This year officially marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and as with America’s Bicentennial Celebration held in 1976, the year 2026 will see much enthusiastic commemoration of the nation’s Semiquincentennial. The year 1776 will doubtlessly always be known for the signing and publication of the Declaration of Independence, not just due to the radical ideas expressed in the document, but also for the way it removed any ambiguity regarding the motives of the American colonists as they continued to engage in hostilities with the British.
The dissemination of the Declaration of Independence around the colonies also instilled a strong sense of motivation in many American men to join local militias in order to directly fight for the well-articulated cause of independence. One such American with a local connection was Abner Buck. Buck was born in Connecticut in 1754. In 1776, he enlisted as a drummer for a one-year term in Colonel Charles Burrall’s Regiment in Connecticut. He served under Captain David Downs, and their unit was called to assist Brigadier General Benedict Arnold during the Battle of the Cedars in May 1776. During this conflict near Montreal, the Americans were defeated by a combined force of British troops and their Iroquois allies, and many were taken prisoner. Buck was one of the men captured.
Eventually, all the American prisoners were released after the American government negotiated a prisoner exchange with the British. However, the American forces did not make good on their exchange promise, claiming that their prisoners had been abused while in captivity and that this negated any obligation to free their British captives. The British, unhappy with the Americans not upholding their end of the bargain, did not agree to any more prisoner exchanges during the course of the conflict.
After his release, Buck served until he was discharged at Mount Independence, near Fort Ticonderoga. He eventually moved to Harpersfield in Delaware County where he worked as a farmer until old age and disability prevented him from further labor. He filed for a pension in 1824 and received an annual stipend of $96. Buck died sometime after 1827. His exact burial location is unknown, but he is thought to be laid to rest in the Evergreen Cemetery in Jefferson, NY. His “spirit of ’76,” along with that of hundreds of other Delaware County Revolutionary War veterans, will be honored as we commemorate 250 years of the independence they helped to achieve.
Dr. Samantha Misa is the Museum Educator at the Delaware County Historical Association (DCHA) in Delhi.
