Daniel Brodhead (October 17, 1736 – November 15, 1809) was an American military and political leader during the
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 ...
and early days of the United States.
Early life
Brodhead was born in
Marbletown, New York
Marbletown is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,658 at the 2020 census. It is located near the center of Ulster County, southwest of the City of Kingston. US 209 and NY 213 pass through the town. It is at the ...
, the son of
Daniel Brodhead II
Daniel Brodhead II (April 20, 1693 - July 22, 1755), was a captain in the Ulster County, New York militia. He was the first person of European descent to permanently settle the area of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. He was a justice of the peace for ...
and Hester (Wyngart) Brodhead. Brodhead's father moved his family to what is now
East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania
East Stroudsburg is a borough in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the Poconos region of the state. Originally known as "Dansbury", East Stroudsburg was renamed for geographic reasons when the Delaware, Lackawanna, and ...
, in 1737. Life in the
frontier
A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...
settlement was difficult, as Native American bands, mostly Lenape and Susquehannock, resisted settlers' encroachment. The Brodhead homestead was attacked by natives numerous times during Daniel's youth. When his father died in 1755, Brodhead was left with 150 acres from the estate. He sold his land share to brother Garret. This became the residence of the Flory family for many years at 81 North Courtland Street, the oldest home in
East Stroudsburg. The home is now privately owned and renovated by Joel Smith.
Marriage and family
Brodhead married Elizabeth Dupui of Northampton County in April 1756. To this union was born one child, Ann Garton Brodhead. Upon the death of his first wife Elizabeth, he was married to Rebecca Mifflin the widow of Samuel Mifflin. Samuel's brother
Thomas Mifflin
Thomas Mifflin (January 10, 1744January 20, 1800) was an American merchant, soldier, and politician from Pennsylvania, who is regarded as a Founding Father of the United States for his roles during and after the American Revolution. Mifflin wa ...
was the first Governor of Pennsylvania. To this union was born two sons, Charles Brodhead and Richard Brodhead.
Career and activities
Brodhead had a relatively unremarkable career before the
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 ...
. He farmed, ran a grist mill, and worked as a
deputy surveyor for
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
.
In the years leading up to the outbreak of hostilities, Brodhead began to take part in the protest movements against
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
taxation. In 1774, Brodhead was elected to represent
Bucks County
Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...
at a provincial meeting held in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
on July 15, 1774.
American Revolution
In 1776 as war broke out, Brodhead was
commissioned as an officer of the
Pennsylvania State Rifle Regiment
The 13th Pennsylvania Regiment, also known as The Pennsylvania State Rifle Regiment and Miles's Regiment, was raised March 6, 1776, as a state militia regiment and later for service with the Continental Army. The regiment would see action dur ...
with the rank of
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
. His first action came at 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 ...
, where he was recognized by
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 ...
for his bravery and initiative. At the battle, Brodhead's only son, also named Daniel, was wounded and captured. He was later exchanged in 1778, and retired as a Captain in 1779 from the 3rd Pennsylvania Regiment. After 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 ...
, Broadhead became the acting commander of the remnants of the Pennsylvania State Rifle Regiment and the Pennsylvania State Battalion of Musketry, which were consolidated into a single battalion, the Pennsylvania State Regiment, and would later become the
13th Pennsylvania Regiment
The 13th Pennsylvania Regiment, also known as The Pennsylvania State Rifle Regiment and Miles's Regiment, was raised March 6, 1776, as a state militia regiment and later for service with the Continental Army. The regiment would see action duri ...
.
Brodhead took over command of the
8th Pennsylvania Regiment
The 8th Pennsylvania Regiment or Mackay's Battalion was an American infantry unit that became part of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Authorized for frontier defense in July 1776, the eight-company unit was originall ...
after the death of its commander, Aeneas Mackay, early in 1777 and was promoted to
colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
. Brodhead led his troops during the
Philadelphia Campaign
The Philadelphia campaign (1777–1778) was a British effort in the American Revolutionary War to gain control of Philadelphia, which was then the seat of the Second Continental Congress. British General William Howe, after failing to draw ...
in 1777 and wintered with 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 ...
at
Valley Forge
Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the B ...
in 1777–78. “On the 5th of March, 1778, the regiment was ordered to Pittsburgh for the defense of the western frontiers, and by directions of Gen.
