Talk:Putnam Cottage

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Thank you for correcting the dates they are still incorrect but at least are reasonable. These are better dates taken from Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich, CT (1911), by Spencer P Mead page 175.

Israel Sr. purchases land on the Kings Highway in 1731 from Nathan Whelpey and was licensed in 1754-1761 to keep a public house in Greenwich and to retail strong drink. His house was run as a tavern until 1790 and was known as Knapp's Tavern.

There is no mention of all the local legends of the tavern being a spy headquarters during the American Revolution anywhere in the article. The tales are widely accepted as having some merit by local historians simply because the tails are so numerous. Being a descendent of the builder and knowing quite a bit about the house and family I would prefer to see a more accurate posting that includes something about the colorful local legends. The legends bring an extra dimension of interest and education.

There have always been conflicts between the local historians and the owners of the cottage about various issues. The main contention is when the house was built. An original family of Greenwich, the Meads, has been the leader in preserving the history of Greenwich. The most prominent Mead was Spencer P. Mead the first town clerk in Greenwich in the mid to latter 19th century. He transcribed many important documents while the originals were still legible and wrote a scholarly history of Greenwich. It is now the 'bible' of old Greenwich history because it was over 1,000 pages crammed with valuable information. More importantly, after almost a century of continued research we believe his book contains few substantial errors. That is really quite amazing. Many works on Greenwich history and local family histories containing far less information are loaded with errors. This is because much of the 19th century records are incomplete. Many records were lost in the two wars. One has to guess to fill in the holes.

Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich, written by Spencer P. Mead was published in 1911. The DAR purchased the structure a few years before circa 1903. Apparently, the DAR was not as careful as Spencer when they researched the building. For some reason they confused the ancestral home of these Knapps with the tavern. Timothy Knapp was granted land on a near by hill, Round Hill. This was part of his father's share of land purchased from the natives in 1686. The house built on the 80 acre farm was indeed a late 17th century structure. Surprisingly, all the all the paperwork for the land has survived. Anyone can view the records if they see fit. What is so amazing is that there is a conflict when the evidence is cut and dry. The eldest son, Israel, winds up with most of the money, half the farm and his father's house. Israel wants to invest his money into a money making venture. He buys land near the Kings Road and builds an inn, later he obtains a liquor license. He is also the Justice of the Peace at this time. Buy that time, his eldest son Timothy is married with children. Timothy had been given the ancestral farm and the tavern. However, the gifts are only loans until Israel dies. Timothy did own the farm because he sold off a parcel in 1752. If the numerous revolutionary War legends and stories about the Knapps are believed, Timothy Sr. runs the tavern and his sons entertain the guests. Timothy's children were supposedly unforgettably striking. One statement from an 86 year old women stated, Timothy Knapp (Jr) was the most handsome young man she ever saw in her life. Almost every account of his children has a comment about their looks. The sons were exceedingly accomplished in all that was valued in a young man at that time. They were great horse riders, socially cleaver, great with jokes and stories, the best dancers and fiddle players of the town. Probably this was why the tavern was a favorite place for entertainment and lost its appeal after they were gone. In 1777 Israel changed his will cutting Timothy off. He was given 5 pounds legal money and he and his wife were given life use of the farm that had been his. The will stated after their deaths the farm went to Timothy's heirs. That farm was sold in 1795 to William Knapp for about a tenth of what it was worth. He was probably Timothy's grandson maybe the eldest son of Thomas. Who would have inherited the farm had Timothy kept his inheritance being the eldest son of the eldest son. The bill of sale was crystal clear that land was being sold was Israel's half of the family farm.

Around the bicentennial, the owners found funding for an architectural analysis that was performed by Sexton. The analysis concurred with Mead's estimate instead of proving him wrong.

