The Revolutionary War at Green-Wood
You now stand on Green-Wood Cemetery's Battle Hill, the highest natural elevation in Brooklyn. On the morning of August 27, 1776, had you stood here, you would have seen the Battle of Brooklyn developing in front of you. British General James Grant's army advanced from left to right, along what is now Third Avenue, marching north towards the fortifications in Fort Greene behind which General George Washington's Continental Army was massed. General William Alexander (Lord Stirling) commanded a defensive force of about 2,000 Americans. It was his assignment, as Washington's advance guard, to slow the British attack. Stirling formed a line, from west to east, along what is now 20th Street. As he did so, he saw this hill to his east. Quickly recognizing the importance of this "hill of clear ground," he detached a force of 300 men under General Samuel H. Parsons to take it. They moved at the double quick, as time was of the essence. But the British beat them to this hill. The Americans attacked and, despite a volley of lead from the British, captured it. The British mounted two counter-assaults but failed to recapture it. Here on Battle Hill this small body of Patriots made its heroic stand, engaging in some of the heaviest fighting of the Battle of Brooklyn. The British lost 86 dead and wounded here, almost half of their casualties during the entire battle. The Americans, obeying their orders to hold this vital hill, later were surrounded and the vast majority of them captured.| HM Number | HM1BFO |
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| Tags | |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Wednesday, October 15th, 2014 at 11:13am PDT -07:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 18T E 585419 N 4501198 |
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| Decimal Degrees | 40.65723333, -73.98955000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 40° 39.434', W 73° 59.373' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 40° 39' 26.04" N, 73° 59' 22.38" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 917, 718, 212 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 121-137 Border Ave, Dandridge NY 11218, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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