Our farm on the outskirts of Saratoga Springs, New York has unique and fascinating ties to the American Revolutionary War. It was carved out of old growth forest and founded in 1792 by Dr. Isaac Youngs, without question one of the most important American Revolutionary War heros you’ve never heard of.
Apparently, Dr. Youngs was temporarily jailed for questioning in the case of a tenant of his who’d been conspiring with the British to set up a printing press and debase the new US Continental Currency. While in prison, Dr. Youngs and others overheard a man named Thomas Hickey, detained for the same thing, discussing a major conspiratorial plot from within Washington’s own ranks to assassinate him. Hickey was a member of Washington’s elite Life Guard, a precursor to the US Secret Service with a mandate to protect the President, giving credibility to his dimwitted rantings. With the further credibility of Dr. Youngs, “a man of letters”, testimony, the Continental Congress was immediately notified of the plot, which was thwarted, and resulted in the first public hanging in US History. Thomas Hickey and his co-conspirators were hanged before 20,000 people in the Bowery of Manhattan.
This was the first and only seriously credible assassination attempt against George Washington. The Washington Post published an article about it: “The plot to assassinate George Washington – and how it was foiled” https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/02/17/plot-assassinate-george-washington-how-it-was-foiled/
Thank Dr. Youngs that you aren’t sipping weak English tea today!
The television series “Turn: Washington’s Spies” loosely relates to some parts of the story, people involved, and events of the day. For those who’ve watched, the true to life British Major Edmund Hewlett was an American, and related to Dr. Youngs’ wife, Mary Hewlett. I’m in awe that they raised 10 children in this small center hall Colonial house, originally on roughly 5,000 acres. And with -20 degree potential winters in upstate New York, I truly understand why they built the place on the small side with 5 large fireplaces!
For my part, I’m mostly in awe of the man and animal power needed to build the miles of stone walls on our farm and in our area…and the extraordinary longevity of black locust fence posts, which I collect and save as a tribute to the people who originally carved this farmstead out of raw old growth forest…some of which remains as giant timbers, still solid as a rock, in our original mortise and tenon barn. Each square head forged nail, each wooden peg, each axe cut in timber fascinates me. I’m blessed to be a part of it.