Life of Israel Putnam by Increase N. Tarbox
Price: $1.75
ePublished by
November 2017
Originally published 1876
Non-fiction, French and Indian War, Revolutionary War
ePublished by
November 2017
Originally published 1876
Non-fiction, French and Indian War, Revolutionary War
There is needless controversy about the Battle of Bunker Hill, first major battle of the American War of Independence, and the man who commanded American forces that day, General Israel Putnam. The seeds of the controversy were sown when leading citizens of Massachusetts, to cover up the disgraceful behavior of many of their colony’s soldiers that day, elevated Massachusetts Colonel William Prescott to hero status he never earned. In 1818, fuel was added to the fire when Henry Dearborn, running for governor of Massachusetts, published a defamatory pamphlet about Putnam, who hailed from Connecticut. By the time of the battle’s centennial in 1875, Colonel Prescott had been promoted by Massachusetts intellectuals to commander of all American forces that day.
Originally published in 1876, Life of Israel Putnam (“Old Put”), Major-General in the Continental Army is an enjoyable book that reads more like a mystery novel than a serious work of historical scholarship. By the time he is finished presenting evidence, Mr. Tarbox leaves the reader with not a shred of doubt that General Israel Putnam commanded American forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill, and that Dearborn’s despicable mudslinging pamphlet was entirely wrong.
Originally published in 1876, Life of Israel Putnam (“Old Put”), Major-General in the Continental Army is an enjoyable book that reads more like a mystery novel than a serious work of historical scholarship. By the time he is finished presenting evidence, Mr. Tarbox leaves the reader with not a shred of doubt that General Israel Putnam commanded American forces at the Battle of Bunker Hill, and that Dearborn’s despicable mudslinging pamphlet was entirely wrong.