George Baylor

George Baylor (January 17, 1752 in New Market, Virginia – November 9, 1784 in Bridgetown, Barbados[1]) was an officer in the Continental Army, serving throughout the American Revolutionary War.

George Baylor
Born(1752-01-17)January 17, 1752
New Market, Virginia
DiedNovember 9, 1784(1784-11-09) (aged 32)
Bridgetown, Barbados
Allegiance United States
Service/branchContinental Army
Rank brevet Brigadier General
Commands held3rd Regiment of Continental Light Dragoons
Battles/warsBaylor Massacre
RelationsJohn R. Baylor

Military career

Baylor was first aide-de-camp to George Washington, and brought the news of the Battle of Trenton to the Continental Congress. He was later appointed to lead the 3rd Regiment of Continental Light Dragoons, which often acted as the escort for Martha Washington. While commanding his Dragoons in September 1778, his forces were attacked on the night of the 28th as they slept in local homes and barns on Overkill Road in what is now River Vale, New Jersey. The attack came to be known as the Baylor Massacre. Colonel Baylor and his men were on an information gathering assignment for General Washington when they were attacked by General "No Flint" Grey's men. The British had many loyal friends among the farmers of that area, and it is suspected that one of the farmers alerted the British about the placement of Baylor's men. The American dead were thrown into tanning vats. The wounded were taken to the Tappan Dutch Reformed Church a few miles north over the New York border. There, Baylor's second-in-command Major Alexander Clough died. Baylor received a bayonet wound in the lung and was captured, but was later able to rejoin the Continental forces. Along with a number of other colonels, he was promoted to brevet brigadier general at the end of the war.

The location of their bodies remained a secret until they were unearthed in an archaeological dig in the 1960s. Many artifacts were found, but unfortunately, their location is now unknown.

There is a park dedicated to the Baylor Massacre on Rivervale Road in River Vale.

Death

Baylor never completely recovered from his injuries, and following the end of the war in 1783, he journeyed to Barbados to regain his health. However, he continued to weaken and died there in 1784.

Family
  • His nephew was US Congressman Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor.
  • His father was Col. John Baylor III (1705–1772). On Col. Baylor III, see Thomas Katheder, The Baylors of Newmarket: The Decline and Fall of a Virginia Planter Family (New York and Bloomington, Ind., 2009).

References
  1. "George Baylor". mountvernon.org. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
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