Sybil Ludington
Sybil Ludington became famous for her ride to warn the Patriot militia of the British coming, similar to that of Paul Revere, but Sybil was only 16 years old.
On the night of April 26, 1777, Colonel Henry Ludington, father of 12, veteran of the French-Indian War, and commander of the militia in Duchess County, New York, (just across the state line from Danbury, Connecticut) received a messenger to his house. The British had entered Danbury and found some American military stores, stolen some, destroyed others and drank the whiskey. Drunk, they began ransacking the town, burning and looting. Col. Ludington’s militia, some 400 men, was on furlough. Whether the colonel asked his oldest daughter or the 16-year-old bravely volunteered is… Continue Reading (2 minute read)
>Col. Ludington’s militia, some 400 men, was on furlough. Whether the colonel asked his oldest daughter or the 16-year-old bravely volunteered is unknown, but around 9 p.m., she set off in the rain to warn the men.
>She completed her mission around daybreak, covering nearly 40 miles—more than twice what Paul Revere had ridden—raising 400 men, and even fighting off a highway man with her father’s musket. The militia caught up with the retreating British and beat them back, too late to stop the attack, but not too late to make them pay dearly.
I remember hearing about her briefly in my history class before we went back to Paul Revere. Wanted to hear more about her.
**Sybil Ludington, who rode double the length of Paul Revere**
How long was Paul Revere?
“I found this story by accident during my routine Google search for “16-year-olds + horses.”
(Rob Corddry in America: the Book)
Awesome. Still, I was never under the impression Revere was the greatest, he was just super popular. Weren’t there many skilled messengers in early US history?
She also didn’t get captured, completely sell out her comrades hiding in town and only get off the hook because some dumb fuck let his gun go off for no reason.
Revere Sucks, where my Sybil poems at?
Paul Revere is only famous because his name rhymes with “Listen, my children, and you shall hear”.
IYKYK
Learnt about this on Drunk History
[Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers have a wonderful song about that night from a different perspective.](https://youtu.be/LGjZU-7D6Gk?t=73)
Isreal bissell!!
My home town. We are taught in elementary school about her.
great drunk history on her
What about Israel Bissell? Nobody ever mentions that poor guy! He also helped.