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Sybil Ludington
Sybil (or Sibbell) Ludington (April 5, 1761 – February 26, 1839) was an alleged heroine of the American Revolution and daughter of Patriot colonel Henry Ludington. Relatives of Ludington have claimed that on April 26, 1777, at age 16, she made an all-night horseback ride 40 miles (64 km) to stir American militiamen to attack British forces near Danbury, Connecticut, though scholars largely reject this story. According to the legend, Ludington rode near the Connecticut–New York border after British forces raided and burned Danbury, rallying combatants for the Battle of Ridgefield the following day.
Printed accounts of Ludington's ride first appeared in an 1880 local history and then a 1907 posthumous publication by her grandchildren of her father's memoirs, with Ludington often described as a female Paul Revere. A 2015 report in The New England Quarterly concludes there is little actual evidence backing the story, and whether the ride even occurred has been questioned, with skepticism going back at least to 1956.
Relatively unknown through the 19th century, Ludington's story gained recognition around the time of World War II, after New York State was convinced to place historic roadmarkers in locations she was speculated to have visited on her ride. Attention to her story grew thereafter, from memorial statues honoring her, to books being written about her, culminating with being honored on a United States Bicentennial postage stamp that was released on March 25, 1975, which depicts her on a horse.
Ludington was born on April 5, 1761, in Fredericksburg, New York. She was the first of 12 children of Abigail and Henry Ludington, a gristmill owner. According to his relatives, Sybil's father had fought in the French and Indian War, and volunteered to head the local militia during the Revolutionary War.
At the age of 23, in 1784 Ludington married Edmond Ogden. They had a son named Henry in 1786. In 1792, the family settled in Catskill, New York, and Ogden died in 1799. In 1811 Ludington moved to Unadilla, New York.
Ludington lived in Unadilla until her death on February 26, 1839, at the age of 77. She was buried near her father in the Patterson Presbyterian Cemetery in Patterson, New York (previously, her hometown of Fredericksburg). Her tombstone shows a variant spelling of her first name.
Accounts, which did not emerge until the 20th century about her alleged 18th-century ride, recognize Ludington as a heroine of the American Revolutionary War.
Accounts originating in the 20th century, from the Ludington family, say Sybil played an important role immediately after the British raid on Danbury, Connecticut. According to the story printed 140 years after the alleged feat, on April 26, 1777, then-16-year-old Sybil Ludington rode 40 miles (64 km) from her hometown in Fredericksburg, New York (near Danbury, Connecticut) through Putnam County, New York, to rally approximately 400 militiamen under the command of her father, Colonel Henry Ludington, after British forces raided Danbury, where the Continental Army had a supply depot. American troops from New York and Connecticut rallied to engage the British the next day in the Battle of Ridgefield, forcing them to retreat.
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Sybil Ludington
Sybil (or Sibbell) Ludington (April 5, 1761 – February 26, 1839) was an alleged heroine of the American Revolution and daughter of Patriot colonel Henry Ludington. Relatives of Ludington have claimed that on April 26, 1777, at age 16, she made an all-night horseback ride 40 miles (64 km) to stir American militiamen to attack British forces near Danbury, Connecticut, though scholars largely reject this story. According to the legend, Ludington rode near the Connecticut–New York border after British forces raided and burned Danbury, rallying combatants for the Battle of Ridgefield the following day.
Printed accounts of Ludington's ride first appeared in an 1880 local history and then a 1907 posthumous publication by her grandchildren of her father's memoirs, with Ludington often described as a female Paul Revere. A 2015 report in The New England Quarterly concludes there is little actual evidence backing the story, and whether the ride even occurred has been questioned, with skepticism going back at least to 1956.
Relatively unknown through the 19th century, Ludington's story gained recognition around the time of World War II, after New York State was convinced to place historic roadmarkers in locations she was speculated to have visited on her ride. Attention to her story grew thereafter, from memorial statues honoring her, to books being written about her, culminating with being honored on a United States Bicentennial postage stamp that was released on March 25, 1975, which depicts her on a horse.
Ludington was born on April 5, 1761, in Fredericksburg, New York. She was the first of 12 children of Abigail and Henry Ludington, a gristmill owner. According to his relatives, Sybil's father had fought in the French and Indian War, and volunteered to head the local militia during the Revolutionary War.
At the age of 23, in 1784 Ludington married Edmond Ogden. They had a son named Henry in 1786. In 1792, the family settled in Catskill, New York, and Ogden died in 1799. In 1811 Ludington moved to Unadilla, New York.
Ludington lived in Unadilla until her death on February 26, 1839, at the age of 77. She was buried near her father in the Patterson Presbyterian Cemetery in Patterson, New York (previously, her hometown of Fredericksburg). Her tombstone shows a variant spelling of her first name.
Accounts, which did not emerge until the 20th century about her alleged 18th-century ride, recognize Ludington as a heroine of the American Revolutionary War.
Accounts originating in the 20th century, from the Ludington family, say Sybil played an important role immediately after the British raid on Danbury, Connecticut. According to the story printed 140 years after the alleged feat, on April 26, 1777, then-16-year-old Sybil Ludington rode 40 miles (64 km) from her hometown in Fredericksburg, New York (near Danbury, Connecticut) through Putnam County, New York, to rally approximately 400 militiamen under the command of her father, Colonel Henry Ludington, after British forces raided Danbury, where the Continental Army had a supply depot. American troops from New York and Connecticut rallied to engage the British the next day in the Battle of Ridgefield, forcing them to retreat.
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