Fourth of July Raid is fiction based on historical fact. New Haven, Connecticut, had planned its first big celebration of Independence Day in 1779. The Fourth, which fell on Sunday, was to be observed on Monday.

On July fifth, General Tyron with British troops invaded New Haven. They burned the houses in their march along the harbor shore in the area known as East Haven. (Another division of British troops attacked New Haven proper, where townspeople, Foot Guards and Yale students combined to resist them.)

Recorded in histories of East Haven are the words of Joseph Tuttle when he defied the British before his home, the story of the feast set up by Captain Amos Morris in an effort to save his home, and descriptions of the stand at Beacon Hill.

The beautiful Morris mansion at Solitary Cove was the first building to be set afire. Later Captain Morris wrote the Connecticut General Assembly about his losses and said that his large family was forced to live in the hoghouse until he could rebuild his home.

The Morris house was rebuilt in 1780. It has been preserved for historical interest and visitors are welcome. Worship is still held in the Stone Meeting House (now called Old Stone Church) in East Haven, where some townspeople took refuge during the raid.

From the book