Early in the Battle of Bemis Heights on 7 October 1777, Fraser fell to rifle fire from Daniel Morgan's rifle brigade. Legend has it that a rifleman named Timothy Murphy was specifically ordered by Benedict Arnold to target Fraser, as he was vigorously directing and supporting his troops. He was carried to a nearby house and placed in the care of Baroness Riedesel, where he died that evening. He was reportedly buried in a nearby redoubt, but the exact location is uncertain. In her diary, the Baroness noted that he was "...buried at six o'clock in the evening, on a hill, which was a sort of redoubt."