Adlum, John, 1759-1836

Papers, 1773-1808
19 items

Biographical information:

John Adlum volunteered for service in the Pennsylvania militia at the beginning of the American Revolution, and joined Washington's forces near New York. The main body of Washington's forces withdrew, however, leaving Adlum's regiment among those left to defend Fort Washington against superior British forces, and upon its surrender, Adlum was taken as a prisoner of war and held in New York City for over a year. Upon his release, Adlum worked as a surveyor in central and northern Pennsylvania, and later reentered the Army to become a major in the Provisional Army and Brigadier General in the Pennsylvania Militia. Later in life, Adlum also became a well known viticulturist.

Scope and Contents:

The Schoff Revolutionary War Collection contains the papers of John Adlum, private in the Revolutionary War, Major in the Provisional Army, Brigadier General in the Pennsylvania Militia, surveyor, and viticulturalist. The collection includes 18 items written between 1773 and 1784, and 2 drafts of his memoirs, 1773-1784.

Of the letters, three deal with Adlum's activities surveying the upper Susquehanna River in 1794. The remaining items relate primarily to his service with the Provisional Army, 11th Regiment, 1798-1799.

The memoirs, a spirited account of John Adlum's early years, provide a rare perspective on the Revolutionary War. Writing as a young private taken prisoner at the fall of Fort Washington, he describes British-held New York City from November, 1776, until his parole in late 1777.

Provenance:

Gift of James S. Schoff, 196

Additional notes:

The Revolutionary War segment has been published in Memoirs of the Life of John Adlum in the Revolutionary War, ed. Howard H. Peckham (Chicago, 1968)

Schoff Revolutionary War Collection

John Adlum Papers

Subject Index