Nicholas Stoner (

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, Dec. 15, 1762–

Caroga, New York Caroga is a town in Fulton County, New York, United States. The population was 1,205 at the 2010 census. The town was named after a local creek. Caroga is in the northern part of the county, northwest of Gloversville and Johnstown. History ...

, Nov. 26, 1853) was a hunter and trapper in the

Adirondack Mountains The Adirondack Mountains (; a-də-RÄN-dak) form a massif in northeastern New York with boundaries that correspond roughly to those of Adirondack Park. They cover about 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2). The mountains form a roughly circular ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He served in 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 ...

in 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 Revolut ...

and the American forces in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He is buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery,

Gloversville, New York Gloversville is a city in the Mohawk Valley region of Upstate New York, and the most populous city in Fulton County, New York, Fulton County. Gloversville was once the hub of the United States' glovemaking industry, with over two hundred manufac ...

Early life

Nicholas Stoner was born in Maryland in 1762 or 1763, the son of German immigrant Henry Stoner and Catherine Barnes. During his childhood the family moved to New York City, where his uncle, John Binkus,During the Revolution Binkus became an officer in

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 ...

General Oliver De Lancey's

Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...

paid for his schooling. After a few years the family again moved, to a frontier community called "Fonda's Bush" (now Broadalbin,

Fulton County, New York Fulton County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It forms part of the state's Mohawk Valley region. Its county seat is Johnstown. At the 2020 U.S. census, the county had a population of 53,324. The county is named in honor of Robert F ...

), east of Johnstown and north of

Amsterdam, New York Amsterdam is a city in Montgomery County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 18,219. The city is named after Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The City of Amsterdam is surrounded on the northern, eastern ...

Revolutionary War

In 1777 Stoner enlisted as a

fifer A fifer is a non-combatant military occupation of a foot soldier who originally played the fife during combat. The practice was instituted during the period of Early Modern warfare to sound signals during changes in formation, such as the line ...

in the

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 ...

forces in Colonel James Livingston's battalion of the

New York Line The New York Line was a formation within the Continental Army. The term "New York Line" referred to the quota of numbered infantry regiments assigned to New York at various times by the Continental Congress. These, together with similar contingen ...

under Captain Timothy Hughes. His father and younger brother, John, served in the same regiment. In August 1777 the unit accompanied General

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 ...

in the relief of

Fort Stanwix Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction commenced on August 26, 1758, under the direction of British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The bastion fort was built ...

. In the fall of that year they fought in the

Battles of Saratoga The Battles of Saratoga (September 19 and October 7, 1777) marked the climax of the Saratoga campaign, giving a decisive victory to the Americans over the British in the American Revolutionary War. British General John Burgoyne led an invasion ...

. Stoner accompanied General Arnold in the attack on the

Hessian A Hessian is an inhabitant of the German state of Hesse. Hessian may also refer to: Named from the toponym *Hessian (soldier), eighteenth-century German regiments in service with the British Empire **Hessian (boot), a style of boot **Hessian f ...

camp in which Arnold was wounded, and Stoner was also wounded on the right side of his head and his ear by fragments of the skull of a fellow soldier killed by a cannonball. Following his recovery he served with his unit in

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

, where his father was wounded and Nicholas captured, but later freed. In 1780 it was said that he was fifer of the guard that conducted convicted British spy Major

John André John André (2 May 1750/1751''Gravesite–Memorial''
Westmi ...

to the gallows, and in 1781 he was at Yorktown for the British surrender. In 1781 Nicholas' father was released from the army and settled on a farm formerly belonging to Loyalist Col.

John Butler John Butler may refer to: Arts and entertainment *John "Picayune" Butler (died 1864), American performer *John Butler (artist) (1890–1976), American artist * John Butler (author) (born 1937), British author and YouTuber *John Butler (born 1954), ...

at Tribes Hill, New York. Here, in 1782, he was surprised, killed, and

scalped Scalping is the act of cutting or tearing a part of the human scalp, with hair attached, from the head, and generally occurred in warfare with the scalp being a trophy. Scalp-taking is considered part of the broader cultural practice of the tak ...

by a raiding party of Indians. In 1783 Nicholas accompanied Col.

Marinus Willett Colonel Marinus Willett (July 31, 1740 – August 22, 1830) was an American military officer, politician and merchant who served as the mayor of New York City from 1807 to 1808. Willett is best known for his actions during the American Revolut ...

to New York City upon its evacuation by the British.

