Program

NYS Historic

Subject

House, People

Location

28 Birge Hill Rd, Chatham, NY 12037, USA

Lat/Long

42.381156680946, -73.560346205812

Grant Recipient

Columbia County Historical Society

Located in Chatham, New York is the former farm of Revolutionary War veteran Hosea Birge, who served from 1777-1780 in the Ninth Connecticut Regiment, and who participated in the Battle of Rhode Island.

Born in 1760, Birge enlisted while he was still a teenager for a 3-year term as a private following the outbreak of the American Revolution.  It was early in this stint that he participated in the Battle of Rhode Island—also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill and the Battle of Newport—as noted in his testimony provided during the pension application process. The Battle of Rhode Island occurred on August 29^th, 1778, and saw American forces, led by Major General John Sullivan, attack British forces stationed in Newport. Eventually the American forces abandoned their siege, at which point the British, aided by the Royal Navy, were able to counterattack the retreating forces. Though the battle ended inconclusively, British forces maintained their hold on the area after fierce fighting.

Birge continued to serve until his honorable discharge in 1780, which occurred while stationed in Morristown, New Jersey, where Hosea Birge would have been in close proximity to the wintering quarters of George Washington. It is possible that during the last few months of his service Birge was recruited to serve in the Commander-in-Chief’s Guard, though as of 2023 definitive primary sources to confirm this have yet to be located.

In 1785, Birge purchased the property where this marker is located. After his death in 1843, the New York Tribune published Birge’s obituary in the morning edition of its August 24^th paper. Republished from the Troy Budget, it read:

“At Chatham, Columbia county, Aug. 16, Hosea Birge, aged 83.—Mr. Birge was a soldier in the Revolution, and was in most of the engagements during the war. He was intimately acquainted with Gen. Washington and La Fayette, and for a long time served in Washington’s Life Guards. He was universally esteemed among his fellow-citizens, and died lamented by a large circle of relatives and acquaintances.”

In addition to the historic marker, Birge’s imprint on the area can be noted by the name of the street the property sits on—Birge Hill Road.