Archives of Maryland
(Biographical Series)

John Hughes
MSA SC 3520-18122

Biography:

John Hughes enlisted as a private in Maryland’s Fourth Independent Company on January 25, 1776 under Captain James Hindman. Hindman’s company was part of an effort spearheaded by Maryland’s Council of Safety designed to protect the Chesapeake Bay from potential British invasions. Originally stationed at Oxford in Talbot County, Hindman's company was sent to New York to reinforce the Continental Army in preparation for a British invasion. The Fourth Independent Company arrived in New York by mid-August 1776. [1]

On the morning of August 27, 1776, American forces faced British troops at the Battle of Brooklyn (otherwise known as the Battle of Long Island). While several companies engaged the British Army on the Gowanus Road and the nearby Gowanus Creek, taking severe losses in the process, the Fourth Independent Company was largely spared. The company suffered only three losses, including John Hughes. John Hughes was taken prisoner by British troops during the battle. [2]

As the British considered American troops to be rebels, American prisoners like Hughes were often treated cruelly with abuse and torture. Furthermore, conditions deteriorated because the British had not prepared for the large number of prisoners taken during 1776, leading to environments rife with disease. Thomas McKeel, another American prisoner captured during the Battle of Brooklyn, noted that he "remained a prisoner on board of a Prison Ship until the British troops got possession of New York." The British took McKeel and others ashore afterwards, and released most Marylanders in the winter of 1776 and 1777. [3]

Hughes enlisted in the Second Maryland Regiment as a corporal in the early months of 1777 after his release, serving under Captain John Davidson. Hughes's regiment remained in the northern theater until 1780 and participated in combat at locations including Staten IslandBrandywine, and Germantown. Hughes stayed at a hospital in the later months of 1777. Hughes took an extended furlough between April and August 1778. Hughes had his rank reduced to private during this time, possibly because of his furlough. Hughes reenlisted around this time, serving as a private for the remainder of the war. [4]

Following disastrous Battle of Camden in 1780, the Maryland Line lost around one-third of its troops. This led to the restructuring of the Maryland Line into one regiment. Maryland soldiers like Hughes fought at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse on March 15, 1781. Although American troops continued to suffer setbacks the following month at the Battle of Hobkirk's Hill, the war began to turn in favor of the Americans after cornering the British in Charleston, South Carolina. Hughes was discharged in 1783, near the war's end. [5]

John Hughes's life after the war is unknown because of the large number of people living in Maryland who shared his name. None of these individuals can be conclusively linked to the John Hughes who served in Fourth Independent Company.

-James Schmitt, Maryland Society Sons of the American Revolution Research Fellow, 2019

Notes:

[1] Muster Rolls and Other Records of Service of Maryland Troops in the American Revolution, Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 24; Mark Andrew Tacyn, “‘To the End:’ The First Maryland Regiment and the American Revolution” (PhD diss., University of Maryland College Park, 1999), 33-34, 44-45.

[2] Tacyn, 52-67.

[3] George C. Doughan, Revolution on the Hudson: New York City and the Hudson River Valley in the American War of Independence (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2016), p. 72; Pension of Thomas McKeel, National Archives and Records Administration, Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA M804, S 34977, from Fold3.com.

[4] Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 119; Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, NARA M881, from Fold3.com.

[5] Tacyn, pp. 224-226, 244; Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 119.

Return to John Hughes's Introductory Page


 
 
 


This web site is presented for reference purposes under the doctrine of fair use. When this material is used, in whole or in part, proper citation and credit must be attributed to the Maryland State Archives. PLEASE NOTE: The site may contain material from other sources which may be under copyright. Rights assessment, and full originating source citation, is the responsibility of the user.


Tell Us What You Think About the Maryland State Archives Website!



© Copyright Friday, 11-Oct-2019 09:57:40 EDT Maryland State Archives