Bedford Village History
Bedford Village is a hamlet in the town of Bedford.
The place was burned by British forces during the Revolutionary War, and the post-war courthouse still stands amid a cluster of dwelling there.
The notorious British commander Colonel Banastre Tarleton wrote to his general Sir Henry Clinton:
The inveteracy of the
inhabitants of Pound Ridge and near Bedford in firing from houses and
out-houses, obliged us to burn some of their meeting and some of their dwelling
houses, with stores. I proposed to the
militia terms, that if they would not fire from buildings, I would not burn. They interpreted my mild proposal wrong,
imputing it to fear. They persisted in
firing until the torch stopped their progress, after which not a shot was
fired.
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