Tobias E. Stansbury
MSA SC 3520-1809
Biography:
The Man Who Saw It All: General Tobias E. Stansbury
Eight years of war have the power to transform an ordinary life into a story with plot twists, pain, desperation, and heroism. For the luckiest of men, war grants them the chance to live another day and gives them the gift of applying their newfound knowledge of soldiering to their former, ordinary lives. Tobias Emerson Stansbury was one such lucky soldier. A son of privilege, he entered public service in the earliest days of the Revolutionary War, and went on to fight the British in two wars, and to play a leading role in the politics of Maryland for decades to come.
Stansbury was the only son of Mary (Hammond) and Tobias Stansbury, Sr. His father died at age thirty-eight in mid-October 1757, before Tobias Jr. was born, either late that year or early the next. Tobias Jr. grew up with six older sisters: Henrietta (b. 1747/48), Catherine (b. 1749), Rebecca (b. 1751), Jane (b. 1753), and twins Mary and Sarah (b. 1755). The Stansbury family had arrived in Maryland in 1658, immigrants from a German-speaking region of Europe. The family prospered and grew quite wealthy, acquiring large tracts of land in Baltimore County. At the time of his death, Tobias Sr. owned more than 5,000 acres in Baltimore and Frederick counties. [1]
Growing up in the 1760s and 1770s, Tobias Stansbury came of age in an era filled with tension, disconnect, and distrust between Britain and its North American colonies. He was a young child during the colonies' protests against the Stamp Act, and not yet a teenager when the Boston Massacre occurred. In the summer of 1776, while Maryland was raising soldiers to fight against the British Army, and Congress was declaring independence, Stansbury was just turning eighteen, making him ripe for military service. From his home in Baltimore, he had plenty of opportunities to join the struggle against the British.
During the spring and summer of 1776, Stansbury turned out with the militia when British warships twice seemed poised to launch attacks against Baltimore. Both times, the British eventually withdrew without combat. Then, in July of that year, Stansbury joined the Eighth Company of the First Maryland Regiment on its march to New York "as a volunteer." The American army had many such men, typically young sons of the gentry whose social class qualified them to be officers. As there were more interested young men than available officers' posts, some became cadets--officers-in-waiting--in the hope that they would eventually receive an officer's commission. Stansbury's company was raised in Baltimore, and was lead by young men from prominent families, people with whom Stansbury surely had grown up. [2]
The First Maryland Regiment arrived in New York in August, and prepared to defend the city from attack by the British. A few weeks later, the Battle of Brooklyn (or Battle of Long Island) erupted on August 27, 1776, and was the first major battle that followed the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The British troops, totaling nearly 15,000 men, and the British Royal Navy arrived with the intention of ending the war with this single battle. Meanwhile, General George Washington was determined to defend New York. Ultimately, between Washington’s inferior army and the poor intelligence he received, the Battle of Brooklyn ended in a Continental retreat and a crippling loss. Although Stansbury's company was able to escape largely unscathed, the Marylanders took heavy losses. However, the stand of the "Maryland 400" allowed the rest of the Americans to escape. Stansbury probably stayed with the regiment through the fall and winter, as the Americans were pushed out of New York. [3]
Stansbury returned to Baltimore, leaving the First Maryland Regiment and the infantry behind him. Beginning in 1777, he sailed on board several privateers, ships commissioned by Maryland to harass British shipping and naval vessels. Stansbury's memory of his naval service was a little hazy when he described it in the 1830s, which makes it hard to say for certain where he went and what he did. However, he was still able to recall the details of several harrowing incidents clearly. On one voyage, Stansbury related that
A night or two after being at sea, we fell in with some British privateers, and the next morning gave chase to one called the Flying Fish...of eight six-pounders and twenty eight men. Came up with her, and laid her aboard. Only ten of us succeeded in boarding her, of which number I was one. [4]
Stansbury recalled that on another occasion, perhaps in 1782,
I was on the Island of Roanoke in North Carolina and encamped on the sea shore with men. [A] British Cruiser drove in two American vessels [towards the shore]...By the erection of an half-moon [shaped] battery of six guns near the schooner I prevented the landing of the crew of the British Privateer of 16 guns and saved both vessel and cargo. The battery I constructed by driving two rows of pine piles in the ground about eighteen inches apart, thence walling each row with pine bushes, then filling up between with dust and sand and mounting thereon six carriage guns, six pounders I believe. [5]