Lachlan McIntosh
Lachlan McIntosh (March 17, 1725 – February 20, 1806) was a Scottish American military and political leader during the American Revolution and the early United States. In a 1777 duel, he fatally shot Button Gwinnett, a signer of the Declaratio ...
, Col. Brodhead made, about the 12th of July, a detour up the West Branch to check the Indians who were ravaging Wyoming and the West Branch valley. He was at Muncy, on the 24th of July, and had ordered Capt. Finley’s company into Penn's valley, where two of the latter’s soldiers, Thomas Van Doren and Jacob Shedacre, who had participated in the campaign against Burgoyne, were killed, on the 24th, in sight of Potter's Fort, by the Indians. Soon after, Col. Hartley with his regiment relieved Col. Brodhead, and he proceeded with the 8th to Pittsburgh”. (Several histories incorrectly state that Washington sent Brodhead and the 8th Pennsylvania to rebuild and re-garrison the frontier outpost of Fort Muncy. However, in addition to the above information from the Pennsylvania Archives, the Orderly Book of the 8th Pennsylvania Regt and the Muster Rolls at Fort Pitt 1778 show that Brodhead led the 8th Pennsylvania regiment to
Fort Pitt in the summer of 1778.)
Brodhead commanded the 8th Pennsylvania in Brig. Gen.
Lachlan McIntosh
Lachlan McIntosh (March 17, 1725 – February 20, 1806) was a Scottish American military and political leader during the American Revolution and the early United States. In a 1777 duel, he fatally shot Button Gwinnett, a signer of the Declaratio ...
's failed attempt to capture the British stronghold of
Fort Detroit
Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit or Fort Detroit (1701–1796) was a fort established on the north bank of the Detroit River by the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and the Italian Alphonse de Tonty in 1701. In the 18th century, Fre ...
. On March 5, 1779, Brodhead replaced McIntosh as commander of the Western Department. His command included frontier forts such as
Fort Pitt (
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
),
Fort McIntosh (
Beaver, Pennsylvania
Beaver is a borough in and the county seat of Beaver County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is located at the confluence of the Beaver and Ohio Rivers, approximately northwest of Pittsburgh. As of the 2020 census, the borough population ...
),
Fort Laurens
Fort Laurens was an American Revolutionary War fort on a northern tributary of the Muskingum River in what would become Northeast Ohio, United States. The fort's location is in the present-day town of Bolivar, Ohio, along the Ohio and Erie Can ...
(near
Bolivar, Ohio
Bolivar (, rhymes with Oliver) is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 994 at the 2010 census. Bolivar is also home to Fort Laurens, the only American Revolutionary War-era fort in what is now Ohio.
History
Sh ...
),
Fort Henry (Virginia)
Fort Henry was an England, English frontier fort in 17th century Virginia Colony, colonial Virginia near the falls of the Appomattox River. Its exact location has been debated, but the most popular one (marked by Virginia Historical Marker QA-6) ...
(
Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...
),
Fort Armstrong
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
(near
Kittanning, Pennsylvania
Kittanning ( pronounced ) is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in, and the county seat of, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Armstrong County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is situated northeast of Pittsburgh, along the east bank of the Al ...
), and
Fort Holliday's Cove, along with dozens of lesser outposts.
The
Wyandot
Wyandot may refer to:
Native American ethnography
* Wyandot people, also known as the Huron
* Wyandot language
* Wyandot religion
Places
* Wyandot, Ohio, an unincorporated community
* Wyandot County, Ohio
* Camp Wyandot, a Camp Fire Boys and ...
,
Mingo
The Mingo people are an Iroquoian group of Native Americans, primarily Seneca and Cayuga, who migrated west from New York to the Ohio Country in the mid-18th century, and their descendants. Some Susquehannock survivors also joined them, and ...
,
Shawnee
The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...
