About the Author

Lincoln Diamant's most recent book is Hoopla on the Hudson: An Intimate View of New York's Great 1909 Hudson-Fulton Celebration.

Reviews

"so fascinating, you'll wonder why you never learned about this in high school." -Times Union, Albany NY

"so fascinating, you'll wonder why you never learned about this in high school." -Times Union, Albany NY

In the spring of 1778 the Continental Army laid a 1500-foot chain across the Hudson River at West Point. Constructed of some 750 individual links, each almost three feel long and weighing more than 100 pounds, the chain prevented the British navy from operating on the upper Hudson for five critical years. American technology helped win the Revolutionary War. Diamant tells the chain's history from original conception to the disposition of the few remaining links. He also recounts other efforts to block the river. Excellent quotations and more than 100 illustrations grace this readable, popular history.-- Henry W. Fritz, Univ. of Montana, Missoula