The 6th Connecticut Regiment was raised on May 1, 1775, at

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, as a provincial regiment for the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

. It then became a regiment of the Continental Line on January 1, 1776, designated the 10th Continental Regiment, and a regiment of the

Connecticut Line The Connecticut Line was a formation within the Continental Army. The term "Connecticut Line" referred to the quota of numbered infantry regiments assigned to Connecticut at various times by the Continental Congress, the size of its allocation de ...

on January 1, 1777, again designated the 6th Connecticut. The regiment saw action at the siege of Boston, the

Battle of Long Island The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn, New Yo ...

, the

New York Campaign The New York and New Jersey campaign in 1776 and the winter months of 1777 was a series of American Revolutionary War battles for control of the Port of New York and the state of New Jersey, fought between British forces under General Sir Willia ...

, and its colonel and company of light infantry served in the Corps of Light Infantry at the

Battle of Stony Point The Battle of Stony Point took place on July 16, 1779, during the American Revolutionary War. In a well-planned and -executed nighttime attack, a highly trained select group of George Washington's Continental Army troops under the command of Bri ...

. The regiment was merged into the

1st Connecticut Regiment The 1st Connecticut Regiment was a unit of the Continental Army, and was involved in the American Revolutionary War. The regiment was initially formed in 1776, and was active in various forms until 1783. 1776–1780 The 1st Connecticut Regiment ...

on January 1, 1783, at

West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...

, and disbanded on November 16, 1783.

History

The 6th Connecticut Regiment, a provincial regiment, was raised on May 1, 1775, under the command of Col.

Samuel Holden Parsons Samuel Holden Parsons (May 14, 1737 – November 17, 1789) was an American lawyer, jurist, generalHeitman, ''Officers of the Continental Army'', 428. in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and a pioneer to the Ohio Countr ...

. In June, under the "1st establishment" of the

, it joined Gen.

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

at the

Siege of Boston The siege of Boston (April 19, 1775 – March 17, 1776) was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. New England militiamen prevented the movement by land of the British Army, which was garrisoned in what was then the peninsular town ...

. In August, to promote cohesion among the various colonial units, regiments were given precedence by Washington and the 6th Connecticut was also designated the "13th Regiment of Foot." In September, in the "2nd establishment", Congress re-authorized the Continental Army for the year 1776, with Connecticut allocated to supply five regiments, to be numbered in the "Continental Line" as of January 1, 1776, and to serve until December 31, 1776. The 6th Connecticut became the 10th Continental Regiment on January 1, with Parsons as its colonel. On August 9, 1776, Parsons became a brigadier general in the Continental Armyand John Tyler, who had been appointed lieutenant colonel of the 10th Continentals on January 1, became its colonel. During this period another regiment known as the "Connecticut State Regiment" was authorized by Connecticut on June 20, 1776, for home defense with William Douglas, then a captain of the

, appointed as its colonel. The state regiment was raised at New Haven by Douglas and in Middletown by Return Jonathan Meigs, a major of the 2nd Connecticut Regiment then on parole after being captured during Arnold's Invasion of Canada. The Continental Army was authorized under the "3rd establishment" on January 1, 1777, with enlistments to last for the duration of the war. Connecticut was now allocated to supply eight regiments of infantry. The 10th Continental Regiment became the 6th Regiment of the

on January 1, with Douglas appointed as it new colonel. Meigs, then lieutenant colonel of Sherburne's Additional Continental Regiment, returned to take command of the 6th Connecticut on May 12, 1777, when Douglas became ill. Douglas died on May 28 and Meigs was commissioned as colonel of the 6th Connecticut on September 10, with his date of rank retroactive to May 12. The Raid on Sag Harbor was launched on May 21, 1777, but due to a storm and rough seas the raiding party put back to shore at Guilford, Connecticut to wait out the storm. Then on May 23, 1777, three weeks after the

Battle of Ridgefield The Battle of Ridgefield was a battle and a series of skirmishes between American and British forces during the American Revolutionary War. The main battle was fought in the village of Ridgefield, Connecticut, on April 27, 1777. More skirmishin ...

, Col. Meigs and 170 men from New Haven left

Guilford, Connecticut Guilford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, that borders Madison, Branford, North Branford and Durham, and is situated on I-95 and the Connecticut seacoast. The population was 22,073 at the 2020 census. History Guilfo ...

