Date: 1776 to 1783
Location: Maryland
Surnames/tags: 1776 Maryland_State_Troops

Contents 1 Maryland State Troops 1.1 Abstract 1.2 Introduction 1.3 Creation of the State Troops 1.3.1 The Maryland Battalion 1.3.2 The Seven Independent Companies 1.4 Service in New York 1.5 The Maryland Artillery 1.6 Conclusions 1.7 Appendix: Summary of Known Units 1.7.1 Maryland Battalion 1.7.2 Seven Independent Companies 1.7.3 Artillery 1.7.4 Drum Point 1.8 Notes 1.9 Sources 1.10 Related Articles

Maryland State Troops

Version 1, 10 March 2023, Jim Moore

Abstract

Maryland had three broad categories of warriors in the Revolutionary War: soldiers in the Continental Army, the militia, and “state troops.” The purpose of this paper is to survey the last of those categories, listing their units and their top commanders. The Maryland Navy and its companies of marines are not covered.

Introduction

During the pre-Revolutionary period and during the war itself, Maryland experimented with several ways to provide organizations of warriors. During the earliest days of hostilities, the general sentiment in the colonies was that voluntary collections of militia units would suffice to defend the colonies without the risks to liberty that were perceived as inherent to the existence of a standing army. When militia were found to be inadequate, a Continental Army was formed—small at first, but eventually authorized at a size of 110 regiments. Maryland already had a militia but found it appropriate to strengthen its regulation. The difficulties of defending the long length of its coastline with the Atlantic Ocean and the Chesapeake Bay led the state into experimentation with various forms of rapid reaction militia, including “minutemen,” and “select militia.” In January of 1776, with the Continental Army still tiny and occupied elsewhere, Maryland decided to create its own Army of full-time soldiers—sometimes called “state troops.” Through the remainder of 1776 as the Continental Army grew rapidly, Maryland was hard-pressed to meet its Continental quotas and maintain its own army. This paper will illustrate the evolution of its state troops, resulting from that tension.

An Appendix lists the known units of state troops and their commanders.

Creation of the State Troops

General George Washington was engaged in the siege of Boston in the winter of 1775-6 with an army of 38 regiments—mostly state militia—of various sizes, organizations, and degrees of training. ^[1] Maryland had sent two rifle companies to support the effort; their enlistments were due to expire in July. On the first of January, Washington announced a reorganization into a Continental Army of 35 regiments of uniform organization plus one rifle regiment and one artillery regiment. The colonies were assigned quotas and enlistment of the militia forces into the Army began immediately. ^[2]

In Maryland, British forces had begun probing the defenses of the Chesapeake Bay during the preceding summer. The royal governor of Virginia had been deposed and was commanding a small British fleet raiding the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland and Virginia. Congress asked Maryland to send three companies of militia to the area. ^[3] Two companies responded but a third company from Dorchester county replied that they “possess[ed] only ten guns fit for service.” ^[4]

Even with the disastrous battle for New York in the future, it was clear that changes were required. In January 1776, the Convention (Maryland’s ad hoc revolutionary government) mandated major changes in the organization of the militia and disbanded the Minuteman experiment. ^[5] They also created the province’s own army: ^[6]

Resolved, That a sufficient armed force be immediately raised and embodied under proper officers, for the defence and protection of this province.

Resolved, That 1444 men, with proper officers, be immediately raised in the pay and for the defence of this province.

Resolved, That 8 companies of the said troops, to consist of 68 privates each, under proper officers, be formed into a battalion.

Resolved, That the remainder of the said troops be divided into companies of 100 men each.

Resolved, That two companies of the said troops, to consist of 100 men each, be companies of matrosses [artillery soldiers], and trained as such.

Shortly thereafter, the resolution was modified to authorize:

• One battalion of 9 companies of infantry,
• 7 independent companies,
• 2 companies of artillery and
• One company of marines (a state navy was authorized two months later^[7]).

These were to be full-time soldiers that were intended for use within Maryland as well as the bordering states. Officers were selected and monthly pay (between $5-1/3 and $50, depending on rank) was determined. Charles Wallace was appointed paymaster for the infantry and marines.^[8]

The first two items in the amended resolution were realized by the Maryland Battalion and the Seven Independent Companies, described below. The, third item, the artillery, will be described later in this paper. The fourth item, the marines, will be described in a future paper focused on the Maryland Navy.