Most dramatically, one of Stansbury's ships was captured by the British and he was taken prisoner, probably in 1778 or 1779. The men "were surprised and taken prisoner by a force double in...strength to our own. We were subsequently transported...[and] placed on board [a] prison ship...and sent to the island of Antigua and landed in the Town of St. Johns where we were all consigned to prison." Luckily for Stansbury, this Caribbean island had a local Masonic lodge and Stansbury was a member of that fraternity. While he was imprisoned in St. John’s, he connected with the lodge and they negotiated a trade: a British officer of equal rank held by the Americans would be released upon Stansbury’s safe arrival in America. The British released him on condition that he would not “take arms against the British” until formally exchanged. In "the latter end of 1780 or beginning of 1781," Stansbury began his long journey back to war. Once he finally reached the shores of North Carolina, Stansbury traveled on to Yorktown, Virginia around the time of the British surrender. [6]
About a year later, Stansbury finally received a command of his own. He was placed in charge of the schooner Dispatch in December 1782. It is possible that he was captured again, before eventually being returned to Maryland in early 1784. All told, Stansbury reported that "During the War I was in ten or twelve encounters with the British and never beaten except by a superior force." [7]
Over the following years, Stansbury emerged as a wealthy and influential figure in Baltimore. He started a family during the same years that he began his rise to positions of great power in the state. In May 1784, he married Mary Buffington, with whom he had four children: Henrietta, Tobias , Hammond, and William. At the same time, Stansbury was also ascending through the ranks of the state militia. In 1794, he was named a captain, commanding a company in the Sixth Regiment, based in Baltimore; six years later, he was promoted to major. [8]
Stansbury was also a key part of the Democratic-Republican Party's rise to power in the early 1800s. Maryland had been dominated by the Federalists since the signing of the Constitution, but in 1800 and 1801, the Republicans finally broke through and captured political control of the state. Stansbury was elected to the House of Delegates from Baltimore County in 1800, a seat he would hold for fifteen years. The Republicans were well-organized, and Stansbury was clearly one of the party's leaders. He was chosen as the Speaker of the House in 1803, 1805-1807, and 1809-1812. He was also a presidential elector in 1804, 1808, and 1812. [9]
Stansbury was Speaker of the House in 1809, when his wife Mary died. Two years later, he married his second wife, Ann Dew. They had four children together: Emerson, John, Carville, who served in the House of Delegates 1843-1844, and Edward. Sadly, Ann died sometime around 1820, leaving Stansbury a widower a second time. Despite his personal losses, Stansbury's career continued to advance. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1809, commanding the Eleventh Brigade of Maryland Militia, some 3,000 citizen-soldiers from Baltimore. [10]
In the summer of 1812, when the United States went to war with Great Britain, Stansbury was at the height of his powers, both a general and the Speaker of the House of Delegates. It was then that his lowest moment came, the worst blot on his reputation.
The War of 1812 was not universally popular. In fact, it was a highly divisive issue in the nation as a whole, and particularly so in Maryland. Support for the war was divided on party lines, with the Federalists vehemently opposing it, while Republicans like Stansbury backed it with equal vigor. While most Federalist support came from the rural parts of the state, Baltimore City--by far the state's biggest population center--was staunchly Republican. [11]
Days after Congress declared war on Britain, the Federal Republican, a Federalist newspaper, published a series of editorials virulently opposing the war and criticizing the federal government. In response, a Republican mob stormed the office of the paper, vandalized the building, and chased the editors out of Baltimore. The mob continued to terrorize the town for two days and threatened citizens loyal to the Federalist Party, while the city's government was unable to control or dissolve the riot. Several weeks later, the paper's editor Alexander Contee Hanson returned to the city, with plans to resume distribution of the paper, more than ready to provoke a riot. [12]
Feeling brave, under the guidance of Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee, a Revolutionary War hero, the editors of the Federal Republican and their supporters snuck into Baltimore under the cover of darkness and fortified the house on Charles Street that was to be their base. When their plans were inevitably discovered by the city's militant Republicans, the house was besieged by a mob. Afraid that they would be overrun, the Federalists in the house opened fire on the crowd, wounding several people, and greatly enflaming the situation even more. As the situation deteriorated, it became clear that city authorities and the state militia were unable--or unwilling--to end the riot peacefully, and the scene nearly descended into a sort of civil war. [13]
Although the Federalists in the house were eventually brought safely to the city jail, the mob soon broke in, assaulting, beating, wounding, maiming, and even murdering the unarmed men. In the heart of the mob during the worst of the rioters' violence was Tobias Stansbury. He was a brigadier general in the state militia, and the Speaker of the House of Delegates, but he did not use his influence and authority to bring peace to the scene. Instead, he "frequently used violent and inflammatory expression, intended and calculated to excite the Mob to break [into] the jail, and to murder Mr. Hanson and his friends." Stansbury even "expressed his opinion and wish that those persons who were defending the house in Charles-street ought to have been put to death...by the Mob." Had Stansbury been able to enter the house, he vowed, "he would have aided in their destruction." [14]
