John Chandler's Sword

Colonel John Chandler of the 8th Connecticut Regiment carried this small sword during the Revolutionary War as a symbol of his rank. The sword was over 60 years old by the time of the war. Chandler’s command of the 8th Connecticut began on January 1, 1777 but ended during the Valley Forge encampment when he resigned on March 5, 1778. Chandler decided to retire from the Continental Army because he had been suffering from kidney stones. The now famous memoirist of the Revolutionary War, Joseph Plumb Martin, served in Chandler’s regiment.