The Maryland Battalion

William Smallwood was appointed colonel of the new battalion of state troops, called, retrospectively, the Maryland Battalion. The nine companies of the battalion were raised during the spring of 1776 in Baltimore and Annapolis. ^[9] Interestingly, the battalion was equipped with a staff similar to that of a regiment. ^[10]Other battalion-level officers included: Francis Ware, Lt. Colonel; Thomas Price, 1st Major; and Mordecai Gist, 2nd Major. Gist’s appointment as 2nd Major suggests that he may have incorporated his Baltimore militia company into the battalion. ^[11]

• William Smallwood (1732-1792), although born in Charles county, Maryland, was educated at Eton. He served as an officer in the French and Indian War, and as a member of the Maryland’s provincial Assembly. He was a member of the Charles county Committee of Correspondence and one of the county’s delegates to the Maryland Convention. During the Revolution, he rose to the rank of Major General in the Continental Army. Following the war, he served as the first President of the Maryland Society of Cincinnati. He was elected to Congress, but instead chose to accept his election as Governor of Maryland, leading the state during its ratification of the new U. S. Constitution.^[12]

• Francis Ware (1730s?-after 1800) was born in Charles county, the son (possibly the eldest) of a wealthy family. During the French and Indian War, he served as a captain in the Maryland forces, including the 1758 assault on Fort Duquesne. He won election to the provincial Maryland Assembly and became a member of the Maryland Convention. During the Revolution, he was promoted Colonel, but resigned in January 1777 due to poor health, instead taking up the position of the County Lieutenant, the chief militia officer, in Charles County. After the war, he was elected to the House of Delegates and served as sheriff of Charles county. Due to a decline in Maryland’s economy, he died impoverished at a location that is unknown.^[13]

• Thomas Price (1732-1795) grew up in Pennsylvania and was a captain in a Pennsylvania regiment of the French and Indian War. He moved to Frederick in the early 1760s and was a justice of the county court. During the siege of Boston, Price commanded one of the two rifle companies sent to Boston to reinforce Washington’s army there. His performance during the Revolution was clouded with accusations of cowardice and he resigned in 1780, then served for a brief period as a judge of the Frederick county Orphans Court.^[14]

• Mordecai Gist (1743-1792), pronounced as “guest” and occasionally spelled that way, was born to a wealthy family in Baltimore. The family was known to George Washington because Mordecai’s uncle, Christopher, had worked with Washington as they surveyed the Ohio country in 1753. Before the Revolution, he was a Baltimore merchant. As the Revolution was approaching, he organized a militia group known as the Baltimore Independent Company. Gist commanded the Maryland Regiment during the Battle of Brooklyn, because Smallwood and Ware were attending a court martial, and eventually was promoted Brigadier. After the Revolution, he relocated to a plantation in South Carolina.^[15]

Colonel Smallwood and 1st Major Price were stationed in Baltimore with six companies of the battalion. The company captains were: ^[16]

1st, John Hoskins Stone

2nd, Patrick Sims

3rd, Barton Lucas

6th, Peter Adams

7th, John Day Scott

9th company of light infantry, George Stricker

Lt. Colonel Ware and 2nd Major Gist were stationed in Baltimore Town with three companies commanded by:^[17]

4th, Thomas Ewing

5th, Nathaniel Ramsey

8th, Samuel Smith

The 8th company commander, Captain Samuel Smith, was assigned an unusual mission in April 1776. In contrast to Virginia’s Lord Dunmore, Maryland’s royal governor, Sir Robert Eden, had sympathy for the demands of the colonists, although he was opposed to armed resistance. He continued benignly in office, even after the Maryland Convention had seized effective power. Perhaps he hoped to remain available to broker a peace. In any case, Dunmore, in the spring of 1776, compromised Eden with a letter stating that Eden was to be ready to assist in armed operations against the southern colonies. Dunmore’s letter fell into the hands of the Maryland colonists and was relayed to the Convention. The Convention was not in session at the time, but the chairman of its Committee of Safety, Samuel Purviance, ordered Smith to go to Annapolis and seize the governor and his papers. Upon his arrival in Annapolis with ten soldiers of his company, the local Committee of Safety, offended by this presumption of power, ordered Smith to return to Baltimore.^[18] Eden was forced to leave the province, in June, but returned to Annapolis after the war where he lived until his death in 1784. ^[19]

The Seven Independent Companies

The independent companies were raised in various counties during March 1776 and commanded by the following captains:^[20]

1st, Rezin Beall (Charles and Calvert)

2nd, John Gunby (Somerset)

3rd, John Watkins (Worcester)

4th, James Hindman (Talbot)

5th, John Allen Thomas (St. Mary’s)

6th, Thomas Woolford (Dorchester)

7th, Edward Veazy (Queen Anne’s and Kent)

