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Evacuation Day (New York)
Encyclopedia
Following the American Revolution
, Evacuation Day on November 25 marks the day in 1783 when the last vestige of British
authority in the United States
— its troops in New York
— departed from Manhattan
. The last shot of the American Revolutionary War
was reported to be fired on this day, as a British gunner on one of the departing ships fired a cannon at jeering crowds gathered on the shore of Staten Island
, at the mouth of New York Harbor
(the shot fell well short of the shore).
and British
troops in the American Revolutionary War
, at the Battle of Long Island
(also known as the Battle of Brooklyn) on August 27, 1776, General George Washington
and the Continental Army
retreated to Manhattan Island. The Continentals withdrew north and west and, following the Battle of Fort Washington
on 16 November 1776, evacuated the island. For the remainder of the Revolutionary War much of what is now Greater New York
and its surroundings were under British control. New York City
(then occupying only the southern tip of Manhattan) became, under Lord Howe
and his brother Sir William
, the British political and military center of operations in North America
.
Correspondingly, the region became central to the development of a Patriot intelligence network
, headed by Washington himself. The famous Nathan Hale
was but one of Washington's operatives working in New York, though the others were generally more successful.
The city suffered two devastating fires
of uncertain origin during the British occupation. These resulted in the British forces and prominent Loyalist
s occupying the remaining undamaged structures, relegating the fire-scarred ruins for the rest of the city's residents to live in squalor. In addition, over 10,000 Patriot soldiers and sailors died through deliberate neglect on prison ships
in New York waters (Wallabout Bay
) during the British occupation — more Patriots died on these ships than died in every single battle of the war, combined. These men are memorialized, and many of their remains are interred, at the Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument
in Fort Greene Park
, Brooklyn
, overlooking the nearby site of their torment and deaths.
that he was proceeding with the withdrawal of refugees, liberated slaves and military personnel as fast as possible, but it was not possible to give an exact date because the number of refugees entering the city had increased dramatically. More than 29,000 Loyalist
refugees were evacuated from the city. The British also evacuated former slaves they had liberated from the Americans and refused to return them to their US enslavers as the Treaty of Paris
had required them to do.
Carleton gave a final evacuation date of noon on November 25. Entry into the city by George Washington was delayed until after a British flag had been removed. A Union Flag
was nailed on a flagpole in the Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan. The pole was allegedly greased. After a number of men attempted to tear down the British color - a symbol of tyranny for contemporary American Patriots
- wooden cleats were cut and nailed to the pole and with the help of a ladder, a veteran, John Van Arsdale, was able to ascend the pole, remove the flag, and replace it with the Stars and Stripes
before the British fleet had sailed out of sight. General George Washington
led the Continental Army
in a triumphal march down Broadway
to the Battery immediately afterward.
Sir Guy Carleton, the British-appointed governor Andrew Elliot, and some other former officials left the city on December 4. Washington left the city shortly after the British departure.
Even after Evacuation Day, British troops still remained in frontier forts in areas which had clearly been defined by the Treaty of Paris (1783)
to be part of the United States. Britain would continue to hold a presence in the old Northwest until 1815, at the end of the War of 1812
.
For over a century this event was commemorated annually with boys competing to tear down a Union Flag from a greased pole in Battery Park, as well as the anniversary in general being celebrated with much adult revelry and corresponding beverages. But the wider national observance of the date began to wane after Abraham Lincoln, in his October 3, 1863, Thanksgiving Day Proclamation, called on Americans "in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving." That Thursday fell on November 26. So dates on or near the 25th became Thanksgiving
from then on.
In the 1890s the anniversary was celebrated in New York at Battery Park with the raising of the Stars and Stripes by Christopher R. Forbes, the great grandson of John Van Arsdale, with the assistance of a Civil War veterans' association from Manhattan — the Anderson Zouaves. John Lafayette Riker
, the original commander of the Anderson Zouaves, was also a grandson of John Van Arsdale. Riker's older brother was the New York genealogist James Riker
, who authored Evacuation Day, 1783 for the spectacular 100th anniversary celebrations of 1883, which were ranked as “one of the great civic events of the nineteenth century in New York City.”
