Timothy Bigelow (August 12, 1739 in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

British America British America comprised the colonial territories of the English Empire, which became the British Empire after the 1707 union of the Kingdom of England with the Kingdom of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, in the Americas from 16 ...

– March 31, 1790 in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

) fought as a patriot 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 ...

Biography

At the beginning of the American Revolution, he was working as a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

. He was a delegate to the

Massachusetts Provincial Congress The Massachusetts Provincial Congress (1774–1780) was a provisional government created in the Province of Massachusetts Bay early in the American Revolution. Based on the terms of the colonial charter, it exercised ''de facto'' control over the ...

, participated in the Committee of Correspondence, fought in the

Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord ...

, and served as colonel of the 15th Massachusetts Regiment of 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 ...

. He accompanied

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 his expedition to Quebec in 1775, and was captured there, remaining a prisoner until 1776. He was made colonel on February 8, 1777, and, when in command of the 15th Massachusetts Regiment, assisted at the capture of John Burgoyne. He was also at Valley Forge, West Point,

Monmouth Monmouth ( , ; cy, Trefynwy meaning "town on the Monnow") is a town and community in Wales. It is situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. Monmouth is northeast of Cardiff, and west of London. I ...

, and Yorktown. After the war, Bigelow had charge of the Springfield Arsenal. He was a benefactor of the academy at

Leicester, Massachusetts Leicester ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 11,087 at the 2020 United States Census. History What is now Leicester was originally settled by the Nipmuc people and was known by them as ''Towtaid''. On January 27 ...

Family

He married Anna Andrews.Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the Early Settlers of Watertown, Massachusetts, by Henry Bond, M.D., Volume I, Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1855, p. 38. They had six children together: Nancy Bigelow (born 1765, married Abraham Lincoln of

), Timothy Bigelow (1767-1821; married Lucy Prescott, niece of

William Prescott William Prescott (February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an American colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded the patriot forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Prescott is known for his order to his soldiers, "Do not fire until y ...

), Andrew Bigelow (born 1769; died unmarried), Rufus Bigelow (born 1772; died unmarried), Lucy Bigelow (born 1774; married Luther Lawrence), and Clara Bigelow (born 1781; married Tyler Bigelow).

Memorials

Mount Bigelow (Maine) and (consequently) the Bigelow Preserve (Maine) are named after Timothy Bigelow. In 1861, Bigelow's grandson erected the

Bigelow Monument The Bigelow Monument is a public monument in Worcester, Massachusetts, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. The monument, located in a small cemetery at the center of Worcester City Hall and Common, Worcester Common, honors Timothy Bigelow (s ...

in his memory in

. With others, Timothy Bigelow obtained a grant for 23,040 acres on October 21, 1780, on which was founded the town of

Montpelier, Vermont Montpelier () is the capital city of the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Washington County. The site of Vermont's state government, it is the least populous state capital in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population w ...

, now the capital of Vermont. It was named by him.

References

External links

Col. Timothy Bigelow Monument
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bigelow, Timothy 1739 births 1790 deaths Continental Army officers from Massachusetts People from Worcester, Massachusetts