The Convention had resolved that “the uniform of the land forces and marines be hunting-shirts; the hunting-shirts of the marines to be blue, and those of the land forces to be other colors.”^[21] Hindman’s Fourth Independent Company is known to have worn the uniform depicted in this reference.^[22]

Service in New York

After being ejected from Boston in March 1776, the British repaired to Halifax, Nova Scotia, but returned in June to land troops on Staten Island. It became clear that the British intended to mount a large naval and land attack on New York City. With the danger now clear, the Continental Congress, on June 3, requested that the states provide 19,800 militia for defense as well as 10,000, including 3400 from Maryland, for a strategic reserve—the “Flying Camp”—to serve through December 1. Congress specified “militia” for both ideological and practical reasons; the continued resistance to the concept of a large standing army and the idea that militia could be sent more quickly. ^[23]

The Maryland Convention replied that it lacked the legal authority to send militia outside the state, but their delegates to Congress responded that the 3400 should be achieved by the “voluntary Inlistment[sic]” from the body of men already organized into militia.^[24] (Because enrollment in the militia was mandatory for able freemen, the militia represented the entire pool of potential recruits.) The convention resolved to raise four battalions of nine companies apiece. ^[25] However, understanding urgency of the situation, the Convention sent all of their state infantry—the Maryland Battalion and the Seven Independent Companies—to Washington’s army. The battalion and three of the independent companies arrived in New York on August 9. The other four companies had been performing coastal defense from which they were released a month later, arriving in New York on September 19. ^[26]

Apparently, the Convention intended that the state troops should be used as part of the Flying Camp. On their way to New York, Col. Smallwood reported to Congress in Philadelphia on July 17; President John Hancock immediately wrote to Washington informing him of the arrival of “upwards of one thousand troops from Maryland” on their way to join the Flying Camp”. ^[27]

One month later, Congress assigned Maryland an additional quota of two Continental regiments. Maryland responded with a bookkeeping change, assigning the Maryland Battalion and the Seven Independent Companies to the Continental Army—without providing a regimental staff to the seven companies.^[28] They were officially adopted into the Continental Army on August 17, 1776. In January, they were reorganized into the new standard for regiments of eight companies, and redesignated as the 1st and 2nd Maryland Regiments.

Apparently, that was the end of the infantry component of the Maryland state troops. This researcher, in searching the archives, has found no later unequivocal references to state troops—aside from the artillery, described below. To meet the need for coastal defense, Maryland negotiated that Colonel William Richardson’s regiment of the Continental Army would be stationed at Salisbury, on Maryland’s eastern shore to defend against both coastal raids and loyalist insurrection. ^[29]

The Maryland Artillery

The 1st and 2nd Maryland Artillery Companies of State Troops authorized by the Convention in January 1776, were organized during the spring of 1776 in Baltimore and Annapolis, respectively.^[30] The two companies of matrosses were commanded by the following captains:^[31]

1st, Nathaniel Smith (Baltimore)

2nd, John Fulford (Annapolis)

Later that year, in October, the Convention ordered three companies—consisting of 92 privates, four sergeants, four corporals, one drummer and one fifer—each to be commanded by a captain, a captain-lieutenant and two lieutenants. One of the companies was to be stationed in Baltimore and the others in Annapolis with the proviso that “they shall not be compelled to march to any place out of this state.”^[32]

Wright terms this as a reorganization of the two existing companies, with the creation of the third company occurring in the winter of 1776.^[33] Available muster rolls and other records lend support to this claim:

• The October 1776 record of the new company lists officers, including Captain Thomas Watkins, “elected by the Convention”—but with no men listed, suggesting that the company was authorized and officers named to recruit the matrosses.^[34] (Watkins promptly resigned his commission in the Anne Arundel militia on December 9.^[35])

• A December 12, 1776 list^[36] of “sundries wanting” shows John Fulford as a captain in Annapolis, apparently continuing the role noted previously.

• A muster roll^[37] dated November 17, 1777 of another company of matrosses includes the annotation that “Alex.” Furnival was commissioned captain of the company on November 5, 1776; he had previously served as a lieutenant in Nathaniel Smith’s 1st company, so presumably replaced Smith.^[38]

In any case, the October 1776 reorganization resulted in the creation of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Maryland State Artillery Companies^[39] with captains John Fulford, Alex[ander?] Furnival, and Thomas Watkins.

