Background: Capture of Major André (Sept 23, 1780)

On the morning of September 23, 1780, British Major John André was captured near Tarrytown, NY by a small patrol of New York Patriot militiamen. The three famed captors – John Paulding, David Williams, and Isaac Van Wart – stopped André (who was traveling under the alias “John Anderson” in civilian clothes) and discovered secret papers in his boot exposing Benedict Arnold’s treason. However, contemporary accounts show that these three were not alone. They were part of a larger scouting party of the Westchester County militia operating in the neutral ground between American and British lines. This patrol had assembled to intercept Loyalist “cowboys” driving stolen cattle to the British, and it included eight militiamen in total, one of whom was Sergeant John Dean.

John Dean and the Militia Patrol

According to sworn testimony from participants, John Dean was indeed present with the militia patrol on that day. John Dean (age 25 in 1780) was a seasoned sergeant in Capt. Jesse Baker’s company of the 1st Westchester Militia and had prior Continental Army service. A Revolutionary War pension affidavit by John Yerks, Jr. – one of the militiamen – lists John Dean by name among the patrol members alongside Paulding, Van Wart, Williams (David and his younger cousin Abraham Williams), James Romer, Isaac See, and John Yerks himself. The men divided into two groups that morning to cover more ground: John Dean, Yerks, Romer, See, and Abraham Williams took up a position on a hill east of the main road, while Paulding, Van Wart, and David Williams watched the main road (the Albany Post Road) below. When André rode into the trap, the lower trio captured him, then brought him up the hill to rejoin John Dean and the others. In Yerks’s words, “Isaac Van Wart, John Paulding and David Williams joined the others of the party on the top of the hill with a prisoner who called himself John Anderson”. This confirms that John Dean was present immediately after André’s capture as part of the reunited patrol.

Escorting André and His Papers to Continental Authorities

Primary accounts make clear that John Dean helped escort Major André and the captured intelligence to the American lines. After André’s identity and incriminating papers (hidden in his boot) were secured, the entire patrol of eight (including Dean) agreed to deliver the prisoner to the nearest Continental post. John Yerks’s 1837 sworn statement attests that “the whole of said party immediately proceeded with said prisoner to Col. Jameson’s quarters… and delivered him into his custody with a number of papers found concealed about him”. Colonel John Jameson of the Continental Army was commanding an outpost at North Castle, NY (about 15 miles away), and the militia turned André and Arnold’s documents over to him as the proper authority. Another affidavit by John Yerks in 1845 describes how, after the capture, “we all proceeded with the prisoner to Jacob Romer’s [farmhouse] where we partook of some refreshments… [then] started … [and] took our stations” before ultimately delivering André later that day. These accounts indicate that John Dean was part of the armed escort guarding Andréon the way to Jameson. Notably, André himself later wrote that he “received the greatest attention from General Washington and every person under whose charge I happened to be placed”, suggesting he was treated properly while in the militiamen’s custody.

Evidence from Revolutionary War Pension Files and Affidavits

John Dean’s involvement is well documented in primary source records, particularly Revolutionary War pension testimonies. Because John Dean died in 1817, his widow Mary Dean applied for a pension in 1837, and several affidavits were submitted to verify his service. In that pension file (application W.16555), Lieutenant Samuel Youngs and John Yerks, Jr. both provided sworn statements referencing the André incident. John Yerks’s detailed affidavit (April 24, 1837) explicitly names John Dean as one of the militiamen on the scouting party that captured André and confirms Dean was present when André was taken and delivered to Colonel Jameson. The affidavit of Lt. Samuel Youngs (June 1, 1837) likewise corroborated John Dean’s service on the lines in Westchester (though Youngs’s statement primarily covered earlier events, it was used to support Dean’s overall war service in that region).

In addition, a published statement by David Williams (one of André’s captors) later acknowledged that a total of eight patriots were involved in securing André. Williams and Paulding testified in 1780 at the trial of Joshua Hett Smith (an accomplice of André), and while their testimony focused on the moment of capture, subsequent 19th-century accounts and commemorations sought out other witnesses like John Yerks to clarify the full roster of men present. By the 1840s, as Revolutionary veterans aged, historical societies gathered affidavits to ensure the lesser-known participants (like Sgt. John Dean) were not forgotten. The Tarrytown monument dedication booklet (1894), for example, quoted John Yerks’s 1845 affidavit and pension endorsements, solidifying John Dean’s name among André’s captors in the historical record.

Conclusion

In summary, multiple authoritative sources confirm that John Dean was indeed part of the group of militiamen involved in Major André’s capture and aftermath. While he was not one of the three famous medal recipients, John Dean joined his comrades immediately after André was seized and helped escort the British spy — along with Benedict Arnold’s treasonous papers — to American headquarters. This is well supported by primary evidence, including sworn pension affidavits from eyewitnesses. General Washington’s report to Congress praised the “virtue” and fidelity of the anonymous patriot militiamen who prevented Arnold’s plot, and John Dean was clearly among those unsung volunteers. The consistency of the pension file testimonies and later historical accounts demonstrates that John Dean’s involvement was real and recognized in the record, even if overshadowed by the celebrated trio. His role exemplifies how many humble Patriots, beyond the famous names, contributed to thwarting one of the Revolution’s gravest threats.

Sources:

Revolutionary War Pension Application of Mary Dean (widow of John Dean), W.16555 (affidavits of John Yerks Jr., 1837 and 1845)
archive.orgarchive.org

Journal of the American Revolution (Victor DiSanto, 2022)
allthingsliberty.comallthingsliberty.com;

Souvenir of Revolutionary Soldiers’ Monument, Tarrytown (1894)
archive.org;

Washington and Hamilton correspondence (1780)
allthingsliberty.comallthingsliberty.com.