A battle in the New York campaign
The fighting at Harlem Heights took place on 16 September 1776. The National Park Service identifies the location where the action began, while the U.S. Army’s campaign history places it within the struggle for New York. The encounter followed American reverses and retreat, making its effect on confidence especially important.
This artwork invites the viewer to consider the Revolution as a sequence of local actions as well as famous declarations and major victories. Terrain, scouting and small-unit movement shaped what soldiers could see and do.
What the title tells us
Skirmish at Harlem Heights, 1776 is the catalogue title of this edition. The year refers to the represented event, not a verified production date for the painting. No matching archival record establishing its artist or commission has yet been located, so neither is assigned here.
When comparing battle pictures, look at how the painter groups figures and directs attention toward the encounter. Those choices communicate a story, but they need to be read alongside maps and written accounts. The sources below supply that setting without treating every painted detail as documentary evidence.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service: where the battle began
- U.S. Army Center of Military History: New York Campaign