On May 31, 1777, John Fulford was promoted Major and William Campbell replaced him as captain of the company.^[40] Perhaps Fulford was to be the overall commander of the artillery or perhaps he had a broader position. In any case, the governor and council consulted with him as the summer crisis (described below) unfolded.^[41]

During the spring and early summer of 1777, it became apparent that a British army was assembling in Canada to attack New York from the north. Oddly, instead of attacking northward along the Hudson River to assist in cutting the colonies in half, General Howe’s Army in the city of New York boarded a fleet and set sail. The question of their destination was answered in July when the fleet was sighted at the mouth of the Delaware River, their destination apparently being Philadelphia. Congress removed its stores from the city and implored that “the militia of the States of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland be immediately called forth to repel any invasion of the enemy in the said states.” Washington marched his army to Philadelphia. ^[42]

Even before the fleet had been sighted, and reversing their resolution of the previous October, the Maryland Assembly resolved on June 1777 that:^[43]

…the governor and the council be empowered to order any part of any of the artillery companies raised for the immediate defense of this state, not exceeding sixty-six privates…to march with all expedition to the city of Philadelphia…to remain in the continental service for so long as the commander-in-chief shall require their service, unless the exigencies of this state should require their recal [sic] by the governor and the council.

So, a company of artillery could be loaned to the Continentals. It’s unclear if that actually occurred.

General Howe’s fleet entered the Chesapeake Bay, and after, brief threats to Annapolis and Baltimore, landed at Head of Elk. Washington moved his army to Brandywine Creek, near Chadd’s Ford, Pennsylvania, and offered battle in an attempt to block the British Army. More troops fought here than in any other battle of the war, and, after 11 hours of continuous fighting, the battle was the second longest.^[44] Unfortunately, Washington’s scouts had failed to locate another ford of the creek. The British forces found it, used it, and attacked Washington’s rear. “Washington prevented a catastrophe by shifting forces from his unengaged flank with an adroitness that impressed professional German officers serving with Howe, and his army escaped.”^[45] Nevertheless, his army suffered about 1200 casualties and lost 11 of its 14 artillery pieces.^[46]

Howe occupied Philadelphia on September 26 but needed to distribute his forces to open a supply line to the Delaware River. Washington counterattacked near Germantown, at dawn on October 4, using converging columns of infantry, overrunning the British 2nd Battalion of Light Infantry and scattering other units. A German officer said that he had seen “something I have never seen before, namely the English in full flight.” Nevertheless sturdy defense of a strong point blunted Washington’s attack and he withdrew. The British spent the next month and a half ejecting defenders of Delaware River fortifications to establish their supply line.^[47]

All considered, despite the heroics of the campaign, Washington had lost 15% of his troops and nearly all of his artillery, before withdrawing to Valley Forge for the winter. On the other hand, the continuing threat to the Howe’s forces near Philadelphia prevented their use in New York’s Hudson Valley, enabling the stunning American victory at Saratoga.

During late summer and early fall, Maryland issued additional commissions, providing a skeleton of a regimental staff for its artillery. Charles Wallace^[48] was again appointed Paymaster of State Troops on August 13, and Dr. George Gale^[49], surgeon for the Baltimore matrosses, October 9.

Given the catastrophic loss of artillery at Brandywine, it was perhaps inevitable that Congress would request Maryland’s artillery. They did just that on October 20, 1777:^[50]

Resolved, That the governor and council of Maryland be informed that the artillery regiments in the service of the United States have suffered so much in the late engagements, that there are not a sufficient number to do the duty of artillery-men in the army, and therefore that the government of that state be earnestly requested to order the companies of matrosses in the service of the state of Maryland to join the army immediately, and that the said companies shall be ordered to return whenever the government of that state shall require it.

Apparently that happened quickly. The three companies were adopted provisionally into the Continental Army on November 22, 1777, as the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Maryland State Artillery Companies.^[51] Because the three companies, with approximately 100 matrosses apiece, were organized much differently than the Continental units (that had about 30 matrosses apiece^[52]) the units were not integrated into the Continental artillery regiments, but instead used for direct support of the Maryland Line of infantry.^[53] There may have been some turnover in command though: a November 17, 1777 muster roll shows a company commanded by Captain William Dorsey, formerly a lieutenant in Nathaniel Smith’s company.^[54] An undated muster roll of a company commanded by a Captain William Marbury lists 45 men.^[55] Captain William Brown, formerly a lieutenant in Fulford’s company, provided a return of his company “in the Regt. of Artillery in the Service of the United States of America” during November 1778.^[56]

The Continental Army’s appetite for soldiers was not yet sated, though; it needed replacements for casualties. On 26 Feb 1778, the Continental Congress resolved that:^[57]

…the several states hereafter named be required forthwith to fill up by draughts from their militia, or in any other way that shall be effectual, their respective battalions of Continental troops… Maryland—8 battalions including the German Regiment.

