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The Scout Home James (Cobe) Scout, mentioned in connection with John Fitch was his friend and companion. He resided in Warminster Township. Fitch is said to have instructed Scout in the art of a silversmith and gun maker. Scout's silverware could be found in many homes in Warminster and Southampton. His long rifles were considered of celebrated quality. The accuracy of his rifles added to his reputation. He is said to have shot a Hessian soldier at 900 yards and killed him with his rifle. He was a brave soldier in Washington's army. He was a friend of Thomas Paine, whom he soldiered with in the Revolution. He died in Warminster in 1829 and was buried in the Vansant graveyard. Josiah Hart placed a tombstone on his grave many years later. John Fitch was born in Connecticut in 1743. As he grew up, he demonstrated a fondness for reading and study. He learned clock making as a young married man. In 1769, he abandoned his wife and moved to Trenton, New Jersey where he established himself as a silversmith. As the Revolution broke out, he turned his talents to gun making. The British destroyed his tools and other property when they took Trenton in 1776. He then moved to Bucks County where he returned to the trade of silversmith. He was a patriot and an officer of the first company of Trenton and held the same rank at Valley Forge. He led an unsettled life. In 1780, he went to Kentucky to survey public land and located a large tract, but he later lost title to it, and was captured by the Indians. On his return to Bucks County, he settled in Warminster and began engraving maps in the log workshop behind the home of James Scout. He then built a test model of his first steamboat and tested it on a pond in the area. In 1786-7, he built a steamboat and sailed it from Philadelphia to Burlington. A number of noted citizens invested in the enterprise. Today, John Fitch Parkway runs through Trenton to honor the enterprise. In addition, you will find Steamboat Road located there as well. The John Fitch Steamboat sailed commercially on the Delaware River for more than a decade before the first model (the Claremont) of Robert Fulton and his partner, Robert Livingston, sailed on the Hudson River. In April 1790, Fitch and his partner, Henry Voigt, launched a refined version of the steamboat. Although it made a successful maiden trip between Philadelphia and Trenton and provided regular service for a season on the Delaware River, their steamboat, nevertheless, failed to find business. During the Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia, many of the delegates stood at riverside and witnessed the sailing of the John Fitch steamboat. John was inducted into the Inventor's Hall of Fame during 2006. He died by his own hand on July 2, 1798. Yet, despite his ultimate misfortune, Fitch had demonstrated that steamboat travel was viable. History of the Property - The property, that the Scout house stands on, was purchased by Anthony Scout from William Atkinson in 1732. One acre, with the house and log shop that James Scout built, was willed to him, in 1789, by his father. As the years went by, the property changed hands many times. The house that James Scout built still remains, but the log shop is long gone. The exact location of the shop is not known. The property is located in Warminster, PA. Archaeology - The archaeology project began on the Scout property during April 2007 under the supervision of the current property owner, Gary Hanley, and is supported by members of The Millbrook Society. The primary goal will be to investigate the remains of a foundation behind the house (North) and to the left (West) of the garage/house in an attempt to verify that the log workshop of John Fitch was located there. The secondary goal will be to recover and catalog the artifacts that are believed to be on the site in great number. These artifacts are believed to date back through the colonial period of the property.
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Weekly adult meetings are held Wednesday nights from 7:30 - 9:30 PM. Please come and join us.
For additional information, please contact: The Millbrook Society 32 North York Road P.O. Box 506, Hatboro, PA 19040 (215)957-1877 milbrook@voicenet.com
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