Baron Frederick William von Steuben, a German-born officer whose home and grave are three miles northwest of Remsen in Oneida County, arrived at Valley Forge in February 1778 and found “an army of skeletons . . . naked, starved, sick, discouraged,” and undisciplined. By day he drilled the soldiers for the victorious campaigns of that summer. By candlelight he wrote a Manual of Arms that is still the basis for the discipline of the armed forces. His services were indispensable to the achievement of American independence.