Maryland reacted immediately in March 1778 with:^[58]

An ACT to procure troops for the American Army…Be it therefore enacted…that two thousand and nine hundred and two men be raised, including the two artillery companies already obtained by recruiting…; and that one hundred and sixty men being deducted for the said two artillery companies…

This is a bit puzzling because Maryland had sent three artillery companies four month before. So this might mean that Maryland had been in the process of “recruiting” two more artillery companies. But if so, the two companies would have been sent off to fulfill the new Continental quota. Wright, however, in his exhaustive list of Continental units, makes no mention of additional Maryland artillery units. The best interpretation, therefore, would be that Maryland was simply adjusting its accounts so as to regard the men of the previously sent artillery units—whether counted as two (in 1776) or three (in 1777)—against its new quota.

Apparently, this was not the end of artillery state troops in Maryland. Although militia might be used in lieu of a state army infantry, artillery was needed for fortified points on the bay, and matrosses had to be specially trained for their use. Available records are sparse, though.

• On April 17, 1778, the Council ordered that blankets and knapsacks be delivered to a “Lieut Gale … for the Artillery Men sent under his commd [command] to E Shore.” Furthermore, Lt. Gale is ordered to take his detachment of artillery to Chester Town (Kent county) to deal with insurgents.
• On the same date, Charles Wallace, the Paymaster, is instructed to pay the wages of the “Matross Companies.”^[59]
• On April 24, 1779, the Council ordered payment for wheat for “the use of state troops.”^[60]

Maryland was not yet finished changing its organization of armed forces. In its session of July-August 15, 1779, the Assembly approved: ^[61]

An ACT relating to the officers and soldiers of this state in the American army… To provide each of the commissioned and staff officers of the Maryland line, and of the state troops, in the continental army [with a uniform and subsistence allowance]…And [the Assembly] directs the effective matrosses in Annapolis and Baltimore, to be incorporated into a company, sent to camp as part of our quota, and entitled to receive the Continental bounty.

A John Randall of Baltimore wrote to Maryland’s Governor Lee a note recorded on November 16, 1779. He advised the Governor of the planned winter encampment of Harrison’s Regiment of Artillery, including the Maryland artillery.^[62] “Harrison” refers to Colonel Charles Harrison, the commander of the 1st Continental Artillery Regiment. This unit was authorized in the Continental Army on November 26, 1776 and organized the next spring in Williamsburg, Virginia.^[63]

The Randall note, mentioned previously, also notes the death of “Captain Gale of our Artillery.”

Several websites that provide summary information about Maryland forces in the Revolution list “Gale’s Independent Company of Artillery” but without citation or useful information.^[64] So, who was Gale? An Edward Gale was commissioned Ensign in Captain Thomas Richardson’s company of militia, Frederick County, Lower District on April 20, 1776. In this role he was junior to Alexander McFadon, the 1st Lieutenant.^[65] After the Lower District became Montgomery County in late 1776, Alexander McFadon was commissioned Captain of a company in the 29th Battalion of the militia in Montgomery County, September 12, 1777. Edward Gale does not appear as an officer in the company.^[66] Clements’s survey finds no other appearances of his name in militia records and a search of Maryland Archives, vol. 18 (the Continental muster rolls) does not reveal his name. The absence of his name offers the possibility that Gale joined the State Troops, which are only sparsely recorded in the Maryland Archives. That possibility has some evidentiary support, for on December 4, 1776, the Council “ordered That the Commissary of Stores deliver to Mr. Edward Gale twenty Pair of Shoes for his Recruits for the Artillery Service of this State.”^[67]

The National Archives has a small set of original handwritten muster rolls for the “late Captain Gale’s Maryland Company of Artillery, now in the service of the United States for September & October of 1779.” They are difficult to read but appear to state that Gale was commissioned Captain on September 3, 1779 and died in November of that year. He was succeeded by Captain-Lieutenant Samuel Saddler.^[68]

On May 9, 1780, the Maryland Assembly resolved:^[69]

…that the three companies of artillery belonging to this state in the continental army, commanded by Captains Brown, Dorsey and the late Captain Gale, be incorporated with and annexed to the regiment commanded by colonel Harrison, of the Virginia corps of artillery, or to some other in the continental Army…that the same be formed into four companies, with proper officers belonging to this state to command them.

