{"id":24045,"date":"2017-07-26T10:47:38","date_gmt":"2017-07-26T14:47:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=24045"},"modified":"2017-07-26T10:47:57","modified_gmt":"2017-07-26T14:47:57","slug":"a-revolutionary-war-ancestor-with-a-very-important-house-guest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/a-revolutionary-war-ancestor-with-a-very-important-house-guest.html","title":{"rendered":"A Revolutionary War Ancestor with a Very Important House Guest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Like many of you, I am related to Revolutionary War veterans with fascinating stories of their own. One of these is my fifth-great-grandfather Lieutenant Joseph Appleby (1731-1792).<\/p>\n

I know from my own family history that Joseph\u2019s home was used as George Washington\u2019s war headquarters in 1781. It stood on what is now Secor Road in Dobbs Ferry, New York. The WFAS radio station offices are now located on this site. Joseph served as a 2nd lieutenant in the First Regiment of Westchester County, New York Militia.<\/p>\n

I wanted to learn more about my ancestor and his role in the American Revolution, so I searched for more information in GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Source: GenealogyBank<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This search generated way too many search results, so I narrowed it down by searching for Joseph\u2019s full name with the keyword \u201cDobbs Ferry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Source: GenealogyBank<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This search generated an article about the New York Society of the Sons of the American Revolution\u2019s celebration in Dobbs Ferry.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Source: GenealogyBank, Crawford Avalanche (Grayling, Michigan), 5 July 1894, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The article continues with additional information about the role my ancestor\u2019s home played in securing American victory in the Revolutionary War.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Source: GenealogyBank, Crawford Avalanche (Grayling, Michigan), 5 July 1894, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWashington was at Dobbs Ferry for nearly six weeks before he decided upon the Yorktown campaign. The outlook for independence was very gloomy\u2026 A month later the prospects were brighter. By the middle of June Lafayette was in hot chase after Cornwallis and Washington was planning with Rochambeau to effect the capture of New York City. On July 4, 1781, their forces met at Dobbs Ferry. Washington removed his headquarters from the house of Joseph Appleby, which then stood a few miles from the Hudson, on what was later called Washington\u2019s Hill, to the Van Brugh Livingston mansion.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

According to an article in the Lexington Leader<\/em>, Livingston proposed that Dobbs Ferry be renamed after himself because \u201cthe aristocracy who had to have their letters addressed there\u201d felt that \u201cDobbs Ferry\u201d was a \u201cvulgar name.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Source: GenealogyBank, Lexington Leader (Lexington, Kentucky), 2 August 1909, page 8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the end, however, \u201cthe citizens were glad to drop the [renaming] agitation and stick to the old but homely name of Dobbs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, Dobbs Ferry is part of the town of Greenburgh, New York, but the village of Dobbs Ferry, New York, retains its original name.<\/p>\n

Genealogy Tip:<\/em><\/strong> Find more information about the roles your ancestors and their hometowns played in American history by searching GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Related Articles:<\/strong><\/p>\n