David Maltbie's Daring Tale

“The Discovery of David Maltbie: A Successful Spy in the Revolution”

Join historian and author Claire Bellerjeau as she shares her exciting new research about David Maltbie, a Patriot spy from Connecticut who gathered intelligence in New York during the Revolutionary War. His journey began very much like the famous spy Nathan Hale, with one important difference; Maltbie survived. Discover how the young spy was captured early in the war by the British on Long Island, then took part in daring whaleboat raids against Loyalist mid-war, only to be arrested again in Manhattan at the end of the war, evading death a second time. Once forgotten, except in the recollections of a young girl, David Maltbie’s daring tale of espionage reminds us that more founding figures are waiting to be uncovered and remembered.

About Claire Bellerjeau:

Claire Bellerjeau is a historian and the co-author of “Espionage and Enslavement in the Revolution: The True Story of Robert Townsend and Elizabeth”, published in May 2021. In 2022, she co-founded a nonprofit organization called Remember Liss, with the mission of educating the community about an enslaved Black woman named Liss and her extraordinary life and times. Through the nonprofit, she co-wrote and published a student version of Liss’ story, titled Remember Liss, in March 2023. In 2026 she co-authored an article titled “This Connecticut Teenager Spied on the British During the American Revolution, Succeeding Where Nathan Hale Failed” in Smithsonian Magazine, based on her original research.