An Overview
Abstract
This inventory is an overview of the Massachusetts Historical Society collections that contain information about the 1775-1776 American invasion of Canada, and it is intended to demonstrate to the researcher the depth and type of information available for the study of the American invasion of Canada within the MHS collections.
Introduction
Within the collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS) reside manuscripts, books, printed materials, prints, and maps related to the American invasion of Canada in 1775-1776. This guide does not represent a detailed guide of all collections, but rather a preliminary survey of cataloged material relevant to those events.
Historical interest in Benedict Arnold's expedition to Canada and the subsequent siege of Québec has historically waxed and waned; with the 250th anniversary of the invasion in 2025, we hope this guide will foster a renewed interest in the critical events of those early months of the American War for Independence. Also included are materials related to General Richard Montgomery's expedition to Montréal and the American occupation of that city, as well as the capture of St. John's.
The materials are divided thematically: manuscripts; diaries, journals (including reprints), and memoirs by those involved in the events; maps, prints, and graphics; and secondary publications. Materials related to the broader conflict of the revolution are not included, unless they provide significant scholarly understanding, or prominent primary source material, related to the American invasion of Canada.
For more information or to request materials described in this overview, researchers may consult several MHS resources. The society's online catalog, ABIGAIL, contains collection-level descriptions of manuscript collections. In addition to these catalog records, some manuscript collections are further described in detailed collection guides. Many of these guides are fully searchable at the MHS website, and more are added on a regular basis. Copies of paper collection guides not yet converted to electronic format are available in the MHS Reading Room.
The manuscript card catalog contains descriptions of approximately 320,000 individual items; very few of these appear in ABIGAIL. The published Catalog of Manuscripts of the Massachusetts Historical Society (G. K. Hall, 1969; 1980 supplement), available in more than 150 U.S. libraries, contains photocopies of these catalog cards. Although almost all of the collection-level descriptions in the Catalog have been revised or superseded in ABIGAIL, the published catalog remains a useful resource for descriptions of individual manuscript items. The MHS card catalog, now available on microfiche in the society's Reading Room, contains the cards in the published Catalog, as well as many additions and corrections.
Detailed Description
Correspondence, proclamations, broadsides, and ephemera
Arranged alphabetically.
Adams Family Papers, 1639-1899; bulk: 1755-1889.
Letter from Horatio Gates to John Adams giving details of the Siege of Quebec and praising Benedict Arnold, 4 May 1776.
Advices From St. John's. Cambridge, November 15, 1775. Dispatches From Canada to General Washington.
Cambridge, 1775.The American Gazette: or Constitutional Journal Extraordinary.
Salem: John Rogers, 1776.Published intelligence from Canada.
Arnold, Benedict. "Arnold's Letters on His Expedition to Canada in 1775."
In Collections of the Maine Historical Society, 1st series, vol. 1 (1831), pp. 341-416.
Arnold Expedition Historical Society Collection.
Collection of miscellaneous material pertaining to the activities of the society, including their newsletter, as well as various clippings and magazine articles pertaining to Benedict Arnold in general.
Articles of Capitulation: Made and Entered Into Between Richard Montgomery, Esquire, Brigadier General of the Continental Army, and the Citizens and Inhabitants of Montreal, 1775.
Philadelphia: John Dunlap, 1775.Aux habitants de la province du Canada.
[Philadelphia: Chez Fleury Mesplet & Charles Berger, 1776.]Communication from the Continental Congress, advising the French Canadians of the battalions being raised for service against the British in Canada and stressing the need to combine forces against the common enemy.
Benedict Arnold's expedition against Quebec [research materials], 1775-1916; bulk: 1893-1916.
Research material gathered, 1893-1916, by Col. Charles E. Banks of Boston, Massachusetts, on Benedict Arnold's expedition against Quebec, 1775-1776. Included is a card index compiled by Banks recording the names of soldiers, rank, hometown, company and regiment, casualties, and source of reference; handwritten copies of letters and journals including William Hendricks, 13 July-31 December 1775, Joseph Ware, 1775, and William Heth, 1776, among others; newspapers clippings and portions of published articles; copies of maps; and correspondence regarding research with other scholars and institutions.
