Hero of Fort Schuyler

In August 1777, Peter Gansevoort Jr. defended Fort Schuyler (also known as Fort Stanwix) during a three-week siege by a force of 1,700 British soldiers, Tories and Indians under the command of Colonel Barry St. Leger. Gansevoort won the distinction of successfully resisting a British siege in a period when every other continental post in New York was either evacuated or surrendered. His valiant effort led to the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga, a crucial point of the war. Born to an affluent Dutch family in Albany County, New York, Gansevoort was active in several northern theaters of operations during the American Revolution, including General Montgomery's Canadian campaign (1775), the Champlain-Hudson-Mohawk Valley defense against Burgoyne's northern invasion (1776-1777), the Sullivan-Clinton campaign (1779) and the New York-Vermont insurrection (1781). After the war, he was active in both military and civic arenas, rising to the position of brigadier general of the U.S. Army in 1809. Before his death, he presided over General James Wilkinson's court martial in 1811. This documentary edition highlights 279 pieces of correspondence to and from Gansevoort Jr. from 1775 to 1812.