Battle of Harlem Heights

The battle began at dawn on September 16 when a reconnaissance party under Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Knowlton encountered British light infantry near the edge of the American lines south of Harlem Heights. Knowlton's men were driven back, and the British bugler played a fox-hunting call — the signal that the quarry had been driven to ground — directly within earshot of Washington and his officers.

Washington's response was immediate and deliberate. He ordered a small holding force to engage the British frontally, drawing their attention, while Knowlton led a larger flanking column around their right. A third force under Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Crary was to extend the encirclement further. The British commander recognized the danger and ordered a withdrawal to a buckwheat field further south. The Americans followed and pressed the attack there as well, gradually pushing the British light infantry back toward their main lines.

Washington called off the advance before the fighting could draw in British reinforcements and escalate into a general engagement he was not ready to fight. The action lasted several hours. American losses were approximately 30 killed and 100 wounded, including Knowlton killed and Major Andrew Leitch mortally wounded. British casualties were similar or slightly higher. By the metrics of the engagement itself, the result was at best a tactical draw. But the army that withdrew to its lines that evening was a different army than the one that had run from Kip's Bay the day before.