Ridgebury – George Washington Slept Here
Ridgefield, Connecticut
Ridgebury, "The New Patent," was one of the last land purchases made by the Proprietors. Tradition says that the First Congregational Church in Ridgebury had its beginnings in the "New Patent Meeting House" as early as 1738. In 1768 the congregation voted to construct a new church, which was completed in 1769. Services at the Episcopal Church in Ridgebury began at the same time as those in Ridgefield, often sharing the same minister. The building continued to be used, except for the Revolutionary War years, until 1789 when it fell into disuse and was torn down twenty years later.
At that time taverns abounded in Ridgebury. General George Washington stopped at Ensign Samuel Keeler's Tavern on the night of September 19, 1780. Some of the other taverns in the area were operated by Nehemiah Keeler, Icabod Doolittle, Abraham Rockwell and Benjamin Lynes.
Other than some individual French Officers, the French Government did not take an active part in the Revolutionary War until the arrival of le Comte de Rochambeau with his detachment of 6,000 men at Newport, Rhode Island in the spring of 1780. The plan was to meet with General George Washington and march across Connecticut to attack New York. A march through Connecticut by French and American re-enactors took place in 2005. An historical marker giving a history of the march through Ridgebury is located at the intersection of Ridgebury and Stagecoach Roads.
Marker is at the intersection of Ridgebury Road and George Washington Highway, on the right when traveling south on Ridgebury Road.
Courtesy hmdb.org
