I sent the recording cast this info about DEAREST ENEMY:
THE FACTS
In Manhattan, there is a plaque at the corner of Park Avenue and 37th Street, erected by the Mary Murray Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and commemorating Mary Lindley Murray, wife of Robert Murray, for her contribution to the American Revolution by delaying General William Howe and his overwhelming military force from intercepting General Isaiah Putnam's retreat on Bloomingdale Road to join General George Washington in the Bronx:
This tablet marks the geographic center of the farm known in revolutionary days as “Inclenberg,” owned by Robert Murray whose wife, Mary Lindley Murray (1726-1782), rendered signal service in the Revolutionary War.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
On 4 July 1776, the American Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence and declared the American Colonies independent of English domination. The first battles of the American Revolution were the Battles of Lexington and Concord on 19 April 1775, but the tension between the Colonies and British rule had been escalating for some time; the notorious Boston Tea Party had occurred in 1773.
After the Battle of Bunker Hill on 20 April 1775, General Isaiah Putnam (1718-1790) progressed to temporary commander of the American forces in New York, while waiting for the arrival of commander-in-chief George Washington (1732-1799). By March 1776, Washington had forced the British out of Boston, and joined Putnam in Manhattan. By mid-September, Washington and his army had moved north to the Harlem Heights, leaving Putman and his army situated on the Battery at the very bottom of the island.
On 15 September 1776, the British fleet landed 4,000 soldiers at Kip's Bay on the East River to establish order in Manhattan, separate the Colonies, and to break the Continental Army. It was imperative that General Putnam's forces march to Harlem before the British took control of the island.
And that's where the story of Dearest Enemy begins. The history is correct, but the events in this musical are completely fictional.