On the same day, the Maryland artillery companies were permanently adopted into the Continental Army, and reorganized as the 11th and 12th Companies of the 1st Continental Artillery Regiment, commanded by Col. Charles Harrison of Virginia.^[70] A report of a committee of the Maryland Assembly, on January 7, 1782 reflects disappointment of the outcome of the reorganization: “Your committee are informed that although the said regiment now consists almost entirely of the men of the companies of this state, yet they are commanded by Virginia officers, and the former officers of the said companies belonging to this state are forced to retire from the service on half pay.” ^[71]

Were there any remaining units of state troops in Maryland? Probably not, because in the spring of 1781, fearing that Cornwallis’s army in Virginia might invade Maryland or that the British fleet would attack from the Bay, the governor’s council wrote: “The extraordinary exertions made by this State on every occasion in complying with the demands of congress, the Marquis’s [Lafayette’s] detachment, the southern army [Greene], our militia and other expenditures have altogether exhausted our treasury and stores of arms and clothing.” Note that militia are mentioned but not state troops. The letter went on to mention “galleys,” suggesting that a state navy still existed, and asked for “field pieces,” suggesting that all of the state artillery had already been sent to the Continentals. On the following day, the council mobilized the militia, with no mention of state troops.^[72]

However, the April 1781 Act for the Defense of the Bay authorized recruiting a small group of state troops to support the militia, who continued to have primary responsibility for protecting the coast from British raids. The troops would comprise an infantry company of 30 privates, and a twenty-four man horse troop on the Eastern Shore. Most ambitiously, 65 privates were to be enlisted for three years to build a fort, armed with ten nine-pound artillery guns at Drum Point.^[73]

On April 25, the Council’s proceedings record that: “George P. Keeports appointed Captain and John Mcfadon Capt Lieutenant of the Fort to be erected on Drum point in Calvert County.^[74] Drum Point is located at the southernmost tip of Calvert county, between the Patuxent River and” the Chesapeake Bay.

(Amusingly, the initial letter contacting John McFadon was apparently misdirected, because on May 12, the council received a return letter from a puzzled Margaret McFadon: “I have a son who had the honour to Serve as a Captain Lieutenant in Captain Wm Brown's Company of Artillery whose name is James [italics added] McFadon who I conceive your Excellency means but he is appointed to the command of a company of Artillery formerly commanded by Captain Gale now at the Southward under General Greene.” The proud mother goes on to state that she is “confident that … [her son] will Embrace with alacrity any command.”^[75])

The council seems to have located the intended John McFadon by 28 April, writing to him that: “By the Act for the Defence [sic] of the Bay a Company of Artillery to consist of one Captain and one Captain Lieutenant and Sixty five non-commissioned officers and Matrosses is directed to be immediately raised to serve within the State three Years unless sooner discharged, the Company will be stationed for the present at Drum Point at the Mouth of the River Patuxent, where a Fort of not less than ten nine Pounders with one or two block Houses are to be erected and built with all convenient Speed, Capt. Keeports is appointed to the Command and we have appointed you Capt. Lieutenant, we request you will attend immediately, should you not accept of the appointment you'll let us know as soon as possible.^[76]

Conclusions

Maryland organized full-time State Troops in January of 1776 for the purpose of defending the Bay. In that summer, though, because of the crisis in New York, the infantry was given to the Continental Army. It seems, aside from the State Navy and its marines, that only artillery units remained as State Troops. However, that artillery was also given to the Continentals in May of 1780. Gale’s Independent Artillery, which appears on many websites, would seem to have been among the units sent to the Continentals in May 1780. Maryland was forced to form another artillery unit in April 1781.

Appendix: Summary of Known Units

Maryland Battalion

The Battalion existed as state troops from Spring 1776 (when authorized) to August 1776 (when accepted into the Continental Army). Its overall commander was William Smallwood, Colonel.

Six companies were stationed in Baltimore under Colonel Smallwood and 1st Major Thomas Price. The captains of those companies were:

• 1st, John Hoskins Stone
• 2nd, Patrick Sims
• 3rd, Barton Lucas
• 6th, Peter Adams
• 7th, John Day Scott
• 9th company of light infantry, George Stricker

Three companies were stationed in Annapolis under Lt. Col. Francis Ware and 2nd Major Mordecai Gist. The captains of those companies were:

• 4th, Thomas Ewing
• 5th, Nathaniel Ramsey
• 8th, Samuel Smith

Seven Independent Companies

These companies existed as state troops from Spring 1776 (when authorized) to August 1776 (when accepted into the Continental Army). The companies were located in counties as shown and commanded by:

• 1st, Rezin Beall (Charles and Calvert)
• 2nd, John Gunby (Somerset)
• 3rd, John Watkins (Worcester)
• 4th, James Hindman (Talbot)
• 5th, John Allen Thomas (St. Mary’s)
• 6th, Thomas Woolford (Dorchester)
• 7th, Edward Veazy (Queen Anne’s and Kent)

Artillery

There is some doubt about which officers commanded which companies because the Maryland Archives generally refer to the names of the officers rather than the number of each company.

