Cotton, Theophilus b. 31 Mar 1716 Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 18 Feb 1782 Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA: My Damon Genealogy

1716 - 1782 (65 years)

Name	Cotton, Theophilus
Birth	31 Mar 1716	Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [1]
Gender	Male
Military	Revolutionary War Veteran [2]
Tombstone Photo	Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [3]
	Burial Hill Cemetery
Death	18 Feb 1782	Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [1]
Burial	Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [4]
Person ID	I16360	My Damon Genealogy
Last Modified	1 Mar 2014

Father	Cotton, Josiah, b. 08 Jan 1679, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 19 Aug 1756, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 77 years)
Relationship	Natural
Mother	Sturtevant, Hannah, b. 10 Apr 1687, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 27 May 1756, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 69 years)
Relationship	Natural
Marriage	08 Jan 1707	Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA
Family ID	F8060	Group Sheet \| Family Chart

Family Sanders, Martha, b. 1716, Sandwich, Barnstable Co., MA d. 10 1796, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 80 years)

Marriage 29 Oct 1742 Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [1]

Children

	1. Cotton, Edward, b. 17 Apr 1759, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	2. Cotton, Josiah, b. 07 Nov 1753, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 07 Mar 1829, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 75 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	3. Cotton, William Crowe, b. 14 Dec 1751, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 1813 (Age 61 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	4. Cotton, Bethia, b. 11 Feb 1750, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 08 Jun 1837, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 87 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	5. Cotton, Rowland, b. 30 Apr 1748, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 17 Aug 1759, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA (Age 11 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	6. Cotton, John, b. 10 Jan 1746, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 01 Feb 1831, Austintown, Trumbull Co., OH (Age 85 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]
	7. Cotton, Theophilus, b. 11 Jul 1744, Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA d. 1776 (Age 31 years) [Father: Natural] [Mother: Natural]

Family ID F31871 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Last Modified 1 Mar 2014

Event Map

	Birth - 31 Mar 1716 - Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA
	Tombstone Photo - Burial Hill Cemetery - - Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA
	Marriage - 29 Oct 1742 - Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA
	Death - 18 Feb 1782 - Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA
	Burial - - Plymouth, Plymouth Co., MA

= Link to Google Earth

Headstones
Cotton, Theophilus

Notes

From: Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution, 17 Vols.
Cotton, Theophilus, Plymouth. Colonel; return of provisions delivered said Cotton for his regt., dated Roxbury, June 5 1775; also, general order dated Headquarters, Cambridge, July 22, 1775; said Cotton's regiment assigned to a brigade to be commanded by Brig. Gen. Thomas and form part of right wing of army under Maj. Gen. Ward, and to be stationed at Roxbury; also, muster roll of field and staff officers; engaged April 23, 1775; service to Aug. 1, 1775, 3 mos. 16 days; also, return of field and staff officers dated Camp Roxbury Oct. 7, 1775; also, official record of a ballot by the House of Representatives dated Jan. 31, 1777; said Cotton chosen Colonel of 1st Plymouth Co. regt.; appointment concurred in by Council Jan. 31, 1777; reported commissioned Feb. 1, 1777; also, Colonel, Brig. Gen. Palmer's brigade; return of officers who marched on “a late expedition” to Rhode Island, dated Germantown, Dec. 11, 1777; also, Colonel, 1st Plymouth Co. regt., Brig. Gen. Joseph Cushing's brigade; general return of officers dated July 5, 1779; also, Colonel; appointed March 3, 1781; served until March 31, 1781; [p.13] service, 29 days, at Newport, R. I., by order of His Excellency John Hancock; roll sworn to in Plymouth Co.

From the Pilgrim Hall Museum web site (http://www.pilgrimhall.org/Rock.htm
"1774. - The inhabitants of the town [Plymouth], animated by the glorious spirit of liberty which pervaded the Province, and mindful of the precious relic of our forefathers, resolved to consecrate the rock on which they landed to the shrine of liberty. Col. Theophilus Cotton, and a large number of the inhabitants assembled, with about 20 yoke of oxen, for the purpose of its removal. The rock was elevated from its bed by means of large screws; and in attempting to mount it on the carriage, it split asunder, without any violence. As no one had observed a flaw, the circumstance occasioned some surprise. It is not strange that some of the patriots of the day should be disposed to indulge a little in superstition, when in favor of their good cause. The separation of the rock was construed to be ominous of a division of the British Empire. The question was now to be decided whether both parts should be removed, and being decided in the negative, the bottom part was dropped again into its original bed, where it still remains, a few inches above the surface of the earth, at the head of the wharf. The upper portion, weighing many tons, was conveyed to the liberty pole square, front of the meeting-house, where, we believe, waved over it a flag with the far-famed motto, ‘Liberty or death.’ This part of the rock was, on the 4th of July, 1834, removed to Pilgrim Hall, and placed in front of that edifice under the charge of the Pilgrim Society."
From History of the Town of Plymouth by James Thacher, 1835