, and
Lenape
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...
allied with the British and regularly raided settlements on the
Ohio Country frontier. The British were strong at Fort Detroit and other outposts, and had most of the
Iroquois Confederacy
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
as allies. In addition, Brodhead faced a tenuous alliance with Iroquois tribes such as the
Oneida
Oneida may refer to:
Native American/First Nations
* Oneida people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy
* Oneida language
* Oneida Indian Nation, based in New York
* Oneida Na ...
who supported the Patriot cause as allies, a large population of Tory-sympathizing settlers, and a delicate truce with the powerful
Lenape-Delaware
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
tribe. Its friendly chief had signed a treaty with the US as an ally.
From his headquarters at Fort Pitt, Brodhead directed numerous raids against hostile native tribes, often leading the expeditions personally. His most famous raid came against the
Seneca tribe
The Seneca () ( see, Onödowáʼga:, "Great Hill People") are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west w ...
of the
Iroquois Confederacy
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
between August 11 and September 14, 1779. Brodhead left Fort Pitt with a contingent of 605 soldiers and militia to go into northwestern Pennsylvania. He followed the
Allegheny River
The Allegheny River ( ) is a long headwater stream of the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York. The Allegheny River runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border northwesterly into ...
up into New York, where he drove the Seneca out of their villages. As most of the
warrior
A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste.
History
Warriors seem to have been p ...
s were away fighting the
Sullivan Expedition
The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Genocide) was a United States military campaign during the American Revolutionary War, lasting from June to October 1779 ...
further east in New York, Brodhead met little resistance in destroying the villages, crops and people at the heart of the Seneca nation.
In April 1781, Brodhead led a successful expedition against the Lenape bands around the
Muskingum River
The Muskingum River (Shawnee: ') is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately long, in southeastern Ohio in the United States. An important commercial route in the 19th century, it flows generally southward through the eastern hill country o ...
in the
Ohio Country. In 1781, some of the Lenape-Delaware ended their neutrality and sided with the British. In retaliation, Brodhead mounted the
Coshocton Expedition, invading their territory in central Ohio and destroying the main village of
Coshocton in what is now east-central
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. As a result of Brodhead's campaign, the Delaware fled from eastern Ohio. They also vowed vengeance.
He retained command of the Western Department until September 17, 1781, when he was replaced by
John Gibson. He had turned over command in May 1781, but returned in August and tried to regain control from Gibson, in the process arresting Gibson. However
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 ...
sent orders which led to Brodhead's permanent removal from command at Fort Pitt. Brodhead was removed from his command over allegations of mishandling supplies and money. Brodhead had made impressment (the forced sale of supplies) a policy. He had spent money intended for bonuses to recruit new militiamen to purchase supplies for his existing troops. Brodhead was acquitted of all charges except misspending the recruiting money.
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 ...
had been aware of the impressment and had given his tacit approval, as the Continental Army was struggling to keep going. Furthermore, the
court martial
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
ruled Brodhead justified in spending the recruiting money on supplies, and he was not punished.
A short time later, George Washington
brevetted
In many of the world's military establishments, a brevet ( or ) was a warrant giving a commissioned officer a higher rank title as a reward for gallantry or meritorious conduct but may not confer the authority, precedence, or pay of real rank. ...
him a
brigadier general
Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...
. Brodhead spent the remainder of the war as commander of the
1st Pennsylvania Regiment.
Later life
After the war, Brodhead, by then a widower, married Rebecca Mifflin, the widow of General
Samuel Mifflin. Brodhead was one of the founders of the
Society of the Cincinnati
The Society of the Cincinnati is a fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of military officers wh ...
. He later served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. On November 13, 1789, he was appointed Surveyor General of Pennsylvania and held the post for the next eleven years.
He died at
Milford, Pennsylvania
Milford is a borough in Pike County, Pennsylvania and the county seat. Its population was 1,103 at the 2020 census. Located on the upper Delaware River, Milford is part of the New York metropolitan area.
History
The area along the Delaware Ri ...
, and was buried in the Milford Cemetery.
General Daniel Brodhead: Patriot in War, Civil Servant in Peace
by Dr. John C. Appel ''Milestones'' Vol 17 No 2 Summer 1992
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brodhead, Daniel
1736 births
1809 deaths
People from Marbletown, New York
American surveyors
Continental Army generals
Continental Army officers from Pennsylvania