Culper Ring

The Culper Ring was a spy network that operated in and around the New York town of Setauket for five years during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). Conceived by General George Washington and operated by Major Benjamin Tallmadge, the ring was made up of civilians who used their everyday occupations as a means to pass along vital information on British resources and plans to Washington. This intelligence provided an important advantage to Washington's undermanned and underequipped army and played a key role in the Americans' victory.

Background

As the Revolutionary War moved into its third year, Washington realized the need for a new strategy. He had fewer forces than the British did, and the Americans were not as well trained or equipped as the redcoats were. Washington knew he needed more information about British plans but the traditional method of spying—which involved military personnel sneaking up to or into enemy encampments to gather information and bring it back across enemy lines—was dangerous. One of Washington's men, Captain Nathan Hale, had been captured by the British carrying documents, indicating he was a spy. He was hanged as a result.

Washington decided to create a new type of spy network to gather information. Instead of using military officers—already in short supply—his network would use civilians who would have a reason to be in the areas where they were spying, making it harder for the British to detect and identify them. In 1778, Washington appointed Tallmadge to lead this spy ring.

Tallmadge recruited only those he could absolutely trust to be part of the ring. To protect them all, information on the identities of the spies was a closely guarded secret; it is said that even Washington did not know who they all were. The group used code names and numbers to protect their identities and missions. Tallmadge was known as John Bolton, while Washington was designated as Agent 711.

The first person recruited was Tallmadge's long-time friend Abraham Woodhull, a farmer. Woodhull would operate under the name Samuel Culper Sr., giving the group its name. He recruited Robert Townsend, a New York merchant who could easily gather important information in the city. He became known as Samuel Culper Jr. Caleb Brewster, a whaler operating a fleet of boats, was also part of the ring. He remained an integral part of the group even though the British would eventually identify him as a spy.

In keeping with the plan to have ordinary people use their jobs to obtain and pass information, the ring recruited tavern keeper Austin Roe because his trips to Manhattan to buy supplies could serve as a cover for his spy missions. It is also believed there was a lone woman in the ring. Anna Smith Strong was reportedly inspired to help because her husband, a judge, was imprisoned on a British ship for part of the war. Many believe Strong used her clothesline to pass coded messages about information pickups and locations by hanging her laundry in certain predetermined patterns.

Overview

The Culper Ring would operate from 1778 until the end of the war five years later. The work the spies undertook was dangerous and difficult. The constant threat of discovery put the participants on edge and sometimes made their interactions challenging. Washington was constantly pressing for new intelligence, adding an even greater sense of urgency to each mission. The system the spies used to avoid detection was laborious, involving coded messages that were sometimes written in invisible ink. Members also had to pass multiple messages back and forth.

For instance, when Tallmadge had a request for information, he would pass it to Roe. Roe would go into British-occupied Manhattan to buy supplies for his business and for his neighbors and visit the merchant Townsend. One of the requests for supplies he would leave would be from John Bolton, which was Tallmadge's code name. Roe would leave, and Townsend would go to a private place and read Tallmadge's communication. He would provide a coded response with answers to Tallmadge's questions based on what he had observed as he went about his own business in Manhattan. The answers would then be tucked into the parcel for Bolton, which Roe would return to pick up. He would carry it to a secret drop location on property he owned next door to Woodhull—Culper Sr.—who would then pick it up, read it, and add any additional information he had gathered. When the laundry signals placed by Strong indicated that Brewster's whaleboat was once again in one of the nearby harbors, Woodhull would meet Brewster at night. Brewster would take the message across the sound to Tallmadge, who would use a series of riders in American-held territory to get the message to Washington.

In most cases, the members of the ring only knew the people they dealt with directly and did not know the other members of the group. This protected all of them. As a result, only Brewster was ever identified as a spy, and all of them survived the war. Only one Culper Ring communication was ever intercepted by the British. That letter was taken from Tallmadge, and it revealed information that identified a potential new recruit for the ring. He was notified in time to destroy any incriminating information, and the British were not able to take any action against the members of the group.

The information the ring provided was important to Washington's success and proved crucial in avoiding at least two potential threats. The Culper Ring found information implicating Benedict Arnold in a treasonous plot with Major John André, a British intelligence officer. Andre was captured and hung. The other threat the ring helped to thwart was a planned British attack on French forces aiding the Americans in Rhode Island. Washington was able to reposition his forces to prepare to attack the British regulars, causing British general Henry Clinton to call off the planned attack.

In the twenty-first century, the ring continues to fascinate people. The Culper Ring is the subject of the television series Turn: Washington's Spies, which began airing on AMC in 2014. The show, which is based in fact but contains fictional elements, brought attention to the impact of the Culper Ring on the American Revolution.

Bibliography

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"The Culper Spy Ring." History, 2010,www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/culper-spy-ring. Accessed 11 Feb. 2017.

"George Washington, Spymaster." George Washington's Mount Vernon, www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/the-revolutionary-war/spying-and-espionage/george-washington-spymaster/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2017.

Kilmeade, Brian, and Don Yaeger. George Washington's Secret Six: The Spy Ring That Saved the American Revolution. Sentinel, 2014.

Krueger, Alyson. "Tracing the Origins of a Revolutionary War Spy Ring on Long Island." The New York Times, 8 July 2016, www.nytimes.com/2016/07/10/nyregion/tracing-the-origins-of-a-revolutionary-war-spy-ring-on-long-island.html?‗r=1. Accessed 11 Feb. 2017.

"Nathan Hale Volunteers to Spy behind British Lines." History, 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/nathan-hale-volunteers-to-spy-behind-british-lines. Accessed 11 Feb. 2017.

Rose, Alexander. Washington's Spies: The Story of America's First Spy Ring. Bantam Books, 2014.