 Stacy served as lieutenant colonel in Colonel Ichabod Alden 's 7th Massachusetts Regiment during 1777 and 1778 . The regiment was sent to Cherry Valley , New York to protect the local population from Loyalists and American Indians . The Loyalists were organized as Butler 's Rangers , a Loyalist militia in the British Army , led by Colonel John Butler and his son , Captain Walter Butler . The Loyalists operated together with American Indians , including some who were under the leadership of Joseph Brant , a Mohawk leader also known as Thayendanegea . 
