0326----1825 West Point letter - re: Plattsburgh NY Aikens Rifles - Gen Macomb

0326----1825 WEST POINT LETTER - RE: PLATTSBURGH NY AIKENS RIFLES - GEN MACOMB Rare, original 1825 letter to West Point concerning the rifles delivered for "Aikens Volunteers" the brave men of Plattsburgh NY. General Macomb promised rifles to the men and had them shipped to West Point. The gift was finally approved by Congress after months of debate. The letter was written Dec 20, 1825 by Major George Bender to Captain Eneas Mackay, Assistant Quarter Master at West Point. The original cover for the stampless letter is also included. Any research materials used (or presented here) are NOT included with the item listed for sale. PLEASE SCROLL DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE TO VIEW ALL IMAGES The letter and cover are both in Vg condition. New York 20 Dec 1825 Dear Sir I enclose a Bill of Lading of two boxes which have been on the way from Georgetown ever since 16 ultima - They were then shipped by Genl. Macomb, who says they are for the military academy. Please write me when they come to hand. Yours Respectfully G. Bender A.S.M. U.S. Army Capt E. Mackay A.Q.M. U.S. Army West Point SOME BACKGROUND OF AIKEN'S VOLUNTEERS As a nation, we often forget that there are some very practical reasons behind the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. Not the least of these reasons is that the right to keep and bear arms and maintain a militia allows the average American citizen to defend his or her country, home and even the very concept of liberty. One of the greatest examples of this is the action of a group of teenage boys who helped defend their community of Plattsburgh, N.Y., during the British invasion of September 1814. By September 1814, there had been multiple battles along New York’s northern border and across Lake Ontario. In early 1813, the British had invaded New York on the Niagara frontier, capturing Fort Niagara and ultimately burning the communities of Lewiston, Black Rock, Tuscarora and Buffalo. In the summer of 1814, British troops came ashore in Maryland, eventually pushing into Washington D.C., burning the Capitol and the White House and sending President Madison’s government into hiding. The British then attacked Baltimore, and the defense of that city resulted in an American victory, as well as a national anthem in “The Star-Spangled Banner.” But, no matter how dramatic, these raids on the eastern seaboard were simply a British diversion to draw American attention away from Plattsburgh, their prized target in the north, so deemed by British Secretary of War Henry Bathurst. During the summer of 1814, the British had ended the Napoleonic threat in Europe and were quickly re-allocating battle-hardened troops to Canada with the intent of finishing off the impudent Americans. Gathered above Plattsburgh were 14,000 British troops, the largest single fighting force of the entire war. The British were ready. Why Plattsburgh? The town sits on the northwest shore of Lake Champlain in the northeastern corner of New York State. There is a fine harbor there, and the American naval squadron (under Commodore Thomas Macdonough) was assembled on Champlain waters to resist the British naval attack. Champlain is a thin sliver of a lake, pointing like a dagger toward Albany and, ultimately, New York City. The British planned to overwhelm the defenses at Plattsburgh with superior numbers of men on land and a large flotilla on the lake. With Plattsburgh captured, the British could move on Albany, cut off Boston, lay siege to New York City and take control of Lake Ontario. The battle lines were set. The Brave Impetuosity Of Youth The boys of Aiken’s Volunteers were students at the Plattsburgh Academy, occupied with their school lessons and youthful games. No doubt that many of them helped supplement their family diet by hunting game in the northern woods. During the last days of August 1814, the boys watched as many of their neighbors prepared to flee the village in anticipation of the invasion. The greatest army in the world was soon to be at the doorstep of the small northern village. The British were coming. Collectively, the boys made an important adult decision: They resolved to stay and fight. None of them was more than 16 years old, so they could not legally enlist. They approached Gen. Alexander Macomb (in overall command of American land forces), and the general, in great need of any able-bodied troops, regardless of their age, instructed the boys to find a proper military sponsor and leader. Martin Aiken of the Essex County Militia took the assignment and was made captain of the little volunteer group. Aiken was just 21 years old. His lieutenant, Azariah Flagg (of the Clinton County Militia), was 20 years old. As the boys were not “legally” enlisted, their names would not appear on any official daily muster rolls, only those kept by their officers, Aiken and Flagg. Some of the boys brought rifles from home; other longarms were scrounged for those boys who had none. Quickly the group became known as “Aiken’s Company” or “Aiken’s Volunteers.” By September 4th, Aiken’s Volunteers had marched out to battle, with no formalized training and certainly no combat experience. By the morning of the 6th, they were in combat. Passing through some retreating militia units, the boys met the British advance guard at nearby West Chazy, and Aiken’s volunteer riflemen “gave a good account of themselves by annoying the enemy by firing from behind stumps and fences, and disputed the ground with them all the way to Plattsburgh.” While other militia units wavered along the Beekmantown Road, the boys stayed in the fight to delay the British regulars. General Macomb took notice; the boys had backbone. The large British column continued to advance, swiftly at times, despite the harassing fire. Aiken’s boys withdrew in good order and after crossing the Saranac River, reassembled at Winchel’s Mill, which commanded the approaches of a relatively new bridge across the river in Plattsburgh. For the rest of the day, the little company of riflemen kept their fire hot against the British assembled on the far side of the Saranac River. “No corps more useful and watchful ...” General Macomb’s intelligence officer, Eleazer Williams (a native American who developed the “Secret Corps of Observation” using Indian scouts throughout the north country), was particularly complimentary of Aiken’s Volunteers: “There is no corps more useful and watchful than the one under the command of Captain Aikens [sic] and Lieutenant Flagg.” General Macomb apparently agreed, assigning Aiken’s boys to help the defenders of the blockhouse at Gravelly Point. Eleazer Williams later described the boy riflemen as “brave and daring in skirmishing with the enemy.” September 9th was a clear and quiet day for Aiken’s Volunteers, but also a painful one. They buried one of their own that afternoon, a boy named Peters, who had been killed the evening before. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *