Beyond Hadley - "Place Called Amherst"
There isn't a lot of information that ties the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, to the surrender at Saratoga on October 17, 1777, or the march of the Convention Army. Militiamen from Amherst were called up to serve during the Saratoga campaign, as was the case in towns across Massachusetts. A history of the town written in 1896 states in its introduction "Along its highways marched the captive troops of Burgoyne on their weary journey from Saratoga to Boston." Unfortunately their passing receives no further mention, but the authors do quote from a letter allegedly written by a descendant of the owner of a tavern in town to claim that: "During the war of the Revolution, a detachment of Burgoyne's army officers, who had gone out to attend a dance near Saratoga, were captured and brought under a guard to the Clapp tavern, on their way to Boston." The tale continues on to relate that as straw had been spread on the floor for them to sleep on, the lan...