The Almost-Battle of Marshfield
By Patrick Browne

An 1885 depiction of the action along "Battle Road," April 19, 1775 from "A Brief History of the United States"
I have been writing quite a bit lately (separately from this blog) about the start of the Revolution…a long term project which I hope to publish…well, in this lifetime would be ideal. As one researches the provincial militia and minuteman companies that were engaged in the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775 it is striking just how many communities responded. Men had been preparing and drilling for this day for months, and when the word came, they were ready. Companies engaged that day came from as far as Dracut on the New Hampshire border and Marblehead on the North Shore. And there were companies en route from all over New England that did not arrive in time to see action.
However, only a few Plymouth County companies marched for Lexington that day. On the South Shore of Massachusetts, the minutemen had Redcoats of their own to deal with. This is one of those curious episodes in history that emphasizes how confusing must have been those first days of revolution.
Marshfield, Massachusetts, about 30 miles south of Boston, was a highly unusual community in 1775 in that loyalists were dominant there. The town's leading men were for the King. Fearing for their safety amidst so many patriots in neighboring towns, the gentlemen of Marshfield actually petitioned General Gage in Boston, requesting a detachment of the King's troops be stationed in their town.
Gage was only too happy to grant their request, pleased that someone in Massachusetts had, for a change, asked for his help. He sent a detachment of 100 men from the 4th Regiment of Foot under the command of Captain Nesbit Balfour. They brought with them two artillery pieces and 300 muskets to be used by the gentlemen of Marshfield against the rebels.
On January 23, 1775 the redcoats landed at the North River and marched unhindered through town to the estate of Marshfield's leading Tory, merchant Nathaniel Ray Thomas. They set up barracks and prepared for a long stay. Gage wrote the citizens of Marshfield, "I feel great satisfaction in having contributed to the safety and protection of a people so eminent for their Loyalty to their King."
Over the ensuing months, the soldiers made their presence felt in towns surrounding Marshfield. They seem to have kept their marching and drills confined to the safety of that Tory town, however the soldiers and officers, in small groups, visited taverns and homes of loyalists in Duxbury, Kingston, Plymouth and elsewhere.
In the shiretown of Plymouth, the presence of British officers raised particular furor. Balfour, during a visit there, was warned by a Plymouth Tory not to bring his men there as the people were in "a great state of excitement and alarm." In one case, a British officer accused of threatening an inhabitant of Plymouth was chased into a Tory's shop by a small mob. He was not allowed to emerge until he had surrendered his sword which was promptly broken into many pieces.
So, with tensions rising, the men of Plymouth County knew what their objective would be whenever violence finally erupted. They would march on Marshfield and deal with Balfour's Redcoats.
The news of shots fired at Lexington and Concord reached Plymouth at some point in the afternoon of April 19. Even if the Plymouth County regiment had marched for Boston that day, they would not have arrived in time to participate in the running fight along the "Battle Road." Instead the various militia and minuteman companies formed up and began to gather in the vicinity of Plymouth. It seems, from vague early sources, that the companies from Plymouth, Kingston and Duxbury were gathered together within a few hours. But they did not march to Marshfield.
The man in charge of the Plymouth County regiment was Colonel Theophilus Cotton of Plymouth. He was an ardent patriot but also, apparently, a cautious man. He allowed the night of April 19 to pass without action. Then, on the morning of April 20, he held a council of war with his subaltern, Lt. Col. Briggs Alden and other officers at Alden's house in Duxbury (still standing and known as the John Alden House). There is no record of their discussion but the result was another day of inaction. One must presume that Cotton was either waiting for reinforcements to arrive or hoping that the British would simply go back to Boston.

Nathaniel Ray Thomas House, Marshfield, aka the Daniel Webster Estate. A 1909 postcard depicting the estate as it appeared in 1859. In 1775 there were no croquet players here, but encamped Redcoats.
Finally on the morning of April 21, around 7 am, Cotton marched his regiment to Marshfield, taking up a position around Anthony Thomas's farm, about a mile from the British garrison. By now, new companies had arrived from Rochester and Plympton. Plus, the crews of many fishing vessels from these seafaring towns, eager for a fight, had followed along. By noon, Cotton had about 500 men to Balfour's 100.
But Cotton did not attack. Around 3 pm, the commander of the Kingston Company, Capt. Peleg Wadsworth, grew so impatient with the delay that, without orders, he advanced his company to within firing range of the British position. It finally looked as though something might happen.
Unbeknownst to Wadsworth, Capt. Balfour had arranged his escape. Two British vessels had arrived off the shore of Marshfield and Balfour immediately began loading his troops. Balfour later reported that, if he had been attacked, he would have surrendered without firing a shot.
It is a peculiar episode. Blood had been shed in Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy and Cambridge. The day for which the patriots planned was at hand. Cotton's objective was self-evident. He could have captured or obliterated the entire British detachment. But, when his moment came, Cotton chose to do nothing.
And I don't blame him one bit. I think this episode is indicative of the sense of shock and disbelief generated by the events of April 19, 1775. My guess is that Cotton probably had some trouble grasping the notion that Revolution was finally at hand. And he was probably aware that the small garrison would flee if he gave them enough time.
Balfour was seriously wounded at the Battle of Bunker Hill but eventually went on to become a trusted aide to Gen. Charles Cornwallis, ended his military career at the rank of Major General and became a Member of Parliament. A bright career that might have come to an early end had a less prudent man than Theophilus Cotton been in command on April 19, 1775.
[Sources: Justin Winsor, History of Duxbury (1849), p. 120; Cynthia Krussel, Of Tea and Tories (1976); James Thacher, History of Plymouth (1832), p. 210]

Sources

[S618] Ancestry.com, Public Member Trees, (Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2006;), Database online.
Record for Theophilis Theo Cotton
[S684] Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution, (Name: Wright and Potter Printing Co.; Location: Boston, MA; Date: 1896;), Vol.4, Page 12.
[S902] Burial Hill, (Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts; in the center of Plymouth between School and Russell Sts, behind the First Parish Church), Col Theophilus Cotton marker.
[S648] "Find A Grave", Find A Grave, database and images (http://www.findagrave.com: accessed 30 July 2013), memorial page for Theophilus Cotton (1716-1782), Find A Grave Memorial no. 13902188, citing Burial Hill, Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, memorial created by Michael Kruse, photograph by Sarah Lennox.