David Maltbie: The Connecticut Teen Who Spied on the British, Outlasting Nathan Hale

A newly uncovered story from the American Revolution reveals that David Maltbie, a 17-year-old from Stamford, Connecticut, successfully spied on British forces on Long Island in 1776, a mission in which Nathan Hale famously failed and was executed. Historian Claire Bellerjeau discovered letters at the Center for Brooklyn History that detail Maltbie's exploits, which had been lost to history. Maltbie, using the cover of a schoolteacher, gathered intelligence on British troop numbers and movements, sending letters across Long Island Sound. He was eventually betrayed by a loyalist mail carrier, captured, and imprisoned, but escaped before his scheduled execution. He later served in the Continental Army and as a captain of a whaleboat crew, and was captured again in 1783 on suspicion of spying, but was acquitted. After the war, he became a fur seller, served in the Connecticut legislature, and died in 1807. Historian Alexander Rose notes that Maltbie's story highlights the early, unorganized nature of Washington's intelligence efforts, which led to the creation of the more structured Culper Spy Ring. Maltbie's descendant, Margo Williams, calls the resurfacing of his story 'electrifying.'