Sybil Ludington
Q.I am having difficultly learning about a woman who reputededly was involved in the famed Paul Revere warning of redcoats coming. Have you any information of this, or any such information about women, other than the wives visiting their husbands?
Susan Casey, Annapolis, MD
A.You are probably referring to Sybil Ludington. She didn't ride with Paul Revere on his famous ride in 1775, but (allegedly) went on a similar ride a few years later. According to legend, on April 26, 1777, Sybil, the 16 year old daughter of Colonel Henry Ludington, and her family in Fredericksburg, NY, were warned of an impending British attack across the state line at Danbury, CT. Danbury was a supply depot for the Americans with approximately 200 or fewer Continental troops on guard. Col. Ludington was in charge of a militia unit, the members of which were scattered about the surrounding community.
Sybil mounted her horse and took a 40 mile ride throughout the countryside late that night, waking militia members as she went. The men were not able to save Danbury, but eventually the troops were able to push the British back to their ships at Long Island, New York.
Or so the legend has it, but little evidence supports the claim. A 2022 Smithsonian article by Abigail Tucker notes that Sybil's own correspondence does not mention the ride, and the first written records referencing the ride do not appear until 1854.
