1 00:00:01,040 --> 00:00:04,000 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:13,720 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:17,439 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry Tracy Wilson, and this is actually going 4 00:00:17,480 --> 00:00:20,440 Speaker 1: to be a two parter, and it is a listener request, 5 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:22,960 Speaker 1: and it is a subject that has been requested by 6 00:00:22,960 --> 00:00:27,040 Speaker 1: several people throughout the years. And then recently, when I 7 00:00:27,080 --> 00:00:29,400 Speaker 1: was at Dragon Con, I met a listener of ours 8 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:31,520 Speaker 1: named Terry and he asked for it too, and he 9 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 1: was really really excited about it. Uh, and it got 10 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:37,040 Speaker 1: me thinking about it some more again. Even though it's 11 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:39,240 Speaker 1: been on the list, you know, sometimes you get reminders. 12 00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:42,080 Speaker 1: And then I was thinking about whether or not it 13 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:46,040 Speaker 1: was a good topic. And in addition to listener interest, 14 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:49,600 Speaker 1: I did some very non scientific polling and I mentioned 15 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:52,000 Speaker 1: the name of this person around the office and with 16 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: my friends and family, and boy was I shocked because 17 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:57,760 Speaker 1: none of them really knew much about the person that 18 00:00:57,800 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 1: we're talking about today. Even his name is a household 19 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:05,200 Speaker 1: name that everyone knows and recognizes. Uh. If you have 20 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 1: spent any time in Vermont, you probably know a good 21 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:11,959 Speaker 1: bit about Ethan Allen because he's very central to Vermont's story. 22 00:01:12,040 --> 00:01:15,400 Speaker 1: But sadly too many his name is only associated with 23 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:19,720 Speaker 1: the Huge Furniture Company, which is no disparity to the um. 24 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:22,840 Speaker 1: Not to disparage the Huge Furniture Company, but that's sort 25 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:25,720 Speaker 1: of eclipsed any actual historical record for a lot of people, 26 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:28,320 Speaker 1: and some people even think he was a carpenter as 27 00:01:28,319 --> 00:01:32,240 Speaker 1: a consequence, he was not like the furniture guy, and 28 00:01:32,280 --> 00:01:38,240 Speaker 1: I'm like, not really the furniture name appropriation. Yeah, but 29 00:01:38,400 --> 00:01:41,840 Speaker 1: he was a huge personality. He was a founder of Vermont, 30 00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 1: and he was a very important figure in the Revolutionary War. 31 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:48,080 Speaker 1: His story also includes some fascinating and sort of wacky 32 00:01:48,120 --> 00:01:51,400 Speaker 1: side notes and some missteps, which may account for sort 33 00:01:51,440 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: of why he is not a more prominent figure in 34 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 1: American historical lore. So we are going to cover Ethan 35 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:03,000 Speaker 1: Allen in his really very fascinating life. Ethan was born 36 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: on January twenty one, thirty eight in Litchfield, Connecticut. He 37 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:10,600 Speaker 1: was the oldest of eight children born to Joseph and 38 00:02:10,639 --> 00:02:14,120 Speaker 1: Mary Allen, and shortly after Ethan was born, their family 39 00:02:14,120 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: moved to Cardwall, Connecticut. So Ethan was the only one 40 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:20,559 Speaker 1: of the Allen children's who have been born in Lichfield. 41 00:02:21,320 --> 00:02:25,639 Speaker 1: His five brothers were Hem and heber Levi, Zimri and Ira, 42 00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: and his two sisters were Lydia and Lucy. All of 43 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: the children lived to adulthood, which, as we often comment 44 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 1: on with surprise, is surprising. Yeah, but apparently that that 45 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:44,040 Speaker 1: Alan blood was healthy. Ethan was very into philosophy and 46 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:47,440 Speaker 1: learning as a kid, and he was eventually sent to 47 00:02:47,520 --> 00:02:51,360 Speaker 1: study under Reverend Jonathan Lee and Salisbury, Connecticut to prepare 48 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:55,960 Speaker 1: for studies at Yale. He was really, by his father's plan, 49 00:02:56,200 --> 00:03:00,280 Speaker 1: on track to become an educated man. However, um the 50 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:02,960 Speaker 1: world kind of put a spanner in the works. His 51 00:03:03,040 --> 00:03:06,239 Speaker 1: father died shortly after this plan began, and that meant 52 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:08,360 Speaker 1: that Ethan had to care for the family farm at 53 00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:11,240 Speaker 1: the age of seventeen, and his plans for higher education 54 00:03:11,320 --> 00:03:14,160 Speaker 1: were pretty much cut short at that point. In seventeen 55 00:03:14,160 --> 00:03:17,079 Speaker 1: fifty seven, just two years after Ethan became the head 56 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:19,520 Speaker 1: of the household, he felt the pull of duty and 57 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:22,560 Speaker 1: enlisted to fight in the French and Indian War. He 58 00:03:22,639 --> 00:03:25,799 Speaker 1: wasn't called to combat, though, and he returned home unscathed. 