Manuscript

Sheriff Porter to James Bowdoin Re: Protecting the Courthouse

Date:

September 25, 1786

About this artifact

Upon hearing that the Regulators planned to take possession of the Springfield Court House on Sunday, September 24 to prevent the justices from sitting, Elisha Porter, Sheriff of Hampshire County, took preventive measures. On Saturday, September 23, Porter and a group of about 40 men took possession of the court house at 10:00 p.m. Their ranks were increased to about 200 with the arrival of men from Northampton and Hadley. Despite these numbers, the Regulators were still successful in preventing the court from sitting.