Private Yankee Doodle Weekend

Joseph Plumb Martin was everywhere during the American Revolution. He enlisted as a teenager in 1775 and spent most of the following eight years in service to the Connecticut Militia and Continental Army. His father studied at Yale, and Martin himself received a well-rounded education. It is believed he kept a diary during the war, and this became the basis for his memoir published in 1830. Widely considered by historians to be one of the finest primary sources documenting the daily life of a common soldier of the time, Martin’s memoir was published under a number of titles over the years including “Private Yankee Doodle.”

A survivor of the Siege and Bombardment of Fort Mifflin in 1777, he ultimately went on to participate in the final siege of the war and culminating Battle of Yorktown in 1781. Along the way he encamped with Washington at Valley Forge, fought in the Battle of Monmouth and was promoted to Sergeant when he joined the newly formed Corps of Sappers and Miners in 1780.

Fort Mifflin celebrates Joseph Plumb Martin’s service and story with a special weekend of activities with the 4th Connecticut and 1st Delaware Regiments and visitors are invited to join in! Visit with the troops, “take up arms” during the musket drills, learn the story of “the 32 pounder incident” and see if you can earn a special reward! Discover facines, gabions and chevaux de frise and why they were important defensive tools defending the colonial capital of Philadelphia from the British. Think you have what it takes to join the Sappers and Miners, the early units of army engineers? Help the soldiers construct some of these obstacles and find out for yourself! Experience the history of Fort Mifflin come to life based on the account of a soldier who personally lived through the battle fought here.

Saturday and Sunday March 23 & 24 from 10 AM till 4 PM. Tickets ($6 – $10) in advance at www.FortMifflin.us or at the event entrance. FREE parking.