He was a descendant of Thomas Hale of Newbury, Massachusetts, who arrived in 1637 from Watton-At-Stone, Hertfordshire, England as the latter part of the Winthrop Fleet and Great Migration.

[3] Once Hale was told of the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775, he and his fifty men marched to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to join the Army of Observation.

With no defense against artillery placed on the hill, General St. Clair and the officers decided to evacuate the fort in the dark of night.

Hale's regiment and other stragglers from the retreating army were discovered by pursuing British forces at the Battle of Hubbardton a few days later, and he was taken prisoner on July 7, 1777.

[13] Hale was later released on limited parole by the British, on the condition that he was not allowed to serve in the Army nor return to the enemy lines.