No-Man's Land around New York City

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No-Man's Land around New York City

NO-MAN'S LAND AROUND NEW YORK CITY. Westchester County, New York, had the misfortune to be situated between the American and British lines for seven years, from 1776 to 1783. During that time detachments from both armies, as well as local militia for both sides and outlaws and plunderers for neither side, ravaged the countryside and the population. A county that started the war as a prosperous farming area with perhaps twenty-two thousand people would end the war with a mostly depleted populace, farms ruined, and years of rebuilding ahead of it. This Neutral Zone, as it was often called during the war, proved to be one of the deadliest and most dangerous locations in the American Revolution, caught in the crosshairs of the two contending armies.

The trouble for this doomed region actually began in November 1775, when a Whig supporter of the rebellion, Isaac Sears, decided to take matters into his own hands and led a band of eighty supporters into New York City and destroyed James Rivington's pro-British printing press. Sears and his men then left the city and headed toward Connecticut, stopping along the way in Westchester County to disarm several Loyalists. Other Loyalists throughout the New York City area began to band together to protect themselves from similar treatment.

THE BRITISH ARMY ARRIVES

The real problems started after the British army arrived in August 1776 and took control of New York City in a series of battles between August and October 1776. The British maintained a garrison in the county from that point until the end of the war, evacuating in November 1783. During that time the British lines usually extended about ten miles north of Manhattan Island, up to Phillipsburgh on the Hudson River to the north and eastward to Eastchester on Long Island Sound. The American lines were centered on Peekskill and the southern part of the Highlands, a rough and mountainous region that extended on both sides of the Hudson River about twenty-five miles north of Manhattan Island. The land in between these lines became the Neutral Zone, a battleground for every type of military formation, from scouting parties and foragers from the regular armies to militia and to lawless elements intent on plundering for their own profit. Many men fled the area, especially Loyalist males, who feared harassment, imprisonment, or even death at the hands of the Whig militia and outlaws roaming the area. Many of these Loyalist men would make their way to New York City and ultimately join bands of Loyalists that raided back into the Neutral Zone.

Soon after the British occupied Staten Island, Manhattan Island, and LongIsland, the Whig-controlled New York state convention ordered all livestock and grain in the area between the armies to be confiscated to keep it out of the hands of the enemy. New York militia forces swarmed through the region, taking everything they could find. This process became an annual event, as parties from both sides tried desperately to control the vital food supplies of the area. Since the British were often low on food in New York City, they were especially desirous of obtaining as many supplies as they could from the territory north of their lines.

COWBOYS AND SKINNERS

Into this vacuum emerged the Cowboys, a mostly pro-British unit made up of Loyalist militiamen and some soldiers detached or deserted from the British army itself. William Tryon, the former royal governor of New York, initially raised the unit. The Cowboys specialized in rustling cattle from farms in the area and from herds being driven from New England through the area south toward the American forces in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The Cowboys' numbers varied from a few dozen to a few hundred over the years. By 1780 they were commanded by the notorious Loyalist, James De Lancey. They raided throughout Westchester County, often preying on the easiest targets, such as lone farmers, plundering them and then moving on. They were not interested in fighting, just stealing. At times, the Cowboys would act in conjunction with units detached from the British army in order to gather forage and other supplies to be taken back to the army for its use. In addition, the Cowboys often sold their plunder to the British army, making a good profit for themselves.

Another Loyalist unit that raided the area was the Loyalist Westchester Refugees, created by the British command in 1777. These partisans were considered more of a combat unit, sent out to fight the growing partisan war against Whig militia forces and Continental army detachments operating in the area, as well as collecting plunder when possible. The Westchester Refugees numbered about five hundred men by the end of the war, usually about half of them mounted when going into action.

