Not our name, but our passion
Mary Wilkins Freeman was an American novelist and short story writer who studied in Brattleboro at the Glenwood Seminary which was at the site of this marker. She wrote more than two dozen novels and short stories during her career and in 1926 she became the first female winner of the William Dean Howells Medal for Distinction in Fiction presented to her by the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
At this location stood the Glenwood Seminary in Brattleboro. A higher education institution for women which was one of the first in the 19th century. Subjects included such diverse topics as composition, oil painting and philosophy.
In Walloomsac, New York about ten miles from Bennington on August 16, 1777 a rebel force of ~ 2000 men under the command of General John Stark engaged a contingent of General John Burgoyne‘s British troops under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Friedrich Baum. Stark’s New Hampshire and Massachusetts militiamen were reinforced by Vermont militiamen under the command of Colonel Seth Warner and some of the Green Mountain Boys. The Battle of Bennington was a part of the larger Saratoga Campaign which would turn out to be the turning point in the American War for Independence. Baum’s detachment of about 700 Hessians was sent by Burgoyne to gather supplies needed for the greater battle effort in Saratoga. During a heavy rainstorm Stark’s men were able to envelope Baum’s men taking many prisoners and killing Baum. Reinforcements for both sides arrived but Stark and Warner were able to drive away the British reinforcements with heavy casualties. The outcome of the battle was that the British had lost approximately 1000 men that may have been instrumental in the forthcoming Battle of Saratoga, they did not acquire the much needed supplies and many of their Native American allies abandoned them and went home. The victory at Saratoga sent a positive message to the fledgling Colonial cause and was a major factor in bringing about French support to their war efforts.
The Bennington Battle Monument is a 306 foot high stone obelisk commemorating the battle. President Rutherford B. Hayes attended the anniversary of the battle in 1877 and many plans were discussed by the local historical society to build a monument. The final plan was approved and the monument was completed in 1889 for a cost of $112,000 a sizable sum for the time. There is an elevator going to the top of the monument where you can see three states on a clear day.
There is a visitor center where you can purchase tickets to the top of the monument.
There are a number of statues and historical placards honoring some of the participants in the battle.
There are two New Hampshire historical markers concerning General John Stark; one about his leading the expedition to Bennington and one at his birthplace in Derry, New Hampshire.
The Shunpike marker marks the location on the Deerfield River in Charlemont where local residents forded the river to avoid turnpike fees.
To the Thrifty Travelers of the
Mohawk Trail who in 1797 here
forded the Deerfield River rather
than pay toll at the Turnpike Bridge
and who in 1810 won the battle for
free travel on all Massachusetts
Roads.
There is a nearby rest area with access to the river and day use facilities.
We all have heroes in our lives and my father’s was Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, four time governor of Maine, college professor, Civil War general and winner of one of the most important battles in American history.
I grew up surrounded by books about Chamberlain and the Battle of Little Roundtop and was excited that I got to take my father to Gettysburg National Military Park before he passed away. We explored the entire battlefield but eventually made our way up to the tiny hillside where so much blood was drawn.
Little Round Top was the extreme end of the Union’s fishhook shaped line with Chamberlain’s 20th Maine Regiment the the very last position on the left of the line. Brigadier General Gouverneur K. Warren immediately saw the the weakness on the left side of the line.
Colonel Strong Vincent commander of the third brigade took the initiative and ordered his four regiments to fortify the hill. Arriving just before the confederates Vincent ordered Chamberlain and this 20th Maine to hold the hill at all costs it being the extreme left. Chamberlain a professor of rhetoric at Bowdoin College in Maine pondered what was meant to hold the hill to the last; the last bullet? the last man? After defending and driving back several charges by Confederate commander William C. Oates Chamberlain was almost out of ammunition. He ordered his troops to fix bayonets and following an obscure textbook maneuver he “refused the line” and led his men in a charge down the hill swinging his troops like a gate swinging shut. Oates and his Alabamians were routed and the line was saved. The battle was not quite over until Colonel Patrick “Paddy” O’Rorke led his 140th New York regiment against Regiments from Texas in battles just to the right of Chamberlain’s position.
There are numerous monuments and placards commemorating the battle on the hill today.
An important piece of history and a cherished memory with my Dad holds a special place in my heart.
