Israel Angell (August 24, 1740 - May 4, 1832) was a Continental Army officer of 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 ...

Early life and education

He was born to Oliver and Naomi (Smith) Angell in Providence,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

.Marquis Who's Who, Inc. ''Who Was Who in American History, the Military''. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1975. P. 14 He was a descendant of one of the original settlers in Rhode Island. He had a good education and developed an early interest in scientific matters. He married three times and had seventeen children.

Revolutionary War service

Angell served nearly throughout the entire war in Rhode Island and was successively promoted. He was appointed a major of Colonel Daniel Hitchcock's Regiment at the outbreak of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. He served with the regiment in the Siege of Boston. When the Continental Army was reorganized on January 1, 1776, Hitchcock's Regiment was re-designated as the 11th Continental Infantry. Late in 1776, Hitchcock was appointed as a brigade commander and Angell assumed command of the regiment. The regiment was re-designated as the

2nd Rhode Island Regiment The 2nd Rhode Island Regiment (also known as Hitchcock's Regiment and the 11th Continental Infantry) was authorized on 6 May 1775 under Colonel Daniel Hitchcock in the Rhode Island Army of Observation and was organized on 8 May 1775 as eight c ...

on January 1, 1777, and Angell was promoted to lieutenant colonel of the regiment. A few days later, he 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 o ...

in command of the regiment following the death of Colonel Hitchcock on January 13, 1777. Angell served 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 ...

in the Winter of 1777 to 1778, and in the following battles: * Siege of Boston (1775) * Battle of Brandywine (1777) * Battle of Red Bank (1777) * Battle of Monmouth (1778) * Battle of Rhode Island (1778) * Battle of Springfield (1780) He was particularly distinguished in the Battle of Springfield, where he withheld a key bridge from British troop advances. He received recognition correspondence for this act of heroism from

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 ...

and

Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene (June 19, 1786, sometimes misspelled Nathaniel) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. He emerged from the war with a reputation as General George Washington's most talented and dependab ...

. He also served at various places in Rhode Island and

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 ...

and along highlands of 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 ...

, most notably at Peekskill and West Point. He retired from the army on January 1, 1781, after the two Rhode Island regiments were consolidated into a single regiment known as the

Rhode Island Regiment The 1st Rhode Island Regiment (also known as Varnum's Regiment, the 9th Continental Regiment, the Black Regiment, the Rhode Island Regiment, and Olney's Battalion) was a regiment in the Continental Army raised in Rhode Island during the Americ ...

Later life

He settled in

Johnston, Rhode Island Johnston is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 29,568 at the 2020 census. Johnston is the site of the Clemence Irons House (1691), a stone-ender museum, and the only landfill in Rhode Island. Incorpora ...

as farmer and

cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * Cooper (video game character), in ...

. He later lived in

Smithfield, Rhode Island Smithfield is a town that is located in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. It includes the historic villages of Esmond, Georgiaville, Mountaindale, Hanton City, Stillwater and Greenville. The population was 22,118 at the 2020 cens ...

Personal life

He married Martha Angell. His 2nd marriage was to Susanne Wright. His 3rd marriage was to Sarah Wood. Angell had 17 children.

Death and legacy

Colonel Angell died on May 14, 1832, at the age of 91. He was originally buried in

. In 1918 his remains were moved to the

North Burial Ground The North Burial Ground is a cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island dating to 1700, the first public cemetery in Providence. It is located north of downtown Providence, bounded by North Main Street, Branch Avenue, the Moshassuck River, and Ceme ...

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

and a large plaque was placed there in his honor by the Rhode Island Society of the

Sons of the American Revolution The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR or NSSAR) is an American congressionally chartered organization, founded in 1889 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. A non-profit corporation, it has described its purpose ...

. He is the highest ranking Rhode Island officer who served in the Continental Army who is buried in Rhode Island.

References

*Johnson, Allen, ed. ''Dictionary of American Biography''. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1936.

External links

Feature article about Israel Angell's service in the Revolutionary War and his final grave site
by the Varnum Continentals Historical Organization in East Greenwich, RI. *
Diary of Colonel Israel Angell, commanding the Second Rhode Island continental regiment during the American revolution, 1778-1781

Valley Forge Legacy The Muster Roll Project 2nd Rhode Island Regiment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angell, Israel 1740 births 1832 deaths American Revolutionary War Diarists Continental Army officers from Rhode Island Burials at North Burying Ground (Providence) People from Providence, Rhode Island