Post war

After the war Stoner returned to Johnstown and married his old flame, Anna Mason, now a young widow with a baby daughter. In 1781, during Stoner's long absence, Mason had married William Scarborough. Later that year Scarborough was killed by Captain James McDonald in a British raiding party led by Major John Ross, in what is known as the

Battle of Johnstown The Battle of Johnstown was one of the last battles in the northern theatre of the American Revolutionary War, with approximately 1,400 engaged at Johnstown, New York on October 25, 1781. British regulars and militia, commanded by Major John Ro ...

.Stoner says that McDonald and Scarborough had been neighbors before the war, and the killing may have been the result of a personal quarrel. In addition to Scarborough's daughter Mary (b.1782), Nicholas and Anna had six children together — four sons: John (b.1789), Jeremiah (b.1794), Henry (b.1796), and Obediah (b.1801), and two daughters: Mary, and Catherine (b.1802). The family first lived near

Johnson Hall Johnson Hall State Historic Site was the home of Sir William Johnson (1715–1774) an Irish pioneer who became the influential British Indian Department, Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the Province of New York, known for his strong relation ...

, and then moved to Scotch Bush, now in the town of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in Montgomery County. Stoner served for a time as

deputy sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

, and also filled various other offices in the town. During this time, too, he became noted as a hunter and trapper, primarily in the area along the

Sacandaga River The Sacandaga River is a river in the northern part of New York in the United States. Its name comes from the Native American ''Sa-chen-da'-ga'', meaning "overflowed lands". The Sacandaga River is a tributary of the Hudson River, flowing into ...

. One time he engaged in a drunken brawl in De Fonclaire's Tavern in Johnstown, which was frequented by both Canadian and American trappers. One of the Canadian Indians, hearing the name of Stoner, pulled out his scalping knife and boasted of the nine notches indicating scalps taken during the Revolution. He pointed to one, cut deeper than the others, and said that this "was the scalp of old Stoner!" (Nicholas' father) Hearing this Stoner grabbed a red-hot

andiron An andiron or firedog, fire-dog or fire dog is a bracket support, normally found in pairs, on which logs are laid for burning in an open fireplace, so that air may circulate under the firewood, allowing better burning and less smoke. They gene ...

and threw it at the Indian, yelling "You never will scalp another one!" The iron burned a brand across the Indian's neck and knocked him unconscious, at the cost of severe burns to Stoner's own hand. It is not known what became of the injured Native, although he is believed to have died of his injury on the way back to Canada. Stoner was arrested and jailed, but was freed by a mob of fellow Revolutionary War veterans, and was never brought to trial. Stoner was married to Anna Mason for over forty years. After her death in 1824 he lived for fifteen or twenty years with a woman named Polly Phye, whose husband had abandoned her. After Polly's death, Stoner married a much younger widow, Hannah (Houghtaling) Frank, in 1840, and resided in

War of 1812

At the outbreak of the

both Stoner brothers enlisted—John in 1812 and Nicholas in 1813. John died of illness at

Sackets Harbor, New York Sackets Harbor (earlier spelled Sacketts Harbor) is a village in Jefferson County, New York, United States, on Lake Ontario. The population was 1,450 at the 2010 census. The village was named after land developer and owner Augustus Sackett, who ...

. Nicholas enlisted in the 29th Regiment. In the spring he joined the rest of the army at

Plattsburgh Plattsburgh ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is a city in, and the seat of, Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surrounding ...

as a fife-major, and henceforth was titled "Major Stoner". In September 1814, he took part in the

Battle of Plattsburgh The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. An army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévost and a naval squadro ...

, where a small American force repelled a vastly superior British force.

Death

Nicholas Stoner died at the age of 92 on November 24, 1853, in Newkirk's Mills (now Newkirk), in the town of Caroga. He was originally buried in Kingsborough Cemetery in

Gloversville Gloversville is a city in the Mohawk Valley region of Upstate New York, and the most populous city in Fulton County. Gloversville was once the hub of the United States' glovemaking industry, with over two hundred manufacturers in Gloversville an ...

, which still has a plaque marking the site. His remains were later moved to Prospect Hill Cemetery in Gloversville.

Legacy

The ''Nick Stoner Municipal Golf Course'' in Caroga is named for Stoner and also exhibits a large statue of him. East Stoner Lake, West Stoner Lake, and Little Stoner Lake at the northern end of Caroga, as well as Nick Stoner Island in nearby Canada Lake, bear his name. The

fight song A fight song is a rousing short song associated with a sports team. The term is most common in the United States and Canada. In Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand these songs are called the team anthem, team song, or games song. First associated ...

of Gloversville High School was "Old Nick Stoner, the Man whose Praise we sing." A

liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...

, , was launched in 1944.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stoner, Nicholas 1762 births 1853 deaths American pioneers American hunters Continental Army soldiers People from New York (state) in the War of 1812