Name/Title
Garrison Town: the British Occupation Of New York City 1776-1783Entry/Object ID
833Description
At the outbreak of the American Revolution, New York City was a town of some 20,000 people situated at the southern tip of Manhattan Island. It was the second largest American city. Only Philadelphia was larger. Because of New York's location, it was hardly surprising that the British made it their first strategic target in 1776, and it was this small island city with its excellent harbor that was the primary British stronghold in America for the next several years. No other American city was held so long by the British army.
An amazing assortment of people lived in New York City during the long years of occupation. For the British and German soldiers fighting the king's war, New York was a camp. Captured American soldiers were crowded into New York's military prisons or held on prison ships in the harbor. Loyalist refugees, some of them wealthy and important, many more of them ordinary people, found sanctuary from the ravages of the Revolution in New York City. Runaway slave slipped into town hoping to escape bondage by supporting the British cause. These temporary residents are as much a part of New York City's story as those city inhabitants who remained during occupation.