Burgess Howard
MSA SC 3520-17491
Biography:
Burgess Howard enlisted as a private in the Seventh Company of the First Maryland Regiment, led by John Day Scott, on January 29, 1776. [1]
The Seventh Company began their military career by training in Annapolis for six months. At some point during this training, Howard became sick, although his illness is unknown. They then moved north, making it to Philadelphia by mid-July 1776 and to New York by August 14. They positioned themselves about one mile outside of New York with orders to prepare for battle. According to William Sands, a sergeant in the Seventh Company, they “had lost a great many...troops [who] deserted from...Philadelphia and Elizabethtown, and a great many [were] sick in the hospital,” so the regiment was weakened before entering combat. [2]
The Seventh Company first met the British at the Battle of Brooklyn (Battle of Long Island) on August 27, 1776, where the Continental Army, led by General George Washington, fought to defend New York. American troops were severely outnumbered and surrounded when they were ordered to retreat. While the Seventh Company was withdrawing, they were again ambushed by British troops. About half of the First Maryland Regiment stayed behind to fight off the British long enough for the rest of the Americans to safely escape. Casualties were extreme, but so was the heroism that earned them the honorable name of the “Maryland 400.” Fortunately, the Seventh Company escaped without immense casualties, losing fewer than ten out of approximately 75 troops. Maryland losses totalled 256 men killed or captured, but without the Maryland 400, even more would have been lost. Despite their courageous actions, the battle was a defeat for the Americans. [3]
The Maryland Regiment helped secure America’s first victory at the Battle of Harlem Heights in September 1776 where they were praised for their “gallant behavior” and “splendid spirit and animation.” They fought again at the Battle of White Plains in October where, despite the Maryland troops’ immense improvement, there was no clear victory. Unfortunately, the First Maryland Regiment suffered greatly, including the loss of John Day Scott, the captain of the Seventh Company, and Second Lieutenant Thomas Goldsmith who was fatally shot while attempting to save a soldier's life.
It seems that he returned to Anne Arundel County after his enlistment. There were likely at least two men named Burgess Howard in Anne Arundel County, and it is unfortunately not possible to differentiate them from each other. There is no further definitive information about Burgess Howard. [4]
-Natalie Miller, Maryland Society Sons of the American Revolution Research Fellow, 2017
Notes:
[3] Mark Andrew Tacyn, "To the End: The First Maryland Regiment and the American Revolution," (PhD diss., University of Maryland College Park, 1999), 48-73; Extract of a letter from New-York: Account of the battle on Long-Island, 1 September 1776, American Archives Online, series 5, vol. 2, p. 107.
[4] Marriage of Burgess Howard to Elizabeth Macbridge, Marriage of Burgess Howard to Elizabeth O’Flaherty, Anne Arundel County Court, Marriage Licenses, 1777, MdHR 4752 [MSA C113-1, 01/01/11/027]. There is record of a Burgess Howard marrying a woman named Elizabeth Macbridge on May 14, 1778 in Anne Arundel County, although there is another record of a Burgess Howard marrying a woman named Elizabeth O’Flaherty on July 6, 1778 in Anne Arundel County. Although it is possible that one man married two women within a two-month period, it is rather unlikely.
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