The following timeline from a booklet published by the Maryland School For The Deaf, Frederick Maryland may be helpful. Entitled: The Hessian Barracks: A Witness to History, by Hazel K. mcCanner, Historian, Maryland School for the Deaf, June 1976 (no copyright shown) 1776 - No hostile forces reached Fredericktown but in 1776 the Committee of Observation of Frederick County asked that a military post be established in the town. (Minutes of the Committee, Maryland Historical Magazine, Vol 10, 11, 12. 1777 - In 1777 , the Legislature of the State ordered the erection of barracks in Fredericktown, for the accommodation of two battalions of soldiers (Acts of 1777, Chapter 10, "See also Steiner's Western Maryland in the Revolution," page 49 in Johns Hopkins Studies in Historical and Political Science Series 20,1902. On June 27, Abraham Faw, a local man, contracted to build the barracks for eight percent of the cost, and was given 1,500 pounds currency. On November 20, he was given 1,000 pounds more. (Maryland Archives, Vol. 16, Council of Safety, Vol 3, pages 300-418.) The stone barracks consisted of two "L" shaped buildings with the short arms of the "L's" facing each other, and were contracted on an eminence at the south end of the town which bore the name of Hollerstown Hill. 1777-1779 - After the erection of the barracks, large numbers of Hessians, captured at Bennington and Saratoga, were sent to Fredericktown, and Maryland Companies of German regiments in the Continental Army, Captain Brown's Matsosses, and Colonel Crockett's battalion of Virginia troops were ordered to act as their guards. (Centenary of Frederick, page 247.) In May, 1777, 300 pounds were appropriated for the subsistence of prisoners in Fredericktown. (Maryland Archives, Vol. 16, Council of Safety, Vol 3, page 248.) Baylor's Continental Cavalry wintered there in 1778-79. (Scharff's History of Maryland, Vol. 2, page 340.) 1780-1781 - Following the American victory at Saratoga, October 17, 1777, a large number of British soldiers, known as the "Convention" troops, were taken prisoners. They were quartered in various parts of New England. Some were eventually moved to several locations in Virginia. It was these Virginia "Convention" troops that were transported to the barracks at Fredericktown, December 15, 1780, and quartered there until the spring of 1781. (Historical Review and Recommendations for Preservation, Hessian Barracks, Maryland, July 1973. Department of General Services, State of Maryland) 1781 - After Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown, October 18, 1781, the Ansbach regiments, who were among those taken prisoners, started on their long journey to an internment Camp in the interior. They arrived at Winchester, Virginia, November 5, 1781, where they remained for nearly three months. (A Hessian Prisoner's Memoirs at Fredericktown in 1782-83, by First Lieutenant Johann Ernst Prechtel; Introductory Note, Professor Harold Clem. Printed in The Maryland Bulletin, Maryland School for the Deaf, Vol. 67, No. 5, February 1947.) 1782 - On January 27, 1782, in severe cold weather, the German regiments received orders to break camp and proceed to Fredericktown, arriving at the barracks there on January 31, 1782. (ibid). On February 1, 1782, the English prisoners of war, who had been in Fredericktown Barracks, left for Lancaster, Pennsylvania, (ibid) On August 27, 1782, Garrison orders were: "Every prisoner of war who has the desire to remain in this country shall be set free at once and receive a Certificate from the Minister of War permitting him to enjoy the liberties as a native of the country. In this case he must pay the sum of 80 dollars." Signed: John Wood, Colonel. (ibid) In September of 1782, 300 English prisoners from Cornwallis' army were brought from Winchester, Virginia, to the Fredericktown Barracks. (An Outline History of the Maryland State School for the Deaf from its Foundation to June 1, 1919, by Bernard C. Steiner, Ph.D.) 1783 - On April 24, 1783, there was a peace celebration in Fredericktown. All prisoners of war were free. (A Hessian Prisoner's Memoirs of Fredericktown, in 1782-83, by First Lieutenant, Johann Ernst Prechtel: Introductory Note, Professor Harold Clem. Printed in The Maryland Bulletin, Maryland School for the Deaf, Vol. 67, No. 5, February 1947.) On May 13, 1783, the last of the German prisoners departed from Fredericktown. (ibid) After the close of the Revolution, the Barracks were used as a storage place for many years and in them were kept the cannons belonging to local artillery companies.