The main rebel unit that emerged in this Neutral Zone was the Skinners. This force consisted of local militiamen and other raiders unattached to any particular military unit. The Skinners were less careful about whom they plundered than were the Cowboys, as they stole from anyone on either side of the war. The Westchester militia was not called to serve outside of the county because of the chaotic and dangerous situation that existed there, so the local militiamen were free to focus their energies on plundering the area and hunting the Cowboys. Occasionally, detachments from nearby Continental units assisted the Skinners on their raids. The Skinners had a brutal reputation, perhaps worse than the Cowboys, and there were reports of Skinners using torture to get local inhabitants to reveal the whereabouts of their valuables. At times, the Skinners would even sell stolen goods to the Cowboys to buy goods from within the British lines in New York City. Skinners also were known to steal cattle from within the American lines, claiming they thought they were taking the cattle from the Cowboys.

One unexpected benefit that came from this incessant warfare between the Cowboys and the Skinners was the capture of Major John André, the agent who was in contact with Benedict Arnold during his treasonous activity in 1780. A party of local militia, out hunting Cowboys, ran into André, questioned him, refused an offer of money from him, and sent him to General George Washington, who was at West Point at that time. This action helped prevent the fall of the fort at West Point to the British, which Arnold and André were trying to coordinate.

Washington's Continental army became directly involved in the hunt for the Cowboys and the effort to stop the plundering in 1778, when he used the newly created Light Infantry Corps to guard the Neutral Zone. This unit consisted of regular infantry and dragoons as well as Westchester militia forces. The fighting in the area escalated that autumn when the Light Infantry corps skirmished with Hessian Jägers and Lieutenant Colonel John Simcoe's Queen's Rangers. In 1781 Washington ordered a mixed force of militia and Continentals to attack De Lancey's base at Morrisania. They burned the barracks, killed and captured over seventy Loyalists, and lost only twenty-five men. However, nearby British soldiers garrisoning a fort joined the surviving Loyalists and then pursued the American force on its withdrawal. Such larger-scale operations might slow down the raids for a while but never stopped them. Well into 1783, the Cowboys and Skinners pursued their careers of plunder and theft.

THE ARMIES BATTLE

Another aspect of the war in this Neutral Zone was the constant skirmishing between the two main armies stationed in the area. Westchester County became a battle-ground, twelve months a year for almost six years, as both armies contended for critical forage and supplies as well as trying to keep the other side as far away as possible. This no-man's-land was a very dangerous place to be, stuck right between the lines of what usually amounted to the two largest forces for both sides during the war.

At its least perilous, this Neutral Zone was the crossroads through which the contending forces traveled to get at each other. This started in January 1777, when New York militia forces assembled at North Castle and marched against the British fortifications near Manhattan Island. Then, starting in the winter of 1777, Washington initiated a deliberate policy of harassing all enemy movement outside of the British lines, and this led to constant skirmishing between units of the main armies and associated militia forces. The Neutral Zone became a key battlefield of this struggle over the next years. The American goals were to collect the forage of the area, deny it to the enemy, and force the British to fight constantly and thus take losses. The local Westchester militia, aided at times by militia from southwestern Connecticut, had the primary responsibility for protecting the region. Continental troops usually garrisoned the forts in the Highlands north of the area and occasionally moved into the no-man's-land to lend a hand. In addition, as noted earlier, in a few instances Washington ordered larger army units, such as the Light Infantry Corps, into the region. Winter and spring were the most deadly times for the skirmishing in the area. During the summer and autumn, the armies tended to focus on the larger campaigns, and this left the region mostly to the continued contest between forces such as the Cowboys and Skinners.

