I met Erin years ago through The Dreamer—she used to post fan art on DeviantART, and we talked often on that site. A common secret formed a special bond between us: Frederick Knowlton is both of our favorite characters.
Recently, while writing a thesis for an undergraduate research class, Erin uncovered information about Frederick Knowlton’s military service after his father had died—information I didn’t know.
With Freddy recently rejoining The Dreamer cast, I asked Erin if she would write a guest post about the real Frederick Knowlton to share what she learned with all of you.
Dreamer fans will remember Frederick Knowlton as the lovable young soldier trying to fit in among the men of the American Revolution. Sweet, strong willed, and skilled with a rifle, whose father happens to be Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Knowlton, the leader of the elite Knowlton’s Rangers, he is often affectionately referred to by fans as Freddy. But how much do we actually know about the real life Frederick Knowlton? He usually appears as a footnote to his father’s narrative, but a little digging helps to put the pieces together, creating a good overview of his days up to the end of the Revolution.
When Frederick says in The Dreamer, “My father was never really a farmer. On occasion he just put soldiering on hold,” he did not exaggerate. Born in November 1740, Thomas Knowlton was at least fourteen years old when he enlisted to serve in the Seven Years War (also known as the French and Indian War), reaching the rank of lieutenant by war’s end. He married Anna Keyes on April 5, 1759, and Frederick was born December 5, 1760, in Ashford, Connecticut, though it did not take long before Thomas was off fighting again through 1762. Eventually, Thomas came home to settle in, raise his family, and tend to his farm. By the summer of 1776, Frederick had seven younger siblings, and the children likely grew up on their father’s war stories, whether from admiring neighbors or straight from the horse’s mouth.
While some soon-to-be participants of the American Revolution – like Nathan Hale, Benjamin Tallmadge, and Alexander Hamilton – stewed in the political hotbeds of collegiate life, Frederick did not have access to such scholarly pursuits during his youth. But that does not mean he never heard about politics. His father was elected as one of Ashford’s selectmen, a member of the town’s local government, when Frederick was thirteen years old. Whether local or national, politics likely crossed the parlor and dinner table frequently in the Knowlton household, and Frederick was certainly old enough to follow some of the discussions.
In addition to politics and farming, Frederick learned to handle a gun at a young age, because after news of Lexington and Concord reached Connecticut, Thomas was not the only Knowlton to march to Massachusetts. Ashford residents formed a company of ninety-six volunteer soldiers and officers – Frederick having enlisted at age fourteen on May 1, 1775 – and they elected Thomas as their captain. Having served under Israel Putnam during the Seven Years War, Thomas was consulted about building the rail fence defenses at Bunker Hill. To see his father favored by an influential general must have left an impression on the boy. While this also meant that his first encounter in battle was indeed at the Battle of Bunker Hill, it was not going to be the last.
Having successfully defended the American retreat at Bunker Hill, Thomas was promoted to major, and his company was stationed at Cambridge during the winter. After reenlisting on January 1, 1776, Frederick was assigned to serve under Captain John Keyes, who served under Major Knowlton. Under orders from General George Washington, Thomas led a party of five men across a milldam and into British-occupied Charleston to burn British housing and capture the officers who resided there under the cover of night. Whether Frederick was involved with the event is unclear, as only a few of the participants were named. Regardless, the mission was considered a success, and proved Thomas Knowlton’s capabilities in delicate operations.
With the British evacuation from Boston in March, the Continental Army marched to New York, and the Knowltons stopped at their home in Ashford while he also paid off his troops. Anna Knowlton undoubtedly wished safekeeping for her husband and son, and the children were sure to miss the company of their father and brother.
The brief visit was a bittersweet one.
This is Part 1 of 2. Come back next Friday for the conclusion!
After discovering her interest in history as a teenager via The Dreamer, Erin Graham went on to study history at the University of Houston and is currently a senior-level undergraduate student pursuing her B.A., and is an officer of the university’s History Honor Society, Phi Alpha Theta. She can be contacted at erinkgraham@live.com.