James Reed was born on January 8, 1722 in Woburn, Massachussets, the son of Thomas and Sarah (Sawyer) Reed and the grandson of George Reed who emigrated from England in 1635 with his father, William, and settled in Woburn several years later.
James acquired an elementary education and learned the tailor's trade.
He lived in Lunenburg, Massachussets, and for a time in Brookfield, where his second child was born. By 1748 he was again living in Lunenburg.
There he kept an inn, was a church member, and a selectman. During the French and Indian War he served almost continuously with the rank of captain; he went with the expedition of 1755 to Crown Point, served under General Abercromby in 1758, and was with the British army in the closing campaign.
About 1765 he removed to Monadnock no. 4, after 1773 known as Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, of which he was one of the original proprietors and for many years proprietors' clerk. There he also had a tavern, served in the militia, owned a large tract of land, and was an influential townsman. Upon hearing the news of the battle of Lexington he raised troops and on April 28, 1775, became colonel of the 3rd New Hampshire Regiment.
On June 14 he was stationed on the Medford road near Charlestown Neck to watch the Neck, the ferry, and Bunker Hill. Three days later, at the battle of Bunker Hill, he was able to hold this regiment as a unit throughout the critical fighting at the rail fence. On January 1, 1776, he became colonel of the 2nd Regiment in the Continental Army.
After service through the siege of Boston he was sent with the forces to relieve Arnold, met the American army in retreat, and reached Ticonderoga in July 1776. Soon, however, he was stricken with an illness that destroyed his sight and impaired his hearing. Although, as the senior colonel from his state, he was made brigadier-general of the Continental Army by act of the Congress on August 9, 1776, he was no longer able to serve in the army and was retired in September.
During the three decades of his blindness he lived at Keene, New Hampshire, at Fitzwilliam, and at Fitchburg, Massachussets, where he died.
About 1745 he was married to Abigail Hinds of New Salem, Massachussets. His wife died in 1791, and he married Mary Farrar, the daughter of John Farrar of Fitzwilliam.