59 00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: Ethan married Mary Brownson in seventeen sixty two, and he 60 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:33,840 Speaker 1: was just twenty four, and Mary was actually six years 61 00:03:33,880 --> 00:03:36,360 Speaker 1: older than him, and he had met Mary because he 62 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 1: hauled grain for her father. Uh. And this match uh 63 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:43,120 Speaker 1: does not sound like it was especially happy. So whereas 64 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:46,280 Speaker 1: Ethan was fascinated by learning, uh, he was also a 65 00:03:46,320 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: bit impulsive, you know, kind of as you said, a 66 00:03:48,600 --> 00:03:51,240 Speaker 1: big figure, a big personality, and he liked to drink 67 00:03:51,320 --> 00:03:54,560 Speaker 1: and party a little bit. Mary is usually characterized as 68 00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 1: being very prim and quite reserved and even stern. Uh 69 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 1: So in terms of their personalities. Of times, those kinds 70 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:02,600 Speaker 1: of things will balance out, but it seems like it 71 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: really made for some conflict there. Uh. But the couple 72 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,760 Speaker 1: settled in Salisbury, where Ethan had partial ownership and an 73 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:14,080 Speaker 1: iron works. Despite their differences, the two had five children 74 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:18,360 Speaker 1: together over the course of their twenty year marriage. Their daughter, Lorraine, 75 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 1: was born the year after the wedding in seventeen sixty three. 76 00:04:22,080 --> 00:04:24,480 Speaker 1: They had a son, Joseph, who was born in seventeen 77 00:04:24,520 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 1: sixty five, and then another daughter, Lucy Caroline, who was 78 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:31,360 Speaker 1: born in seventeen sixty eight. Daughter number three was Mary 79 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:35,880 Speaker 1: Anne and was born in seventeen seventy two. Their fourth daughter, Pamela, 80 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 1: was born in seventeen seventy nine. Uh. And we're jumping 81 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,839 Speaker 1: ahead in time a bit, but four years after Pamela 82 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:46,479 Speaker 1: was born, So in seventeen eighty three, Mary actually died 83 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:51,080 Speaker 1: of consumption, and then their eldest daughter, Lorraine, also died 84 00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:53,599 Speaker 1: of consumption just a few months later. But that is, 85 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:55,840 Speaker 1: as we said, we're jumping forward, but we'll circle back 86 00:04:55,839 --> 00:04:58,800 Speaker 1: to kind of that part of his life. While living 87 00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:02,240 Speaker 1: in Salisbury, connectic It, Ethan became friends with Thomas Young 88 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:05,480 Speaker 1: m D. So Young was educated and was really happy 89 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 1: to discuss politics and philosophy with Ethan, and the two 90 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:11,000 Speaker 1: of them had a lot of talks about the writing 91 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:14,680 Speaker 1: of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, and it was locks 92 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:18,080 Speaker 1: work really that exposed Ethan Ellen to the concepts of 93 00:05:18,120 --> 00:05:22,000 Speaker 1: the three unalienable rights of life, liberty, and property that 94 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,599 Speaker 1: we're at the center of revolutionary Republican ideology. So locks 95 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,960 Speaker 1: writing and Hobbs's writing were really inspiring to many of 96 00:05:30,000 --> 00:05:33,680 Speaker 1: the American revolutionaries. The two of them also talked about 97 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:36,599 Speaker 1: medicine in the course of their friendship. One of the 98 00:05:36,680 --> 00:05:39,800 Speaker 1: things they discussed touches on our Edward Jenner episode it 99 00:05:39,839 --> 00:05:44,520 Speaker 1: was smallpox vaccination. The idea of introducing infective material into 100 00:05:44,560 --> 00:05:46,960 Speaker 1: a healthy body is a way to ward off or 101 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:50,160 Speaker 1: cure disease, as we talked about in that episode, was 102 00:05:50,200 --> 00:05:55,040 Speaker 1: basically viewed as heresy at the time. Uh not everywhere, 103 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:57,640 Speaker 1: but particularly in their community. It was really frowned upon 104 00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:00,359 Speaker 1: as some suspicious business to try to cure thing with 105 00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:03,680 Speaker 1: a thing. But allan believing the logic of in grafting, 106 00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,440 Speaker 1: which is what this was called. This introduction to be sound, 107 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:12,040 Speaker 1: insisted that doctor Young publicly administer a controlled dose of 108 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:15,600 Speaker 1: the smallpox virus to him through vary elation so that 109 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:18,400 Speaker 1: they could prove once and for all that this process worked. 