Brackenridge, H. H. The Death of General Montgomery, at the Siege of Quebec.
Philadelphia: Robert Bell, 1777.Carleton R. Richmond autograph collection, 1775-1880.
This collection includes two pieces relevant to the expedition: an undated fragment of a letter (unsigned but in Benedict Arnold's hand) with instructions for caring for disabled soldiers and orders from Benedict Arnold to Major Bigelow about provisions, 17 October 1775.
Coffin, Alexander. The Death of General Montgomery, or, the Storming of Quebec: A Poem.
New York, 1814.Elbridge Gerry papers, 1706-1895.
Letter from Azor Orne to Elbridge Gerry regarding recent losses in the Canadian Invasion, 22 May 1776.
Elisha Porter papers, 1762-1822.
Contains Benedict Arnold's orders to Col. Elisha Porter to move troops in the battoes [sic] to the army before Quebec, 20 April 1776.
Endicott family autograph collection, 1721-1938.
Contains a letter from Benedict Arnold to an unknown colonel concerning the military situation at Montreal, 14 May 1776.
Fresh Advices from Canada ... From the Continental Army.
Albany: Alexander & James Robertson, 1775.Contains news of the surrender of Fort Chambly, Quebec, including an "Extract of a letter from a gentleman in Canada, to his friend in this city. Camp before St. John's, October 20, 1775."
Gage, Thomas. The Letters of the Two Commanders in Chief ... With the Manifesto of General Washington to the Inhabitants of Canada.
New York: James Rivington, 1775.Grenville H. Norcross autograph collection, 1489-1937.
Includes a list of American prisoners taken at Quebec recorded by Benedict Arnold, 4 June 1776.
Hector McNeill papers, 1765-1821.
Includes a letter regarding the siege of Quebec from Benedict Arnold, 1776.
Important Intelligence From St. John's. Philadelphia, November 15.
Baltimore: J. Dunlap, 1775.Extract of a letter from an officer of the New York forces, 3 November 1775, concerning the surrender of the fort at St. John's, including the articles of capitulation proposed by Major Charles Preston.
James Knowles letters, 1767-1775.
Fragments of letters, partially addressing the invasion of Canada, 1775.
John Sullivan transcripts, 1774-1876.
Letters from Benedict Arnold to John Sullivan (copy), June 1776.
John Thomas papers, 1609-1925.
Contains correspondence written during the Quebec Campaign.
Letter to the Inhabitants of the Province of Quebec: Extracts From the Minutes of the Congress.
Philadelphia: William & Thomas Bradford, 1774.Massachusetts. General Court. In the House of Representatives: Whereas Repeated Applications Have Been Made ... to Procure a Sum of Hard Money, to be Forthwith Sent into Canada ...
[Watertown: Benjamin Edes, 1776.]Several resolutions for the (mostly financial) support of the army in Canada, 1775-1776.
More Fresh News From Canada: Carleton's Defeat, and Arnold's Success. Extract of a Letter from La Prairie, November 3d, 1775.
[New York, 1775.]New-York, November 13th, 1775. Yesterday Arrived an Express From Our Army in Canada, by Whom We Have the Following Important Intelligence.
New York: John Holt, 1775.Concerning the capture of St. John's.
Proclamation to the people of Quebec regarding acceptance of continental currency, 4 March 1776. [photostat]
In Photostats Collection.
Samuel Frost orderly book, 1775-1779.
Contains references to the formation of the attack on Quebec under Benedict Arnold, 5 September 1775.
Timothy Pickering papers, 1731-1927.
Letter from Samuel Goodwin to Timothy Pickering about compensation for plan and services to Benedict Arnold on the expedition (vol. 20, p. 104).
We Whose Names are Under Written, Do Hereby Severally Inlist Ourselves Into the Service of the United American Colonies ...
Watertown: Benjamin Edes, 1776.Form of enlistment for service in the Canadian Campaign.
Diaries, journals, memoirs, and accounts from the expedition and Siege of Quebec
Arranged alphabetically.
Baby, François, Gabriel Taschereau, and Jenkin Williams, ed. Michael P. Gabriel. Quebec During the American Invasion, 1775-1776.