Two companies were active in state service from January 1776 (when authorized) to November 1777 (when provisionally accepted into the Continental Army). Company captains included: Nathaniel Smith, John Fulford, Alexander Furnival, William Campbell. A third company, commanded by Thomas Watkins, was in state service from October 1776 (when authorized) to November 1777) when provisionally accepted into the Continental Army. By November 1777, William Dorsey, William Brown, and, possibly, William Marbury were mentioned as company captains, having presumably replaced some of the captains listed above.

John Fulford, promoted Major, was the overall commander of state artillery from June 1777 to Nov 1777 and Dr. George Gale was the surgeon for a similar period.

After April 1778, a Lt. Edward Gale appears in the Maryland Archives. Some websites, with scant documentation, refer to “Gale’s Independent Artillery.”

Drum Point

In April 1781, the assembly ordered the construction of a fort armed with nine 10-pounders at Drum Point. George P. Keesports was appointed Captain and John McFadon, Captain-Lieutenant. The fort was to be built and manned by a 30 infantry privates, and 35 matrosses. It would also be manned by a 24-man horse troop.

Notes

1. ↑ Wright, pp. 25-40, 45.
2. ↑ Wright, pp. 47, 51, 89.
3. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 644.
4. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 191.
5. ↑ Clements, pp. 9-10.
6. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 4.
7. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 203.
8. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 193. References to Wallace in the Maryland Archives suggest that he was also paymaster for the militia, and perhaps for expenses related to the administration of privateers.
9. ↑ Wright, p. 277.
10. ↑ A battalion is usually regarded as a formation for maneuver on the battlefield, while a regiment is regarded as an administrative formation with a staff including paymaster, quartermaster, surgeon, chaplain, etc. (In principle, a regiment may contain more than one battalion although, in this war, both sides generally had only a single battalion per regiment.) So it is unusual to see a formation with a staff termed as a “battalion.”
11. ↑ One source makes that assertion and provides an illustration of their uniform. “Uniforms…,” http:/www.srcalifornia.com/uniforms/p9.htm ; citing Maryland Archives, XI, 110-111, XVIII, 4 seq.; Force's American Archives, 4th series, V, 1527, 1533, VI, 566; (Alexander Graydon's) Memoirs of a Life (Harrisburgh, Pa., 1811), p. 157; Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington by G. W. P. Custis (N. Y., 1860), pp. 264-265; the articles of organization of the Baltimore Independent Cadets are printed in Scharf's History of Baltimore City and County, p. 70.
12. ↑ “William Smallwood,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Smallwood and James Schmitt, “William Smallwood (1732-1792),” Maryland Archives, Biographical Series, MSA SC 3520-1134; https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc3500/sc3520/001100/001134/html/1134bio.html .
13. ↑ Owen Laurie, “Francis Ware,” Maryland Archives, Biographical Series, MSA SC 3520-1324; https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc3500/sc3520/001300/001324/html/01324bio.html .
14. ↑ Owen Laurie, “Thomas Price (1732-1795,” Maryland Archives, Biographical Series, MSA SC 3520-1011; https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc3500/sc3520/001000/001011/html/01011bio.html .
15. ↑ Daniel Blattau, “Mordecai Gist (1743-1792),” Maryland Archives, Biographical Series, MSA SC 3520-15852; https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc3500/sc3520/015800/015852/html/15852bio.html .
16. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, pp. 5-20. Muster rolls are also provided. Also see Scharf, vol. 2, pp. 192-3.
17. ↑ Ibid.
18. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 213.
19. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 218 and footnote.
20. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, pp. 20-28.
21. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 193.
22. ↑ “Uniforms…,” http://www.srcalifornia.com/uniforms/p11.htm ; citing Maryland Archives, XI, 183, 223; XII, 84, 120, 2 12, 344, 366-367;XVIII, 4, 23-25; Pennsylvania Journal, August 14, 1776.
23. ↑ Wright, pp. 85-86 and Maryland Archives 18, p. 29.
24. ↑ Clements, p. 18.
25. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 238.
26. ↑ Wright, p. 81.
27. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, p. 241.
28. ↑ Wright, p. 81.
29. ↑ Clements, pp. 23-24.
30. ↑ Wright, p. 336.
31. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, pp. 563-570. Muster rolls included.
32. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 571.
33. ↑ Wright, p. 336.
34. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 571.
35. ↑ Clements, p. 134 and Maryland Archives 12, p. 514.
36. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 572.
37. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, pp. 572-3.
38. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 563.
39. ↑ Wright, p. 336.
40. ↑ Maryland Archives 16, p. 268.
41. ↑ Scharf, p. 315.
42. ↑ Scharf, p. 311.
43. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 571.
44. ↑ “Battle of Brandywine,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Brandywine .
45. ↑ Wright, p. 118.
46. ↑ “Battle of Brandywine,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Brandywine .
47. ↑ Wright, p. 118.
48. ↑ Maryland Archives, 16, p. 332. Wallaces’s frequent appearance in subsequent archive records suggests that he became de facto paymaster for all of Maryland’s military forces.
49. ↑ Maryland Archives, 16, p. 393.
50. ↑ Maryland Archives 18, p. 571.
51. ↑ Wright, pp. 335-6.
52. ↑ Wright, p. 102.
53. ↑ Wright, p. 149.
54. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, pp. 574.
55. ↑ From the position of Marbury’s record in the records, we can infer that it was probably made between November 1777 and November 1778.
56. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, p. 575-7.
57. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, p. 315.
58. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, p. 315-6.
59. ↑ Maryland Archives, 21, p. 38.
60. ↑ Maryland Archives, 21, p. 364.
61. ↑ Maryland Archives, 203, p. 214 and Maryland Archives, 18, p. 578.
62. ↑ Maryland Archives, 43, p. 368.
63. ↑ Wright, pp. 103, 335-6. On p. 149, Wright states that the Maryland companies joined “Harrison’s artillery regiment, provisionally in 1778.”
64. ↑ One cites: Joseph M. Balkoski, The Maryland National Guard: A History of Maryland’s Military Forces, 1634-1991, Maryland National Guard (Baltimore : 1991). Unfortunately, that book doesn’t even mention Gale.
65. ↑ Maryland Archives, 11, p. 356.
66. ↑ Maryland Archives, 16, p. 373.
67. ↑ Maryland Archives, 12, p. 504.
68. ↑ Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1776, Maryland, Jacket Numbers 1 though 17, The National Archives, Washington, DC, 1957; National Archives Microfilm Publications, Microcopy No. 246, roll 33; FamilySearch, film # 004171614; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89WY-HDP7?i=4&wc=M61K-XTG:355077001&cc=2068326 , image 6-8 of 493.
69. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, p. 578.
70. ↑ Wright, pp. 335-6.
71. ↑ Maryland Archives, 18, p. 596.
72. ↑ Scharf, vol. 2, pp. 450-1.
73. ↑ Clements, p. 33.
74. ↑ Maryland Archives, 45, p. 414.
75. ↑ Maryland Archives, 47, p. 240.
76. ↑ Maryland Archives, 45, pp. 419-20.

