The Battle of Groton Heights

The Battle of Groton Heights (also known as the Battle of Fort Griswold, and occasionally called the Fort Griswold massacre) was a battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 6, 1781 between a small Connecticut militia force led by Lieutenant Colonel William Ledyard and the more numerous British forces led by Brigadier General Benedict Arnold and Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Eyre.

In an unsuccessful attempt to divert General George Washington from marching against Lord Cornwallis's army in Virginia, Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton ordered General Arnold to raid the Connecticut port of New London. Although the raid was a success, the Connecticut militia stubbornly resisted British attempts to capture Fort Griswold, across the Thames River in Groton. Several leaders of the attacking British force were killed or seriously wounded, and much of the defending garrison was either killed, mortally wounded, or captured when the fort was stormed. British casualties were also high, leading to criticism of General Arnold by some of his superiors.

The battle was the last major military encounter of the war in the northern United States, preceding the decisive American victory at Yorktown, Virginia by about six weeks.

This project seeks to gather the names of those patriots who participated in the defense of Fort Griswold; escaped to live another day, were wounded, captured or gave an ultimate sacrifice to their newly formed nation. Lists containing the of names of the defenders of Fort Griswold have long been assembled, but with the tool of Geni, perhaps the relationships of these heroes, their stories and their family relationships to following generations can be better understood.

The Battle of Groton Heights, by William Wallace Harris is one of many accounts of the battle and stories of those it touched.

Other historical accounts of the storming of Fort Griswold:

The Fort Griswold Battle and Massacre excerpted from HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF LEDYARD 1650-1900, by Rev. John Avery, published by Noyes & Davis: Press, Norwich, Connecticut, 1901, p. 67-79

American Forces Killed:

A partial list of those killed or died later from their wounds received from the storming of the fort on September 6, 1781

• Nathaniel Adams
• Belton Allyn
• Benadam Allyn
• Capt. Samuel Allyn
• Capt. Simeon Allyn
• Christopher Avery
• Ensign Daniel Avery
• David Avery, Esq.
• Lieut. Ebenezer Avery
• Capt. Elijah Avery
• Capt. Elisha Avery
• Sgt. Jasper Avery
• Sgt. Solomon Avery
• Thomas Avery
• John P. Babcock
• Sgt. Ezekiel Bailey
• Andrew Baker
• Corp. Andrew Billings
• John Billings
• Samuel Billings
• William Bolton
• John Brown
• Capt. Hubbard Burrows
• Jonathan Butler
• Lieut. Richard Chapman
• Daniel Chester
• Sgt. Eldredge Chester
• Frederic Chester
• Jedediah Chester
• John Clark
• Elias Coit
• Lieut. James Comstock
• William Comstock
• Philip Covel
• Daniel Davis
• Daniel Eldredge
• Jordan Freeman
• Capt. Elias Henry Halsey
• Samuel Hill
• John Holt, Jr.
• Sgt. Rufus Hurlbut
• Eliday Jones
• Moses Jones
• Benoni Kenson
• Barney Kinney
• Thomas Lamb
• Lameo "Lambo" Latham
• Lieut. Colonel William Ledyard
• Capt. Youngs Ledyard
• Capt. Cary Leeds
• Daniel D. Lester
• Ensign John Lester
• Jonas Lester
• Wait Lester
• Lieut. Joseph Lewis
• Corp. Edward Mills
• Corp. Simeon Morgan
• Joseph Moxley Sr.
• David Palmer
• Asa Perkins
• Elisha Perkins
• Elnathan Perkins
• Corp. Luke Perkins "Jr."
• Simeon Perkins
• Elijah Richards
• Capt. Peter Richards
• David Seabury
• Capt. Adam Shapley
• Corp. Nathan Sholes
• Capt. Amos Stanton
• Sgt. Daniel Stanton
• Lieut. Enoch Stanton
• Sgt. Nicholas Starr
• Thomas Starr
• Sgt. John Stedman
• Sylvester Walworth
• Lieut. Patrick Ward (Find A Grave record)
• Joseph Wedger
• John Whittlesley
• Stephen Whittlesley
• Daniel Williams (Find A Grave record)
• Lieut. Henry Williams
• Capt. John Williams
• Thomas Williams
• Christopher Woodbridge
• Henry Woodbridge

Wounded and Paroled:

• Amos Avery
• Ensign Ebenezer Avery
• Lieut. Parke Avery
• John Daboll Jr.
• Samuel Edgecomb Jr.
• Ensign Charles Eldredge
• Christopher Eldridge
• Daniel Eldridge
• Andrew Gallup
• Robert Gallup
• Sgt. Stephen Hempstead
• Corp. Jehial Judd
• Christopher Latham Jr.
• Capt. Edward Latham
• Jonathan Latham Jr.
• Capt. William Latham
• Frederick Moore
• John Morgan
• Jabish Pendleton
• Ebenezer Perkins
• Obediah Perkins
• Capt. Solomon Perkins
• Elisha Prior
• William Seymour
• Daniel Stanton
• Edward Stanton
• John Starr
• Lieut. William Starr
• Samuel Stillman
• Sanford Williams
• Ensign Joseph Woodmansee
• Azel Woodworth
• Thomas Woodworth
• Ziba Woodworth
• Tom Wansuc (Pequot Indian)

Prisoners Taken by British Forces:

• Caleb Avery
• Peter Avery
• Sgt. Rufus Avery
• Joshua Baker
• Samuel Beaumont
• Walter Buddington
• Reuben Bushnell
• Charles Chester
• Nathan Darrow
• Gilbert Edgecomb
• Ebenezer Fish
• William Latham Jr.
• Ebenezer Ledyard
• Jabez Stow
• Holsey Sanford
• Solomon Tift
• Thomas Welles
• Jesper Latham (c. 1765 - ) Signed affadavit that he served at Fort Griswold

Escaped:

• Benjamin Bill
• Joshua Bill
• Benajah Holdridge
• Samuel W. Jaques
• Cary Leeds
• Ensign Amos Lester
• Thomas Mallison
• Henry Mason
• Japhet Mason
• Elisha Morgan
• James Morgan
• Joseph Moxley Jr.
• John Prentis

Released:

William Latham, 12 years of age

Related Stories:

• Elisha Miner, great grandson of Lieut. Parke Avery recalls Ft. Griswold eighty years after the battle

Links:

• Plan of Fort Griswold
• Defenders of Fort Griswold (The Historical Marker Database)
• How Fort Griswold Looked Nearly Eighty Years Ago An article in New London's "The Day", published in 1913
• Rockefeller and Morgan Restore the Graves of Ancestors at Groton an article from The Bridgeport Telegram

Bridgeport, Connecticut Friday, November 28, 1924]