History of Hunterdon and Somerset counties, New Jersey : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 13

Author: Snell, James P; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1170

USA > New Jersey > Somerset County > History of Hunterdon and Somerset counties, New Jersey : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 13
USA > New Jersey > Hunterdon County > History of Hunterdon and Somerset counties, New Jersey : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 13

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The British army in New Jersey was posted in de- tachments along a very extended line. The largest force was at New Brunswick, which was their prin- cipal depot of military stores. A strong detachment was stationed at Princeton ; another, consisting of one thousand five hundred Hessians and a troop of cavalry, at Trenton ; a body of troops of about equal strength was at Bordentown, under Count Donop ; and smaller detachments occupied Black Horse, Mount Holly, and several other posts, extending below Burlington. The chief command in New Jer- sey was held by Lord Cornwallis, Gen. Howe remain- ing at his headquarters in New York.

When the main body of the American army crossed the Hudson River into New Jersey after the battle at

the spot whence the firing proceeded, when he was almost immediately shot through the head. His men wheeled and flod. Afraid that they might meet more opposition if they returned the same road they canie, the British turned and went towards New Brunswick. Capt. Geary's body was buried in the woods. This Capt. Schenck-afterwards colonel -was a brave officer. With Col. Charles Stewart he rallied the minute- men in 1775, nud was active during the whole conflict, in various ways." -The First Century of Hunterdon County, by George S. Mott, D.D.

HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES IN THE REVOLUTION.

White Plains, Gen. Charles Lee had been left near the latter place with his division of about three thou- sand men. Gen. Washington, on reaching his halting- place at Hackensack, wrote at once to Gen. Lee re- questing him to move his command to the west side of the river and join him without delay. Lee having taken no notice of this request, an order to the same effect was transmitted to him from headquarters ; and when it was found that he still lingered, the order was repeated in the most peremptory terms. In obedience to this second order, but with apparent reluctance, he moved his division and crossed into Jersey, but his march was so dilatory that three weeks were consumed by him in bringing his force to Morristown .* From that place his division moved slowly on towards the southwest, and in the evening of the 12th of December the troops bivouacked at Vealtown (now Bernardsville), Somerset Co. The general, however, did not make his headquarters at that place, but passed the night, with only a small guard, at the public-house of Mrs. White, at Basking Ridge, some two and a half miles distant from the main body of his force ; and there, in the morning of the 13th,t he was made prisoner by a detachment of British cavalry under Col. Harcourt. The manner in which the capture of the general was effected is thus told in Wilkinson's " Memoirs" :

"Gen. Leo wasted the morning in altercations with certain militia corps who were of his command, particularly the Connecticut Light- horse. One wanted forage, one his home shod, one his pay, and a fourth his provisions ; to which tho general roplied, 'Your wanty aro numer. ons, but you have not mentioned the last ; you want to go home, and shall bo indulged, for you are no good here.' Several of them appeared in large full-buttomed perukes and were treated very Irreverently.

" The call of the mljutant-general for orders also occupied some of his time, and he did not sit down to breakfast before ten o'clock. Gen. Lee was engaged in answering Gen. Gates' letter, and I had risen from the tablo and was looking out of an end window, down a lane, about ono hundred yards in length, which led to the lonne from the main road, when I discovered a party of British turn the corner of the nvonne in full charge. Startled at this unexpected appearance, 1 exclaimed, ' Here, str, are the British cavalry.'-' Whero?' asked the general, who hind signed the letter on the instant .- ' Around the house,' for they hnd opened fles and encompassed the building. tien. Lee appeared ularmed and yet collected, and his second observation marked his wolf-possession : ' Where Is the guard? Dumn the guard! Why don't they Are?' and

