Biography of Sybil Ludington–April 5, 1761–February 26, 1839
Everyone has heard of Paul Revere's famous ride to warn friends and neighbors that the British were coming, but there was someone else who rode through the night with a warning, too.
Sybil Ludington was the eldest of twelve children born to Colonel Henry and Abigail Ludington. As the oldest, she helped with the household and in raising her brothers and sisters. Col. Ludington had served in the French and Indian War and he volunteered to serve as the local militia commander of 400 men when the war with the British began.
In April, 1777, British General William Tyron invaded Connecticut from Long Island Sound. He commanded 2000 soldiers, and ordered them to burn Danbury where supplies for the rebels were stored. In the process, the British soldiers ate and drank what they could find. A messenger was sent 17 miles to the Ludington home to tell Colonel Ludington that Danbury was burning and he knew that the British would move into New York for further attacks. He needed to gather his troops who were scattered around Dutchess and Putnam counties at their homes and farms. The messenger was exhausted and could not go any further, so Sybil, who had just had her sixteenth birthday, volunteered to ride out in the stormy night to tell the militia to meet at her father's house. She and her horse, Star, rode 40 miles through the countryside to the towns of Carmel, Mahopac and Stormville. By the time Sybil made it back home near dawn, most of the 400 men were already gathered and ready to march.
The town of Danbury could not be saved, but the militia was able to prevent the British from advancing into New York. The British were pushed back to their boats in Long Island Sound in the Battle of Ridgefield. Sybil was recognized by General George Washington for her contribution to the war.
Not much is known about Sybil after her ride. She married a man named Edmond Ogden and they had one son. She died in 1839 at the age of 77.
Statue of Sybil Ludington in Carmel, New York
First Day Postal Cover for a stamp honoring Sybil Ludington, 1975
A Poem about Sybil Ludington by Berton Braley
Listen,
my children, and you shall hear
Of a lovely feminine Paul Revere
Who rode an equally famous ride
Through a different part of the countryside,
Where Sybil Ludington's name recalls
A ride as daring as that of Paul's.
In April, Seventeen Seventy-Seven,
A smoky glow in the eastern heaven
(A fiery herald of war and slaughter)
Came to the eyes of the Colonel's daughter.
"Danbury's burning," she cried aloud.
The Colonel answered, "'T is but a cloud,
A cloud reflecting the campfires' red,
So hush you, Sybil, and go to bed."
"I hear the sound of the cannon drumming"
"'T is only the wind in the treetops humming!
So go to bed, as a young lass ought,
And give the matter no further thought."
Young Sybil sighed as she turned to go,
"Still, Danbury's burning--that I know."
Sound of a horseman riding hard
Clatter of hoofs in the manoryard
Feet on the steps and a knock resounding
As a fist struck wood with a mighty pounding.
The doors flung open, a voice is heard,
"Danbury's burning--I rode with word;
Fully half of the town is gone
And the British--the British are coming on.
Send a messenger, get our men!"
His message finished the horseman then
Staggered wearily to a chair
And fell exhausted in slumber there.
The Colonel muttered, "And who, my friend,
Is the messenger I can send?
Your strength is spent and you cannot ride
And, then, you know not the countryside;
I cannot go for my duty's clear;
When my men come in they must find me here;
There's devil a man on the place tonight
To warn my troopers to come--and fight.
Then, who is my messenger to be?"
Said Sybil Ludington, "You have me."
"You!" said the Colonel, and grimly smiled,
"You!" My daughter, you're just a child!"
"Child!" cried Sybil. "Why I'm sixteen!
My mind's alert and my senses keen,
I know where the trails and the roadways are
And I can gallop as fast and as far
As any masculine rider can.
You want a messenger? I'm your man!"
The Colonel's heart was aglow with pride.
": Spoke like a soldier. Ride, girl, ride
Ride like the devil; ride like sin;
Summon my slumbering troopers in.
I know when duty is to be done
That I can depend on a Ludington!"
So over the trails to the towns and farms
Sybil delivered the call to arms.
Riding swiftly without a stop
Except to rap with a riding crop
On the soldiers' doors, with a sharp tattoo
And a high-pitched feminine halloo.
"Up! up there, soldier. You're needed, come!
The British are marching!" and the drum
Of her horse's feet as she rode apace
To bring more men to the meeting place.
Sybil grew weary and faint and drowsing,
Here limbs were aching, but still she rode
Until she finished her task of rousing
Each sleeping soldier from his abode,
Showing her father, by work well done,
The he could depend on a Ludington.
Dawn in the skies with its tints of pearl
And the lass who rode in a soldier's stead
Turned home, only a tired girl
Thinking of breakfast and then of bed
With never a dream that her ride would be
A glorious legend of history;
Nor that posterity's hand would mark
Each trail she rode through the inky dark,
Each path to figure in song and story
As a splendid, glamorous path of glory--
To prove, as long as the ages run,
That "you can depend on a Ludington."
Such is the legend of Sybil's ride
To summon the men from the countryside
A true tale, making her title clear
As a lovely feminine Paul Revere!
Learn more about Sybil Ludington
Purple Mountain Press: Sybil Ludington The Call to Arms
About.com: Women's History: Sybil Ludington
The Hudson River Valley Institute: Sybil Ludington's Ride lesson plan
American History for 21st Century Citizens, A Southern California Consortium of Teachers: Sybil Ludington: Female Paul Revere
Daughters of the American Revolution: Sybil Ludington