The town of Steuben, Maine, was named for Frederick William Augustus Henry Ferdinand, Baron von Steuben. Most residents know that Baron von Steuben was a figure from the Revolutionary War, but recent generations have overlooked his importance.

In his 1937 biography of General von Steuben, published by Yale University Press, author John McAuley Palmer states, “In the course of my researches, I was soon convinced that the military services of two men, and of two men only, can be regarded as indispensable to the achievement of American independence. These two men were Washington and Steuben.”

Steuben was born September 17, 1730, in Magdeburg, Germany. He served as an officer in the Prussian Army from 1746 to 1763. He fought in numerous battles in the Seven Years’ War and, at one point, was taken prisoner in St. Petersburg, Russia, where Czar Peter III befriended him. It is unknown why Steuben fell out of favor in the Prussian Army and left in 1763.

In 1777, Steuben traveled to Paris to meet with French officials who were, behind the scenes, helping the American colonies in their fight against England. Steuben eventually met with Benjamin Franklin and was given a letter of introduction to General Washington and Congress.

Steuben arrived in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on December 1, 1777. He traveled to York, Pennsylvania, to meet with the Continental Congress and was sent to meet General Washington in Valley Forge. He arrived on February 23, 1778.

With all the disorder in Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-78, General Washington recognized and valued Steuben’s vast military background and made him temporary Army inspector general. On May 5, 1778, with General Washington’s recommendation, Congress officially appointed him to that position.

Steuben picked 120 men from various regiments and trained them so they could demonstrate their military skills to the rest of the troops. He introduced the use of the bayonet to the troops. Before Steuben’s training, soldiers had mostly used the bayonet as a skewer for cooking. During the Battle of Stony Point, American soldiers attacked with unloaded muskets and won the battle because of Steuben’s bayonet training.

During the winter of 1778-79, Steuben prepared “Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States,” a manual used by the United States Army until 1814.

Steuben became an American citizen by the act of the Pennsylvania legislature in March 1784. For his service in the Revolutionary War, he was granted an estate in New Jersey and land in New York state.

Steuben lived at his New York property on November 28, 1794, and is buried at the Steuben Memorial State Historic Site. Some of the other areas named for him include Steuben, New York; Steuben County, New York; Steubenville, Ohio; and Steuben County, Indiana.

Out of admiration for General Steuben, Jacob Townsley, a Revolutionary War veteran and founder of the Town of Steuben, requested that the town be named in his honor. On February 27, 1795, Township 4 in the District of Maine was incorporated as the Town of Steuben by an act of the Massachusetts General Court.

Jacob Townsley’s (b. 1759, d. 1849) grave inscription reads:

“IN MEMORY OF JACOB TOWNSLEY, Who died May 14, 1849, Aged 90 years. Mr. Townsley was born in Springfield, Mass. 1759. In the early part of his life he was engaged in the service of his Country. Soon after the Revolutionary War he removed to Maine, and settled in this place, then Township No. 4. When the Town was incorporated he asked, and obtained for it the name of “Steuben” in memory of his friend Baron Steuben, under who he had served. This monument is erected by his friend and connection Robert G. Shaw [proprietor of Gouldsboro], who for nearly sixty years knew him intimately and can vouch for the purity of his mind and his benevolent and affectionate heart.”

More information on Baron von Steuben and his role in the Revolutionary War can be found here.

Adapted from: Steuben Historical Society, Henry D. Moore Library, Steuben, Maine