The riot was a tremendous blow to the reputations of Baltimore and the Republican Party, which was soon swept from power. When the House of Delegates, now controlled by the Federalist Party, launched an investigation into the riot, it singled out Stansbury for criticism. He was a man in whom the state had placed great trust, as a legislator and a soldier. He had been given a "high and important [militia] command...the only object of which was the...general security of his fellow citizens," but he had "consented to, and countenanced, the...horrible butcheries of that night." And yet, Stansbury faced few consequences. While he lost his position as speaker when his party lost its majority, his Baltimore County constituents reelected him with overwhelming support. The General Assembly's investigation recommended that he be prosecuted for inciting the rioters, but no action was ever taken against him. [15]
In the years that followed, Maryland suffered greatly during the War of 1812, as a British fleet occupied the Chesapeake Bay, launching raids against towns and civilians along the coast, which the state's militia was largely unable to stop. Finally, in August 1814, a British invasion force landed in Southern Maryland, heading for Washington, DC. The Maryland militia mobilized to stop them, and fought a decisive battle at Bladensburg, in Prince George's County, on August 24. Stansbury commanded some 1,400 "fatigued, undisciplined, and inexperienced troops." They were placed at the front of the American line of defense, where they awaited the arrival of the British. [16]
Before the arrival of British regulars in Bladensburg, Secretary of State James Monroe took it upon himself to reposition Stansbury’s men, which weakened the brigade. Stansbury caught a glimpse of two of his regiments acting in a most “unmilitary and incomprehensible” way. The Americans saw the British on the road marching toward them, yet Stansbury’s troops did not follow his orders and further repositioned and exposed themselves to enemy fire. He knew that this repositioning of the troops would lead to his men’s ultimate demise. Withstanding the attack of the British troops, Stansbury and his men succeeded in immobilizing the enemy for a short period. However, his line eventually gave way, and the British forced the Americans to retreat. A few hours later, Washington fell to the British, who burned the Capitol, the White House, and other public buildings. Although his men preformed poorly at Bladensburg, Stansbury himself performed his duties ably. [17]
When the war came to an end in late 1814, Stansbury maintained his elevated position in Maryland society. In 1816, he left the House of Delegates, and in that same year he ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House of Representatives. Why he stepped away from elected office is not known, but he remained away until returning to the House of Delegates from 1819 until 1823. He received a final promotion in the militia in 1824, elevated to major general, a rank he held for about a year, before retiring from public office altogether. Even then, Stansbury remained a leading political figure, supporting Republican candidates well into the 1840s. [18]
Throughout the span of his lifetime, Stansbury was a man of great means and lived a comfortable lifestyle. He dined with genuine silver, an abundance of mahogany furniture, and owned many enslaved people; by the 1830s, he had accumulated 750 acres of land and 18 slaves. Stansbury married for a third time in 1824, wedding Anna Steinbeck. They lived out their final years in the Back River area of Baltimore County. Anna died in 1839, in her mid-fifties, while Tobias himself lived until October 25, 1849, when he was ninety-three. [19]
Stansbury outlived all three of his wives and four of his sons. In his will, he divided his land and slaves among his children, leaving his sons with explicit instructions to grant all the female slaves freedom once they reached age thirty. After his death, Stansbury was remembered as having had "the confidence and respect of his fellow-citizens. From the opening events of the Revolutionary War down to within a very recent period, he participated actively in national and State affairs...public records bear full testimony to the ability and integrity with which he discharged the various duties entrusted to him." [20]
Still, his conduct on that June night in 1812 remained a stain on his name. In 1844, more than three decades later, his son Carville felt compelled to defend his father's honor over his part in the riot. As the Baltimore Sun reported, a Mr. Hunter of Virginia was heard to proclaim that "the venerable General Tobias Stansbury was instrumental in causing the death of a person who was killed at the jail during the memorable riot of 1812." Carville "overheard this unguarded expression, immediately rose, denied it, and applied offensive epithets to [Hunter]." The two men nearly fought a duel over the matter, although the county sheriff intervened at the last minute. Such were the two sides of Tobias Stansbury's legacy. [21]
Elizabeth Cassibry, Washington College, 2018.