110 00:06:19,000 --> 00:06:21,760 Speaker 1: And Dr Young was willing, and the procedure was performed 111 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:24,400 Speaker 1: on the steps of the Salisbury Meeting House on a 112 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:28,640 Speaker 1: Sunday in seventeen sixty four. The two men were both 113 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:31,760 Speaker 1: really known as free thinkers, which just didn't sit well 114 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:35,680 Speaker 1: at all with the many members of the community. Additionally, 115 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:38,360 Speaker 1: the procedure that the two of them had publicly displayed 116 00:06:38,440 --> 00:06:41,360 Speaker 1: was not just considered to be the devil's work, it 117 00:06:41,440 --> 00:06:44,400 Speaker 1: was illegal because it had not been approved by the 118 00:06:44,400 --> 00:06:48,960 Speaker 1: town selectman. And there was some pretty significant fallout for 119 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:52,480 Speaker 1: the two of them from this little demonstration of science 120 00:06:52,480 --> 00:06:55,720 Speaker 1: and medicine. Young, who up to that point had really 121 00:06:55,760 --> 00:06:59,159 Speaker 1: had a very successful medical practice. Uh and you know, 122 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:03,400 Speaker 1: was a well respected doctor. Found that after they did 123 00:07:03,440 --> 00:07:09,640 Speaker 1: this little variolation display, his patient load pretty quickly dwindled. Um. 124 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,280 Speaker 1: He eventually had to move his practice to another town. 125 00:07:12,880 --> 00:07:15,760 Speaker 1: Although you may recognize his name because he did make 126 00:07:15,840 --> 00:07:19,520 Speaker 1: history uh later on, not as a doctor, but as 127 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:22,200 Speaker 1: a revolutionary. He went on to become one of the 128 00:07:22,200 --> 00:07:25,280 Speaker 1: pivotal participants in the Boston Tea Party, and he was 129 00:07:25,320 --> 00:07:27,120 Speaker 1: significant in that and that he was one of the 130 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: few men who refused to wear a disguise during that protest. 131 00:07:31,720 --> 00:07:35,720 Speaker 1: Ethan's reputation really suffered while he successfully talked his way 132 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:38,960 Speaker 1: out of this blasphemy charged that he faced. He had 133 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:42,320 Speaker 1: a really cantanker his personality that had already alienated a 134 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: lot of people in the community, and the stunt with 135 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:50,520 Speaker 1: young in the very elation did not help. Yeah. He uh, 136 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:54,400 Speaker 1: you know he actually there's I read one account that 137 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:57,160 Speaker 1: suggested that he was actually charged with a lesser thing. 138 00:07:57,520 --> 00:07:59,560 Speaker 1: He was charged with blasphemy because when they came to 139 00:07:59,600 --> 00:08:02,040 Speaker 1: get him on the steps, he kind of cursed out 140 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:05,600 Speaker 1: the town leaders and they arrested him for that rather 141 00:08:05,680 --> 00:08:12,840 Speaker 1: than for performing this medical procedure without permission, but I 142 00:08:12,920 --> 00:08:16,480 Speaker 1: was not able to confirm that um and as though 143 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:20,240 Speaker 1: just to cement his identity as sort of town troublemaker. 144 00:08:21,400 --> 00:08:26,200 Speaker 1: After this whole varilation incident happened. The following year, Ethan 145 00:08:26,320 --> 00:08:30,280 Speaker 1: was selling his part of the iron Works to a 146 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 1: man named George Caldwell, and the terms of sale became 147 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:38,560 Speaker 1: a little bit contentious, and this disagreement escalated at the 148 00:08:38,600 --> 00:08:42,880 Speaker 1: point where there was a skirmish in public in which 149 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:47,960 Speaker 1: Ethan Allen stripped naked and physically attacked Caldwell, and he 150 00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:51,520 Speaker 1: ended up find for this behavior. I'm not sure why 151 00:08:51,559 --> 00:08:54,560 Speaker 1: he stripped naked, but that is part of the story. 152 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:56,720 Speaker 1: It seems like if you're gonna fight a guy, you 153 00:08:56,800 --> 00:08:59,800 Speaker 1: might want to have the protection of clothing, you would think. 