Henry Covington
MSA SC 3520-17719
Biography:
Henry Covington enlisted as a private in the Sixth Company of the First Maryland Regiment, led by Captain Peter Adams, on January 22, 1776. [1]
The Sixth Company was recruited primarily from the Eastern Shore, but traveled to Annapolis in the spring of 1776 where they trained for a few months. They then moved north, making it to Philadelphia by mid-July 1776 and to New York by August 14. The company was positioned, along with the rest of the First Maryland Regiment, about one mile outside of New York, with orders to prepare for battle.
The Marylanders met the British at the Battle of Brooklyn (sometimes called the Battle of Long Island) on August 27, 1776, where the Continental Army, led by General George Washington, fought to defend New York. The American troops were severely outnumbered and surrounded when they were ordered to retreat. Half the regiment was able to escape the battle, however the other half, including most of the Sixth Company, was trapped by the swampy Gowanus Creek. They turned back to face the British, holding their position long enough for the rest of the Marylanders to return to safety. This heroic stand earned them the honorable name of the “Maryland 400.” [2]
The First Maryland Regiment suffered major losses. The Sixth Company alone lost 58 men, or 80 percent. By the end of the battle, Maryland losses totalled 256 men killed or captured. Despite the heroic actions of the Maryland 400, the battle was a defeat for the Americans. Unlike many of his companions, Covington appears to have survived the battle and was not captured. He was one of just sixteen officers and men from the Sixth Company to come out of the battle unscathed. [3]
Henry Covington reenlisted as a private on December 10, 1776, when the Maryland Line was reorganized. He likely fought in the revitalizing victories at Trenton and Princeton in the winter of 1776-1777. However, the Continental Army’s luck soon ran out when they fought at Battle of Staten Island, and the bloody battles of Brandywine and Germantown, part of the campaign to defend Philadelphia from British capture. All were British victories, although John Adams considered the Battle of Germantown to be the “most decisive proof that America would finally succeed.” [4]
On July 1, 1779, Covington was promoted. Now a corporal, Covington was responsible for keeping the soldiers of the company properly aligned during marches and in battle, and ensuring order among the men in camp, as well as other administrative duties. However, he likely never went into battle with his new rank, as the war was at a standstill that year. He was discharged on January 12, 1780 when his enlistment expired. [5]
Unfortunately, his life after this point becomes uncertain, as there were at least two men named Henry Covington living on the Eastern Shore of Maryland at the time. It is unclear which, if either, are the same Henry Covington of the Maryland 400.
-Natalie Miller, Maryland Society Sons of the American Revolution Research Fellow, 2018
Notes:
[2] 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.
[3] Return of the Maryland troops, 27 September 1776, from Fold3.com.
[4] Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 192.
[5] Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 192: Frederick Steuben, Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States, Part I, (Philadelphia: Styner and Cist, 1792), 138-140.Return to Henry Covington's Introductory Page
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