Raynham Hall Museum

Raynham Hall is a historic 18th‑century home in Oyster Bay, New York, best known as the residence of the Townsend family, whose son Robert served as a key member of George Washington’s Culper Spy Ring during the American Revolution. Robert Townsend's business contacts brought him into close contact with many of the British officers then stationed in Manhattan. Abraham Woodhull, known within the New York spy ring as "Culper, Sr.," asked Robert to act as a spy in the city. He became known as "Culper, Jr.," thus completing the circle of communication that went from Manhattan to Setauket, across the Sound to Connecticut, and to General George Washington's headquarters. From August 1779 until May of the following year, Robert provided George Washington with as much useful information as he could gather regarding British plans and troop movements.