On this episode of Dave Does History, Bill Mick sits in for Dave as we travel to the thick woods of upstate New York, where on August 6, 1777, one of the bloodiest and most personal battles of the American Revolution erupted. The Battle of Oriskany wasn’t fought by foreign armies or distant kings. It was neighbors against neighbors, families torn apart, and Native nations forced to choose sides.

General Nicholas Herkimer, wounded early in the fight, refused to retreat. Propped beneath a beech tree, he smoked his pipe and gave orders as musket fire echoed through the ravine. Around him, the Tryon County militia fought not just for freedom, but for survival.

This battle shattered alliances, split the Iroquois Confederacy, and changed the course of the war in the North. Today, we remember what happened in that ravine, and why its legacy still matters. Fill your mug, lean in close, and join us as we remember Oriskany.