Medford Historical Society Papers, Volume 26.

My Grandmother Cushing has told of her young brother, Isaiah. He was on the fishing schooner Nancy that started out on a risky voyage in September, 1814, but she was captured by the British. The captain and Isaiah Lincoln were taken to Halifax as prisoners of war. Because he would not fight against his country he was kept in prison, the British claiming that all who spoke English were British subjects. He died in prison, although he had a certificate of American citizenship signed by General Benjamin Lincoln. A copy of this certificate is in possession of the family.

After the close of the Revolution many of the officers and soldiers who returned to their homes kept some of the habits of military drill in companies of militia, organized under state law. The citizen soldiers had been the only standing army of our colonies previous to our independence. As early as 1641 the Massachusetts colony had required the ‘train band’ of every town to be exercised eight days in every year, each man with a musket. Trees had been left standing on the common for the militia to dodge behind in mock warfare with the Indians. Their service in fighting the battles of the Revolution was in some cases most illustrious. During the Revolution our state militia was at first the only regular soldiers, but as soon as Washington was appointed General by the Congress in Philadelphia in 1775, he organized the Continental Army. The militia forces operated frequently with the Continentals but they were subject to the authority of the state, not to Congress.