154 00:09:00,200 --> 00:09:01,439 Speaker 1: The only thing I can think of is if he 155 00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:04,960 Speaker 1: just wanted to prove like he had nothing. There was 156 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:08,360 Speaker 1: no you know, sort of weaponry. He just wanted a 157 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:11,560 Speaker 1: bare knuckle fair fight. It's still a little bit odd. 158 00:09:12,559 --> 00:09:14,360 Speaker 1: But before we get to sort of where he goes 159 00:09:14,400 --> 00:09:18,040 Speaker 1: after this, after he's really kind of become this town troublemaker, 160 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:19,439 Speaker 1: do you want to have a word from a sponsor 161 00:09:19,679 --> 00:09:24,000 Speaker 1: sure to return to Ethan Allen. As the seventeen seventies began, 162 00:09:24,120 --> 00:09:26,800 Speaker 1: Ethan found himself with no ill income, and he was 163 00:09:26,840 --> 00:09:30,280 Speaker 1: grieving the loss of his recently deceased sister, Lydia and 164 00:09:30,400 --> 00:09:33,000 Speaker 1: caring for his ailing mother, who had suffered a stroke 165 00:09:33,160 --> 00:09:36,760 Speaker 1: right after Lydia's death. Yeah, and keep in mind he 166 00:09:36,760 --> 00:09:40,480 Speaker 1: had also made himself possibly the most unpopular man in town, 167 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:44,440 Speaker 1: and so in search of new opportunities, he decided to 168 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:47,679 Speaker 1: strike out for the Green Mountains of the New Hampshire Grants. 169 00:09:47,720 --> 00:09:51,640 Speaker 1: This is the territory that is present day Vermont. Many 170 00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 1: families were moving to the grants in an effort to 171 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:56,600 Speaker 1: secure land for their families and thus sort of have 172 00:09:56,720 --> 00:10:00,120 Speaker 1: a um a secure future for them. But there was 173 00:10:00,160 --> 00:10:02,560 Speaker 1: a little bit of a problem in that this land 174 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:05,280 Speaker 1: was tied up in a debate over who actually had 175 00:10:05,400 --> 00:10:08,880 Speaker 1: rights to it. The Governor of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth, 176 00:10:09,240 --> 00:10:13,000 Speaker 1: had been selling land parcels for a low price to speculators, 177 00:10:13,040 --> 00:10:15,720 Speaker 1: although King George had ruled in seventeen sixty four that 178 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:18,400 Speaker 1: New York had the rights to the land. As the 179 00:10:18,480 --> 00:10:21,199 Speaker 1: fighting went on, there were threats the landowners were going 180 00:10:21,240 --> 00:10:24,000 Speaker 1: to have to pay the Yorkers for the rights to 181 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:27,160 Speaker 1: the land that they already thought they owned, and tensions 182 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:32,240 Speaker 1: over this were incredibly high. Yeah, we've done other episodes 183 00:10:32,280 --> 00:10:35,280 Speaker 1: on sort of uh land grabs and people trying to 184 00:10:35,480 --> 00:10:37,959 Speaker 1: place claims on land and how contentious it can be, 185 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:41,280 Speaker 1: and this was really really like a hot bed of argument. 186 00:10:41,600 --> 00:10:44,839 Speaker 1: And so when Ethan Allen arrived on the scene, he 187 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:47,680 Speaker 1: was pretty passionate and open about his disdain for the 188 00:10:47,720 --> 00:10:51,040 Speaker 1: Yorkers and his ideology that the prospectors who had gone 189 00:10:51,040 --> 00:10:54,520 Speaker 1: to the grants really deserved the opportunity to ensure their 190 00:10:54,520 --> 00:10:58,839 Speaker 1: family security through land ownership. Uh. He was a natural leader. 191 00:10:58,880 --> 00:11:01,040 Speaker 1: I cannot say those two words together without thinking about 192 00:11:01,040 --> 00:11:05,480 Speaker 1: Han Solo because princessly it calls him that, having nothing 193 00:11:05,480 --> 00:11:08,120 Speaker 1: to do with Ethan Allen. But so Ethan Allen was 194 00:11:08,360 --> 00:11:11,120 Speaker 1: a natural leader, and he really excelled at convincing people 195 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:13,160 Speaker 1: to see his point of view as the correct one. 196 00:11:13,520 --> 00:11:15,679 Speaker 1: So he was really gaining ground with people that have 197 00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:19,040 Speaker 1: been on the fence. So we're saying, like, no, these 198 00:11:19,080 --> 00:11:21,680 Speaker 1: New Hampshire grants need to be given to people that 199 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:24,040 Speaker 1: are striking out and starting their families and trying to 200 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:26,840 Speaker 1: secure a family legacy, and so not long after he 201 00:11:26,880 --> 00:11:30,000 Speaker 1: had arrived he was actually chosen as the agent for 202 00:11:30,040 --> 00:11:33,920 Speaker 1: the settlers that were holding these Wentworth titles, and this 203 00:11:34,080 --> 00:11:38,079 Speaker 1: leadership role Allen often found himself and just really all 204 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:44,280 Speaker 1: kinds of conflicts. Probably the most famous involved loyalists Samuel Adams. 205 00:11:44,720 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 1: When Adams turned up ready for a fight, telling the 206 00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:49,920 Speaker 1: title holders that they would have to purchase official New 207 00:11:50,000 --> 00:11:53,480 Speaker 1: York Land needs from him, Ethan Allen disarmed him and 208 00:11:53,600 --> 00:11:56,800 Speaker 1: hauled him to the Catamount Tavern. Allan and his fellow 209 00:11:56,880 --> 00:12:00,520 Speaker 1: settlers held a trial for Adams, found him guilty, tied 210 00:12:00,600 --> 00:12:03,400 Speaker 1: him to a chair, and set him on the taverns 211 00:12:03,520 --> 00:12:07,840 Speaker 1: signpost for several hours. Mr Adams was apparently not much 212 00:12:07,880 --> 00:12:11,720 Speaker 1: trouble to the settlers after that. Ethan Allen also there's 213 00:12:11,720 --> 00:12:14,800 Speaker 1: a story that he took to Albany sheriffs into custody 214 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:17,280 Speaker 1: at one point when they had come to try to 215 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:21,720 Speaker 1: assertain New York's ownership of this land. And he held 216 00:12:21,800 --> 00:12:24,880 Speaker 1: these two sheriffs in separate cells, away from one another. 