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Wilson, Hannah Sherwood, b.1767

John M. McDonald interview — 1849-12-01

From the Westchester County Historical Society catalog:
Hannah Sherwood Wilson (b.1767) discusses activity around Sherwood’s Bridge in Greenwich, Connecticut, during the Revolutionary War, including the burning of her grandfather’s barn and an attempt to burn his house. She describes several notable figures from the area, and opines that the Skinners who raided the area “were worse, if any thing, than the cowboys.”

Manuscript page facsimiles

High-resolution images served from the Westchester County Historical Society's IIIF endpoint. Click any page to view full size.

Transcription

995 111 86 Once, when I lived with my grand- =mother in the upper part of King Street, I remember that a strong party of Hessians horse and foot passed up or down — probably down. They were hungry, and asked for something to eat. My grand- =mother to please them said, "I have an only son below. Take this to him. She then gave them a cheese. They went off satisfied, but of course the cheese was never taken to my father, and my grandmother never supposed it would be."

Decr 1st Hannah Wilson, born Sherwood, at Sherwood's Bridge: "I was born about half a mile east of Sherwood's Bridge on the 21st of January 1767. Sherwood's Bridge of the Revolutionary 86 [page break] 112 996 87 war was built about three years before I was born. Previously to this there was a bridge over the Byram. When the British party burnt my grand father's barn, they set fire to his house, but my grand mother threw water on and extinguished it as fast as they fired it. So the house escaped. Major Huggeford was always well spoken of before, during the war, and afterwards. Colonel Thomas was a hard man, and had not the reputation of being a very good soldier. Shube Merritt was a mischievous man and a plunderer. The Skinners who came from the north and south east were worse, if any thing, than the Cowboys." 87