Spencer, Massachusetts - "We Marched Through"
On November 1, 1777, the the Convention Army was in or nearing Brookfield, Massachusetts, and a common route to Cambridge. At its front were some of the British troops, escorted by soldiers from the Massachusetts Militia, including Lieutenant Israel Bartlett who claimed that after a short march they stopped for the night in Spencer: "Nov. 1 Saturday - We marched 1 1/2 miles to Spencer & halted all the rest of the day to draw provisions; the commissary being absent, could not draw." The following day, he and those under his charge "... drew one day's provision and marched thro' Leicester and halted at Worcester, 14 miles from our last quarters." [1] Most of the Convention Army marched through Spencer without staying overnight. Massachusetts Militia Private David How, who also guarded the British column, noted that on November 2nd: "This morning we set off [from Brookfield] march'd through Spenser & Lester and at Night we staid at Wors...