217 00:12:24,920 --> 00:12:27,199 Speaker 1: They couldn't see you or interact with each other at all. 218 00:12:27,600 --> 00:12:30,040 Speaker 1: And then during the night Ethan Allen went outside and 219 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:33,360 Speaker 1: he hung an effigy outside the jail, but at a 220 00:12:33,440 --> 00:12:36,880 Speaker 1: distance so it wasn't close up where you could clearly 221 00:12:36,920 --> 00:12:39,400 Speaker 1: see it. And in the morning he allegedly told each 222 00:12:39,400 --> 00:12:41,920 Speaker 1: of these men that the other one had been hanged 223 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:46,959 Speaker 1: in the night, and he convinced both of them, using 224 00:12:46,960 --> 00:12:49,520 Speaker 1: this little ruse, that it was really far too dangerous 225 00:12:49,559 --> 00:12:51,560 Speaker 1: to seek out payment to New York among the went 226 00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:54,440 Speaker 1: Worth grant holders. And then once they were good and 227 00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 1: convinced that this was a scary place and they should 228 00:12:56,800 --> 00:13:00,320 Speaker 1: not try to pursue any legal or fiscal action here, 229 00:13:00,679 --> 00:13:02,880 Speaker 1: he let them go at different times so they did 230 00:13:02,880 --> 00:13:06,360 Speaker 1: not see one another, and apparently there was some time 231 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,120 Speaker 1: before either of the men realized that they had been 232 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:12,040 Speaker 1: completely duped and that no one had been killed. So 233 00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:16,640 Speaker 1: to to cut over to another frequently requested podcast subject. 234 00:13:16,640 --> 00:13:19,600 Speaker 1: In the summer of seventeen seventy one, Ethan Allen was 235 00:13:19,720 --> 00:13:23,559 Speaker 1: instrumental in the organization of the Green Mountain Boys at 236 00:13:23,559 --> 00:13:26,560 Speaker 1: the Catamount Tavern. This was a militia that was focused 237 00:13:26,559 --> 00:13:30,359 Speaker 1: on keeping Yorkers out of New Hampshire. Ethan was elected 238 00:13:30,480 --> 00:13:35,360 Speaker 1: colonel commandant of the group and uh also during seventeen 239 00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:39,680 Speaker 1: seventy one, there were two conventions that Allen was instrumental 240 00:13:39,800 --> 00:13:43,160 Speaker 1: in arranging, and he set up public safety committees in 241 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:47,120 Speaker 1: one of them in almost a dozen grant townships. And 242 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:48,959 Speaker 1: he was also a major player in one of the 243 00:13:49,000 --> 00:13:52,160 Speaker 1: conventions in drafting a decree that outlawed New York Land 244 00:13:52,240 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 1: titles on the New Hampshire Grants. Alan also oversaw the 245 00:13:56,840 --> 00:14:01,480 Speaker 1: production of political pamphlets explaining the settlers edition and currying 246 00:14:01,559 --> 00:14:04,520 Speaker 1: favor by making the case the settlers were bullied and 247 00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 1: pushed around and their dealings with the Yorkers. Yeah, he 248 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:11,200 Speaker 1: really laid it on thick like it was. He you know, 249 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:15,360 Speaker 1: invoked images of like crying widows and you know, children 250 00:14:15,480 --> 00:14:18,720 Speaker 1: that were frightened for their future, and he painted a 251 00:14:18,720 --> 00:14:23,400 Speaker 1: picture of of real um. It was sort of the 252 00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:26,320 Speaker 1: colonial version of those ads you see on television late 253 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:30,280 Speaker 1: at night that tell you about damaged animals or starving children. Like. 254 00:14:30,400 --> 00:14:34,840 Speaker 1: It was that great of sort of almost propagandist writing. 255 00:14:35,560 --> 00:14:39,160 Speaker 1: And the Green Mountain Boys, for their part, really made 256 00:14:39,160 --> 00:14:41,400 Speaker 1: sure that Yorkers knew they were not welcome in the 257 00:14:41,440 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 1: New Hampshire Grants. Their resistance was so effective and they 258 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:49,480 Speaker 1: were such a strong force that New York actually begged 259 00:14:49,520 --> 00:14:53,040 Speaker 1: British forces in Canada to help them enforce the law 260 00:14:53,640 --> 00:14:57,840 Speaker 1: and assert their ownership over this land. And the response 261 00:14:57,840 --> 00:14:59,600 Speaker 1: that they got was not at all what they wanted. 262 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:02,080 Speaker 1: It kind of went along the lines of like, Hey, 263 00:15:02,160 --> 00:15:05,040 Speaker 1: if your forces can be run off by this ragtag 264 00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:08,000 Speaker 1: group of quote militiamen, then maybe you shouldn't be in 265 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:11,040 Speaker 1: power because you clearly can't handle it. So it did 266 00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:14,240 Speaker 1: not go as New York had hoped. And before we 267 00:15:14,320 --> 00:15:17,600 Speaker 1: get to sort of a transition that happens where the 268 00:15:17,640 --> 00:15:21,280 Speaker 1: Green Mountain Boys go from being militia protecting their land 269 00:15:21,440 --> 00:15:24,240 Speaker 1: to fighting for the colonies, do you want to have 270 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:27,200 