Today In History – The Enemy

Events for Oct 11

1724
Fort Dummer was attacked by about seventy of the enemy and four or five of its occupants were killed or wounded, but the attack was repulsed. It does not appear to have been attacked afterward.

The enemy? I wonder why they do not name the enemy?

Comments | 4

  • Polite company?

    Back then, the maps said this area was filled with Savages!

    It’s been a while since I did these but I’m pretty sure this nugget came from the timeline issue of “With Interest”, which would place the writing in the 1920’s or so. The bank published it and it was generally a positive look at things in and around town.

    (FYI: Pre-1840’s items come from With Interest and other timelines in history books; everything 1840-1930 comes from newspapers; post 1930 comes from organizational histories and events that happen while we’re alive and can note them!)

  • 1724

    AnneODyne’s astute link, shows the following about 1724:

    1724 campaign
    During the spring of 1724, the Wabanaki Confederacy conducted ten raids on the Maine frontier which killed, wounded, or imprisoned more than 30 New Englanders. They took a sloop in Kennebunk harbor and slaughtered the entire crew.[5]: 125 

    In the spring of 1724, Captain Josiah Winslow took command of St. George’s Fort at Thomaston; he was the older brother of John Winslow.[29] On 30 April 1724, Winslow and Sergeant Harvey left George’s Fort with 17 men in two whale boats, and they went downriver several miles to Green Island. The following day, the two whale boats became separated and approximately 200 to 300 Abenakis descended on Harvey’s boat, killing Harvey and all of his men except three Indian guides who escaped to the Georges fort. Captain Winslow was then surrounded by 30 to 40 canoes which came off from both sides of the river and attacked him. After hours of fighting, Winslow and his men were killed except for three friendly Indians who escaped back to the fort. The Tarrantine Indians were reported to have lost more than 25 men.[5]: 126  [25]: 30 

    Indians killed one man and wounded another at Purpooduck on May 27. In June, Indians raided Dover, New Hampshire and took Elizabeth Hanson into captivity.[30] They also engaged in a canoe campaign, assisted by the Miꞌkmaqs from Cape Sable Island. In just a few weeks, they had captured 22 vessels, killing 22 New Englanders and taking more prisoner.[5]: 127  They also made an unsuccessful siege of St. George’s Fort.

    Battle of Norridgewock
    Main article: Battle of Norridgewock

    The Father Rale memorial at the battle site in Madison, Maine
    In the second half of 1724, the New Englanders launched an aggressive campaign up the Kennebec and Penobscot rivers.[31] On August 22, captains Jeremiah Moulton and Johnson Harmon led 200 rangers to Norridgewock to kill Father Rale and destroy the settlement. There were 160 Abenakis, many of whom chose to flee rather than fight. At least 31 chose to fight, and most of them were killed.[31] Rale was killed in the opening moments of the battle, a leading chief was killed, and nearly two dozen women and children.[9]: 84 

    The Colonists had casualties of two militiamen and one Mohawk. Harmon destroyed the Abenaki farms, and those who had escaped were forced to abandon their village and move northward to the Abenaki village of St. Francis and Bécancour, Quebec.[32] [14]: 123 

    Lovewell’s raids
    Captain John Lovewell made three expeditions against the Indians. On the first expedition in December 1724, he and his militia company of 30 men (often called “snowshoe men”) left Dunstable, New Hampshire, trekking to the north of Lake Winnipesaukee (“Winnipiscogee Lake”) into the White Mountains of New Hampshire. On December 10, 1724, they and a company of rangers killed two Abenakis.[9]: 65  In February 1725, Lovewell made a second expedition to the Lake Winnipesaukee area.[9]: 65  On February 20, his force came across wigwams at the head of the Salmon Falls River in Wakefield, New Hampshire, where ten Indians were killed.

    • And this too…

      In response, Governor Dummer ordered the construction of Fort Dummer in Brattleboro, Vermont. The fort became a major base of operations for scouting and punitive expeditions into Abenaki country….On October 11, 1724, 70 Abenakis attacked Fort Dummer and killed three or four soldiers…

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