I’m very fortunate to live within 15 minutes of where my 7th GGF and Revolutionary War patriot, John Wickham, was stationed for a time at Fort Montgomery, New York. I’ve written before about visiting there and the surreal experience of standing on the cliff’s edge and looking out over the river toward the Tappan Zee Bridge and seeing the same sights as he would have seen. He was sent that way to go and spy on a British ship moored in the river at one point. There are even still remnants of the oven which he would have gotten his meal’s bread from there. (If you search my blog for John Wickham, you’ll find those posts.)
However, a few weeks ago as part of my schooling, I had the pleasure of walking in my 7th GGF John Wickham’s shoes again but this time at the battleground in Saratoga, New York. John served under Generals Gates and Arnold at Bemus Heights and I could not wait to get there to see it for myself. I don’t know what it is… maybe it’s my old age setting in, but I really got choked up being where he was for a second time. I kept thinking about the fact that he was 43 years old (younger than I was standing there on this day) when he was at Bemus Heights, had already served in the French & Indian War, had at least 7 children already and a farm back home to tend to, was now firmly planted in the middle of the American Revolution at one of the *key turning points* for the colonists, and surrounded by some of the biggest players in the Revolution. Gates and Arnold aside… Thaddeus Kosciuszko designed the America defenses including Bemus Heights and standing there looking over the steep hill at Bemus Heights that over looks the road to Albany, you understand why Kosciuszko chose this high ground and why this was where we had to make that stand. Even in the dreary, misty drizzle, it was a beautiful sight – the trees were ablaze with color and since I was there right about the same time frame as John had been there, I knew he’d likely seen those same colors, too, on those rolling hills. (Okay – so maybe NOT if they’d cut down a lot of trees for redoubts and forts but let a granddaughter day dream here a bit…) After my school portion of the day was done, we were free to explore and we came back to Bemus Heights so I could just sit and enjoy my “Wickham experience” some more.
I took photos and excitedly showed my children who couldn’t care a lick of a fig about anything genealogy related. Even my son who was in the military briefly was not remotely interested in seeing or hearing about the battlefield, which was disappointing to me. I’m grateful to have a spouse who is in the military and enjoys the places I drag him to and thoroughly listens to the speakers talk about the places we visit but I wish my children were more caring about the people who contributed to their “being” and what it took to get them here. I think about that a lot… I have 28 men who served in the Revolution alone and just one shot could have taken out our entire line. Just one and I wouldn’t be here. My father has 4 Purple Hearts from Vietnam and I cannot fathom to think aside from the Revolutionary War and my father, who else was wounded between the War of 1812 and the Civil War in my family that I don’t know about yet. The amount of sheer luck, serendipity, Providence… whatever you want to call it… I’m consistently amazed by what it took for me to be here. I just wish my children could feel that appreciation, too. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, sometimes it’s very lonely in our family tree limbs when nobody else is interested but you.
Anyway, here are some photos from there. I have more on my husband’s phone but I have to download them… enjoy! And please visit the battleground if you get a chance. Aside from being historic and educational, it’s just lovely and peaceful.
