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

Background: Westchester’s Neutral Ground in 1780 During the American Revolution, Westchester County, New York lay in a volatile “Neutral Ground” between British-occupied New York City and American-held northern positions. It was a lawless battleground plagued by constant raids and skirmishes. Regular troops and irregular bands – dubbed “Cowboys” (Loyalist marauders) and “Skinners” (renegade Patriot militia)

Early Life and Seafaring Career of David Beattie David Beattie was born 25 August 1842 in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland, the son of Robert Beattie and Eliza (née Gordon). He went to sea as a young man, joining the British Merchant Navy in the late 1850s. By his late teens, David had gained experience as a sailor

In the Scottish coastal town of Kirkcudbright, long known for its seafaring traditions and salt-laced air, the year 1836 marked the launch of a modest but sturdy sailing vessel—a 20-ton smack christened Eliza. She was no ornate clipper or great merchantman, but rather a workboat designed for the rugged life of the Solway Firth, transporting

In the quiet hamlet of Bedford Hills, Westchester County, New York, three brothers came of age in the early 20th century: Ralph, William, and James Yerks. Their lives—like those of countless young men—were forever altered by the outbreak of World War I. Two would don the uniform of the United States Army and be shipped

Flowing 23.5 miles through the hills and valleys of Westchester County, New  ork, the Saw Mill River has long shaped the communities along its banks—from its early days as a resource-rich stream for Native Americans, through the rise and fall of water-powered industry, to its present role in urban restoration and environmental renewal. The Name

Translated from the Original Dutch of Dominie Nicholas Aegidius Oudenarde Little Cobus Yerks—his name was Jacob, but being a Dutchman, if not a double Dutchman, it was rendered in English Cobus—little Cobus, I say, lived on the banks of Sawmill River, where it winds close under the brow of the Raven Rock, an enormous precipice

From The Book of Saint Nicholas, and the Dutch-American Legacy of the Yerks Family In my continued research into the Yerks family line, I recently rediscovered a remarkable short story called “Cobus Yerks”, originally published in The Book of Saint Nicholas: Translated from the Original Dutch of Dominie Nicholas Aegidius Oudenarde. While the book is

Jeremiah Joseph Hayes was born on September 5, 1889, in Bedford, New Hampshire, to John J. Hayes and Jane Bridget (Kelty) Hayes. Though his father was born in England, both of Jeremiah’s parents were ethnically Irish. Like many Irish families of the era, the Hayes family had been forced to live in England temporarily before