IDED ALEXANDRIA DRAGOONS HAT PLATE, BATTLE OF BLADENSBURG & WASHINGTON, 1814

Description

IDED ALEXANDRIA DRAGOONS HAT PLATE, BATTLE OF BLADENSBURG & WASHINGTON, 1814
This American 1790 N.C.O. brass dragoon hat plate was used by Sergeant Alexander Hunter when he served in Captain William Thornton’s Alexandria Dragoons & fought at the Battle of Bladensburg & Washington City in 1814.
Captain Thornton commanded the Alexandria Dragoons who were the escort dragoon company that was with Secretary of State James Monroe at the Battle of Bladensburg, Maryland, fought on August 24, 1814 & Washington City several days later.
It is 4 5/8” wide & 3 1/8” high & is a rounder at the top triangle with a sunburst design that had a bar across the middle that had the letters A D (Alexandria Dragoons) that is now missing
It is in very good excavated condition with a dark green patina.
It was excavated many years ago in the back yard at the carriage house belonging to Captain Thornton where Alexander Hunter lived, he worked for Captain Thornton in his
apothecary & lived above the carriage house.
Alexander Hunter was a friend of Captain Thornton’s & was a Sergeant in the Alexandria Dragoons in 1814.
He rode out with Captain Thornton & 25 to 30 Alexandria Dragoons on August 19, 1814 as an escort for Secretary of State James Monroe on a scouting expatiation to the Patuxent River to search for the invading British.
They arrived on a hill overlooking the river 3 miles from Benedict Maryland on August 20
th
where they found the British.
Secretary Monroe sent a dragoon with a dispatch back to President Madison & then followed the British for several days, sending dragoons back with dispatches on the British movements.
Secretary Monroe & Captain Thornton met with American General Winder at Bladensburg where they fought at the Battle of Bladensburg on August 24
th
.1814.
After the American defeat he continued to escort Monroe during the retreat to & through Washington fighting the British mounted dragoons at the crossing of the Anacostia River (where the South Capital Bridge is now), along South Capitol Street (where the McLaughlin Bank was), near the Treasury Building, White House & then across the Potomac River into Virginia.                                                                                                                                                                        After the British burned Washington, Captain Thornton & his dragoons were ordered to Alexandria where they encamped on top of the high hill west of the city where the Monistic Temple now sits.                                                                                                                                                                                                     From that position they observed the British landing from 7 British warships, the capture & sacking of Alexandria.                                                                       There orders were to observe the British to find out if there were any further advances westward into Virginia which there were none.                                         After several days the dragoons returned to their homes in Alexandria as the British had returned to their ships & had with drawn down the Potomac River..
Captain Thornton found his apothecary ramshackle & in ruins with all the drugs, medicines, potions & other medical necessities of those days stolen by the British.
It was bought by the famous collector James Anderson who had it as part of his very large collection of over 1500 Virginia artifacts.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           This plate comes with a Certificate of Authenticity & an
Anderson
Collection letter.