Biography

Samuel Blachley Webb was born in Wethersfield, Connecticut, to Joseph and Mehitable Webb. After his father's death, Webb was tutored by his step-father, Silas Deane, a delegate to the First Continental Congress. Webb joined revolutionary forces against the British in 1775 and was selected as aide-de-camp for Israel Putnam and later in Washington's intimate circle of secretaries. During a stint as commander of a regiment, Webb was captured by enemy forces in 1777 and was on parole for the next three years until he was able to serve again with the Third Connecticut Regiment. After the war, in 1791, Webb married Catherine Hegeboom and the couple settled at her family home in Claverack, NY.