William Brown was a soldier for the Continental Army

Continental Army

The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...

 during the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

. He was born in Stamford and enlisted in the 5th Connecticut Regiment

5th Connecticut Regiment

The 5th Connecticut Regiment was raised on April 27, 1775 at Danbury, Connecticut under the command of David Waterbury. The Regiment was one of six formed by the Connecticut Legislature in response to the hostilities at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. The Fifth would see its first action...

 as a corporal on 23 May 1775, and re-enlisted as a private on 9 April 1777, for the duration of the war in the 8th Connecticut Regiment

8th Connecticut Regiment

The 8th Connecticut Regiment also known as 17th Continental Regiment was raised on September 16, 1776 at Danbury, Connecticut. The regiment would see action in the Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown and the Battle of Monmouth. The regiment was merged into the 1st Connecticut Regiment on...

. He was promoted to corporal on 8 May 1779, and to sergeant on 1 August 1780, transferring with the consolidation of units to the 5th Connecticut Regiment on 1 January 1781, and to the 2nd Connecticut Regiment

2nd Connecticut Regiment

The 2nd Connecticut Regiment was authorized in the Continental Army on September 16, 1776. It was organized between 1 January - April 1777 at Danbury, Connecticut of eight companies from the counties of Fairfield, Windham, and Hartford in the state of Connecticut and assigned on 3 April 1777 to...

 on 1 January 1783. He was awarded the Badge of Military Merit

Badge of Military Merit

The Badge of Military Merit is considered the first military award of the United States Armed Forces. Although the Fidelity Medallion is older, after being issued to three soldiers for a specific event in 1780 it was never awarded again, so the Badge of Military Merit is often considered the oldest...

, one of only three people to be awarded the medal that later became the Purple Heart

Purple Heart

The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...

. No record of his citation has been uncovered, but it is believed that he participated in the assault on Redoubt No. 10 during the siege of Yorktown

Siege of Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...

.

After the war he moved west to a newly developed river town called Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

. He lived out his days there, his original tombstone was lost to time; possibly stolen or destroyed. On 24 July 2004, at a cemetery across the street from what is known as Lunken Airport, a new tombstone was laid out in remembrance to Sgt. William Brown.

External links

• Page on the badge of military merit/the purple heart at the United States Army Center of Military History