George Washington landed on Staten Island and set up a look-out, at Fort Wadsworth, for the British arrival. General Howe arrived in New York City on July 2nd, 1776. His British troops were camped in Watering Place (Tompkinsville) to prepare for a battle against Washington. However, British troops stalled and instead inforced Islanders to surrender their rights and sign allegiance to the King.
Howe and other American loyalist, including John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, met up a few months later to discuss negotiations for peace. The meeting took place on September 11, 1776 at the home of a British loyalist, Christopher Billopp. The NYC Parks and Recreation states, "Lord Howe offered to end the conflict peacefully if the American colonies would return to British control, but the Americans refused to give up their struggle for independence. Just as peacefully as their arrived, the delegates sailed away and the Revolution raged on for seven more years."
The building is now known as the Conference House. The conference was unsuccessful and the war continued.
Staten Island Historian states, "Since that meeting, the house has been called the Conference House and is open to the public. The final shot of the American Revolution was fired on Fort Wadsworth by a departing British warship on November 25, 1783. After the war, many of the Island’s wealthiest and most influential citizens, who had remained loyal to the Crown, fled to Canada. Their estates were confiscated by New York State, subdivided and sold."
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