Walter Butler Letter Signed. Two pages, 7.5" x 8.75", December 14, 1774, Buttersburg, [?]. In the...

Description

Walter Butler was a British Loyalist officer during the American Revolution. He was born near Johnstown, New York, and had a law practice in Albany, New York.  At the start of the American Revolution, Butler and his family escaped with other Loyalists to Canada, where Walter was commissioned into the King's 8th Regiment of Foot. When his father formed Butler's Rangers, Walter transferred to that company and was commissioned a Captain. He was captured by Continental Army troops while trying to recruit rangers and sentenced to death for spying. He escaped after a few months and returned to Canada. In 1778, Walter Butler led a company of Tories and Indians in the raid that culminated in the Cherry Valley Massacre. He was blamed for the deaths of the many women and children that were killed on that occasion. He was killed in 1781 while retreating back to Canada in a skirmish with patriot troops.