In 1900 Christopher R. Forbes was denied the honor of raising the flag at the Battery on Independence Day
and on Evacuation Day and it appears that neither he nor any Veterans' organization associated with the Van Arsdale-Riker family or the Anderson Zouaves took part in the ceremony after this time. Following the warming of relations with Britain immediately preceding World War I
, the observance all but disappeared.
Though little celebrated in the previous century, Evacuation Day was commemorated on 25 November 2008 with searchlight displays in New Jersey and New York at key high points. The searchlights are modern commemorations of the bonfires that served as a beacon signal system at many of these same locations during the revolution. The seven New Jersey Revolutionary War sites: Beacon Hill in Summit
, South Mountain Reservation
in South Orange, Fort Nonsense in Morristown, Washington Rock
in Green Brook, the Navesink Twin Lights, Princeton
, and Ramapo Mountain State Forest
near Oakland. Five New York locations contributed to the celebration: Bear Mountain State Park
, Storm King State Park
, Scenic Hudson's Spy Rock (Snake Hill)
in New Windsor, Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site
in Newburgh, Scenic Hudson's Mount Beacon
.
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, Evacuation Day on November 25 marks the day in 1783 when the last vestige of British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
authority in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
— its troops in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
— departed from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. The last shot of the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
was reported to be fired on this day, as a British gunner on one of the departing ships fired a cannon at jeering crowds gathered on the shore of Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, at the mouth of New York Harbor
New York Harbor
New York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
(the shot fell well short of the shore).
Background
Following the first and largest major engagement of the Continental ArmyContinental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
and British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
troops in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, at the Battle of Long Island
Battle of Long Island
The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn or the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, fought on August 27, 1776, was the first major battle in the American Revolutionary War following the United States Declaration of Independence, the largest battle of the entire conflict, and the...
(also known as the Battle of Brooklyn) on August 27, 1776, General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
retreated to Manhattan Island. The Continentals withdrew north and west and, following the Battle of Fort Washington
Battle of Fort Washington
The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain on November 16, 1776. It was a decisive British victory, forcing the entire garrison of Fort Washington to surrender....
on 16 November 1776, evacuated the island. For the remainder of the Revolutionary War much of what is now Greater New York
City of Greater New York
The City of Greater New York was a term commonly used originally to refer to the expanded city created on January 1, 1898 by the incorporation into the city of Richmond County, Kings County, Queens County, and the eastern part of what is now called The Bronx...
and its surroundings were under British control. New York City
History of New York City (1665-1783)
The history of New York City began with the establishment of English rule over Dutch New Amsterdam and New Netherland. As the newly renamed City of New York and surrounding areas developed, there was a growing independent feeling among some, but the area was decidedly split in its loyalties...
(then occupying only the southern tip of Manhattan) became, under Lord Howe
Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG was a British naval officer, notable in particular for his service during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars. He was the brother of William Howe and George Howe.Howe joined the navy at the age of thirteen and served...
and his brother Sir William
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB, PC was a British army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British forces during the American War of Independence...
, the British political and military center of operations in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Correspondingly, the region became central to the development of a Patriot intelligence network
Intelligence operations in the American Revolutionary War
Like many wars, much of the American Revolutionary War was fought by means other than the armies of the combatants ....
, headed by Washington himself. The famous Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
was but one of Washington's operatives working in New York, though the others were generally more successful.
