By Carla Charter

Sometimes when a column is done, it is done. Other times when a column is done, it instead evolves. Such as it is with my Sept. 11, 2023 column entitled “A Historical Rabbit Hole of Paint,” which told the story of the Revolutionary War-era Hessian soldiers who lived in the North Quabbin area. The stories which I have uncovered since that last writing shows how deep and interesting their tales are.

Among the stories was that of George Hatstat from Petersham, who had an interesting tale even before coming to the colonies with the British, which is detailed in the “Sketches of Petersham Natives and Adopted Citizens,” written by J.B. Howe and compiled by Charles K. Wilder.

Hatstat was the only son of one of the king’s courtiers, according to the history, and while hunting with his father in the Black Forest Mountains, he was kidnapped or stolen by officers of the army and taken to Hesse, province in what is now Germany, and pressed into service in a company made up of boys who had all been taken in the same way. The company was sent to America, the history continued, along with Hessian troops to aid England in the war.

“Naturally these boys rebelled with how they were seized and agreed to return to their native land at the very earliest opportunity. However, a terrific storm arose while they were at sea and George Hatstat, a lad of sixteen, made a solemn vow to his God, that if he were delivered that time he would never tempt the mighty sea again. The sympathies of these boys were more with the rebellious Yankees more than their officers but to refuse to fight meant sure death, so they agreed to put only powder in their guns and allowed themselves to be taken prisoners in the first battle,” stated the history.

These prisoners were quartered in Rutland until the war was over, then discharged. Following their imprisonment, both Hatstat and Peter Hart/Reinhart, another former Hessian soldier, worked for John Chandler of North Main Street as potters.

From Orange is the story of Fritz Caffiree. Although we do not know much of his life in Germany, the story of his life in North Quabbin is told in a May 24, 1956 article in the Enterprise and Journal. The article states Caffiree was one of the Hessian soldiers taken by General Gates at the Battle of Saratoga in October 1777, and was with the prisoners marching through Greenfield, New Salem and on to Petersham.

“Thinking New Salem would be a great camping place, he said goodbye to the Continental guards, whether by their leave or not we do not know,” the article states.

Caffiree became employed at the farm of Mrs. Grace Underwood, described in the article as “a thrifty widow,” living on Chestnut Hill.

“A few months later all Chestnut Hill was astonished by the announcement by the widow that in a month she would marry the German soldier. Her relatives, friends and neighbors all endeavored to stop the marriage. She told them that it was none of their business, that he was just the man she had been looking for and she knew he was a good man,” the article explained.

Mrs. Underwood then sent a boy on horseback to request that Rev. Joel Foster to marry the couple. Once the reverend had married them, the boy was sent out once again to invite all to the evening reception. The article describes Caffiree, a tailor, as a good, industrious man, who “at his death he was sincerely mourned by his widow.”

Artifacts from the Revolutionary War-era POW camp in Rutland known as the Continental Barracks can still be found at the Rutland Historical Society, according to Scott Davis who with his wife Anne serve as curators at the society. The artifacts include a door from the barracks and a post from the stockade fence, as well as several pictures of the barracks guard house. Following the war, according to the history, the barracks had multiple uses over the years, including as a dwelling house, store, card factory and tavern before being taken down.

“The Barrack was one hundred and twenty by forty feet square, including chimneys; … (had) brick chimneys; boarded clapboarded and shingled, with bunks and other conveniences suitable for soldiers..and together with a number of temporary barracks were enclosed in a square of several acres of land,” according to “A History of Rutland, Worcester County, Massachusetts from its Earliest Settlement with a Biography of its First Settlers,” by Jonas Reed.

In 1778, Burgoyne’s troops left their encampment near Boston and went to Rutland, where they quartered during the summer. According to the history, they were moved south in the fall due to the difficulty in procuring breadstuffs. While in Rutland, the prisoners were guarded by Capt. William Tucker of Charlton and Capt. Peter Woodbury of Royalston, with their companies.

The history also describes daily life and the bartering that occurred.

“The non-commissioned officers and soldiers by obtaining a permit from the officer of the guard, would with their wives, barter with the inhabitants for potatoes & c. The Dutch soldiers with their long wooden pipes in their mouths, and their wives trudging behind, with their knapsacks on their backs filled with potatoes & c. would return to the barracks quiet contented and happy.”

The commissioned officers with waiters, or servants, were quartered in private houses, in accordance with the articles of convention.

More information on the Rutland Historical Society can be found at www.rutlandmahistoricalsociety.org.

Carla Charter is a freelance writer from Phillipston. Her writing focuses on the history of the North Quabbin area. Contact her at cjfreelancewriter@earthlink.net.