In October 1780 Sir John Johnson led a British raiding force of 875 men up the Schoharie Creek and then west along the Mohawk River, destroying almost every farm in their path. At Stone Arabia, the vanguard of his troops engaged Massachusetts troops and local militia under Col. John Brown of Fort Paris. Brown and forty men were killed and the prosperous settlement was set afire. The British continued burning farms, crops, and mills all the way to St. Johnsville. West of Fort Klock they again engaged with American militia in an inconclusive battle that ended with sunset. The raiders slipped away under cover of darkness and returned to Canada.