August 7, 1775 - "The Glory Which The Generals How and Burgoyne Have Acquired"

Britons at home in 1775 were anxious for news regarding the war in North America.  Official accounts, along with letters from friends and loved ones, took weeks to cross the Atlantic.  Once they arrived, they were read and shared, and if deemed newsworthy, published in one or more of England's many newspapers and magazines.  The September 9, 1775, edition of the "London Chronicle" included several such stories.  In one article, portions of two letters were printed describing "a most glorious victory obtained by the King's troops over the rebel army" on August 7, 1775, at Boston.  Another revealed that "It is reported that the troops will not winter at Boston...", as they were expected to relocate to either Rhode Island or New York.

The two letters describing the engagement on August 7, one from "an officer" dated August 11th, and the other from a "gentleman" dated August 10th, were published anonymously.  British General Thomas Gage, they reported, sent out five-thousand men under the command of Major-Generals William Howe and John Burgoyne to attack the American camp at "Roxborough [Roxbury] Hill", and captured over two-thousand Provincials, six-thousand muskets and fifty cannons. While these detailed accounts were published in a 1775 newspaper, what many would consider to be a primary source, the battle is not mentioned in other contemporary accounts or later histories of the siege.  

Nathaniel Ober, who served in Colonel John Mansfield's regiment recruited from Essex County, kept a diary of his service from May 15 to September 3, 1775, that is available through the online collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society.  He makes no mention of such an attack.  His entry reads for August 7th reads: "This Day their was one reglor Ciled by the rifel men nothing more".  A day earlier he noted "this Day their was an arlarme the reglors went with thair floting Batrys over the river Sat fier to a house and Burnt it our Peopel fierd on them and maid Sum Clost Shots But Did them no Damig that we no of"; and on August 5th and 8th: "Nothing Remarkabel to Day". [1]  

William Cheever of Boston, whose diary is also available online from the Massachusetts Historical Society, noted on August 2nd "There has been considerable of Firing for this two days past at different times between the Encampment of the Regulars on Bunker's hill & the Provincials upon Prospect-hill both with small Arms & Cannon."; and that on August 4th the printer John Gill was imprisoned, but makes no mention of a major British attack on the 7th.  His next entry, on August 10th, notes a failed attempt by the British to capture an American schooner which had run aground at Cape Ann. [2]

On the British side, General Howe's orderly book contains no reference to an attack.  In addition to the usual duty assignments for field officers on the 7th, it was announced that those who manned the works in Charlestown would be allowed to take their watchcoats with them to the advanced works, to wear if the weather was bad. [3]

Richard Frothingham's history of the siege of Boston doesn't mention an August 7th attack either.  He noted that sickness and shortages prevailed, and quoting from a letter dated August 10th he writes that those who remained in the town were, "... surrounded on all sides. The whole country is in arms, and intrenched. We are deprived of fresh provisions, subject to continual alarms and cannonadings, the provincials being very audacious, and advancing near to our lines, since the arrivals of Generals Washington and Lee to command them." [4] 

Under these circumstances, it's hardly surprising that rumors of a victory were welcome news in London.  The Chronicle's accounts contained sufficient details so as to be believable, noting for example that among those captured were the American Major-Generals Israel Putnam and Charles Lee.  Ironically, both Putnam and Lee were captured in the course of their military service, but not in 1775.  Putnam had been captured in 1758 during the French and Indian War and narrowly escaped being burned alive.  Lee would be captured in December of 1776, while staying in a tavern away from the main body of the troops he commanded, and not released until 1778.

A second article regarding the war, pictured here, reported on speculation that the British garrison would planning to leave Boston and spend the winter of 1775 in either New York or Rhode Island.  The writings of General George Washington available online make no mention of what would have been a decisive action on August 7th, but he was aware of rumors the British might leave the town.  In an August 9th letter to the New York Provincial Congress, he expressed his concern that a ship carrying provisions which had sailed from New York for the West Indies went to Boston instead, to resupply the enemy.  He also advised them to prepare for a possible British invasion, noting "I have been endeavouring by every Means in my Power to discover the future Intentions of our Enemy here. I find a general Idea prevailing thro. the Army & in the Town of Boston that the Troops are soon to leave the Town & go to Some other Part of the Continent. New York is the Place generally mention’d as their Destination." [5]

So how reliable was the Chronicle?  British forces would occupy New York City and Newport, Rhode Island, but like the capture of Charles Lee, it would come to pass under different circumstances and at a later date.  As to Howe and Burgoyne, neither would achieve glory that would "... be recorded to the latest posterity".  Perhaps the best lesson to be learned from the September 9, 1775, London Chronicle is that whether one is reading the news of the day or history of the past, it's important to distinguish facts from speculation, be wary of anonymous sources, and verify claims of great achievement by checking them against other reliable sources.

Next Time: An August 23, 1775 Muster Roll - "Belonging To The Army Of The United Colonies" 

Last Time: Ezra Ross - "Company Raised From 3d [Essex County] Regt."

For more on the Convention Army's 1777 march from Saratoga to Boston, see:

   1777 March Blog Home             Overnight Stopping Points        Towns and Villages Along the Way 

   General Whipple's Journal         Burgoyne in Albany                    Annotated Bibliography 

[1] Nathaniel Ober Diary, Massachusetts Historical Society, page 16. transcription accessed at https://www.masshist.org/database/viewer.php?item_id=1900&mode=transcript&img_step=16#page16.
[2] Diary of William Cheever, May 19, 1775 to March 17, 1776, Boston,  page 4, accessed online at https://www.masshist.org/database/viewer.php?item_id=1909&mode=transcript&img_step=4#page4.
[3] William Howe, General Sir William Howe's Orderly Book (London: Benjamin Franklin Stevens, 1890), 62.  The diaries of Lieutenant John Barker of the 4th Regiment of Foot, and Lieutenant Frederick Mackenzie of the 23rd Regiment of Foot lack entries for August, 7, 1775.

[4] Richard Frothingham, History of the Siege of Boston (Boston, MA: Little and Brown, 1851), 235.

[5] George Washington to the New York Provincial Congress, August 8, 1775, Cambridge, Massachusetts, accessed online June 21, 2025 at: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-01-02-0176.