East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 2005.Burr, Aaron, ed. Matthew L. Davis. Memoirs of Aaron Burr: With Miscellaneous Selections From His Correspondence.
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1858.Darley, Stephen. Voices From a Wilderness Expedition: The Journals and Men of Benedict Arnold's Expedition to Quebec in 1775.
Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, 2011.Dearborn, Henry, ed. Lloyd A. Brown & Howard H. Peckham. Revolutionary War Journals of Henry Dearborn, 1775-1783.
New York: DaCapo Press, 1971.Goetz, Rebecca. Private William Dorr's March to Quebec: A Study in Historical Ambiguity.
History honors thesis, 2000.
Halsted, John. Expense Book of John Halsted, Commissary Under Benedict Arnold, Before Quebec, 1776.
Montreal: C. A. Marchand, 1913.Haskell, Caleb, ed. Lothrop Withington. Caleb Haskell's Diary, May 5, 1775-May 30, 1776: A Revolutionary Soldier's Record Before Boston and With Arnold's Quebec Expedition.
Newburyport: W. H. Huse & Company, 1881.John Jenks diary of his journey to Montreal during General Thomas's assault on Quebec, 1775-1776.
In Pickering family papers.
"Journal of the Most Remarkable Occurrences in Quebec: From the 14th of November 1775, to the 7th of May, 1776 by an Officer of the Garrison."
In Collections of the New-York Historical Society, vol. 13 (1881), pp. 173-236.
Journal of an officer of the 47th Regiment of Foot, 1776-1777.
Typescript of the journal of an unidentified officer of the 47th Regiment of Foot, kept during campaigns in Canada and New York, 20 April 1776-17 October 1777.
Meigs, Return Jonathan. A Journal of Occurrences Which Happened Within the Circle of Observation in the Detachment Commanded by Colonel Benedictine Arnold ...
[United States, 1776].Melvin, James. Journal of the Expedition to Quebec in the Year 1775: Under the Command of Colonel Benedict Arnold.
Philadelphia: Franklin Club, 1864.Montrésor, John, ed. G. D. Scull. The Montrésor Journals.
New York: New York Historical Society, 1882.Originally written during the French and Indian War, but heavily relied upon for navigation of the Maine wilderness during the 1775 expedition.
Morison, George. An Interesting Journal of Occurrences During the Expedition to Quebec ...
Hagerstown: James Magee, 1803.Nichols, Francis Diary of Lieutenant Francis Nichols: of Colonel William Thompson's Battalion of Pennsylvania Riflemen, January to September, 1776.
In Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, vol. 20, no. 4 (Jan. 1897), pp. 504-514.
Roberts, Kenneth. March to Quebec: Journals of the Members of Arnold's Expedition With Annotations.
New York: Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., 1938.Senter, Isaac. The Journal of Isaac Senter: Physician and Surgeon to the Troops ... on a Secret Expedition Against Quebec, Under the Command of Col. Benedict Arnold, in September, 1775.
Philadelphia: Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1846.Stocking, Abner. Interesting Journal of Abner Stocking of Chatham, Connecticut: Detailing the Distressing Events of the Expedition Against Quebec.
Catskill, N.Y.: Eagle Office, 1810.Tolman, Ebenezer, ed. Justin Winsor. Arnold's Expedition Against Quebec, 1775-1776: The Diary of Ebenezer Wild, With a List of Such Diaries.
Variously attributed to Ebenezer Wild, Joseph Ware, and Ebenezer Tolman. Given that neither Wild nor Ware served in Arnold's army, Tolman is considered the most probable author. In Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, April 1886, pp. 265-305.
Tolman, Ebenezer. A Journal of the Expedition Against Quebec, 1775, 1776, Written by Private Ebenezer Tolman of Captain Samuel Ward's Company in Colonel Benedict Arnold's Detachment.
In Celebration by the Town of Nelson, New Hampshire (New York: Evening Job Print Office, 1917), pp. 162-176.
Trumbull, Benjamin. Journal of the Expedition Against Canada, 1775.
