tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post2583282653652167459..comments2024-03-14T13:25:20.613-05:00Comments on Boston 1775: Timothy Newell Worries About NothingUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-23698230591967011472007-07-24T15:27:00.000-05:002007-07-24T15:27:00.000-05:00There are indeed websites that say "Lt. Paul Rever...There are indeed websites that say "Lt. Paul Revere" was put in charge of the Castle. However, his rank in spring 1776 was major and by the end of that year lieutenant-colonel. <BR/><BR/>Revere seems to have gotten the assignment to make the most of Castle Island from two or three sources: Gen. Washington, the town of Boston, and the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. With those overlapping authorities, it wouldn't surprise me if there were overlapping assignments as well. <BR/><BR/>The "Fort Independence" name dates from the late 1790s, when John Adams's administration was building up the U.S. of A.'s naval and seaside defenses. It wouldn't have been used just after the British evacuation since independence wasn't official policy yet. <BR/><BR/>During the Revolution "Fort Independence" seems to have been the fortification on Mount Independence in Vermont.J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-54941564808176035842007-07-24T13:51:00.000-05:002007-07-24T13:51:00.000-05:00After the British left, wasn't the fort run by Lt....After the British left, wasn't the fort run by Lt. Paul Revere and called Fort Independence?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-60179484157184554032007-07-23T20:58:00.000-05:002007-07-23T20:58:00.000-05:00I bow to your knowledge on all things blown up and...I bow to your knowledge on all things blown up and set on fire in the Revolutionary War. <BR/><BR/>I think I was misled by the number of locals who went to work on Castle Island soon after the British left. On 24 June 1776, for instance, John Adams wrote to William Tudor, "Major Austin...has the Command of Castle William." And I recall Paul Revere prowling around the island checking the ordnance. <BR/><BR/>So I figured the Castle had survived with less damage than the Boston Light. But I guess those visits were salvage operations. <BR/> <BR/>I now see that on 25 Mar 1776 Washington wrote to Joseph Reed, "They have blown up, burnt, and demolished the Castle totally."J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-84037779927894238452007-07-23T16:32:00.000-05:002007-07-23T16:32:00.000-05:00Dismantled, no. Blown up, yes--just after the Bri...Dismantled, no. Blown up, yes--just after the British evacuated Boston in 1776. The island was always Castle Island and the fortifications atop it were called Fort William--but the locals in a fit of quirkiness often used the term "Castle William."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com