James Fitzpatrick (1748 – September 26, 1778), also known as Sandy Flash, was an American

highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to footp ...

who operated in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

counties west of

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 ...

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, ...

, 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 ...

. A

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 ...

deserter, Fitzpatrick defected to the

Loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

side and entered folklore as a swashbuckling

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...

figure. He was popularized as a character named Sandy Flash in

Bayard Taylor Bayard Taylor (January 11, 1825December 19, 1878) was an American poet, literary critic, translator, travel author, and diplomat. As a poet, he was very popular, with a crowd of more than 4,000 attending a poetry reading once, which was a record ...

’s novel ''The Story of Kennett'', published in 1866.

Early life

Fitzpatrick was born in 1748 in the village of Doe Run in West Marlborough Township,

Chester County Chester County may refer to: * Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States * Chester County, South Carolina, United States * Chester County, Tennessee, United States * Cheshire or the County Palatine of Chester, a ceremonial county in the North Wes ...

, the son of a working-class Scots-Irish immigrant. In his youth, he completed an apprenticeship with a local blacksmith, John Passmore, and then worked as a journeyman blacksmith and farmhand. Handsome and sandy-haired, Fitzpatrick stood 6 feet 4 inches in height. He excelled at wrestling, running, and other sports. After spotting Fitzpatrick riding home one morning after a dance, a farmer was said to have exclaimed, "He went by like a sandy flash." While most such stories are apocryphal or embellished, they reflect Fitzpatrick's romanticized image.

Military service

Upon the outbreak of the

in 1775, Fitzpatrick volunteered for the Continental Army and went to Long Island with the Pennsylvania militia in the summer of 1776. Flogged as punishment for some minor infraction, Fitzpatrick deserted, swimming across 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 ...

at night and making his way home. He was arrested in Philadelphia and released from prison on condition that he rejoin the army, whereupon he promptly deserted a second time. In September 1777,

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 ...

militia from Wilmington,

, attempted to arrest him at the farm where he worked, but Fitzpatrick threatened them with a rifle, forcing them to flee empty-handed. When British General Sir William Howe invaded Chester County in September 1777, Fitzpatrick joined the British army, guided troop movements, and fought at the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Ame ...

. He roamed Chester County and Delaware County (which was part of Chester County until 1789), accosting and robbing Whig militia officers and tax collectors and working as a British scout. Although he claimed the title of captain, there is no evidence that he ever held a British military commission or commanded troops. Notably, many Chester County residents sympathized with the Loyalist cause, while others, including the

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

who made up 40 percent of the population, remained neutral.

Outlaw activities

After the British withdrew from Philadelphia in June 1778, Fitzpatrick remained behind. He continued to harass the Continental Army and its supporters in the area, waging a personal vendetta against Whigs. On occasion he rode with the

Doan Outlaws The Doan Outlaws, also known as the Doan Boys and Plumstead Cowboys, were a notorious gang of brothers from a Quaker family most renowned for being British spies during the American Revolutionary War. The Doans were Loyalists from a Quake ...

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 ...

and partnered with fellow outlaw and boyhood friend Mordecai Dougherty. Fitzpatrick became notorious for bravado. After robbing two tax collectors, he stripped them, tied them to trees, and flogged them. On another occasion, he captured a militia officer who prided himself on his long hair. After stealing his officer's weapons, Fitzpatrick cut off the man's handsome

queue __NOTOC__ Queue () may refer to: * Queue area, or queue, a line or area where people wait for goods or services Arts, entertainment, and media *''ACM Queue'', a computer magazine * The Queue (Sorokin novel), ''The Queue'' (Sorokin novel), a 198 ...

as an added indignity. He once strolled openly into a

Kennett Square Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the Mushroom Capital of the World because mushroom farming in the region produces over 500 million pounds of mushrooms a year, totaling half of the United ...

tavern crowded with Whigs, who stood bragging what they would do to Fitzpatrick once they caught him. The outlaw ordered a drink before he was recognized, whereupon he drew a pistol and backed out, covering himself with a pistol before disappearing into the woods. On yet another occasion, Fitzpatrick attended a public meeting unarmed and in disguise, afterward capturing a boastful young militia officer after fooling him into thinking that an iron candlestick was a blunderbuss. Despite his campaign of harassment and intimidation, Fitzpatrick was never accused of murdering or seriously wounding anyone. Like

, he cultivated a reputation for gallantry and was reported to have given gifts to the poor and to have never stolen from the poor or mistreated a woman.

Capture and death

On August 23, 1778, Fitzpatrick entered the Edgmont home of Robert McAfee, a militia captain, to rob him. McAfee and a servant girl, Rachel Walker, subdued the outlaw after a struggle. The

Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania The Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was the collective directorial executive branch of the Pennsylvanian state government between 1777 and 1790. It was headed by a president and a vice president (analogous to a gov ...

split the £1000 bounty between them. On September 15, Fitzpatrick was convicted of burglary and highway robbery, crimes to which he confessed, and was sentenced to be hanged. He attempted to escape from prison three times but failed. Fitzpatrick was

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

on September 26 in a botched public execution. The rope used to hang him was too long, such that when he dropped from the gallows, his toes touched the ground. The hangman actually climbed onto Fitzpatrick's shoulders to force him down, strangling him to death. Fitzpatrick's confederate, Mordecai Dougherty, was never captured and is thought to have fled to Canada. Tory sympathizers burned the haystacks and maimed the horses of his captor, Captain McAfee, who received £200 in compensation from the revolutionary government in 1783.

Legacy

Fitzpatrick was popularized in two novels, Bayard Taylor’s ''The Story of Kennett'' (1866) and Clifton Lisle's ''Sandy Flash: The Highwayman of Castle Rock'' (1922). These novels originated the epithet "Sandy Flash," by which Fitzpatrick has entered local folklore. Two Chester County roads have been named Sandy Flash Drive after Fitzpatrick, including the main road within

Ridley Creek State Park Ridley Creek State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Edgmont, Middletown, and Upper Providence Townships, Delaware County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park, about north of the county seat of Media, offers many recreational act ...

, named in 1972, and another road located in a private housing estate in

Kennett Square, Pennsylvania Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the Mushroom Capital of the World because mushroom farming in the region produces over 500 million pounds of mushrooms a year, totaling half of the United ...

. According to local legend, Fitzpatrick buried treasure ("enough to buy Chester County many times over") in a cave in the vicinity of Castle Rock, a rocky hill in the eastern part of

Edgmont Township, Pennsylvania Edgmont Township is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Edgmont contains the unincorporated community of Gradyville. The population was 3,987 at the 2010 census. History and socioeconomics Edgmont Township, otherwise known by the post ...

, near

Crum Creek Crum Creek (from the Dutch, meaning "crooked creek") is a creek in Delaware County and Chester County, Pennsylvania, flowing approximately , generally in a southward direction and draining into the Delaware River in Eddystone, Pennsylvania. It ...

. No treasure was ever found.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flash, Sandy Fitzpatrick, James ("Sandy Flash") Fitzpatrick, James ("Sandy Flash") History of Philadelphia People from Philadelphia Fitzpatrick, James ("Sandy Flash") Executed people from Pennsylvania People executed for robbery People executed by Pennsylvania by hanging 18th-century executions by the United States 18th-century executions of American people Year of birth unknown American outlaws People from Chester County, Pennsylvania Loyalists in the American Revolution from Pennsylvania