Isaac Van Wart
| Issac Van Wart | |
|---|---|
The Van Wart grave obelisk at the Elmsford Reformed Church and Cemetery
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| Born |
October 25, 1762 Greenburgh, New York |
| Died | May 23, 1828 (age 65) Elmsford, New York |
| Occupation | Militiaman |
| Spouse(s) | Rachel Storm (1760–1834) |
Isaac Van Wart (October 25, 1762 – May 23, 1828) was a militiaman from the state of New York during the American Revolution. In 1780, he participated in the capture of Major John André.
Born in the farm country of Greenburgh, New York, near the village of Elmsford, Van Wart's exact birthdate is not recorded, but his tombstone declares that he died at the age of sixty-nine.
Van Wart married Rachel Storm (1760–1834), a daughter of Elmsford's most prominent family (from whom the settlement's original name, "Storm's Bridge", was derived). He divided his time between his family, his farm, and his church (in time, he became an elder deacon of the Dutch Reformed Church). Van Wart's body was buried in the cemetery of the Elmsford Reformed Church in Elmsford, New York.
Despite his bucolic lifestyle, Van Wart joined the volunteer militia when New York was a battlezone of the Revolution. Overnight on 22–23 September 1780, he joined John Paulding and David Williams in an armed patrol of the area. The three men seized a travelling British officer, Major John André in Tarrytown, New York, at a site now called Patriot's Park. Holding him in custody, they discovered documents of André's secret communication with Benedict Arnold. The militiamen, all local farmers of modest means, refused André's considerable bribe and instead delivered him to army headquarters. Arnold's plans to surrender West Point to the British were revealed and foiled, and André was hanged as a spy. With George Washington's personal recommendation, the United States Congress awarded Van Wart, Paulding and Williams the first military decoration of the United States, the silver medal known as the Fidelity Medallion. Each of the three also received federal pensions of $200 a year, and prestigious farms awarded by New York State.
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