Near Schuylerville in Saratoga County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Americans Flee, Hope and Suffer
Photographed by Steve Stoessel, August 12, 2024
1. Americans Flee, Hope and Suffer Marker
Many Americans wanted to keep British rule. These people were harassed by pro-independence "committees of safety." General Burgoyne's camp was their haven. Think of hundreds of people huddled beside these hills in 1777. They hoped for a British victory so they could go back to their homes in peace.
Most Americans living near here feared the powerful British Army. These people fled their homes to avoid the invasion. Albany was their haven. They hoped for a victory by the United States so they could go back to their homes in peace.
Militia cost 18-year-old Elizabeth Fisher dearly in 1777. They had burned her out of her home, all possessions lost. She then trudged 22 miles to join Burgoyne, with her infant son Henry. Fisher later wrote that the exhaustion was so overwhelming she was willing to lay down and die.
Memoirs of Mrs. Elizabeth Fisher, of the City of New York by Elizabeth Fisher, 1810
A poet, 24-year-old Ann Bleecker and her children fled to Albany. Near there her infant daughter Abella died of dysentery. Bleecker wrote a poem, "Written in the Retreat from Burgoyne." Her poured-out grief still reads raw today: "The idol of my soul was torn away; Her spirit fled and left me ghastly clay.
Mrs. Ann Eliza Bleecker, by Cornelius Tiebout, 1793
The
this page online
Erected 2024 by Saratoga National Historical Park.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • War, US Revolutionary. A significant historical year for this entry is 1777.
Location. 43° 0.291′ N, 73° 36.357′ W. Marker is near Schuylerville, New York, in Saratoga County. It can be reached from Saratoga Battlefield Tour Road. Marker can be reached from Tour Stop #10. It is the last exhibition on the north end of the Refugee Trail, ½ mile from the parking lot. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Stillwater NY 12170, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Upstate New York, in the Capital District, and in the Albany Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Great North Woods, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Surviving Portion of Champlain Canal (within shouting distance of this marker); Warriors and Refugees (within shouting distance of this marker); A Route Well Traveled (within shouting distance of this marker); Men and Beasts, Hard at Work (about 700 feet away); Chasing Burgoyne Changed the World (approx. 0.2 miles away); the Whole Way was marked with Devastation (approx. 0.2 miles away); Hike the Refugee Trail (approx. 0.2 miles away); Not Everyone Retreated North (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Schuylerville.
Other markers no longer nearby. Site of the Taylor Cabin (was a few steps from
Photographed by Steve Stoessel, August 12, 2024
2. Americans Flee, Hope and Suffer Marker
Photographed by Steve Stoessel, August 12, 2024
3. Americans Flee, Hope and Suffer Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on August 13, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 12, 2024, by Steve Stoessel of Niskayuna, New York. This page has been viewed 246 times since then and 19 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on August 12, 2024, by Steve Stoessel of Niskayuna, New York. 2, 3. submitted on August 13, 2024, by Steve Stoessel of Niskayuna, New York.