The other minor contention is that the tavern was run by Tories during the war. All the legends I have seen mentioning the tavern during the Revolutionary War contend the tavern was run by a Tory Spy or spy master. There is ample documentation to support that the eldest son of Israel Knapp Sr. was a Tory. Col. Titus Mead described Timothy Knapp Sr. was the most inveterate Tory in Greenwich. The term Tory was not used to describe Crown sympathizers. Tories were either in the military or spies. There are two separate family accounts stating he was a Tory and that he was sentenced to Simsbury mine. Unfortunately, there are no believable details as to why he was sent there. POWs, counterfeiters and spies not executed due to some political pull were sent there. One of Ben Franklin's sons stayed there.

I think the omission of the spies robs the public of the real drama that went on in Greenwich during the American Revolution. What we are left with is a white washed, very bland history, where the war was made up of white hats and black hats. The white hats prevailed over the black hats due to their moral superiority. In reality there was a full spectrum of loyalties, equally dispersed. During the war for what ever reason, the uncommitted started as more pro Crown became more and more anti- Crown. This added support helped win the war.

I am sure the owners felt having a master British spy stationed in their building is not something they wanted to advertise. Even though no solid information exists as to what really happened, the clues suggest Timothy was caught by his own family. The tavern would not have been be a favorite place of entertainment for Patriot officers such as Washington and Putnam if everyone knew Timothy Knapp supported the Crown. It is likely one of his children turned him in to their uncle Israel Jr. who was a member of the Safety Committee. The Safety Committee was like the present day Homeland Security. That might explain why he was not hanged and why there is no public record of the affair. The other reason may have been the Safety Committee may have been very imbarrissed that their favorite 'watering hole' was a spy headquarters and preferred to keep that a secret.

Israel Sr. did not disinherit Timothy's children which would be expected if they all were Tories. Had they all been Tories they would have had to leave town. The surviving boys did leave town never to return. Maybe they were messengers for their father. In late 1777 there are other stories of other young men on Round Hill being whipped as spies not hung as the usual treatment. The entire process of disinheritance and inheritance was drawn up with the minimum written clues as to what happened. It is likely most of the instructions were given verbally so no paper trail would ever be found. The farm was given to his eldest daughter, not a son to disperse. Having a women dispose of the land was unusual and may indicate all the boys were involved with the father. She did have living brothers when the land was sold. Maybe they were to be left out of the proceeds. It was quite unusual that a woman would be in charge of land disbursement. Women and even ladies were usually not literate during this era. Mary was no exception she made her mark on the bill of sale while her literate husband actually sold the land.

I contend it is much easier to fight for a cause than to turn in your father or brother for a capital offence. If the DAR is to celebrate something about the Knapps, let them celebrate that!

Timothy Knapp was a very brave man loyal to his cause. He was a Tory in a town of mostly Patriots. Timothy operated a spy ring right under the noses of the Safety Sommittee. He had instilled the virtues of Loyalty to the Crown in his children. The stories in the McDonald Papers indicate at least one of his sons joined the Loyalist troops.

The McDonald papers are an anthology of over 1,000 pages of Revolutionary accounts by persons living at that time in the border areas. This would be Westchester and Fairfield Counties. There is a question of who did what in the stories about the Knapp sons. It is likely Tim and Tom became mixed up between the war and when the stories were recorded between 1844 and 1851. They were probably both looked and acted about the same. The persons telling the stories were mostly young adults during the war so they would be about 80-90 on average, so the stories may not be 100% accurate. Some stories were obvious embellishments obscuring that factual information.