Notes:
[1] Christopher Johnston, "Stansbury Family," Maryland Historical Magazine 9:1 (1914), 83; Will of Capt. Tobais Stansbury, 1758, Prerogative Court, Wills, liber 30, 481 [MSA S538-45, 1/11/1/39]; Maryland Gazette (Annapolis), 20 October 1757; Land Office, Debt Books, vol. 6, Baltimore County, 1758, p. 22 [MSA S12-25, 1/24/2/6]; vol. 23, Frederick County, 1759, p. 100 [MSA S12-104, 1/24/2/25]. The language in Stansbury's application for a veteran's pension suggests he was born in the early spring of 1758.
[2] Pension of Tobias Stansbury, National Archives and Records Administration, Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA M804, S 14604, from Fold3.com. Stansbury's Revolutionary War service is difficult to document independently, and most of what is known comes from the account he dictated in the 1830s, when he applied for a Revolutionary veteran's pension from the federal government. If his memory was correct--and he conceded it might not be--Stansbury performed service with a number of units which cannot be documented. However, as a young man of the gentry, Stansbury was probably able to attach himself to units on a casual basis which was not an option to "ordinary" people,
[3] Stansbury pension; Mark Andrew Tacyn, "'To the End:' The First Maryland Regiment and the American Revolution" (PhD diss., University of Maryland College Park, 1999), 48-73. For more on the experience of the Marylanders at the Battle of Brooklyn, see "In Their Own Words," on the Maryland State Archives research blog, Finding the Maryland 400.
[4] Stansbury pension.
[5] Stansbury pension.
[6] Stansbury pension. Stansbury recalled that he was captured while he and his men were marching "from Baltimore to the South for head Quarters," but it seems likely that he was mistaken about that detail. There is no evidence that he was part of any infantry units in 1778 or 1779, nor was there a headquarters in the south during that time period. While there is also no specific evidence of Stansbury serving on a ship then, most sailors on board privateers were not recorded at all.
[7] Stansbury pension.
[8] There may have been a fifth child, whose name is not known.
[9] Norman K. Risjord, Chesapeake Politics, 1781-1800 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1978), 564-565, 572.
[10] Militia Appointments, vol. 2, 11; Culver, 63.
[11] Frank A. Cassell, "The Great Baltimore Riot of 1812," Maryland Historical Magazine 70:3 (1975), 241-242.
[12] Cassell, 244-245.
[13] Cassell, 247-251.
[14] Cassell, 256-258; "Additional Report of the House of Delegates Committee of Grievances and Courts of Justice," Maryland Gazette (Annapolis), 31 December 1812. The Maryland Gazette was a Federalist-supporting newspaper (though much more restrained than the Federal Republican), and it was more than happy to publish the House of Delegates's report on the riots, which blamed the city authorities without exception.
[15] "Additional Report."
[16] Donald G. Shomette, Flotilla: The Patuxent Naval Campaign in the War of 1812 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009), 291; “The Battle of Bladensburg part II,” Maryland Historical Society.
[17]“The Battle of Bladensburg part II,” Maryland Historical Society.
[18] Adjutant General, Militia Appointments, vol. 3, 1-2 [MSA S348-3, 2/6/5/11]; "Maryland 1816 House of Representatives, District 5," A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787-1835; "Immense Meeting of the Democracy," Washington Globe, 20 June 1844; "The Mass Meeting of the People of Baltimore in Honor of European Republicanism," The Sun (Baltimore), 4 May 1845.
[19] Baltimore County Commissioners of the Tax, Assessment Record, 1813, Fourth District, 101 [MSA C277-4, 2/59/11/29]; 1818, Fourth District, [MSA C277-11, 2/59/11/34]; Baltimore County Board of County Commissioners, Assessment Record, 1833, Fourth Distinct, 16 [MSA C278-3, 2/56/10/29]; Inventory of Tobias E. Stansbury, 1850, Baltimore County Register of Wills, Inventories, liber 62, 472 [MSA C340-63, 2/29/10/18]; Culver 63; Johnston, 86-87.
[20] Will of Tobias E. Stansbury, 1850, Baltimore County Register of Wills, Wills, liber 23, p. 319 [MSA C435-26, 2/28/12/23]; "Death of a Revolutionary Patriarch," New Orleans Times-Picayune, 3 November 1849.
[21] "Apprehended Duel," The Sun (Baltimore), 19 March 1844.
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