The maneuvers in the area tended to target either opposing supply concentrations or local fortifications. In the spring of 1777 the British moved up the Hudson River and attacked the American supply magazine at Peekskill, while in August 1777, Americans moved against the British post at Kings Bridge at the northern end of Manhattan Island. In September-October 1777, British General Sir Henry Clinton moved in force against the American forts in the Highlands. Though the Neutral Zone was not a prime target of these kinds of maneuvers, soldiers from both sides regularly traversed the area. Clinton's operation of 1777 included subsidiary raids into Westchester County to divert American militia forces. As the Americans withdrew northward, Connecticut militia tried to fill the void, but with only partial success. British foragers collected supplies, while Loyalists under Tryon moved toward the Connecticut border. Connecticut militia forces were able to repel this advance. As the British withdrew back toward New York City in late October, General Israel Putnam pursued them through this Neutral Zone, while Continental and militia forces from Connecticut pushed southwestward to support Putnam. In November, Putnam threatened the British posts near Manhattan Island but withdrew without seriously attacking.

In 1778 George Clinton, the governor of New York, ordered long-term militia units to stand guard in Westchester County to protect the forage of the area and to prevent communication between the Loyalists and the British army. A regiment of Continental soldiers remained at White Plains to support the local militia. One regiment of Westchester militia, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Morris Graham, took post very near the British garrison at Fort Independence, just outside New York City. From this advanced post, Graham was able to scout on enemy movements and engage any enemy parties when they first emerged from the British lines. Meanwhile, Connecticut militia continued to guard southwestern Connecticut and help support the Westchester militia as well.

By this point, Washington had learned the need to support the militia in the Neutral Zone, and in the spring of 1778 he ordered a cavalry regiment to station itself along the Hudson to be available. He also advised commanders in the area to keep the infantry, both regular and militia, back nearer fortifications, while sending out only light infantry and cavalry to engage the enemy. Washington, as always, also urged offensive operations against nearby British outposts, but General Horatio Gates, who commanded in the region, declined, considering such moves too risky.

Later that summer, after the British had evacuated Philadelphia and the two main armies had returned to their positions in and around New York City, Washington took further measures to deal with the growing problems in Westchester County. This is when he decided to place a newly created Continental unit there. First, a party of two thousand regulars and militia scoured the area for forage at his behest; then he sent in the Light Infantry Corps, commanded by General Charles Scott. Consisting of Continental infantry, a New York state militia regiment, and the army's dragoons, this corps maintained a forward defense to block British incursions and protect the inhabitants from plundering. Washington withdrew this corps in September, but he kept Continental detachments in the area to support the local militia and to relieve it from its constant duty. Later that autumn, Scott's Light Infantry Corps returned to the area to collect forage once again and to prevent British raids.

Governor Clinton also tried to support the local militia of the Neutral Zone. He ordered militia rangers and other militia detachments into the area from neighboring locations to ease the burden of the local militia and to help hunt down plunderers such as the Cowboys.

In September 1778 the British launched large-scale raids into New Jersey and up the Hudson River, and in the Neutral Zone, Scott's Corps fell back slowly, fighting and skirmishing with the advancing enemy forces. The British commander, Sir Henry Clinton, used this advance to collect supplies and to lure Washington into a large-scale battle. Clinton succeeded at his first goal but failed to gain his desired battle. As always, the people of Westchester County found themselves caught between the movements of the opposing armies.

On the other hand, because of the heightened fears for the area, Washington maintained a strong Continental presence in the county through the winter of 1778–1779. This lent increased protection for the inhabitants and allowed the local militia to gain some needed rest. But still the raids and plundering continued. British raiding parties, consisting of from one to four thousand soldiers, marched through the area in November and December, gathering everything they could find. In addition, these parties in December tried but failed to strike the Continental army's baggage train.

Increasingly, the British need for supplies drove their policy in the Neutral Zone. The month of January 1779 was a time of crisis for the British as supply levels hit critically low levels in New York City. Loyalists, Cowboys, and many others looking to make money tried to get supplies from Westchester County to the city to sell for hard British gold, and Continental patrols and local militia tried to intercept them. Despite the strenuous efforts to stop such trade, the British were able to acquire enough supplies to last until a supply fleet arrived in late January.