The stories also relate at least one son deserted. Early in the war, there were massive amounts of atrocities on both sides. Greenwich being a border town was hit very hard by Loyalist gorilla warfare. These attacks polarized Greenwich against the Crown faster than regions of peace. Colonel James DeLancey was probably the most responsible for this attitude change. He was named after his famous uncle who was the only colonial born citizen to be the governor of NY. He was also a Supreme Court Judge. Another uncle was Oliver DeLancey Sr., the senior Loyalist general. Oliver DeLancey Jr. was the head of British intelligence for the rebellion. Col. James Delancey was very well connected. James was such a competent leader he was able to strike deep within enemy territory and escape. However, his favorite place to loot was the Horseneck of Greenwich. The farms were fertile and had many cows and horses to plunder. It was the only place in CT that was close enough to friendly territory to steal slow moving cows. James had a policy of there were no undecided citizens. There were only loyalists and the enemy. If the farm did not have Loyalist family members, it was looted. Crown sympathizers were looted as if they were patriots. The support for the Crown quickly evaporated in this region where the Knapps lived. The Loyalist marauders who knew the town folk knew that they were looting their friends and may not have liked raiding families loyal to the Crown just because they had no men of fighting age. This may have been why a son, probably Thomas, Timothy's oldest son of 23, deserted James Delancey's troops. Shortly after, a great horse, Goliah, was boldly taken from James at his headquarters at West Farm deep within British held lines. Supposedly,it was the fastest horse in the state of New York. We know a son, probably Timothy Jr, stole James' prize horse and paraded it in Greenwich. There are many stories about that in the McDonald interviews. Many years later, when interviewed for a biography James was asked what was the worst thing that happened to him in the war and he stated that it was when his prize horse was stolen. The actions of the younger Knapps were not that of a committed Loyalist but of cocky young men showing off what they could do. It is likely if Timothy Sr. was a spy he may have enlisted his sons as messengers since there are multiple mentions of one Knapp being one of the best horseman in the town.

James Delancey killed Thomas Knapp because he did not like him. They were many detailed accounts of the hanging maybe because the moods of the men were inexplicably reversed. Thomas who should have been worried was 'gay'. James who should have been happy that the thief was caught was extremely agitated and 'black with rage'. James probably lynched him because he knew he would not be punished much if at all if Thomas went to trial. He was agitated because he was in a terrible lose-lose situation. He either had to swallow his pride which we know was immense or overtly hurt his family and the cause. He could be certain Uncle Oliver would 'crush him like a bug' if he committed treason against the cause and family. The spy was an invaluable source of intelligence worth far more than the horse and his foolish pride. James spent half the day pondering what to do. James was actually lucky because he was captured before he was shipped off to the malaria ridden swamps of Georgia. The transfer papers had been issued at the time of his capture.

Timothy Jr. was shot by Col. Titus Mead. Titus claimed it was dark and he was unable to recognize Timothy and figured someone came to steal horses. Timothy Jr. had been courting his daughter Sarah obviously, before Titus learned he was a traitor. The shooting probably occurred after Timothy Sr. had been apprehended and Jr. needed to leave town. Even if the town members at large were not aware of the change of status of the Knapp family, Titus Mead, a Colonel, would have been well informed. The account sounds reasonable if Tim was trying to elope with Sarah because he was found out had had to leave town. Somehow Titus discovered the plan and was Mead 'armed to the teeth' waiting for Timothy at the back door instead of Sarah. Because it is dark, Titus waits for Tim to speak then shoots him through the heart. He had also posted a man in a high vantage point armed with more than one rifle with orders not to shoot with out orders. It is plain that Titus had the means to have killed all the Knapp boys if he wanted to. The shooting was more about stopping the elopement than killing Tories or thieves. Killing him was the only way to prevent the marriage. Sarah was a beauty and Tim was the most eligible bachelor in Sarah's world. Timothy had been warned just the other day to never visit the Mead house again. Both Titus and Sarah knew he was a Tory but let him go in peace.

It is interesting that the town elders let the Knapp boys leave town assuming that they did help their father with his spy work. I suspect the town elders considering Thomas deserted the Loyalists army and that Timothy stole James Delancey's horse the boys were not all bad. Their crimes were not worth the embarrassment to the Knapps and the Safety Committee. It would be best for the town if the scandalous affair was handled quietly. The Safety Committee had good reason to keep the scandal secret. They did not want everyone to know that the most popular spot in town was run by Tories right under their noses. They had let Washington, Putnam and other Yankee officers be spied on. It would be better for all if the boys just left and never returned.

