resources.
- On documenting life in Westchester County during the War:
- The McDonald Interviews, which were conducted from 1844-1851: https://westchesterhistory.com/collections/the-mcdonald-interviews/.
- The supplemental material for this collection includes maps and vocabulary that may be helpful for understanding the period: https://collections.westchestergov.com/digital/collection/mcdonald.
- Dawson, Henry B.Westchester-County, New York, During the American Revolution.
- Gabler, Edna. “Caught Between the Lines: Eastchester, New York, During the American Revolution.” Journal of the American Revolution. https://allthingsliberty.com/2019/02/caught-between-the-lines-eastchester-new-york-during-the-american-revolution/.
- Schenawolf, Harry. “First Cowboys Were Not from the West But Cattle Rustlers of the American Revolution.” Revolutionary War Journal. https://revolutionarywarjournal.com/first-cowboys-were-not-of-western-lore-but-from-new-york-loyalist-partisan-groups-terrorized-farmers-during-the-american-revolution/.
- The McDonald Interviews, which were conducted from 1844-1851: https://westchesterhistory.com/collections/the-mcdonald-interviews/.
- On the support of the American troops from Westchester:
- Browne, George W., “The Role of the Westchester Guides During the American Revolution” (1962). Open Access Master’s Theses. Paper 2061. https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/theses/2061
Don’t forget that these resources are specific to Westchester County! Westchester units and residents will likely also be included in state level resources.