. " It is evident," says Iarsing, " from Lee's conduct, and the tenur of his letters at that time, that it was not so much a spirit of determined disobedience which governed his actions as a strong desire to net indo- pendent of the commander-in-chief and perform sumo signal service which would redound to his personal glory. Ho was ambitions as ho was impetuous und bruve. lle hud endeavored, but in vain, to induce Gen. Heath, who was left in command at Peekskill, to let him have a detachment of one or two thousand men with which to wwwrate. Heath refused to vary from his instructions, and it was well that he did. Washington continued to urge ler to form n junction with him; yet, as late as the 11th of December, two days after the passage of the Dela- ware, a letter written to Washington by Leo at Morristown hluted nt various contemplated movements, not one of which referred to a june- tion of forces. This was the last letter Washington received from law , during his march. Two days afterwards, while pursuing his slow and reluctant progress towards the Delaware, Leo was taken prismer."

+ Gordon, in his " History of New Jersey," p. 225, says the capture of Gen. læs was made on the 12th. Dr. Medler, in his " Centennial Illa- tory of Somerset County," p. 135, mentions it as having occurred on the

after a momentary pause he turned to sue and said, 'Do, vir, ree what has become of the guard,' The woman of the house at this moment en- tered the room and propose to him to conceal himself in a bed ; which he rejected with evident disgust. I caught up the pistol which lay ou the talde, thrust the letter he had been writing in my pocket, and passed Into a room at the opposite end of the house, where I laul seen the guard In the morning. Here I discovered their arms, but the mon were absent. I stepped out of the door and saw the dragoons chusing them in different directions, and, receiving u very uncivil salutatiou, I returned iuto tho

" Too inexperienced immediately to penetrate the motives of this en- terprise, I considered the rencontre accidental, and, from the terrific tules spread over the country of the violence and barbarity of the enemy, I believed it to be a wanton marauding-party, and determined not to dio without company. I accordingly sought a position where I could nut bo appreached by more than one person at a time, and with a pistol in each hand awaited the expected search, resolved to shoot the first and second person who might appear, and then appeal to the sword. I did not long remain in this unpleasant situation, but was apprised of the incursion by the very audible declaration : 'If the general does not surrender in five minutes, I will set fire to the house,' which after a short pause was re- peated with a solemn oath; and within two minutes I heard it pro- claimed, 'Here is the general; ho has surrendered" A general shout ensued, the trumpet sounded the reassembling of the troop, and the un- fortunate Lee, mounted on my horse, which stood ready at the door, was hurried off in triumph, bare-headed, in his slippers and blanket coat, his collar open, and his shirt very much soiled from several days' uso."

Lee was taken by his captors to Middlebrook (Bound Brook), and thence to New Brunswick, whence he was delivered to Lord Cornwallis, who sent him to Gen. Howe at New York. There he was denied the privileges of a prisoner of war, but was treated as a deserter from the British service and placed in confinement on board the frigate "Centi- rion," in the harbor. This charge against him was afterwards abandoned, and he was treated as a pris- oner of war. He was exchanged for the British general Prescott in May, 1778.

It is stated that the British colonel, Harcourt, was apprised of the location and unprotected condition of Gen. Lee's headquarters by an elder in the Presbyte- rian Church at Mendham, a Mr. Mucklewraith, who while traveling on foot on private business passed Mrs. White's inn, learned that the general was there with but a small cavalry guard, and, proceeding on his way, soon after met the cavalry of Harcourt, to whom he imparted the information, and who then forced him to accompany the detachment as a guide to the place. That part of the story, however, which has reference to the compulsion used is not fully authenticated, and appears, to say the least, doubtful. But it is certain that Elder Mucklewraith was not the only one who acted as informer and guide to the British horsemen, for on page 126 of the "Minutes of the Council of Safety of New Jersey, 1777," is found this record:

" Jaines Compton uf Baskingridge, having been apprehended as a dis- affected person, was hrvaght before the Board, and upon his examination confessed that he, being frightened from hume, went over lo Staten Island in May lust, & after continuing there about two months returned home ; Ile almo acknowledged to have been at the takring of Gent Lee, but my s the British Light horsemen forced him to go with them for that parfume, threatening to kill him on refusal. Also James Worth, of the annie place with the s' Compton, having been apprehended on like suspicion, was brought before the Board, A upon examination, by his own Confe- slon, found guilty of going voluntarily into the Enemies' lines npn Staten laland, and after some considerable stay on the said Island, re-

HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

turned to this State ; gives no better reason for this his conduct than the gratifying his curiosity.