The city suffered two devastating fires
Great Fire of New York (1776)
The Great Fire of New York was a devastating fire that burned through the night of September 21, 1776 on the west side of what then constituted New York City at the southern end of the island of Manhattan...
of uncertain origin during the British occupation. These resulted in the British forces and prominent Loyalist
Loyalist (American Revolution)
Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the Kingdom of Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. At the time they were often called Tories, Royalists, or King's Men. They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the revolution...
s occupying the remaining undamaged structures, relegating the fire-scarred ruins for the rest of the city's residents to live in squalor. In addition, over 10,000 Patriot soldiers and sailors died through deliberate neglect on prison ships
Prisoners in the American Revolutionary War
During the American Revolutionary War the management and treatment of prisoners of war was very different from the standards of modern warfare. Modern standards, as outlined in the Geneva Conventions, expect captives to be held and cared for by their captors...
in New York waters (Wallabout Bay
Wallabout Bay
Wallabout Bay is small body of water in Upper New York Bay along the northwest shore of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, between the present Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges, opposite Corlear's Hook on Manhattan to the west, across the East River...
) during the British occupation — more Patriots died on these ships than died in every single battle of the war, combined. These men are memorialized, and many of their remains are interred, at the Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument
Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument
The Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument in Fort Greene Park, in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, is a memorial to the more than 11,500 prisoners of war who died in captivity, known as the prison ship martyrs. The remains of a small fraction of all those who died on the ships are in a crypt below...
in Fort Greene Park
Fort Greene Park
Fort Greene Park is a municipal park in Brooklyn, New York, comprising 30.2 acres .The park includes the high ground where the Continental Army built Fort Putnam during the American Revolutionary War. The site was chosen and the construction supervised by General Nathanael Greene...
, Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, overlooking the nearby site of their torment and deaths.
Evacuation
In mid-August 1783, Sir Guy Carleton received orders from London for the evacuation of New York City. He told the President of the Continental CongressContinental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
that he was proceeding with the withdrawal of refugees, liberated slaves and military personnel as fast as possible, but it was not possible to give an exact date because the number of refugees entering the city had increased dramatically. More than 29,000 Loyalist
Loyalist (American Revolution)
Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the Kingdom of Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. At the time they were often called Tories, Royalists, or King's Men. They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the revolution...
refugees were evacuated from the city. The British also evacuated former slaves they had liberated from the Americans and refused to return them to their US enslavers as the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain on the one hand and the United States of America and its allies on the other. The other combatant nations, France, Spain and the Dutch Republic had separate agreements; for details of...
had required them to do.
Carleton gave a final evacuation date of noon on November 25. Entry into the city by George Washington was delayed until after a British flag had been removed. A Union Flag
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
was nailed on a flagpole in the Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan. The pole was allegedly greased. After a number of men attempted to tear down the British color - a symbol of tyranny for contemporary American Patriots
Patriot (American Revolution)
Patriots is a name often used to describe the colonists of the British Thirteen United Colonies who rebelled against British control during the American Revolution. It was their leading figures who, in July 1776, declared the United States of America an independent nation...
- wooden cleats were cut and nailed to the pole and with the help of a ladder, a veteran, John Van Arsdale, was able to ascend the pole, remove the flag, and replace it with the Stars and Stripes
Flag of the United States
The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars alternating with rows...
before the British fleet had sailed out of sight. General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
led the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
in a triumphal march down Broadway
Broadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
to the Battery immediately afterward.
Sir Guy Carleton, the British-appointed governor Andrew Elliot, and some other former officials left the city on December 4. Washington left the city shortly after the British departure.
Even after Evacuation Day, British troops still remained in frontier forts in areas which had clearly been defined by the Treaty of Paris (1783)
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain on the one hand and the United States of America and its allies on the other. The other combatant nations, France, Spain and the Dutch Republic had separate agreements; for details of...
to be part of the United States. Britain would continue to hold a presence in the old Northwest until 1815, at the end of the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
.
Commemoration
Thanksgiving (United States)
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...
from then on.
In the 1890s the anniversary was celebrated in New York at Battery Park with the raising of the Stars and Stripes by Christopher R. Forbes, the great grandson of John Van Arsdale, with the assistance of a Civil War veterans' association from Manhattan — the Anderson Zouaves. John Lafayette Riker
John Lafayette Riker
John Lafayette Riker was an American attorney and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action at the Battle of Fair Oaks during the Peninsula Campaign.-Early life:...
