Hale’s Cousin May Have Betrayed Him

According to a different legend surrounding Hale's capture by the British, his cousin, Samuel Hale, handed him over to the armed forces of the empire. Samuel was simply a Loyalist who supported the British throne, which is why what happened. Around September 12, 1776, he departed from the Continental camp on Harlem Heights while posing as a teacher. On September 21, he was being recaptured by British pickets as he was leaving his mission. He was brought before British general Sir William Howe, whose offices were located in the Beekman home, which is currently located at First Avenue and 51st Street. At the time, Samuel, his cousin who had sided with the British, was working as Lord Howe's deputy commissioner of prisons in New York. The theory that Samuel recognized Nathan as a spy was first put up in historical accounts and has since been confirmed by historians.

Samuel vehemently rejected the accusation of treason until his death in England in 1787. He wrote to his wife, "There never was the slightest truth in the awful newspaper publication blaming me with ingratitude. My only crime is attachment to the outdated Constitution of my nation."