Manuscript: Text Transcription
Page: 4

Excerpts from the Journal of Park Holland

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I served during the Revolutionary war -

during these transactions Shays & his party were not
Idle he had collected as it was said 8 or 10,00 a part of which
were under the command of Luke Day somewhere about West Spring
-field, and a pretty large Force commanded by Adam Wheeler
collected in the first place at Princetown & afterward marched
to New Braintree. Shays with the Main Body was Hovering about
the Town of Pelham whilst Genl Lincoln with his Troops lay at
Worcester news arrived that Shays with his Division were on their
march to Springfield to git possion of the Continental Stores
(Arms Amunition &c.) which were diposited there. Lincoln on being informed
of Shays movements he marched imedially to Brookfield where
we halted for the Night and on the next day we continued our
march to Springfield and whilst on our march sometime before
noon the News arrived that Shays had reached Springfield and
had an engagement with General Shephard who was there
guarding the United States property which was in the Arsenal he having
a detachment of Government Troop under him but we had
not yet heard the perticulars of the Battle. we soon however meet
some Straglers from Shays retreating Army and among other
things a span of Horses & sleigh with two of their Dead Men in
it these Straglers informed us of the fate of the Battle Shays & had mad
a rapid retreat to Pelham or some where in that quarter

It was verry unpleasant to me to find that one of the
Dead Men that was brot of from the Field of Battle (if so it may
be called) whose Name was Spicer had served Three years in
the same Regiment with me in the late Revolutionary War
and was a Towns man of mine - on our arriving at
Springfield we found Shay had mad a rapid retreat as was
Reported & General Shepard gave us the following account
of the transaction. - Shay with his Army were found to
be marching rapidly over the Plains to Springfield Hill