These actions and events are truly food for thought. Any comments would be appreciated. In a few months, I would change the page to read...

  Putnam's Cottage, known as Knapp's Tavern during the
  American Revolution, is a historic cottage. It is located on the
  Boston Post Road in Greenwich, Connecticut.

  Although there is some disagreement as to who and when the structure was
  first built, S.P. Mead, a 19th century local historian gave the earliest
  accurate accounting in his book Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich.
  S. P. Mead states "As near as can be ascertained, the land on which the
  Putnam Cottage now stands was granted by the Town of Greenwich to Nathan
  Whelpley, who sold the same to Israel Knapp in 1731. Knapp probably
  built the cottage about 1731 and in 1754 was granted a license to keep a
  public house of entertainment or strong drink in Greenwich.�

  During the early part of American Revolution, the tavern was likely the
  most popular tavern in Greenwich, known for a lively atmosphere.  This
  tavern was only several miles from British held land.  Knapp's Tavern
  was a favorite for the Continental officers guarding the border.  In
  1776, General George Washington actually stopped and fed his troops
  there as evidenced by his expense report on file with the [[Smithsonian
  Institution]].  The tavern was a favorite of General Israel Putnam
  and is associated with the house as it was the scene of his daring and
  historic ride down a steep slope (called Put's Hill) with the redcoats
  in hot pursuit. This historic scene is depicted in the seal of the Town
  of Greenwich and the name of Putnam is found throughout the [[State of
  Connecticut]].

  The family that owned this structure in the American Revolution typifies
  the turmoil over allegiances in that war.  Many families were divided as
  to which cause to support.  Local legends state the proprietor of the
  tavern was a British spy.  It is probable that person was Israel's
  oldest son Timothy Sr. who must have ran the tavern for his father.  The
  records show both Israel Sr. and his son Israel Jr. were highly
  patriotic.  There is documentation that Timothy was a Tory. Col. Titus
  Mead described Timothy Knapp Sr. was the most inveterate Tory in
  Greenwich.  Timothy Sr. was disinherited in 1777 and sentenced to
  Simsbury Mine, the first US penitentiary later called [[Old Newgate
  Prison]].  Two of his sons were murdered; one by a British Colonel,
  Col. James Delancey, a nephew of General Oliver DeLancey Sr. and the other
  was murdered by Continental Colonel Titus Mead.  Both men were
  supposedly, killed for stealing horses but neither account rings true.
  The fantastically scandalous actions of this family fueled many colorful
  Old Greenwich legends but little solid evidence remains as to what
  actually happened.  If on ponders the clues that have survived, it is
  easy to guess nothing was straight forward and that sometimes you had to
  chose between loyalty to country and family.  These were times that
  tested a person's character.

  In the early 20th century, the house was purchased by the Putnam Hill
  Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The house had
  been "modernized" in the 19th century with features such as plaster
  ceilings, Victorian trim and a front porch. The D.A.R. maintained the
  cottage for many years until it was restored to its 18th century
  appearance to coincide with the United States Bicentenniel in 1976.

  Putnam Cottage is currently maintained as a house museum as well as a
  location for historical reenactments in February and December of each
  year.

NRHP

I've added the NRHP infobox which has a date of erection of 1779. Please add all the material to the article and clean it up.Tomticker5 (talk) 10:19, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

Now you have gone the other way. Where did you get the date of erection? I would really like to know. Why would Israel Knapp apply for a liquor license in 1754 for the inn if it wouldn't be build for over a decade later? Please check Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich, CT (1911), by Spencer P Mead page 175. He was the town clerk for many years before he wrote the book. The book is regarded very highly by local historians. Many of the old records did not survive long enough to be microfilmed more than 70 yrs later. The DAR had the building dated hoping to prove the building was built in the 17th century that study concurred the Mead's date but less specific. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Old timer1776 (talk • contribs) 19:32, 23 April 2012 (UTC)