562 HISTORY OF THE COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER. 



counter. Hopkins now turned upon Emmerick, pursuing him so closely 

 for the distance of half a mile, that several strokes were exchange! be- 

 tween both parties, until Emmerick cleared a stone wall, behind which 

 he had concealed his riflemen. The whole company instantly rose and 

 fired simultaneously upon Hopkins, who escaped uninjured; but Isaac 

 Odell, who rode by his side, was slightly wounded. Hopkins thus in 

 turn taken by surprise, wheeled to the west with his party, and suc- 

 ceeded in overtaking his prisoners, resolving to make good his retreat 

 by the way of the poor-house road. He had proceeded no great dis- 

 tance, when he beheld approaching a strong body of Baremore's horse, 

 in the neighborhood of Avery's mill, a little north of the poor house. 

 Finding his retreat thus intercepted, he was compelled to take the Bed- 

 ford road ; but he had scarcely arrived at See's store, when he found 

 Emmerick again drawn up to dispute the passage. Hopkins a second 

 time discovering his retreat terminated, decided upon a vigorous charge, 

 and succeeded in cutting his way through the detachment with the loss 

 of a few prisoners. A running fight now ensued for about two miles, 

 when Hopkins again found his course blockaded by Colonel Wurmb's 

 yagers. The post road also was guarded by Pruschanck's corps, so 

 that Hopkins had no resource left but the fields. He therefore crossed 

 the mill creek a little north of the Dutch church, Sleepy Hollow, the 

 whole body of the enemy joining in the pursuit. This was kept up until 

 Hopkins arrited near the house of Job Sherwood, a short distance from 

 the present arch of the Croton Acqueduct, on the road to Sing Sing- 

 Hopkins now rightly judging that the best horses of his pursuers were far 

 in advance of their comrades, instantly checked his horse, and in turn 

 became the pursuer. At the spring brook which crosses the ro id in the 

 Beeckman wood, he succeeded in capturing one or two prisoners, in the 

 very face of the enemy, and made good his retreat. a 



Near Twitchings' tavern formerly resided John Yerks, one of the 

 seven volunteers connected with the capture of Andre. Mr. Yerks 

 served for several years in the capacity of a water guard, and remem- 

 bered to have seen on one occasion as many as fifty British vessels and 

 galleys stationed on the Hudson River. Near his place of residence, 

 himself with nine others engaged in a deadly conflict with a party of 

 twenty Cow Boys. In this skirmish they brought off three prisoners 

 and four horses, besides leaving six of the enemy dead on the field. 



The road from Twitchings' descends gradually to the valley of the 



saw mill, on the east bank of which stands the church and hamlet of 



Unionville, delightfully sheltered by high hills. The most prominent 



a The above was related to the author by Jacob Romer, an eye-witness of the engagement. 



