On Wednesday, April 24, 2024 the Ridgefield Historical Society hosted Mike Allen, the creator of the podcast Amazing Tales from Off and On Connecticut’s Beaten Path (amazingtalesct.com), who gave the illustrated presentation, “How the Battle of Ridgefield Impacted the Revolutionary War”, to a sold-out gathering at St. Stephen’s Church North Hall.
Mike Allen built his podcasting career on his curiosity about the history of his home state. And since he lives now in Danbury, the British invasion in 1777 is of great interest to him, from the landing of General William Tryon and his troops at Compo Beach, to the sacking of Danbury, to the Battle of Ridgefield. Allen explained, “In 1777, during the early years of the Revolutionary War, the British made their first foray into inland Connecticut. Their mission was to eliminate the Patriot supply depot at Danbury. On their way back to their waiting ships off Compo Beach at Long Island Sound, they encountered fierce and unexpected resistance during the Battle of Ridgefield”. In this presentation he discussed how Ridgefield came to play a significant role that day and why it had an impact on British strategy going forward.
