Early History
In 1774, as the revolution began to get under way in Massachusetts, members of the Stockbridge tribes met at the Red Lion Inn to pledge their loyalty to the American cause:
Wherever your armies go, there we will go; you shall always find us by your side; and if providence calls us to sacrifice our Lives in the field of battle, we will fall where you fall, and lay our bones by yours. Nor shall peace ever be made between our nation and the Red-Coats until our brothers -the white people- lead the way.
This first incarnation of the militia served at the Siege of Boston and the Capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775. This militia disbanded soon thereafter, with some Indians returning to their homes and others continuing to serve as scouts for various units.
In 1777, a new militia was gradually formed as Stockbridge men from the 8th Massachusetts Regiment, Nixon's Brigade, and other units gathered under the command of Major General Horatio Gates. This new, loosely-organized Stockbridge Militia, now part of the Continental Army, was led by Jehoiaikim Mtohksin. Abraham Nimham, son of famed sachem Daniel Nimham, joined the unit as Mtohksin's second-in-command. From 1777 to 1778 they participated in the Siege of Ticonderoga, the Battle of Saratoga, and the Battle of Monmouth.
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