Mary (Daggett) Hillman (bef. 1760 - aft. 1789)

Born before 2 Nov 1760 in Martha's Vineyard, West Tisbury, Dukes, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Wife of Peleg Hillman — married 13 May 1779 in Tisbury, Dukes, Massachusetts, United States

Died after 1789 after age 28 in Tisbury, Dukes, Massachusetts, United States [uncertain]

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Kurt Potter [send private message]

Biography

Polly (Daggett) Hillman performed Patriotic Service in Massachusetts in the American Revolution.

Polly (Daggett) Hillman is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: 143172
Rank: Patriotic Service

Mary "Polly" (Daggett) Hillman is a notable Revolutionary War heroine who is remembered for blowing-up a town flagpole and "Liberty Pole" to prevent it from being used to repair that of a British warship. In 1776, the then Polly Daggett, in conspiracy with two other girls, successfully completed a covert mission to blow-up the town’s Liberty Pole to prevent a British warship captain from using it to replace his damaged mizzen mast (via a coerced purchase agreement). Because these masts (made from large pine trees and unique to those grown around New Hampshire) were in short supply, the ship’s captain thought he had found a suitable substitute for repair of his ship. Their secret mission succeeded and the secret heroines Polly Dagget, Maria Allen and Parnel Manter would not speak of their exploits for decades.

Note: Numbering corresponds to the source ^[1]

Mary Daggett,(Seth,61 Samuel,4 Thomas,3-2 John1 ), daughter of Seth 61 Daggett b.5 Feb. 1713 and and Elizabeth West 26, b.20 July 1720.

116 MARY, bapt. 2 Nov. 1760; m. PELEG HILLMAN (92) 13 May 1779. She obtained a divorce from him Aug. 1789^[2]; she returned to T.[Tisbury, MA], and never remarried, living to a great age. She had no known children. It will be remembered that she was one of the "Liberty Pole girls" in 1778.

Sources

1. ↑ The History of Martha's Vineyard by Dr. Charles Banks: (From Banks Volume III Family Genealogies: pp. 126 - 145) THE DAGGETT FAMILY - [1]
2. ↑ from Profile of Peleg Hillman

See also:

• Find a Grave, database and images (accessed 02 April 2022), memorial page for Polly Daggett Hillman (1760–unknown), Find A Grave: Memorial #192475058, citing Tisbury Village Cemetery, Tisbury, Dukes County, Massachusetts, USA ; Maintained by eyelean54 (contributor 49005172).
• The Historical Marker Database [2] shows a historical marker honoring Polly's Revolutionary War exploits and shows a brief history.
• MV Museum Education document [chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://mvmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Liberty-Pole-Lesson.pdf] shows and article entitled "The Liberty Pole" which outlines the entire Revolutionary War episode.

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Tom Quick for starting this profile. Click the Changes tab for the details of contributions by Tom and others.