Mrs. Mary Almy's account of the cannonading of the French Fleet in Newport (RLC.Ms.032)

This collection consists of a journal with Mrs. Mary Almy's account of the presence of the French fleet in Newport, led by Count d'Estaing (1729-1794), while it was in the possession of the British Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The city was occupied by the British Army from fall 1776 until October 1779. This journal is comprised of twenty eight letters addressed to her husband, Benjamin Almy, detailing the siege commenced by the French fleet to remove the British from Newport. This siege resulted in the Battle of Rhode Island on August 29, 1778.

Inscribed on the verso of last page is this note to Almy's daughter, "Sukey [Susannah] for your life, take care of this and let no eyes peruse it but your and Mrs. Carr [Mrs. Almy's sister]." Also found in this collection is a handwritten transcription prepared by Almy's grandson, Conrad C. Ellery (1807-1884), in 1878 along with a letter to the Redwood Library detailing the custodial history of the journal.