In Orderly Book and Journals Kept by Connecticut Men While Taking Part in the American Revolution (Hartford: Connecticut Historical Society, 1899).
Walker, Thomas, Mrs. The Shurtleff Manuscript, No. 153: Being a Narrative of Certain Events Which Transpired in Canada, During the Invasion of That Province by the American Army, in 1775.
Contoocook: New Hampshire Antiquarian Society, 1876.William Dorr journal, 1775-1776.
Journal kept by William Dorr from 17 September=14 December 1775 and 1-6 August 1776 on Arnold's Expedition to Quebec while serving with John Greaton's Regiment (later the 24th Continental). The entries describe the journey to Maine up the Kennebec River and down the Chaudiere to Quebec and the hardships incurred. The journal also contains lists of men wounded, of those who died and were taken prisoner, and of carrying places on the Kennebec and Chaudiere. Also included is a copy of the petition from the American prisoners to General Carleton of 6 June 1776.
See also William Dorr's service record in Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War.
Maps, plans, prints, and graphics
Arranged alphabetically.
Aitken, Robert. A Map of the Present Seat of War on the Borders of Canada, 1775.
Philadelphia: Printed and sold by R. Aitken, [1775].Aitken, Robert. Plan of the Town & Fortifications of Montreal or Ville Marie in Canada - View of the Town &c of Montreal, 1775.
Philadelphia: Printed and sold by R. Aitken, [1775].Bartlett, William H. Wolfe's Cove.
Illustration from Canadian Scenery (1840), showing Wolfe's Cove, Quebec, from atop a hillside, said to be the landing place of General Wolfe.
Chandler, B. F. Quebec during the siege of Arnold [manuscript map], 1838.
Chandler, B. F. Sketch of Gen'l Arnold's route to Quebec [manuscript map], 1838.
Faden, William. Plan of the City and Environs of Quebec, With Its Siege and Blockade by the Americans, From the 8th of December 1775 to the 13th of May 1776.
London, 1776.Habermann, Franz Xaver. Prospect von der Untern Stadt in Quebec Gegen St. Laurenz Fluss.
[Augsbourg, between 1775 and 1779.]Artist's depiction of Quebec, showing a sailing ship at anchor and a group of men in the foreground unloading items from a rowboat. The image is largely imaginary.
Leney, William S. Quebec From the Plains of Abraham, Taken From Memory.
Longacre, James B. David Wooster: Commander in Chief of the Provincial Army Against Quebec ... From an Original Portrait in Possession of Mr. Thomas Wooster.
Major General Arnold: Wounded Dec. 31-1775 at the Attack of Quebec.
Illustration from An Impartial History of the War in America, Between Great Britain and Her Colonies, From Its Commencement to the End of the Year 1779 ... (London, 1780).
Norman, John. Major Gen'l. Rich'd. Montgomery Slain in Storming Quebec Dec'b'r. 31st, 1775.
Illustration from An Impartial History of the War in America, Between Great Britain and the United States, From Its Commencement to the End of the War ... (Boston, 1781).
Ritchie, Alexander H. Quebec in 1775, View of Quebec From the St. Lawrence River.
Rocque, John. A Set of Plans and Forts in America: Reduced From Actual Surveys, 1765.
London, 1765.Scenographia Americana.
London, 1768.Contains views of Quebec in 1759-1760.
The Siege of Quebec: Engrav'd for Clarendon's History of England.
Trumbull, John. The Death of General Montgomery in the Attack of Quebec Decr. 1775.
Secondary sources
Arranged alphabetically.
Anderson, William James. Canadian History: The Siege and Blockade of Quebec by Generals Montgomery and Arnold, in 1775-1776.
Quebec: Middleton & Dawson, 1872.Paper read before the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, 6 March 1872.
Badeaux, J. B.Journal des operations de l'armée américaine lors de l'invasion du Canada en 1775-76.
Montreal: E. Senécal, 1871.Bird, Harrison. Attack on Quebec: The American Invasion of Canada, 1775.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1968.Brandt, Clare. The Man in the Mirror: A Life of Benedict Arnold.
New York: Random House, 1993.Bushnell, Charles I. Crumbs for Antiquarians.
