The start of the War

Site of the Myles Garrison in Swansea where the English militia first gathered at the start of the War

Angered by the loss of land, liberty and lives, the Pokanoket warriors first attacked just east of the Kickemuit River on the farm of Job Winslow on Sunday, June 20, 1675. (Job Winslow was the son of Kenelm Winslow.) While the settlers were in church, the warriors looted several homes, setting two on fire and sending residents to the Myles Garrison and a garrison house off today’s Gardner’s Neck Road in Swansea. Within days, all forty or so of the colonists houses were burned, bringing troops from Taunton and setting off a war that quickly spread.

Click on the images below for additional information about the start of the War:

The first skirmish was on Job Winslow’s farm in today’s Warren, RI
Attack on settlers in Swansea
From the marker at the Hugh Cole Well behind the Kickemuit M.S.

See also:

David Silverman on King Philip’s War https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5034257/king-philips-war

Mass Moments: King Philip’s War Breaks Out https://www.massmoments.org/moment-details/king-philips-war-breaks-out.html

Subscribe to our newsletter!