Again, in May-June 1779 British forces advanced northward through the county to attack American positions at Stony Point and Verplank's Point. As the British lingered in the area, Washington detached Continental units to join with the local militia to harass the British advance forces and to threaten their rear by marching through the Neutral Zone behind the British force. Finally, the British withdrew toward the city, but they took the field again in July, marching northeastward toward Connecticut in conjunction with increased amphibious raids along Long Island Sound. The British marched through Westchester County from Phillipsburgh on the Hudson to Mamaroneck on the Sound, right through the heart of the Neutral Zone. Then they marched to Bedford, burned it, and finally withdrew back to Kings Bridge. Finally, by late July 1779, these latest maneuvers came to an end, and a relative calm descended on the Neutral Zone once again. Raids and counterraids continued through the autumn months.

LATE WAR RAIDS

This pattern persisted for the next two years as large-scale operations were few in Westchester County, but foraging, raids, and skirmishes were constant, towns were burned, and people fled. Early in the winter of 1779–1780 saw raids by Connecticut militia against a Loyalist base near the Cowboy base at Morrisania in January and a clash in February between British, German, and Loyalist forces on one side and Continentals stationed just north of the British lines on the other. Fortunately, these raids were actually fewer in number during this winter than previously because a large portion of the British army was with Sir Henry Clinton in South Carolina, and General Wilhelm Knyphausen, commanding in New York City, feared to send out too many men.

Throughout the campaigning season, Westchester County was pretty well protected by the proximity of larger units from the Continental army, but by September, Washington had begun to withdraw the army, and by December 1780 the army was going into winter quarters, leaving Westchester County once again open to the increased depredations of Loyalists, Cowboys, and Skinners. More and more inhabitants fled and more and more towns became deserted. The Neutral Zone was becoming a literal no-man's-land as few men were still living in the area. The militia detachments and Loyalist raiders were often the only men there. By the end of 1780, North Castle and Bedford were both mostly destroyed and empty. The British were scouring the area with abandon, gathering supplies from as far away as the Connecticut border. About two thousand Continentals were sent to Bedford, but they were of little help in stopping the depredations through the early months of 1781, as even southwestern Connecticut towns were increasingly abandoned.

In fact, the devastation was so bad in Westchester County by the summer of 1781 that when the French army marched through on its way to join Washington outside New York City, many French officers were shocked at what they saw. The arrival of the French in New York in July 1781 led to larger-scale fighting in the part of Westchester County near the British lines. As French and American forces linked, they advanced through the area towards Kings Bridge and Morrisania. British units emerged from their lines, and over the next two days confused fighting raged throughout the area. In the end, both armies disengaged and withdrew, ending the possibility of a full-scale battle. The Cowboy base at Morrisania survived, much to the misfortune of the people still living in the Neutral Zone.

After this, the usual patterns of raids and revenge plagued the no-man's-land through the rest of 1781 and into 1782. Winter skirmishing and depredations, including attacks on North Castle and Morrisania, all occurred once again, with no real change in the situation other than more death, destruction, and misery for the few people still living in the area. The major victory of the Continental and French armies at Yorktown did not immediately end the brutal contest in the Neutral Zone. Loyalists, local militia, and detachments of Continental soldiers continued to skirmish right through the spring of 1782.

Finally, in May 1782 the British commanders in New York City ordered all such raids by British and Loyalist parties to stop, and slowly the hostilities in Westchester County eased but did not totally end. Increasingly, the raids were now made by outlaws and plunderers out for themselves rather than organized units fighting for one side or the other. However, as late as March 1783, local militia attacked the Loyalist base at Morrisania one last time.

By April 1783 both sides had ordered an end to all fighting, but until the state government could reestablish civilian control, people took advantage of the chaos and continued to plunder and steal from local inhabitants. New York militia and even Continental detachments were sent into the area to aid civilian authority in establishing control, but renegade bands continued to scour the area. This violence continued right up until the final evacuation of the British army from New York City in November 1783. At that point, the relentless partisan war, constant raids, and plundering and looting finally came to an end in this divided and war-torn no-man'sland.

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