Speaker 1: a quick word from a sponsor. So getting back to 271 00:15:28,040 --> 00:15:31,360 Speaker 1: Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys. Uh. While all 272 00:15:31,400 --> 00:15:34,040 Speaker 1: of this discord that was going on around land ownership 273 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:36,880 Speaker 1: that was sort of at this constant bubbling brew for 274 00:15:36,920 --> 00:15:41,760 Speaker 1: several years, the American Revolution was also building. And as 275 00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:44,760 Speaker 1: this was all happening, the Grant settlers and their Green 276 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:47,040 Speaker 1: Mountain Boys had come to believe, for the most part, 277 00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:50,160 Speaker 1: not everyone was in agreement, but most of them that 278 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:52,600 Speaker 1: if they really wanted to protect this property that they 279 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:55,040 Speaker 1: were laying claim to, they were going to have to 280 00:15:55,080 --> 00:15:59,240 Speaker 1: become an independent province and sort of outside anyone's uh 281 00:16:00,480 --> 00:16:04,000 Speaker 1: governance except their own. Ethan Allen and many of the 282 00:16:04,080 --> 00:16:07,040 Speaker 1: other settlers thought that if they could just prove themselves 283 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:11,200 Speaker 1: in battle against the British, surely their claimed the statehood 284 00:16:11,240 --> 00:16:14,840 Speaker 1: would be seen favorably by the Continental Congress. And we're 285 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:17,880 Speaker 1: telegraphing because almost anytime we say surely this will happen, 286 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:21,040 Speaker 1: it almost always does it. Uh So, on May tenth, 287 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,240 Speaker 1: the Green Mountain Boys were instrumental in the capture of 288 00:16:25,280 --> 00:16:28,880 Speaker 1: the British fort at Ticonderoga, New York. Although the fort 289 00:16:28,920 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: was not especially well fortified and was also in a 290 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:35,240 Speaker 1: bit of disrepair, it was important because it sat on 291 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:38,960 Speaker 1: the southern edge of Lake Champlain, which was strategically pretty 292 00:16:38,960 --> 00:16:43,680 Speaker 1: beneficial for geographical reference. The lake straddles the state line 293 00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:47,000 Speaker 1: between New York on the west and Vermont on the east, 294 00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:50,120 Speaker 1: and it pokes up into Quebec on the north end. 295 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:52,880 Speaker 1: This is a really major waterway, and it was used 296 00:16:52,880 --> 00:16:56,520 Speaker 1: for travel between the St. Lawrence River Valley and the 297 00:16:56,600 --> 00:17:00,600 Speaker 1: Hudson River Valley. The British had held this position since 298 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:05,520 Speaker 1: seventeen sixty three, and uh the Green Mountain Boys, led 299 00:17:05,520 --> 00:17:08,240 Speaker 1: by Ethan Allen mobilized to hit the fort as a 300 00:17:08,320 --> 00:17:13,320 Speaker 1: target after a request from Connecticut Governor Jonathan Trumbull. But 301 00:17:13,640 --> 00:17:16,719 Speaker 1: Alan and Trumbull were not the only ones who recognized 302 00:17:16,760 --> 00:17:21,160 Speaker 1: that the Ticonderoga Fort was important. Benedict Donald was also 303 00:17:21,280 --> 00:17:24,080 Speaker 1: making a move to attack Ticonderoga, and he had a 304 00:17:24,080 --> 00:17:28,760 Speaker 1: military commission from the Revolutionary Councils of Massachusetts and Connecticut. 305 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:32,760 Speaker 1: So Benedict Donald and his forces showed up kind of 306 00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:35,639 Speaker 1: alongside Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys, and then 307 00:17:35,680 --> 00:17:37,960 Speaker 1: they were going to proceed upon the fort. At that point, 308 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:42,080 Speaker 1: Ethan Allen's crew was really adamant that they were not 309 00:17:42,119 --> 00:17:45,680 Speaker 1: going to take orders from anyone other than him. As 310 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:48,960 Speaker 1: a consequence, Alan took command of all the forces, and 311 00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:52,200 Speaker 1: you can imagine how that really delighted Benedict Arnold, who, 312 00:17:52,280 --> 00:17:55,000 Speaker 1: like Allen, had all kinds of confidence of his own. 313 00:17:55,600 --> 00:17:58,360 Speaker 1: The two men are said to have bickered over who 314 00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:02,480 Speaker 1: was in charge without were settling things definitively, but their 315 00:18:02,520 --> 00:18:09,000 Speaker 1: mission did continue in spite of their confusion over the leadership. Yeah, 316 00:18:09,040 --> 00:18:10,879 Speaker 1: I mean, Benedict Donald was showing up with like an 317 00:18:10,960 --> 00:18:17,080 Speaker 1: organized force, and Ethan Allen had his militia and then 318 00:18:17,119 --> 00:18:19,640 Speaker 1: he just wanted to take over everything I can see 319 00:18:19,640 --> 00:18:22,400 Speaker 1: where there would be some fights. However, the group made 320 00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:24,520 Speaker 1: their move on the morning of the tenth, but they 321 00:18:24,560 --> 00:18:27,480 Speaker 1: really met with like no resistance. There had only been 322 00:18:27,480 --> 00:18:31,560 Speaker 1: about fifty men defending the four un Britain's behalf uh, 323 00:18:31,600 --> 00:18:35,880 Speaker 1: and they were super easily taken. They weren't expecting anybody. 