, the original commander of the Anderson Zouaves, was also a grandson of John Van Arsdale. Riker's older brother was the New York genealogist James Riker
James Riker
James Riker New York historian and genealogist. His father, James Riker was a merchant and landowner descended from early Dutch settlers. Riker left school at the age of sixteen to work in his father's business. During the late 1830s and early 1840s he lived intermittently in Goshen, New York,...
, who authored Evacuation Day, 1783 for the spectacular 100th anniversary celebrations of 1883, which were ranked as “one of the great civic events of the nineteenth century in New York City.”
In 1900 Christopher R. Forbes was denied the honor of raising the flag at the Battery on Independence Day
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
and on Evacuation Day and it appears that neither he nor any Veterans' organization associated with the Van Arsdale-Riker family or the Anderson Zouaves took part in the ceremony after this time. Following the warming of relations with Britain immediately preceding World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the observance all but disappeared.
Though little celebrated in the previous century, Evacuation Day was commemorated on 25 November 2008 with searchlight displays in New Jersey and New York at key high points. The searchlights are modern commemorations of the bonfires that served as a beacon signal system at many of these same locations during the revolution. The seven New Jersey Revolutionary War sites: Beacon Hill in Summit
Summit, New Jersey
Summit is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 21,457. Summit had the 16th-highest per capita income in the state as of the 2000 Census....
, South Mountain Reservation
South Mountain Reservation
South Mountain Reservation covers 2,047.14 acres in central Essex County, New Jersey, in portions of Maplewood, and Millburn and West Orange, bordering South Orange, between the first and second ridges of the Watchung Mountains....
in South Orange, Fort Nonsense in Morristown, Washington Rock
Washington Rock State Park
Washington Rock State Park is a scenic state park on top the first Watchung Mountain in Green Brook Township, New Jersey. The park is operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry....
in Green Brook, the Navesink Twin Lights, Princeton
Battle of Princeton
The Battle of Princeton was a battle in which General George Washington's revolutionary forces defeated British forces near Princeton, New Jersey....
, and Ramapo Mountain State Forest
Ramapo Mountain State Forest
Ramapo Mountain State Forest is a 4,200 acre state forest in Bergen and Passaic Counties in New Jersey. The park is operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry....
near Oakland. Five New York locations contributed to the celebration: Bear Mountain State Park
Bear Mountain State Park
Bear Mountain State Park is located on the west side of the Hudson River in Orange and Rockland counties of New York. The park offers biking, hiking, boating, picnicking, swimming, cross-country skiing, cross-country running, sledding and ice skating...
, Storm King State Park
Storm King State Park
Storm King State Park is a state park in Orange County, New York in the USA. The park is in the southeast part of the Town of Cornwall, next to the Hudson River.The park is undeveloped, with limited parking, and offers hiking, and seasonal deer hunting....
, Scenic Hudson's Spy Rock (Snake Hill)
Black Rock Forest
Black Rock Forest is a privately owned nature preserve in the western Hudson Highlands region of the U.S. state of New York. It is in Orange County, mostly in the town of Cornwall, with the southern fringe overlapping into the neighboring town of Highlands...
in New Windsor, Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site
Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site
Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site is a historic site in Newburgh, New York, USA. It consists of the Hasbrouck House, the longest-serving headquarters of George Washington during the American Revolutionary War, and three other structures....
in Newburgh, Scenic Hudson's Mount Beacon
Beacon Mountain
Beacon Mountain, sometimes Mount Beacon, is the highest peak of the Hudson Highlands, located behind the City of Beacon, New York, in the Town of Fishkill. Its two summits rise above the Hudson River behind the city and can easily be seen from Newburgh across the river and many other places in the...
.
External links
- The Battle for New York, a book by Barnet Schecter
- The Founding Fathers of American Intelligence
- Van Orsdel and Charles M Russell
- Simon Jance, Van Arsdale
- Van Orsdol and Van Orsdel
- http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-november-17-2011/happy-evacuation-dayThe Daily ShowThe Daily ShowThe Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
]