Sources

Clements, S. Eugene and Wright, F. Edward, The Maryland Militia in the Revolutionary War, Westminster, MD : Heritage Books, 2006.

This is a compilation of muster roles and other documents related to the Maryland militia. The material is indexed in various ways and is the best available starting point for documenting the service of an individual in the militia. 40-plus pages of front matter summarize legislative actions concerning the creation of Maryland militia and state troops, as well as the assignment of units to the Continental Army. A particularly valuable contribution is a careful differentiation of Continental units, state troops and militia units.

Scharf, J. Thomas, History of Maryland from the Earliest Period to the Present Day, 3 vols., reprint, Hatboro, PA : Tradition Press, 1967.

A detailed history, with extensive quotations from original documents. Available online at Internet Archive, https://archive.org.

Wright, Robert K., Jr., The Continental Army. Army Lineage Series (David Trask, editor). Washington D.C. Center of Military History, United States Army, 1983, 1989.

Commissioned by the U.S. Army’s Center of Military History, this book is the authoritative reference to the organization of the Continental Army. The book notes (pp. 277-280), that the seven Maryland regiments of the Continental Army provide the legacy for the current 175th Infantry Division of the Maryland National Guard.

Maryland Archives Online, https://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc2900/sc2908/html/index.html.

This is a web presentation of the published volumes of the Archives volumes. In the relevant areas, the volumes were published ca 1900. The web version has been translated via OCR to readable, searchable text; it appears that effort has been made to correct the inevitable errors of the OCR process. The website provides an option to see an image of each published page. Of particular interest is Volume 18 which gathers items related to the Maryland Continentals and State Troops.

Uniforms of the American Revolution. Sons of the Revolution in the State of California. http://www.srcalifornia.com/uniforms/uniforms.htm ; 2015.

This is a web presentation of: Lt. Charles M. Lefferts, Dorothy C. Barck, compiler, Uniforms of the Armies in the War of the American Revolution, 1775-1783, limited edition of 500, (New York: New York Historical Society, 1926). Although the book provides some history (with useful, albeit abbreviated, citations), the primary value is the color plates depicting uniforms of various units.

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