324 00:18:35,920 --> 00:18:39,040 Speaker 1: They just they were actually um engravings that you will 325 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:41,399 Speaker 1: see of Ethan Allen just kind of standing outside the 326 00:18:41,480 --> 00:18:44,000 Speaker 1: room and being like come out, we have you uh, 327 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:48,440 Speaker 1: and sort of just demanding the the surrender, which he got. 328 00:18:49,280 --> 00:18:52,639 Speaker 1: Building on a success at Ticonderoga, the Green Mountain Boys 329 00:18:52,720 --> 00:18:55,639 Speaker 1: and the troops that had traveled with Arnold moved north 330 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:58,680 Speaker 1: to take Crown Point a day later on May eleven. 331 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:02,919 Speaker 1: Similar to the first fort, Crown Point offered no resistance 332 00:19:02,960 --> 00:19:06,720 Speaker 1: in the colonial army now now held two vital forts. 333 00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:10,959 Speaker 1: Holding these positions on behalf of the colonies served to 334 00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:14,360 Speaker 1: prevent a British attack from the north. Yeah. And it's 335 00:19:14,359 --> 00:19:17,280 Speaker 1: one of those things that when you read about these uh, 336 00:19:17,480 --> 00:19:21,280 Speaker 1: and sometimes in Ethan Allen biographies that kind of like 337 00:19:21,359 --> 00:19:24,480 Speaker 1: quick ones that will be like he you know, masterfully 338 00:19:24,520 --> 00:19:27,200 Speaker 1: handled these two pivotal fort takeovers, and it's like, well, 339 00:19:27,320 --> 00:19:30,880 Speaker 1: he was leading forces, but it wasn't like these were 340 00:19:30,920 --> 00:19:34,200 Speaker 1: like really big battles that required a lot of thinking 341 00:19:34,200 --> 00:19:35,680 Speaker 1: on your feet. I mean, they kind of just went 342 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:37,760 Speaker 1: in and knocked on the door and said, we have you. 343 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:41,720 Speaker 1: This is ours now. Thanks guys. Yeah, there are some 344 00:19:41,840 --> 00:19:44,480 Speaker 1: modern historians who are like, hey, wait, let's back up 345 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:46,560 Speaker 1: a little bit. This is not like a big skirmish. 346 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:50,240 Speaker 1: It was just sort of in some ways a lucky turn. However, 347 00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:53,879 Speaker 1: despite this great success having taken these two forts, in 348 00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:57,800 Speaker 1: July of seventy, Ethan was actually voted out of his 349 00:19:57,880 --> 00:20:00,560 Speaker 1: leadership role with the Green Mountain Boys and replaced with 350 00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:03,400 Speaker 1: a man named Seth Warner, who had really emerged as 351 00:20:03,400 --> 00:20:06,440 Speaker 1: a leader during the taking of the Crown Point Fort. 352 00:20:06,800 --> 00:20:09,639 Speaker 1: So it probably sounds a little weird for a military 353 00:20:09,760 --> 00:20:12,960 Speaker 1: unit to be electing its owned officers, and it was so. 354 00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:15,840 Speaker 1: At this point. The Green Mountain Boys were acting under 355 00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:19,000 Speaker 1: the auspices of the State of New York, but they 356 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:23,160 Speaker 1: were authorized by the Continental Congress. And additionally, they weren't 357 00:20:23,160 --> 00:20:26,879 Speaker 1: really into the whole structure of military power as it 358 00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:29,960 Speaker 1: existed beyond them. As is probably clear from their refusal 359 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:34,480 Speaker 1: to take orders for Benedict Arnold. Yeah, so remember if 360 00:20:34,520 --> 00:20:37,920 Speaker 1: it sounds weird that they were uh serving under the 361 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:40,200 Speaker 1: auspices of the State of New York that legally, at 362 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:43,040 Speaker 1: this point on paper, New York was recognized as the 363 00:20:43,040 --> 00:20:45,159 Speaker 1: owner of the New Hampshire grants, even though that was 364 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:47,800 Speaker 1: a disputed area. And they were kind of throwing in 365 00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:51,120 Speaker 1: their lot with this revolutionary war effort in the hope 366 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:53,520 Speaker 1: when all the dust had settled they could say, hey, 367 00:20:53,560 --> 00:20:55,480 Speaker 1: we really helped you. Can we have our state now? 368 00:20:56,280 --> 00:21:00,280 Speaker 1: And of course, having been ousted from his position, Ethan 369 00:21:00,320 --> 00:21:03,480 Speaker 1: Allen was a little bit chagrined, but he did still 370 00:21:03,520 --> 00:21:06,440 Speaker 1: want to contribute to the war effort, so he volunteered 371 00:21:06,440 --> 00:21:09,800 Speaker 1: to move into Canada as the next step. But before 372 00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:13,440 Speaker 1: we get there, we're gonna break uh. And this will 373 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:15,000 Speaker 1: be the end of the first part, because we kind 374 00:21:15,040 --> 00:21:16,880 Speaker 1: of want to end on a triumphant note. Even though 375 00:21:16,920 --> 00:21:20,040 Speaker 1: he has lost his leadership position, he has still had 376 00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:22,320 Speaker 1: two you know, great fork takeovers, even if they were 377 00:21:22,320 --> 00:21:28,480 Speaker 1: pretty easy. So I also have some listener mail, please 378 00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:30,959 Speaker 1: read it well, and I have a couple and this 379 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:33,000 Speaker 1: one is good since we're ending as we kind of 380 00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:37,040 Speaker 1: shift into Canada, which is from Canada. Uh. It is 381 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:41,719 Speaker 1: about our biggest Land podcast and it is from our listener, Sophie. 