THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD 1776-1783

The Revolutionary War wrought profound changes to Philipsburgh Manor. Tenant farmers residing on Manor lands became involved in caucuses for the first and second Continental Congresses in 1774 and 1775; but before the second Continental Congress could be convened, war broke out in Massachusetts. When the congress was finally convened, it established a national army and New York was asked to raise four regiments to be armed and trained. One of the regiments was commanded by Col. James Hammond, which included five companies of men recruited from the Manor of Philipsburgh. Many original Mount Pleasant family names such as Dean, Yerks, See, Britt and Foshay appear in the lists of volunteers in these five companies. By the time the Declaration of Independence was read on the steps of the County Court house at White Plains on July 11, 1776, the people of Philipsbutgh Manor had already begun to take sides. Frederick Philipse III, the last lord of the Manor of Philipsburgh was a British sympathizer during the Revolution. This, however, was not the case with the great majortiy of people then living in the Mount Pleasant section of the Manor. This portion of the Manor and the land north of the Croton River was declared "neutral territory". The neutral territory lay between the British who were encamped at King's Bridge and the Continental Army encamped in Croton. The territory became a scene of conflict and people who lived in this "neutral territory" were plundered by loyalists and rebels alike. A number of skirmishes an fullscale battles occurred in and around Mount Pleasant during this period. In 1779 Philipsburgh Manor lands were confiscated by the state and the Philipse family fled to England. The single most important event that occurred in Mount Pleasant during the Revolution was the capture, in 1780, of Major John Andre in what is now North Tarrytown. This event is credited with saving West Point for the Americans, as well as exposing Benedict Arnold as a traitor to the American cause. Major Andre was eventually tried and executed for spying. Mount Pleasant was to experience a number of skirmishes until the end of the war in May of 1783. During the seven long years in which the war dragged on, the people of the town suffered much hardship, both at the hands of the British and the Loyalists. Life had been disrupted and families torn apart by the war. The British finally left New York in May 1783. The people of Mount Pleasant were finally able to begin the work of rebuilding their country and communities.