Privately printed, 1864-1866.Includes A Journal of the Expedition Against Quebec, Under Colonel Benedict Arnold, in the Year 1775, by Major Return J. Meigs.
Codman, John. Arnold's Expedition to Quebec.
New York: Macmillan Company, 1903.Cullum, George W. Biographical Sketch of Major-General Richard Montgomery of the Continental Army, Who Fell in the Assault on Quebec, December 31, 1775.
Published 1876.Desloges, Yvon. A Tenant's Town: Quebec in the 18th Century.
Ottawa: National Historic Sites, Parks Service, 1991.Doughty, Arthur G. Quebec Under Two Flags: A Brief History of the City From Its Foundation Until the Present Time.
Quebec: The Quebec News Co., 1903.Dow, George Francis. Fort Western on the Kennebec: The Story of Its Construction in 1754 and What Has Happened There.
Augusta, Me.: Gannett, 1922.Drake, Samuel Adams. Burgoyne's Invasion of 1777: With an Outline Sketch of the American Invasion of Canada, 1775-76.
Boston: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1889.Flood, Charles Bracelen. Rise, and Fight Again: Perilous Times Along the Road to Independence.
New York: Dodd, Mead, 1976.Gabriel, Michael P. Major General Richard Montgomery: The Making of an American Hero.
Madison, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2002.Hatch, Robert McConnell. Thrust for Canada: The American Attempt on Quebec in 1775-1776.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1979.Hawkins, Alfred. Hawkins's Picture of Quebec: With Historical Recollections,
Quebec: Neilson and Cowan, 1834.Henry, John Joseph. Account of Arnold's Campaign Against Quebec: and of the Hardships and Sufferings of That Band of Heroes ...
Albany: J. Munsell, 1877.Henry, John Joseph. An Accurate and Interesting Account of the Hardships and Sufferings of That Band of Heroes: Who Traversed the Wilderness in the Campaign Against Quebec in 1775.
Lancaster, Pa.: William Greer, 1812.Hines, Ezra D. "Arnold's March From Cambridge to Quebec."
In Essex Institute Historical Collections, vol. 33 (1897).
Hulbert, Archer Butler. Portage Paths: The Keys to the Continent.
Cleveland: A. H. Clark, 1903.Manuscripts Relating to the Early History of Canada.
Quebec: Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, 1866.Parker, Gilbert. Old Quebec: The Fortress of New France.
New York: Macmillan & Co., 1903.Randall, Willard Sterne. Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor.
New York: Morrow, 1990.Reminiscences of Quebec: Derived from Reliable Sources, for the Use of Travellers.
Quebec: Printed at the Mercury Office, 1859.Roberts, Kenneth. Arundel: A Chronicle of the Province of Maine and of the Secret Expedition against Quebec.
New York: Doubleday, 1934.Russell, Willis. Quebec As It Was and As It Is, or, a Brief History of the Oldest City in Canada ...
Quebec: G. T. Cary, 1864.Sandham, Alfred. Montreal and Its Fortifications.
Montreal: D. Rose, 1874.Smith, Justin Harvey. Arnold's March From Cambridge to Quebec: A Critical Study, Together With a Reprint From Arnold's Journal.
New York: G. P. Putnam & Sons, 1903.Smith, Justin Harvey. Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony: Canada, and the American Revolution.
New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1907.Stanley, George Francis Gilman. Canada Invaded, 1775-1776.
Toronto: Samuel Stevens Hakkert, 1977.Stone, Edwin Martin, ed. The Invasion of Canada in 1775: Including the Journal of Captain Simeon Thayer, Describing the Perils and Sufferings of the Army under Colonel Benedict Arnold ...
Providence: Knowles, Anthony & Co., 1867.Winter, Florence Small. The Kennebec-Chaudiere "Arnold" Trail,
Augusta, Me.: KJ Printing, 1978.Würtele, Frederick Christian. Blockade of Quebec in 1775-1776 by the American Revolutionists (les Bastonnais).
Quebec: Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, 1905-1906.Preferred Citation
When using the items described in this guide, researchers should cite the collection containing the item.
Access Terms
For information about the collections and items described in this guide, consult ABIGAIL, the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society.