BLANDFORD — On Sunday, Jan. 11, the Blandford Historical Society hosted a cannon salute and bonfire celebration at the Blandford Fairgrounds to commemorate the arrival of Henry Knox’s artillery train in Blandford.
According to Mary Hull, a member of the Historical Society, the winter expedition led by Henry Knox during the American Revolutionary War transported 60 tons of captured cannons from Fort Ticonderoga in New York to the Continental Army outside of Boston.
The steepest descent of the expedition took place in Blandford, where the train had to make its way down into the Connecticut River Valley. Upon reaching Blandford, Knox noted in his diary, “It appeared to me almost a miracle that people with heavy loads should be able to get up and down such hills as are here.”
Knox’s lead crew refused to continue beyond Blandford due to the lack of snow and the difficulty of the terrain. That’s when Blandford resident Solomon Brown stepped up with his teams of oxen to help get the artillery down the treacherous “Devil’s Staircase.”
Those in attendance enjoyed donuts, hot chocolate and cider as reenactors brought to life the story of the Knox Artillery Train and Solomon Brown.
