John Butler (pioneer)

John Butler
Portrait of John Butler, date unknown
Born	1728 New London, Connecticut
Died	13 May 1796 Newark, Upper Canada
Allegiance	Great Britain
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1755–1784
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Unit	Butler's Rangers
Battles/wars	French and Indian War Battle of Ticonderoga Battle of Fort Frontenac Battle of Fort Niagara American Revolutionary War Battle of Longue-Pointe Siege of Fort Stanwix Battle of Oriskany Battle of Wyoming Cherry Valley massacre Battle of Newtown

French and Indian War

American Revolutionary War

John Butler (1728–1796) was a Loyalist who led an irregular militia unit known as Butler's Rangers on the northern frontier in the American Revolutionary War. He led Seneca and Cayuga forces in the Saratoga campaign. He later raised and commanded a regiment of rangers. After the war he resettled in Upper Canada, where he was given a grant of land by the Crown for his services.

John Butler was born to Walter Butler and Deborah Dennison, née Ely, in New London, Connecticut in 1728. In 1742, his father moved the family to Fort Hunter on the frontier in the Mohawk Valley near modern Fonda, New York. In 1752, John Butler married Catharine (Catalyntje) Bradt, of Dutch ancestry. The couple raised five children (two others died in infancy). Having learned several Iroquois and other Indian languages, he was employed as an interpreter, especially in the lucrative fur trade.

In 1755, John Butler was appointed to the rank of Captain in the Indian Department of the British colonial government. He served in the French and Indian War under Sir William Johnson. In 1758, he saw action with James Abercromby at Fort Ticonderoga and John Bradstreet at the Battle of Fort Frontenac. In 1759, he was made second in command of the Indians with Johnson at the Battle of Fort Niagara. In 1760, he continued as a second in command of the Indians in Jeffery Amherst's force at Montreal.