A conference held on the southwestern tip of Staten Island, New York on 11 September 1776 A.D. in the Billop House, which still stands. This was the day Benjamin Franklin, Edward Rutledge and John Adams met Admiral Lord Howe to discuss the possibility of peace between Britain & the Colonies. Unfortunately, neither Admiral Howe nor Franklin and Adams, had any real authority from their respective governments to negotiate.
In the painting below, Admiral Howe is on the right. On the left are John Adamas, Edward Rutledge and Benjamin Franklin.
The strategic situation in September 1776 was dire for the rebelling colonists. George Washington has just been defeated on Long Island (covered elsewhere in New York City Little Black Book), and his army was being threatened across the Hudson on York (Manhattan) Island.
“They met, they talked, they parted. And now nothing remains but to fight it out.” — British report after the Staten Island Peace Conference
As a sidenote: What of the legend of a ghost in Billopp House, where the meeting was held, on the southwestern corner of Staten Island? Is there a ghost of a servant girl killed by the owner who believed she betrayed him to the Colonists?
I used this event as a mission in Nine-Eleven (Time Patrol) because in that series, I have an outside entity trying to wipe us out by changing our timeline. So, I ask the question: what if someone wants those peace talks to succeed?
And who exactly is that ghost?
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