#6 – William Brattle House
For my Cambridge Revolutionary War site, I have chosen to focus on the William Brattle House. Today, the house is the Cambridge Center for Adult Education; however, it used to be the home of one of the wealthiest men in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. William Brattle attended Harvard College, and in 1727, just several years after his graduation, he constructed his mansion on the then Watertown road. Militia general Brattle was criticized for appeasing patriots while supporting the British as a loyalist.
In J.L. Bell’s George Washington’s HQ in the Longfellow House, he first mentions William Brattle as contributing to the transformation of Watertown road, alongside the Vassall and Oliver families. Bell writes: “A Congregationalist, Brattle was far more active in government than his neighbors along the Watertown road: at various times a Cambridge selectman, town representative to the Massachusetts General Court, attorney general, member of the Council, and militia general.” (5) Both Vassall and Brattle served as militia officers; however, Brattle had also served during the French and Indian War, or the Seven Years’ War. (7) The book also highlights Brattle’s contradictory political position. It notes that in 1774, when there was a list released of 35 gentlemen to serve on the new Council (including William Vassall), Brattle was excluded, citing that “even though he had become a vocal supporter of Parliament’s new measures; back when Bernard was governor, he had been a troublemaking Whig.” (10)
William Brattle is perhaps most known for his involvement in the “Powder Alarm” of September 1774. Brattle was convinced that Cantabrigians were plotting to steal the remaining colony’s powder, and he informed Thomas Gage, the Commander In Chief and Royal Governor of Massachusetts Bay. Gage then led a secret mission to seize the remaining powder, rather than investigate Brattle’s concerns. Colonists were upset with this display of royal power, and a crowd of 4,000 gathered on Cambridge Common to protest, as well as to demand the resignation of Lieutenant Governor Thomas Oliver. Oliver was forced to resign as his house was surrounded. On September 1, the people of Cambridge had learned that Brattle had made Gage aware of the stored gunpowder. He immediately fled for safety. J.L. Bell explains, “The next day he wrote a public letter of apology, but remained unwelcome and never returned to his home on the Watertown road.” (12)
As the “Tories” of Cambridge felt unsafe in their homes, many of them moved to Boston, and later Canada or England. After the Battle of Lexington and Concord, their abandoned properties were taken over by patriots. During the Siege of Boston, the Brattle house became the headquarters of the Commissary General, Thomas Mifflin. Mifflin was visited often by John and Abigail Adams, as well as General George Washington, making it an important landmark of the Revolution.
Sources:
Comments
Post a Comment