The Col. Burton C. Quist Lecture Series: Don N. Hagist: British Deserters from the Rhode Island Garrison

On Thursday June 19th at 6:30 PM, the BoRIA alongside our partners the Portsmouth Historical Society (PHS) and the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati present the third annual Col. Burton C. Quist Lecture Series. at the PHS Museum, 870 East Main Rd. in Portsmouth, This year, Don N. Hagist is the featured speaker with his presentation: “British Deserters from the Rhode Island Garrison.” This will now be at Portsmouth Friends Church. 11 Middle Rd, Portsmouth RI

During the three years that British troops occupied Rhode Island, some of them absconded. Who were these men who risked their lives to desert from the army and why did they do it? This talk will discuss the individuals who deserted, their motivations, and what became of them.

Don N. Hagist, managing editor of Journal of the American Revolution, is an independent researcher specializing in the demographics and material culture of the British Army in the American Revolution. He maintains a blog about British common soldiers (http://redcoat76.blogspot.com) and has published many articles in academic journals. His books include: General Orders: Rhode Island (Heritage Books, 2001), A British Soldier’s Story: Roger Lamb’s Narrative of the American Revolution (Ballindalloch Press, 2004), British Soldiers, American War (Westholme Publishing, 2012), The Revolution’s Last Men: the Soldiers Behind the Photographs (Westholme Publishing, 2015), Wives, Slaves and Servant Girls (Westholme, 2016), Noble Volunteers: The British Soldiers Who Fought the American Revolution (Westholme 2020), These Distinguished Corps: British Grenadier and Light Infantry Battalions in the American Revolution (Helion & Company 2021), and Roger Lamb’s American Revolution: A British Soldier’s Story (Westholme 2022).

This talk is our third annual under the banner of “The Col. Burton C. Quist Lecture Series”, in memory of our late founding Director, friend, and mentor who passed away in January, 2023. This event is free and open to the public and will be filmed for our website and YouTube channel.