{{Infobox military unit , unit_name= Adams' Rangers , image= Dr. Samuel Adams.png , image_size = 275px , caption = A woodcut of Dr. Samuel Adams, the future British Loyalist and

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

military leader of Adams' Rangers, who was publicly humiliated in 1774 by being tied to a chair and hung from the sign of the Catamount Tavern in Arlington,

New Hampshire Grants The New Hampshire Grants or Benning Wentworth Grants were land grants made between 1749 and 1764 by the colonial governor of the Province of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth. The land grants, totaling about 135 (including 131 towns), were made o ...

, in present-day

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, for falling out of favor with his enemies, the

Green Mountain Boys The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in 1770 in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants and later in 1777 as the Vermont Republic (which late ...

, over land dealings in early Vermont , country = {{flagcountry, Kingdom of Great Britain , allegiance = {{flagcountry, Kingdom of Great Britain , type=

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

( auxiliary troops) , branch= Loyalist local volunteer corps , dates=1777-1780 , specialization= scouting , command_structure= British Army under generals

John Burgoyne General John Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British general, dramatist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1761 to 1792. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several bat ...

, Simon Fraser, Baron Riedesel , size= company (70 men) and officers , current_commander= , garrison=

Province of Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen p ...

, ceremonial_chief= , nickname= Adams’ Company of Rangers , motto= , colors= , march= , mascot= , battles =

* Saratoga Campaign (1777) * Battle of Saratoga (1777) , notable_commanders= Captain

Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, an ...

Captain Jeptha Hawley
Lieutenant Simpson Jenne
Ensign Gideon Adams , anniversaries= Adams' Rangers, also known as Adams’ Company of Rangers, were a British Loyalist local volunteer corps and independent military company raised to support the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during the

. Led by Dr. Samuel Adams of Arlington,

(now

), the Rangers made their most significant contribution to the British war effort by serving with the ill-fated Burgoyne Expedition in the Saratoga campaign of 1777.

Company formed

The soldiers of Adams's Rangers were recruited primarily from the region of the New Hampshire Grants (also known by the Patriots as the

Republic of Vermont The Vermont Republic (French: ''République du Vermont''), officially known at the time as the State of Vermont (French: ''État du Vermont''), was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The s ...

), with the largest number of recruits coming from Arlington under heavy opposition from the majority Patriot population and their old enemies, the Patriot

. Dr. Adams later stated that he had raised 70 men for the company. Either late in the Burgoyne campaign or in early 1778, the Rangers absorbed a body of soldiers from the

Bateaux A bateau or batteau is a shallow-draft, flat-bottomed boat which was used extensively across North America, especially in the colonial period and in the fur trade. It was traditionally pointed at both ends but came in a wide variety of sizes. ...

Service, under Jeptha Hawley, who was also from Arlington.

Campaigns

In 1777, Adams' Rangers were a part of the scouting service during the Saratoga Campaign. Very little has been recorded concerning the activities of the unit during the disastrous campaign, but Loyalist claims made by men of the Ranger company described piloting the army, running dispatches between British commanders, raiding cattle from Rebel farms, and defending Loyalist farms from

Patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American Revolution * Patriot m ...

foraging Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Foraging theory is a branch of behavioral ecology that studies the foraging behavi ...

parties. After the British Army's defeat and surrender at Saratoga, Adams' Rangers and other Loyalist units were allowed to retreat to the

. For the next three years Adams' men, like most other Loyalist troops in Canada, were occupied with garrison duty and employed in work parties improving the defences of the Province. Several of the soldiers and their families lived at the refugee camp at the Machiche, near

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River across from the city of ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. In early 1778, the company numbered 37 all-ranks — by mid-1780, their number had been reduced to 27.

Company Officers

Captains
Dr. Samuel Adams of Arlington,

Jeptha Hawley of Arlington,

Lieutenant
Simpson Jenne of

Clarendon, Vermont Clarendon is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,412 at the 2020 census. Clarendon spans U.S. Route 7 and is split by the highway, the Cold River and Mill River, Otter Creek, and the Green Mountains into the ...

Arlington,

Ensign
Gideon Adams of Arlington,

Uniforms

Company disbanded

Frustrated by lack of prospects and dispersement of his men around the Province, Captain Adams demanded to be allowed to join his company to Robert Rogers'

King's Rangers The King's Rangers, also known as the King's American Rangers, was a Loyalist provincial ranger unit raised in Nova Scotia for service during the American Revolutionary War. Formation After Colonel Robert Rogers left the Queen's Rangers in 17 ...

or go to New York to serve in the Central department. When his demands were refused, Adams disbanded his men in late October 1780. Following the dissolution of the Adam's Rangers, a few of the men from the company joined the King's Rangers, but the majority were absorbed into McAlpin's Corps, a collection of under-strength Loyalist units. In November 1781, these British units were consolidated into a new Provincial regiment, the Loyal Rangers, commanded by Major Edward Jessup.

Resettled in British Canada

Following the war, a few of Adam's men returned to the United States. Some settled in Quebec around Sorel, but most were granted land in southeastern Ontario along the St. Lawrence River. The largest concentration of former Adam's Company men settled in Ernestown and Edwardsburg Townships.

References

*Coldham, Peter Wilson. ''American Loyalist claims Volume 1'' Washington DC: National Genealogical Society, 1980. *Palmer, Gregory. ''Biographical sketches of Loyalists in the American Revolution'' Westport CT: Meckler Publishing, 1984. *''Muster Roll of Captain Samuel ADAMS’s Company Raised by Order of Genl. BURGOYNE the 9th August 1777 for the Purpose of Rangers. Busherville 23d January 1778.''. Great Britain, British Library, Additional Manuscripts, No. 21827, folio 14. *''A Return of Men, Women and Children Belonging to Capt. ADAMS Corps of Loyalists at Machiche Augt. 10, 1780.''. Great Britain, Public Record Office, War Office, Class 28, Volume 10, folio 95. *''A Return of Captain Adam’s Corps of Loyalists. Mashish 6 March 1780.''. Great Britain, British Library, Additional Manuscripts, No. 21827, folio 193. *''Loyalist Settlements 1783-1789, New Evidence of Canadian Loyalist Claims.''. W. Bruce Antliff, The Archives of Ontario, Bicentennial Publication from the Ministry of Citizenship and Culture Susan Fish, Minister. *''The Old United Empire Loyalist List, 1784-1884,'' Centennial, Rose Publishing Company, Toronto, Canada, 1885. *''United Empire Loyalists. Evidence in Canadian Claims.''. Second Report of the Bureau of Archives for the Province of Ontario. B. Alexander Fraser. Parts 1 and 2. Genealogical Publishing Co. Inc.

External links

Adams’ Company of Rangers - The On-line Institute for Advanced Loyalist StudiesUnited Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada Directory of Loyalists
Loyalist military units in the American Revolution British American Army Rangers Military units and formations disestablished in 1780