The Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution, Vol. 1 (of 2): or, Illustrations, by Pen And Pencil, of the History, Biography, Scenery, Relics, and Traditions of the War for IndependenceLossing, Benson John
History
The Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution, Vol. 1 (of 2): or, Illustrations, by Pen And Pencil, of the History, Biography, Scenery, Relics, and Traditions of the War for Independence
Lossing, Benson John
United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783
** Arthur St. Clair was a native of Edinburgh, in Scotland. He was born
in 1734, and came to America with Admiral Boscawen in 1759. He served in
Canada in 1759 and 1760, as a lieutenant under General Wolfe, and, after
the peace of 1763, was appointed to the command of Fort Ligonier, in
Pennsylvania. In January, 1776, he AAras appointed a colonel in the
Continental army, and was ordered to raise a regiment destined for
service in Canada. Within six weeks from his appointment his regiment
was on its march. He was appointed a brigadier in August of that year,
and was an active participant in the engagements at Trenton and
Princeton. In February, 1777, he received the appointment of major
general, and on the 5th of June was ordered by General Schuyler to the
command of Ticonderoga. He reached that post on the 12th, and found a
garrison of two thousand men, badly equipped and very short of
ammunition and stores. He was obliged to evacuate the post on the 5th of
July following. In 1780 he was ordered to Rhode Island, but
circumstances prevented him from going thither. When the allied armies
marched toward Virginia, in 1781, to attack Cornwallis, St. Clair was
directed to remain at Philadelphia with the recruits of the Pennsylvania
line, for the protection of Congress. He was, however, soon afterward
allowed to join the army, and reached Yorktown during the siege. From
Yorktown he was sent with a considerable force to join Greene, which he
did at Jacksonville, near Savannah. He resided in Pennsylvania after the
peace; was elected to Congress in 1786, and was president of that body
in 1787. Upon the erection of the Northwestern Territory into a
government in 1788, he was appointed governor, which office he held
until 1802. when Ohio was admitted as a state into the Union, and he
declined an election to the post he had held. His military operations
within his territory against the Indians were disastrous, and when he
retired from office he was almost ruined in fortune. He made
unsuccessful applications to Congress for the payment of certain claims,
and finally died almost penniless, at Laurel Hill in Western
Pennsylvania, Aug. 31,1818, aged 84 years.
Outposts undefended.--Fort on Mount Independence.--Tardiness of Congress
in supplying Men and Munitions
133St. Clair was an officer of acknowledged bravery and prudence, yet he
was far from being an expert and skillful military leader. His self-
reliance and his confidence in the valor and strength of those under him
often caused him to be less vigilant than necessity demanded; and it was
this fault, in connection with the weakness of the garrison, which gave
Burgoyne his only advantage at Ticonderoga. He soon perceived, through
the vigilance of his scouts, that St. Clair had neglected to secure
those two important eminences, Mount Hope and Sugar Loaf Hill (Mount
Defiance), and, instead of making a direct assault upon the fortress,
the British general essayed to possess himself of these valuable points.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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