Samuel Blachley Webb

Samuel Blachley Webb (1753–1807) was the commanding officer of the 9th Connecticut Regiment in the American Revolutionary War.

Early life and family Samuel Blachley Webb was born on December 15, 1753. He was the second son of a wealthy Connecticut merchant, Joseph Webb, and his wife, Mehitabel Nott Webb. The Webb family lived in a large home on Main Street in Wethersfield, Connecticut. The home is currently open to the public as part of the Webb Deane Stevens Museum

Webb's father died in 1761 when Samuel was eight years old. His mother married the family attorney, Silas Deane, two years later. Webb's mother died in 1767, and Webb's stepfather soon remarried. Deane's second wife, Elizabeth Saltonstall, was a granddaughter of Gurdon Saltonstall, a governor of the Connecticut Colony.

As Deane's assistant, Samuel Webb learned much about the issues that were separating the colonies from Britain, as well as the plans and problems with arming a militia for the revolution. Webb was able to meet with many of the leaders of the coming revolution including George Washington and Benjamin Franklin.

The Wethersfield Militia Company was also heavily involved with the Battle of Bunker Hill. The company served as rear guards in the battle and was one of few that remained until the very end of the fighting. Both Captain Chester and Samuel Webb rose in rank quickly after reports of their courageousness spread to senior officers. Within a month after Bunker Hill, Webb was promoted to captain, brevet major, and aide-de-camp to Major General Israel Putnam. He spent the next year helping Putnam with writing letters and reports. This contribution was noticed by General Washington due to the contrast with Putnam's previous record of poor composition and frequent failure to do paperwork properly.

The Siege of Boston lasted for another year, until Americans positioned heavy cannons on Roxbury Heights in March 1776. The British commander ordered an evacuation of the garrison, allowing Washington a brief occupation of Boston. However, Washington marched his army south to New York soon after. He put his men to work in New York, building fortifications along the shorelines and bays of Manhattan, Long Island, Staten Island, and up the Hudson River.

His children included journalist and diplomat James Watson Webb, and Henry Livingston Webb, a soldier and politician.