Two Teenagers Who Helped Save America

The story of two teenagers at the beginning of the Revolutionary War gives us insight into the beginnings of what is today the township of Guilford. The two boys by the names of Joshua and John lived in Staten Island with their father Joshua Sr. The father was educated at what is now Columbia College and practiced law in New York City. He was also a successful businessman on Staten Island having a tavern, stagecoaches and several boats. George Washington and Lafayette were frequent visitors in his home.

Early in July, 1776, when New York fell to the British, a large amount of Joshua Mersereau's property was destroyed and he narrowly escaped capture. His brother John turned his horses, which were used by the stagecoach line, into Washington's service. When George Washington was retreating through N.J., he asked Mersereau that his son John La Grange Mersereau, who was about 19 at the time, remain behind in Staten Island and act as a spy. This was the beginning of the "Mersereau Spy Ring." John did successful espionage for 18 months. Mrs. Smith in her book, "Staten Island- Gateway to N.Y." mentions that with people like the Mersereaus' George Washington could report to the Continental Congress. "I have people constantly on Staten Island who gives me daily information on the operations of the enemy. These are brave men." John La Grange Mersereau eventually came under suspicion but escaped and rejoined the American army. Later he became Assistant Deputy Commissary of Prisoners. He was never able to serve with troops in the field because a defective right arm made it impossible to hold a musket, but for courage he was unsurpassed in the revolution.

The Indian Orchard Falls in Spring

Joshua Jr., now about 14 years old, replaced his brother moving back and forth in a skiff hidden by day in a relative's cellar. When George Washington crossed the Delaware, the British were in pursuit. It was Joshua Jr. and Joshua Sr. who were the principle instruments in preventing the British army from crossing the Delaware. Joshua Sr. asked if every precaution had been taken and that the materials left behind had been burnt. To be sure Joshua Sr. and Joshua Jr. asked if they might go back across and search the shore. On the other side of the river they found below the water's surface two Durham boats (troop carriers) sunk purposely before by the Tories. They raised the boats and burnt them. Thus, when the British under General Howe arrived at the Delaware they had no means of following Washington. The war was saved for Washington. Twenty-five days later Washington returned and "Crossed the Delaware." Victory resulted.

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From 1776 through 1782 Joshua Jr. served in many battles of the Revolutionary War. In May of 1782 he worked as a carpenter for the ship South Carolina and later joined the crew. In a battle with three British ships he was wounded in the leg, a wound he says later, " has never since healed." The South Carolina was captured and Joshua Jr. was put on the prison ship, the Scorpion. In the end of Jan in 1783 he was paroled until the Treaty of Peace in 1784.

Joshua Jr. was an impressive man. He was six feet tall, weighed about 250 pounds and had red hair. His most impressive feature though was his character. After the war the Mersereaus continued to serve their country not fighting for freedom but as pioneers helping to carve a nation out of the wilderness.

The Mersereaus first returned to their property in Staten Island after the war. Joshua Sr. was a member of the Provincial Assembly in New York State from 1777 to 1786. His brother John was Clerk of the Court of Richmond County in 1784. Rather than rebuild the businesses, the Mersereaus decided to move to Tioga County, N.Y. Joshua Sr. became one of the earliest judges. They moved again to Unadilla and later separated. Joshua Sr. settled in Union marrying his third wife, Esther Christopher. His brother John and family joined him there in Union in 1792.	Indian Orchard Falls - Bottom Pool
The two sons Joshua and John came to Chenango County. They were the first settlers of what is now Guilford, N.Y. in 1788. The county clerk's office in Norwich has records of large tracks of land purchased and sold by the Mersereau brothers. In French's "Gazetteer" it is mentioned that Joshua Jr. built the first saw mill in the town at the mouth of the Guilford Creek. Joshua in his memoirs stated, " I did not get them (the mill) started the first year which was in 1788. When I commenced building my mill, I was disappointed in a mill wright and had to go all the way to Poughkeepsie on the North River for a mill wright and I got a man by the name of Brown. I took him into a boat and rowed him up the river and then took him across the county and finished my mill in 1789. Made boards and sold them to settlers as fast as I sawed them."
In 1791 Joshua Jr. was elected one of the first officers of the town of Bainbridge. His brother John was the first Surrogate in Chenango County appointed March 27, 1798. They both settled near the mouth of the Guilford Creek but Joshua later went to Guilford Center and ran a tavern, the Angel Inn, which is still standing and is now called the Pillars.
Joshua's wife, Dinah Garretson died in Guilford Center in 1822. Together they had 12 children and it was Joshua Jr's. son, another Joshua, that moved to Lindley, N.Y. in 1817. His father joined him in 1840 at the age of 87. His eyesight was poor and his old leg wound from the war bothered him. Joshua Jr. died Jan 20, 1857 in his son's house at the age of 97. His brother and partner in espionage, John La Grange Mersereau, also came to Lindley with his family and died at the age of 84 in Covington, Pa. in 1841.
On April 26, 1997 Joshua Mersereau Jr. was inducted into the Steuben County Hall of Fame for his services and activities as a spy and soldier under General George Washington during the Revolutionary War. A portrait of Joshua is in the Soldier's Room of the Tioga County Historical Society in Wellsboro, Pa.
The wooden mill built by the Mersereaus rotted down about 1820 only to lead the way for other mills to be built on the Guilford Creek. Mills that would supply power for sawing wood and grinding grist for the new town of Guilford. Walking along the shores of Guilford Creek today, by what once was called, "Indian Orchard" by Joshua, I feel a sense of wonder at the power of the water over the rocks. The waterfalls has that peaceful yet haunting sound of a Guilford long past. I think back to those days in the 1700's when courage and fortitude by settlers like the Mersereaus carved out our towns and our country. One never walks alone.

Researched by:

Thomas Gray

Guilford Town Historian

March 16, 1999

References Used:

1. Spies of the Revolution, Katherine and John Bakeless
2. Central N.Y. Geneology, Cutter
3. Annals of Staten Island, J.J. Clute
4. History of Chenango County, N.Y. 1784-1880, James H. Smith
5. Joshua Mersereau, National Archives, Wash.,D.C.
6. Papers of John La Grange Mersereau, National Archives, Wash., D.C.
7. Deeds and Records, Chenango County Clerk's Office, Norwich, N.Y.
8. Revolutionary War Veterans Chenango County, Nelson Tiffany
9. The Spy Who Rescued America, Star Gazette, Ap. 6, 1997
10. the Mersereau Presho House, Paul Mortziem
11. Staten Island Gateway to N.Y., Smith
12. Articles on Mersereau, Lindley Historians Jim & Sandy Lundgren

All information on this site are excerpts from Unadilla Valley: Pictorial Glimpses of the Past, 1976, Unadilla Valley Historical Society; Mert Brownell: Unadilla Valley: 1788-1976, 1976, Unadilla Valley Historical Society and partially reprinted with permission by Thomas Gray, Guilford Town Historian.

All pictures and photographs on this site courtesy of the Guilford Historical Society; underwater photographs by Robert M. Small, Professional Diving Services, Norwich, New York.

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