Israel Bissell
Israel Bissell, also spelled Bissel (1752 – October 24, 1823), was a patriot post rider who delivered mail between Boston, Massachusetts and New York.
Israel Bissell | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1752 |
| Died | October 24, 1823 (aged 71) Hinsdale, Massachusetts, United States |
| Other names | Israel Bissel |
| Occupation(s) | Post rider, colonial militia officer |
| Spouse | Lucy Hancock (1784–1823; his death) |
| Children | 4 |
On April 19, 1775, British fired on colonists in Lexington and Concord, inciting the American Revolutionary War. Bissell was assigned to alert American colonists the news and rally them to assist the Massachusetts minutemen. The Lexington Alarm message was carried by Bissell through eastern Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York City, New Jersey, and ultimately to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The order stated that Bissell was to travel through Connecticut, which he did, traveling along the Old Post Road from Watertown, Massachusetts to New Haven, where the dispatch included an order to take the message to Philadelphia. In New York, General Alexander McDougall added an order to obtain a new rider to convey the message to Philadelphia. According to the Sons of the American Revolution and Elizabeth Norton Hunt, Bissell went the entire way to Philadelphia.
Along the way, Bissell shouted "To arms, to arms, the war has begun", and carried a message from Joseph Palmer asking townspeople to send soldiers to the fight. Benedict Arnold of New Haven, Israel Putnam of Pomfret, and others mustered soldiers and headed for the battlegrounds in Massachusetts.