George Washington to Ralph Pomeroy, 7 April 1781
To Ralph Pomeroy
Head Quarters New Windsor 7th April 1781.
Sir
Mr Stevens the Dy Commy of Issues has shewn me a letter from you of the 2d instant, in which you inform him that you are under embarrassments respecting sending forward the salt meat from Connecticut, as the Assembly have directed it to lie in the several Towns till further orders.1 I do not imagine the Resolves to which you allude were meant to delay the Meat from being brought on to the Army, but to prevent the trouble and expence of first transporting it to the fixed Magazines and from thence to the Army. The Governor spoke to me upon the subject and desired to know whether I had any objections to the Meat remaining in those towns which were as convenient to the North River as to Bulls Works, observing that the Quarter Master might as well bring it from the places where it was put up (if such places were at the distances I have mentioned) as from fixed Magazines2—I told him it would make no odds, provided the same care was taken of it as at the Magazines and if proper returns were made of the quantity and different places to the Commy and Qr Mr that they might know where to find it. Should the difficulty not be removed when this reaches you, you must apply to the Governor and inform him that we are upon the point of distress for the Meat, and desire him if there are still any obstructions in your way to devise means to take them off.3 I am Sir Yr most obt Servt.
Df, in Tench Tilghman’s writing, DLC:GW; Varick transcript, DLC:GW.
1. Pomeroy’s letter to Nathaniel Stevens, deputy commissary of issues at Fishkill, N.Y., written from Hartford on 2 April, reads: “Your Letter of the 28th Ulto I have received. The Resolves of our Assembly rather interfere with my Arrangement for sending on Salt Meat, which order it at present to lie in the several Towns till further Orders, which informed the Commissary Genl of last Week, which cannot well be reversed in less than ten or twelve days.” Pomeroy noted that he had “sent on” rum from Massachusetts but complained that he had not yet received any rum from Connecticut, “except fifteen Hogsheads which lies at Philadelphia, which I know not well to remove at present” (DLC:GW). Stevens’s letter to Pomeroy dated 28 March has not been identified.
Maj. Gen. William Heath wrote Stevens from West Point on 7 April: “Yesterday I laid before his Excellency the Commander in Chief your Letter respecting the Salted provisions in Connecticut and the Coppy of Mr Pomeroys Letter to you on the Subject his Excellency, was pleased to assure me he would immediately write Governor Trumbull and Mr Pomroy.
“I request your every exertion to call in Supplies from every Quarter both Flour and meat and I must add Rum, our present Stock will be gone in a very few Days, The Fatigue that is opening upon us with the Spring is very great, and as the hot faint Season is coming on, The Fatigue must have Rum, please let it have a part of your particular attention” (MHi: Heath Papers; see also GW to Jonathan Trumbull, Sr., 10 April). Heath’s aide-de-camp Henry Sewall recorded Heath’s visit to New Windsor in his diary entry for 6 April (Maine Farmer [Augusta], 12 Oct. 1872).
The Connecticut legislature in November 1780 had authorized the governor to order “the selectmen and receivers of provisions in the town[s] of New Haven and Milford and the several towns in the county of Fairfield lying on the sea coast, immediately to move back into the country to such places as they shall judge safe, and at the expence of this State, all the beef, pork and flour put up in those towns” (, 3:250; see also , 3:176–77). On 22 March 1781, the Connecticut governor and council of safety passed a resolution ordering selectmen of several towns to raise teams “and transport the salted beef and pork put up in their towns for the public service to Fishkill” (, 3:350). Connecticut authorities passed a similar order in April (see Pomeroy to GW, 14 April, notes 2 and 3 to that document).
Q.M. Gen. Timothy Pickering wrote GW on 9 May about the continued delays in sending “salted meat” from Connecticut (DLC:GW).
2. GW presumably spoke to Connecticut governor Jonathan Trumbull, Sr., when in Hartford (see GW to Rochambeau, 16 March, n.1; see also Ephraim Blaine to GW, 9 March).
GW had designated Jacob Bull’s ironworks as a place to gather provisions in Connecticut (see Circular to State Executives, 10 Dec. 1780, and n.9).
3. Pomeroy replied to GW on 11 April.