, in 13 whale boats and two armed sloops, bringing with them an extra sloop in which to bring back prisoners. This raid was planned as a reprisal for the British Brig. Gen.

William Tryon Lieutenant-General William Tryon (8 June 172927 January 1788) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who served as governor of North Carolina from 1764 to 1771 and the governor of New York from 1771 to 1777. He also served durin ...

's raid on Danbury, Connecticut, whose action had cost the life of General

David Wooster David Wooster ( – May 2, 1777) was an American general who served in the French and Indian War and in the American Revolutionary War. He died of wounds sustained during the Battle of Ridgefield, Connecticut. Several cities, schools, and public ...

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

. Landing on Long Island they marched across to

Sag Harbor Sag Harbor is an incorporated village in Suffolk County, New York, United States, in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton on eastern Long Island. The village developed as a working port on Gardiner's Bay. The population was 2,772 at the 2 ...

, surprised the garrison, burned a dozen vessels, destroyed a large quantity of military stores, killed several of the enemy and took 90 prisoners, without losing a man. For this action, Col. Meigs was voted a Sword by Congress, which now hangs in the

National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Gen. Parsons letter to Gen. Washington, May 25, 1777 After the Sag Harbor raid, the 6th Connecticut went to

Peekskill, New York Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across fro ...

, to join the other regiments of the

. The Connecticut Line wintered at West Point during the winter of 1777-1778. While there, they constructed the "Meigs Redoubt" and other fortifications in the area. In the summer of 1778, the Connecticut Line was encamped with the Main Army under General Washington at

White Plains, New York (Always Faithful) , image_seal = WhitePlainsSeal.png , seal_link = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = U.S. state, State , su ...

, near the site of the 1776 battle. It was here that the Connecticut Line was divided into two brigades, which stood until January 1, 1781. The 6th Connecticut was placed in the 1st Brigade under Parsons. From White Plains, they took up winter quarters at

Redding, Connecticut Redding is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,765 at the 2020 census. History Early settlement and establishment At the time colonials began receiving grants for land within the boundaries of present-d ...

. The troops built huts and settled in. Maj. Gen.

Israel Putnam Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...

took command of all forces at Redding. In the early part of 1779, the 6th Connecticut was encamped on the Highlands across from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

. When Tryon raided Connecticut in July, the Connecticut Line was sent to defend its own state, but arrived after Tryon and his men had left. The Connecticut Line was then called on to provide a number of Light Infantry Companies to join with Brig. Gen. "Mad"

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mil ...

. Being a light infantry regiment, the 6th Connecticut filled the role perfectly and was sent, under Col. Meigs, to join with General Wayne. On July 15, 1779, this force successfully stormed the British fort at Stony Point on the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

. From Stony Point, the 6th Connecticut was stationed with the Connecticut Line around West Point where it worked again on fortifications in the area. Maj. Gen. Baron Von Steuben praised the Connecticut Line for their proficiency on performing his manual of arms exercises. The Morristown huts in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

were the site of winter quarters for the two Connecticut Brigades in the winter of 1779-80. While the troops were in Morristown, the Connecticut troops protested their conditions and mutinied. Col. Meigs quelled this mutiny with reason and affection and with no loss of life. A letter from General Washington commended him for this action. The Connecticut Line spent the summer of 1780 along the Hudson and while in Orange Town, New Jersey, heard of the treason of Connecticut's own Brig. Gen.

Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold ( Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American military officer who served during the Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defect ...

and his flight to the British on September 25. The 6th Connecticut Regiment was ordered to West Point to defend any attack the enemy might have planned. There was no attack and Connecticut Line went into winter quarters near West Point. In 1781, the 6th Connecticut was consolidated with part of the 4th as the Continental forces wound down their forces pending the outcome of peace talks in Paris. Peace came two years later in September 1783 with the signing of the

Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France: Treaties 1200s and 1300s * Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade * Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France * Trea ...

References

External links

Bibliography of Connecticut's participation in the Continental Army
compiled by the

United States Army Center of Military History The United States Army Center of Military History (CMH) is a directorate within the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The Institute of Heraldry remains within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Arm ...

6th Connecticut Regiment - Rev War reenacting group
{{ConnLine Connecticut regiments of the Continental Army History of New Haven, Connecticut Military units and formations established in 1775 Military units and formations disestablished in 1783 1775 establishments in Connecticut

History

See also

References

External links