George Washington Papers

General Orders, 20 October 1777

General Orders

Parole: Countersign:

Head Quarters, Whitpain Township [Pa.]1 October 20th 1777.

The troops are to draw and cook one day’s provision this afternoon, and be ready to march to morrow morning, at 6 o’clock precisely; but if it should rain, then they are not to strike their tents ’till further orders.

Varick transcript, DLC:GW.

1On this date the army marched a few miles southeast from its camp in Worcester Township to a new camp in adjoining Whitpain Township, which also was in Philadelphia (now Montgomery) County, Pennsylvania. GW had his headquarters from 20 Oct. to 2 Nov. at Dawesfield, the two-story stone house of James Morris (1753–1795) located about a mile west of Ambler and about three miles northwest of Whitemarsh (see Pickering and Upham, Life of Pickering description begins Octavius Pickering and Charles W. Upham. The Life of Timothy Pickering. 4 vols. Boston, 1867–73. description ends , 1:180, and GW to John Hazelwood, 2 Nov. 1777).

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