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[American Revolution]. Ebenezer Learned Muster Roll Signed ("Ebenezer Learned B:G")....
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Description
[American Revolution]. Ebenezer Learned Muster Roll Signed ("Ebenezer Learned B:G"). Two pages on one leaf, 16.25" x 13.25", "Camp 3 Miles from Stillwater", [New York]; September 21, 1777. Manuscript document is titled, "Muster Roll of the Field Staff and other Commissioned Officers in the First Battalion, of the Massachusetts Forces, Commanded by John Bailey, Colonel." It provides the name, rank, and date of rank of thirty-eight officers of the First Battalion of the Massachusetts forces commended by Colonel John Bailey, who signed an oath as to the accuracy of the document on the verso. Bailey's statement was sworn on September 21, 1777 before Brigadier General Learned, who signed the document "Ebenezer Learned B: G". The document was signed two days after the Battle of Freeman's Farm, the first of two engagements known collectively as the Battle of Saratoga, which proved to be a significant victory for the Continental forces and a turning point for the Americans in the Revolutionary War. The muster roll was countersigned by Colonel John Bailey (1730-1810) and Richard Lush (d. 1817), deputy muster master. Docketed.In the Spring of 1777, Learned was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and assigned to the Northern Department of the Continental Army. Learned's brigade participated in the first phase of the Battle of Saratoga, alongside Bailey's forces in the Battle of Freeman's Farm on September 19, 1777. However, this maneuver was not particularly effective, as the unit worked forward from the center of the line, losing themselves in the woods and only briefly exchanging fire near the end of the skirmish. Learned's brigade, composed of the 2nd, 8th, and 9th Massachusetts line, returned for the second phase of the Battle of Saratoga on October 7. Their numbers were expanded by two New Hampshire regiments and the 1st Canadian in anticipation of heavy engagement at the Battle of Bemis Heights. During this battle, Major General Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) and Learned led a joint charge; when Arnold fell wounded, Learned and his men maintained their objective and broke the enemy line, forcing British General John Burgoyne and his troops back to their original fortifications and ultimately to surrender. The Continental Army's victory at Saratoga was a crucial turning point in the war, as it catalyzed French interest in the war, and alliance, which provided sorely needed financial and military assistance to the American cause.
Ebenezer Learned (1728-1801), a native of Massachusetts, was active in the local militia and served during the French and Indian War. In 1775, he took up arms again, leading a local company of minutemen to Boston on news of the Battle of Lexington. Less than a week later, the Massachusetts Committee of Safety commissioned Learned as a colonel and approved the creation of his own regiment. This regiment was commissioned into the Continental Army in June 1775 and reenlisted in 1776, alongside additional men from the former 3rd Continental Regiment. Learned and his regiment were the first to enter Boston, upon evacuation of the British, on March 17, 1776. Learned resigned his service the following May due to ill health, but returned in April 1777, when he was promoted to Brigadier General and participated in the critical victory at Saratoga. He ultimately retired from service in 1778 and died in his home in 1801.
John Bailey, another native of Massachusetts, served as Lieutenant-Colonel of the Plymouth regiment at the beginning of the Revolutionary War. Post organization of the Continental Army, Bailey was named Colonel of the 2nd Massachusetts, where he stayed for the remainder of the war. The 2nd Massachusetts joined Learned's Brigade on September 17, 1777, for the first Battle of Saratoga at Freeman's Farm and maintained the position through the end of the Saratoga campaign.
Richard Lush, Deputy Muster Master, was one of the first settlers of Albany, New York. A fine document from the battlefield, written amidst a major turning point in the American Revolutionary War. Ebenezer Learned autographs are rare.
Condition: Two minor areas of paper loss along the integral fold at the intersections of horizontal folds, since filled. Evidence of repair on verso to two closed tears along vertical folds. Very minor scattered soiling.
Auction Info
2022 November 10 Manuscripts of the American Revolutionary War and Civil War Signature® Auction #6259 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
November, 2022
10th
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