While the series is based on true events, not much is known about the real lives of some of these characters, some of whom were uncovered only through their correspondence with Washington, who kept the letters instead of burning them.
The series accurately depicts the major factors that brought the Culper Ring together, such as how the Continental Army had to build an intelligence arm from nothing in the midst of the New York campaign and how Tallmadge formed a spy network with people who knew each other in Setauket.
Many more than that were involved in the operation, including couriers and boat captain Caleb Brewster. He played a critical role in carrying messages across Long Island Sound to get them to Washington's headquarters. Without Brewster there is no Culper Spy Ring.
Abraham Woodhull (October 7, 1750 – January 23, 1826) was a leading member of the Culper Spy Ring in New York City and Setauket, New York, during the American Revolutionary War.
The Culper Spy Ring was an American spy network operating during the War of American Independence that provided George Washington with information on British troop movements.
355 (died after 1780) was the code name of a female spy during the American Revolution, part of the Culper Ring. She was one of the first spies for the United States, but her real identity is unknown. The number 355 could be decrypted from the system the Culper Ring used to mean "lady."
According to popular lore, a woman spy known only as Agent 355 helped George Washington win the American Revolution, serving as a key member of the Manhattan-Long Island intelligence network later dubbed the Culper Spy Ring.
Caleb Brewster (September 12, 1747 – February 13, 1827) was a member of the Culper spy ring during the American Revolutionary War, reporting to General George Washington through Major Benjamin Tallmadge.
In real life: The Abigail character was invented for the show. It's never been proven who Agent 355 (the code name assigned to her on the show) actually was.
John Simcoe is a real-life historical figure, both villain and hero, it turns out (depending on which history book you study). The real Simcoe survived the war, but Turn has toyed with history before.
Among other honorifics, George Washington—known as Agent 711 in the Culper Spy Ring—is often heralded as a great “spymaster,” and indeed, he was. Under Washington's astute watch, several networks of spies operated in both close-knit circles and far-reaching societies.
Benedict Arnold, the American general during the Revolutionary War who betrayed his country and became synonymous with the word “traitor,” was born on January 14, 1741.
Anna Smith Strong was a spy based in Setauket, Long Island in New York. She was involved in General George Washington's spy ring known as the Culper Spy Ring headed by Major Benjamin Tallmadge. Strong and several other residents of Long Island were recruited by Tallmadge who had grown up in Setauket.
AMC's hit drama, TURN: Washington's Spies, is based on George Washington's Culper Ring which fed intelligence to the colonial forces and dis-information to the British. The show focuses on Abraham Woodhull a leading member of the ring in Setauket, New York.
Simcoe—educated at Exeter Grammar School, Eton College, and Oxford University—entered the British army as an ensign in 1770. He served during the American Revolution (1775–83) and was promoted to captain in 1775. In 1777–81 he commanded the newly formed Queen's Rangers and was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1778.
In many ways quite accurate in depicting the Culper spy ring operation. Now as far as historical accuracy goes with regards time line not so much. The real Woodhull was unmarried and childless at the time.
On his return to British headquarters, André was captured by three local American militia, who discovered the incriminating documents. The militia commander notified the Continental Army, and fortuitously, it was Major Benjamin Tallmadge, Washington's spy chief, who received the report.
In the woods of Pennsylvania, Simcoe arrived on horseback to the Queen's Rangers' camp and introduced himself as their new commander. Cager, one of the Rangers, mocked Simcoe, who invited the Ranger to kill him, if he could. Simcoe broke Cager's arm and slashed his scalp.
The British never captured him, though. Brewster had a reputation for being extremely brave and some accounts indicate several occasions where he effectively battled British ships far larger than his whaling boat.
However, in December of 1782 (more than a year after the 'end of the war' at Yorktown), Caleb led three whaleboats against a small group of British in the Sound. Brewster was shot through the chest and, though he survived, would suffer from the wound for the rest of his life.
Brewster carried out a number of different missions during the war. He acted as intelligence gatherer, lieutenant in the artillery, spy letter courier, privateer, and army officer commanding a fleet of whaleboats against the British.
Ashley Romans as Agent 355 | Y: The Last Man | FX on Hulu.
1. Nathan Hale. Often dubbed “America's first spy,” Nathan Hale was a Yale graduate who served in Knowlton's Rangers, a short-lived Continental reconnaissance unit.