382 00:21:41,760 --> 00:21:44,240 Speaker 1: And she says, your begins Land podcast had all of 383 00:21:44,280 --> 00:21:47,320 Speaker 1: my favorite things, the yukon, the mounteas and oatmeal. I 384 00:21:47,400 --> 00:21:50,040 Speaker 1: have a constable with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and 385 00:21:50,080 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 1: I was listening to your show during a slow night 386 00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:55,600 Speaker 1: shift when the episode came on. I haven't closed the 387 00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:58,399 Speaker 1: book The Cremation of Sam McGhee, which, as the sticker 388 00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:01,080 Speaker 1: on the front indicates, is concern it or to children's book. 389 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:03,560 Speaker 1: I've always found this funny is the book is about 390 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:07,840 Speaker 1: cremating an American prospector after he freezes to death. Despite 391 00:22:07,840 --> 00:22:11,200 Speaker 1: the grim talk topic, the poetry and illustrations are stunning. 392 00:22:11,640 --> 00:22:14,720 Speaker 1: I agree the color work on this is really really beautiful. 393 00:22:14,960 --> 00:22:17,960 Speaker 1: So I recommend anybody who has the opportunity to see 394 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:20,320 Speaker 1: this book to do so. Uh And she said I 395 00:22:20,320 --> 00:22:21,840 Speaker 1: had this book as a child and I can still 396 00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:25,560 Speaker 1: recite it from memory. Further, she also sent us um 397 00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:29,159 Speaker 1: to shoulder flashes from old uniform shirts, which is so cool. 398 00:22:29,560 --> 00:22:32,280 Speaker 1: She said. Although it's commonly believed that the RCMP slogan 399 00:22:32,400 --> 00:22:34,840 Speaker 1: is we always get our man on the crest. It 400 00:22:34,960 --> 00:22:39,040 Speaker 1: is mental le noir, which translates as maintained the right. Uh. So, 401 00:22:39,200 --> 00:22:41,080 Speaker 1: thank you so much, Sovie. This is such an awesome 402 00:22:41,119 --> 00:22:45,199 Speaker 1: little parcel to receive. This book is seriously beautiful and 403 00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:49,120 Speaker 1: I super appreciate it. Uh. And I love to look 404 00:22:49,119 --> 00:22:52,160 Speaker 1: at art all the time. So hooray, thank you Sophie. 405 00:22:52,280 --> 00:22:55,680 Speaker 1: And it's cool to have your patches. I feel so honored. Uh. 406 00:22:55,720 --> 00:22:58,040 Speaker 1: If you would like to write to us, you can 407 00:22:58,080 --> 00:23:00,200 Speaker 1: also do so. You do not have to send us things, 408 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:03,240 Speaker 1: but if you want to that is cool. You can 409 00:23:03,280 --> 00:23:06,720 Speaker 1: write to us via email at History podcast at house 410 00:23:06,760 --> 00:23:09,440 Speaker 1: to Works dot com. You can connect on Facebook dot 411 00:23:09,440 --> 00:23:12,600 Speaker 1: com slash missed in history. You can visit us at 412 00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:15,639 Speaker 1: Twitter at mist in history, at miss in history dot 413 00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:19,119 Speaker 1: tumbler dot com, on pinterest dot com slash missed in history. 414 00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:22,199 Speaker 1: And if you would like to wear your love of 415 00:23:22,280 --> 00:23:24,399 Speaker 1: history on your sleeve, so to speak, or really on 416 00:23:24,440 --> 00:23:26,600 Speaker 1: your chest, you can go to miss in history dot 417 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:30,760 Speaker 1: spreadshirt dot com and purchase T shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies. There 418 00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:34,640 Speaker 1: are also accessories like bags and mugs that you can 419 00:23:34,640 --> 00:23:37,680 Speaker 1: get there. Feel free to do all that if you 420 00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:39,760 Speaker 1: would like to learn a little bit more about what 421 00:23:39,800 --> 00:23:41,879 Speaker 1: we talked about today. It's really a very big topic. 422 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:44,399 Speaker 1: You can go to our parents site House to Works, 423 00:23:44,440 --> 00:23:46,840 Speaker 1: type in the words Revolutionary War in the search bar, 424 00:23:47,080 --> 00:23:50,959 Speaker 1: and you will find an entire section of articles on 425 00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:53,080 Speaker 1: the Revolutionary War and how it all played out in 426 00:23:53,080 --> 00:23:56,120 Speaker 1: different aspects of it. Uh. You can go to our 427 00:23:56,160 --> 00:23:58,440 Speaker 1: site which is missed in history dot com to get 428 00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:00,439 Speaker 1: show notes and listen to any of our shows, as 429 00:24:00,440 --> 00:24:04,080 Speaker 1: well as occasional additional content like blogs. And you can 430 00:24:04,119 --> 00:24:06,520 Speaker 1: also visit our parents Righthouse to Work dot com which 431 00:24:06,520 --> 00:24:09,360 Speaker 1: you mentioned to research almost anything your mind could conjure 432 00:24:13,880 --> 00:24:16,320 Speaker 1: for more on this and thousands of other topics. Because 433 00:24:16,320 --> 00:24:20,600 Speaker 1: it how stuff works dot com m