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Return Jonathan Meigs (December 17th (old style) or 28th (new style), 1740; died January 28, 1823 ), a colonel in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, was one of the settlers of the Northwest Territory in what is now the state of Ohio. He later served the federal government as an Indian agent working with the Cherokee in Tennessee. ==Early life and service in American Revolution== Meigs was born in Middletown, Connecticut, on December 17, 1740, to Jonathan Meigs and Elizabeth Hamlin Meigs, whose thirteen children also included Josiah Meigs.〔William M. Meigs, ''(Life of Josiah Meigs )'', Philadelphia (J.P. Murphy, printer), 1887. pp. 4-5.〕 His father was a hatter, and as a young man Meigs engaged in a mercantile business. He married his first wife, Joanna Winborn, in 1764. Before her death in 1773, they had four children, including Return Jonathan Meigs, Jr.. In 1774, Meigs married Grace Starr, with whom he had three children, of whom two survived. He served in the local militia, achieving the rank of lieutenant in 1772 and promoted to captain in 1774.〔 On April 19, 1775, after the Battle of Lexington, he led a company of light infantry to Boston. There he was appointed major in the 2nd Connecticut Regiment, a provincial regiment of the Continental Army. Later that year, serving as a division (battalion) commander under Colonel Benedict Arnold, he accompanied Arnold on his 1,100-man expedition through Maine to Canada. He kept a journal of the expedition, written with ink made by mixing powder and water in the palm of his hand.〔 Meigs was captured by the British in the assault on Quebec City and imprisoned, but was paroled on May 16, 1776, by British General Guy Carleton as consideration for Meigs's decent treatment of a British prisoner, Captain Law, Carleton's chief engineer. Meigs returned to Connecticut by way of Halifax.〔''(The Magazine of American History with Notes and Queries )'', by John Austin Stevens, Benjamin Franklin DeCosta, Martha Joanna Lamb, Henry Phelps Johnston, Nathan Gillett Pond, William Abbatt. A.S. Barnes and Company, 1880. Vol. IV, pages 282-292. Scanned by http://books.google.com/.〕〔, TNGenNet Inc. TNGenWeb Project, Autobiographies, Biographies, and Diaries of Our Ancestors; archived July 18, 2007〕〔"Return Jonathan Meigs", ''Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography'', edited by James Grant Wilson and John Fiske. Six volumes, New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1887-1889, accessed 2006-03-09〕 After Meigs was formally exchanged on January 10, 1777, he returned to active service as major of the 3rd Connecticut Regiment of the newly organized Connecticut Line. Meigs was appointed lieutenant colonel of Sherburne's Additional Continental Regiment on February 10, 1777. On May 12th of that year, he was sent to command the 6th Connecticut Regiment when its colonel, William Douglas, became incapacitated by ill health. One of his most important achievements during the Revolutionary War was leading the Meigs Raid against the British forces in Sag Harbor, New York, in May of 1777. With just 220 men in a fleet of 13 whaleboats, he crossed Long Island Sound from Connecticut to Long Island to attack the British fleet at night. The raid succeeded in burning twelve ships and taking ninety prisoners, without losing a single man.〔〔(Sag Harbor: A Port Bigger Than New York - New York Newsday - Our Town series )〕 The U.S. Congress awarded him a presentation sword for his heroism.〔 Colonel Douglas died on May 28th, and Governor Trumbull of Connecticut appointed Meigs the new colonel of the 6th Connecticut on September 10, 1777, to rank from May 12th. When a Corps of Light Infantry was formed under General Anthony Wayne in July, 1779, Meigs was given command of its 3rd Regiment, which he led at the Battle of Stony Point.〔〔 Following its disbandment in December, he returned to the 6th Connecticut and became acting commander of the 1st Connecticut Brigade. In that capacity, he put down an incipient mutiny and received the written thanks of General George Washington. On January 1, 1781, the Continental Main Army was reorganized and many of its regiments were consolidated; as a result, the Connecticut Line was reduced from eight to five regiments and four colonels, including Meigs, were retired. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Return J. Meigs, Sr.」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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