154 HISTORY OF THE COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER. 



his execution, when the wife of Palmer presented herself before the command- 

 ing officer in his tent. She had come there with her child in her arms, to throw 

 herself with humble submission at the foot of the man who byword, she thought, 

 could relieve her aching heart of its load of misery. In the artless and winning 

 eloquence of a bursting heart, she represented to him the awful situation in 

 which she would be placed should the fearful sentence that had been passed up- 

 on her husband be carried into effect. She implored him, by every tie of affec- 

 tion that bound two young hearts together — for the sake of the infant she pressed 

 to her bosom, who, if left fatherless, would wander through the world disgraced 

 and an orphan — by his own feelings as a father and a husband, to have mercy 

 on him who was all to her the world could bestow. Her tears, her deep dis- 

 tress and her passionate exclamations fell deep into the heart of the war-worn 

 soldier ; but they did not alter his stern resolve. With a dignity of purpose and 

 a countenance that told how intense were the feelings then glowing within him, 

 he told her he must die. Insensible she was carried from his presence and con- 

 veyed back to her friends. The following morning, at the hour appointed for 

 his execution, on an enclosed spot of ground near the summit, on the eastern side 

 of the hill, was seen a gallows rudely constructed of logs, with a rope appended 

 hereto. The trees and fences were filled with men, women and children who 

 had come far and near to witness the awful scene ; and the prisoner was led out 

 to the appointed spot where his last view of the world was taken, and prepare 

 his mind for its sudden transit into eternity. It is but just to say, that whether 

 hung guilty or innocent, he met his fate with the fortitude of a man. The body, 

 after being suspended a suitable time, was taken down and given to his friends 

 for interment." 



Such is the story of Gallows Hill. The sad fabric of logs which had 

 been raised for his execution remained standing for several years after 

 the war, an object of dread and superstition to the more ignorant of the 

 country people whose daily avocations compelled them to pass it. a 



The summit of Gallows Hill embraces a fine view of the river, the 

 scenery of the race and surrounding country. The remains of Fort Look 

 Out are situated on the adjoining hill. During the revolutionary con- 

 test, the village of Peekskill appears to have suffered severely from the 

 enemy's incursions. " Before the British army took the field, for the 

 third campaign of 1777, (says Mr. Smith) two enterprizes for the de- 

 struction of American stores were undertaken. Col. Bird landed with 

 about 500 men at Peekskill, March 23, fifty miles from New York. The 

 few Americans who were stationed as a guard at this place, on the ap- 

 proach of the British, fired the principal store-houses and retired. The 

 loss of the provisions was considerable." 6 " September, 1777, the enemy 

 came out on both sides of the Hudson simultaneously in considerable 

 force, consisting from two to three thousand men, on which occasion 



a Westchester and Putnam Republican, may 14th, 13:S3. 

 b Military Kepository, by Charles Smith. 



