Adam Stephen monument Martinsburg WV 2022-08-06 11-02-21

Adam Stephen ( – 16 July 1791) was a Scottish-born American doctor and military officer who helped found what became

Martinsburg, West Virginia Martinsburg is a city in Berkeley County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 18,773 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making Martinsburg the largest city in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia a ...

. He emigrated to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, where he served in the Province of Virginia's militia under

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

. He served under Washington again in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, rising to lead a division of the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

. After a friendly fire incident during the Battle of Germantown, Stephen was cashiered out of the army but continued as a prominent citizen of western Virginia, including terms in the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, and the first elected legislative assembly in the New World. It was established on July 30, ...

representing Berkeley County.

Early and family life

Stephen was born in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. He earned a degree at King's College in

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

, and studied medicine in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. Stephen later married and had one child, Ann.

Naval doctor and emigrant

Stephen entered

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

as a surgeon (with possible rank of Lieutenant) after completing medical studies in 1746 and served on a hospital ship during the Siege of Lorient before emigrating to the British

colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia was a British Empire, British colonial settlement in North America from 1606 to 1776. The first effort to create an English settlement in the area was chartered in 1584 and established in 1585; the resulting Roanoke Colo ...

in 1748. There he established a medical practice in Fredericksburg.

Soldier and pioneer

Stephen joined the provincial troops in 1754 and became lieutenant colonel of the Virginia Regiment under

. The unit was based at

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

(east of the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a mountain range in eastern to northeastern North America. The term "Appalachian" refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range, and its surrounding terrain ...

), then explored westward across the Appalachians. The unit was involved in battles at Jumonville Glen and Fort Necessity (both in 1754 and which some consider the opening engagements of the

). The following year, Washington, Stephen and the Virginia militia participated in the disastrous

Braddock Expedition The Braddock Expedition, also known as Braddock's Campaign or Braddock's Defeat, was a British Empire, British military expedition which attempted to capture Fort Duquesne from the French colonial empire, French in 1755 during the French and Ind ...

.Lengel, Edward G.; ''General George Washington: A Military Life''; pp. xxxiii–xxxiv; ?; ? In 1756, Stephen led Virginia militiamen against the Creeks to relieve colonists from South Carolina. By 1759, Stephen was in command at Fort Bedford (on the west side of the Appalachian range near the South Branch of the

Potomac River The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...

) and begged for cattle to be delivered to Fort Pitt (the future

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

). In 1761, Stephen had received cattle and other goods necessary to organize and fund the Timberlake Expedition, which attempted to reconcile British and

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

interests following the Anglo-Cherokee War (part of the much broader French and Indian War). In the summer of 1763, settlers complained of raids by

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

and

Shawnee The Shawnee ( ) are a Native American people of the Northeastern Woodlands. Their language, Shawnee, is an Algonquian language. Their precontact homeland was likely centered in southern Ohio. In the 17th century, they dispersed through Ohi ...

s on South Branch settlements so that many inhabitants of Hampshire County had abandoned their homes, so in August the governor authorized Stephen to draft 500 men from the militias of Hampshire, Culpeper, Fauquier, Loudoun and Frederick counties and the next month told them to continue guarding the posts on the South Branch and Patterson Creek, lest the Native Americans retaliate for their loss that summer at Bushy Run. While Captain Charles Lewis escorted 60 former settler prisoners back to Fort Pitt in 1764, Stephen had assumed command of the Virginia Regiment from Washington and traveled westward to assist in putting down

Pontiac's Rebellion Pontiac's War (also known as Pontiac's Conspiracy or Pontiac's Rebellion) was launched in 1763 by a confederation of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans who were dissatisfied with British rule in the Great Lakes region follow ...

. When the

broke out, Stephen offered his services to the

, again serving under Washington. He was with the army during the

New York and New Jersey campaign The New York and New Jersey campaign in 1776 and the winter months of 1777 was a series of American Revolutionary War battles for control of the Port of New York and New Jersey, Port of New York and the state of New Jersey, fought between Kingdom ...

s of 1776 and early 1777, and as a major general he was given command of a division in Washington's army during the defense of Philadelphia. In the October 1777 Battle of Germantown, Stephen's men fought in the fog with troops led by General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

. Stephen was accused of being drunk during the battle, and after being convicted in a

court martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the mili ...

, he was stripped of his command and cashiered out of the army, making him the only Continental Army general court-martialed and immediately dismissed from the service during the war.

Politician

Stephen had lived in western Virginia before the war broke out, and voters from Berkeley County (created in 1772) had elected him as one of their two delegates (alongside Robert Rutherford) to the Second Virginia Revolutionary Convention, which was held at St. John's Episcopal Church in Richmond between March 20 and March 27, 1775. When the war ended, he returned to Berkeley County. In 1778 Stephen laid out the plan for Martinsburg and named the town after his friend, Colonel Thomas Bryan Martin. Stephen became sheriff of Berkeley County, with Martinsburg as the county seat. Generals Horatio Gates and Charles Lee purchased property in the county and lived nearby. In 1780, Berkeley County voters elected Stephen as one of their (part-time) representatives in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

. In 1788, he was elected to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, where he spoke (and voted) in favor of ratification of the

Constitution of the United States The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

. Despite opposition by political heavyweights such as

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. May 18, 1736une 6, 1799) was an American politician, planter and orator who declared to the Virginia Conventions, Second Virginia Convention (1775): "Give me liberty or give m ...

and

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, where he was one of three delegates who refused to sign the Constitution. His wr ...

, Virginia ratified the Constitution 89 to 79, in large part because western Virginia delegates (including Stephen) supported it 15 to 1.

Legacy

Stephen died in Martinsburg in 1791 and is buried beneath a monument erected in his honor. The Adam Stephen House in Martinsburg and The Bower near Shepherdstown survive today and are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

References

External links

An Account of the Battle of Germantown

A picture
of the waistcoat and

gorget A gorget ( ; ) was a band of linen wrapped around a woman's neck and head in the English medieval clothing, medieval period or the lower part of a simple chaperon (headgear), chaperon hood. The term later described a steel or leather Collar (c ...

Adam Stephen wore during the French and Indian War {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen, Adam Year of birth uncertain 1791 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Alumni of the University of Edinburgh American city founders Physicians from Virginia British emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies British America army officers British military medical officers Delegates to the Virginia Ratifying Convention 18th-century Royal Navy personnel 18th-century Scottish medical doctors 18th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly 18th-century American physicians Military personnel from Fredericksburg, Virginia People from Jefferson County, West Virginia Military personnel from Martinsburg, West Virginia People of Virginia in the French and Indian War Virginia sheriffs Politicians from Martinsburg, West Virginia People from pre-statehood West Virginia American slave owners