LINCOLN, BENJAMIN, 1733-1810; b. Hingham, Mass. Until the age of 40 he was a farmer, but had filled the positions of local magistrate, representative in the colonial legislature, and col. of militia. In 1774-75 he took an active part in organizing the provincial militia for active resistance to the mother country, and was appointed maj.gen. of the Massachusetts militia. At the siege of Boston Washington put him in command of an expedition to force the British fleet out of Boston harbor. He commanded the Massachusetts militia at the battle of White Plains in the fall of 1776; reinforced Wash ington by a fresh levy of Massachusetts militia at Morristown, N. J., Feb., 1777; and by Washington's request was made a maj.gen. in the continental army, Feb. 19 of that year. He co-operated with gen. Schuyler in the summer campaign against Burgoyne in New York, and again organized reinforcements of New England militia for the army. In Sept. he joined gen. Gates as second in command, and was disabled by a wound Oct. 8 at the battle of Bemis Heights, near Saratoga. He resumed service in Aug., 1778, and in Sept. was assigned to the command of the southern army. His command of this division of the army was rather to strengthen the faltering allegiance of the Carolinas and Georgia to the cause of the states by- a show of strength than for offensive operations. D'Estaing, admiral of the French fleet, was to co-operate with him near the coast. He
arrived at Charleston Dec. 4, 1778, and maintained a defensive watch of the English forces. His arniy met with reverses at Brier creek and Stone ferry in Mar. and June, and, acting in conjunction with D'Estaing with a view to retake Savannah froin the British, the combined forces met with a sanguinary repulse Oct. 9; and the following spring his army was besieged in Charleston and forced to capitulate May 12, 1780. He returned to his home prisoner on parole. Exchanged in the spring of 1781, he joined Washington before Yorktown, and was chosen by Washington to receive the sword of lord Cornwallis OD his surrender. He held the office of secretary of war for three years, and retired to his farm at Hingham in 1784. Gen. Lincoln after this held various temporary positions of trust under the state of Massachusetts and the United States. In 1789 he was made collector of the port of Boston, which position he held till his death at the age of 87. He was a man of simple earnest character; and the persevering zeal and disinterestedness of his public service gave him great popularity in his native state and in New England. His services in organizing and drawing opportunely into service the militia of the several states were of great value, and so recognized by Washington.