25-05-2025
Revolutionary War Memorial Service to be held Sunday at Wyoming Monument
May 24—KINGSTON — Sherry Emershaw, president of the 24th Connecticut Militia Regiment, talked about Memorial Day and remembering our fallen heroes — and she took time to remember the Wyoming Valley's first soldiers killed in battle.
Emershaw said our area has a rich history, and not many people realize part of that history is its role in the Revolutionary War.
"We have the honor to have had a Revolutionary War battle fought in Wyoming Valley," Emershaw said. "It's quite extraordinary to think that our area had a part in the forming of our nation."
Emershaw said we should all be proud of our area's Revolutionary War history, and we should never forget those who gave their lives to provide us a legacy of the rights and freedoms we all enjoy today.
The Battle of Wyoming, fought July 3, 1778, will always be an important historical event in our area — but, Emershaw said, it is especially significant now with the upcoming 250th anniversary of the United States.
On July 3, 1778, the fields around what is now the monument ran red with the blood of patriots who were massacred by a combined force of British troops and their Iroquois allies during the Revolutionary War.
Emershaw said the 24th Connecticut Militia Regiment will organize and participate in local programs and commemorations as we celebrate nationwide.
A Revolutionary War Memorial Service will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sunday
, May 25
. This is the fifth year of the event for the 24th Regiment. Formerly held at the Forty Fort Meeting House, this year's service will be held on the grounds of the Wyoming Monument.
Emershaw said that five years ago, members of the 24th Connecticut Militia Regiment — re-enactors and living historians representing the men and women of Wyoming Valley during the American Revolution — felt it was time to have a Memorial Day service to remember and honor those who fell at the Battle of Wyoming that was fought on July 3, 1778.
"The remembrance service is conducted by our Unit's chaplain in 18th century style following the Common Book of Prayer, allowing visitors to transfer back in time to what 1779 residents of Wyoming Valley would have experienced at a church service," Emershaw said. "The names of the patriots who were killed at the Battle of Wyoming — including those who were killed at the Harding Massacre that occurred on June 30, 1778 — are read aloud during the program, along with 18th century hymns to the music of a recorder. After the service, there will be an honorary volley."
Emershaw noted that Memorial Day ceremonies are usually conducted in cemeteries, but this one is different.
"Since the bones of the fallen soldiers of the Battle of Wyoming are members of the 24th who protected and defended Wyoming Valley during the Revolutionary War and who are interred within the Monument, we felt we should have the remembrance service where they lay."
Emershaw said she and the members of the 24th Regiment have been working with the Wyoming Monument Association, which has supported the event and are pleased that the ceremony will feature the beautiful Wyoming Monument, which only has one event each year on the 4th of July.
"Also, we want to highlight Revolutionary War events at historical locations in Luzerne County for the upcoming 250th anniversary of the USA," Emershaw said.
About the 24th Connecticut Militia
The 24th Connecticut Militia was first formed by the inhabitants of Wyoming Valley at a town meeting in May 1775, as a result of the Battles of Lexington & Concord to protect and defend Wyoming.
With increasing hostilities in the Boston area, the Continental Army was then formed by an act of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, with George Washington being appointed by Congress the next day.
"The Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, prompted the Connecticut Assembly at its October session and made the 24th Regiment official by appointing its line officers on Oct. 17, 1775, making 2025 our 250th birthday," Emershaw said.
Then, 10 Militia companies would be formed and two Wyoming Independent Companies were formed to serve in the Continental Army. The Independent Companies suffered through the winter at Valley Forge.
Notable battles they fought in were Millstone and Bound Brook in New Jersey, Germantown, Brandywine, Fort Mifflin in Pennsylvania, and the Battle of Monmouth. Eventually, a Third Independent Company was formed because of the threat of invasion from the British and their Indian allies.
The invasion occurred on July 3, 1778 — known as the Battle of Wyoming — and oftentimes the Wyoming Massacre because of the reported atrocities that happened after the Battle. Soldiers of the 24th Regiment also served in the 1779 Sullivan Expedition.
In October 1778, remains from the battlefield were collected and placed in a mass grave — 50 years later they were disinterred and eventually placed in a vault within the Wyoming Monument.
"The 24th Regiment is honored to be able to have this Remembrance Service at the site of the final resting place of those patriots," Emershaw said.
Emershaw said the 24th Regiment group will be placing 227 flags at the Monument base, representing those killed in the Battle of Wyoming of July 3, 1778, and the Harding Massacre which occurred a few days before the Battle on June 30, 1778.
Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.