" Benjamin Worth, hronght in as the two foregoing, and appearing in the same predicament as the others; The Board considered their case, & agreed to give Each of the three liberty of Entering on board the ves- sels of War of the United States of America, or take a trial for their lives, agreeably to Law."

The charge of the British horsemen on the head- quarters of Lee at White's tavern was made with the sabre only, as they dared not use firearms, fearing to alarm the American troops at Vealtown and on the Pluckamin road. The men of the guard, being sur- prised at a distance from their arms, scattered and fled, but two of them, who, when overtaken by the troopers, refused to surrender, were killed, and their bodies were found to be so horribly gashed and hacked by the British sabres that they could not be removed to the burial-ground, and were therefore interred on the spot where they fell. Gen. Wilkinson, who was with Gen. Lee at the time of the capture, as above noticed, concealed himself in the house until after Harcourt's departure, and then, mounting one of the horses in the stable, rode with all speed to carry the news of the affair to Gen. Sullivan; but, as the cap- tnring force were already many miles on its way towards their lines, pursuit was useless.

The division, or rather the remnant of what had been a division, was now under command of Gen. Sullivan, as next in rank to Gen. Lee. Its march (which was now continued with more rapidity) was from Vealtown, hy way of Pluckamin, to Clinton,* Hunterdon Co., and thence to the Delaware River opposite the mouth of the Lehigh, where it crossed the first-named stream into Pennsylvania. It was marched several miles up the Lehigh, then down through Northampton and Bucks Counties to Wash- ington's army, which it joined on the 21st of Decem- ber. Four regiments of Gen. Gates' troops, who had marched from New York State through the northern part of New Jersey, joined the main army the same day.t

Having been reinforced by the forces of Gens. Sul- livan and Gates and by a considerable number of troops from other quarters, Washington immediately prepared to execute the plan which he had for some time had in contemplation,-viz., to recross the Dela- ware by night and march rapidly to Trenton, in the hope of surprising, and possibly of capturing, the force of about fifteen hundred Hessians which thien oc- cupied that post in winter quarters. His plan also con- templated simultancons attacks by other detachments of his army on the several British posts along the

Delaware below Trenton; but that part which had reference to the surprise of Trenton was regarded as of the most importance, and this was to be under the personal supervision of the commander-in-chief. The time fixed on for its execution was the night of the 25th and morning of the 26th of December, because, knowing the convivial habits of the German soldiers and the universal custom among them of celebrating Christmas with bacchanalian revelry, he believed that in the unheralded visit which he proposed to make in the early morning of the 26th he would find the guards less vigilant than usual, and both officers and soldiers in poor fighting condition, as a result of the previous night's debauch. The plan was an excellent one, and the secrecy with which it was carried out seems re- markable, particularly when it is remembered that the Hunterdon shore of the Delaware at that time was infested by a great number of Tories, all closely watching the movements of the patriots on the other side, and eager to carry in all haste any information they might obtain to the nearest British post.

The means for transporting the troops across the Delaware were furnished by the boats which had pre- viously been collected on that river and the Lehigh. Among those collected for the purpose were sixteen Durhamį boats and four scows, sent down by Gen. Ewing to McConkey's Ferry,? which was to be the place of crossing. There, on the evening of the 25th of December, as soon as the early nightfall of winter had settled down upon hill and river, the troops des- tined for the expedition were mustered in silence and inspected by Washington and his generals. The com- mander-in-chief had expected to land his army on the Jersey side with but little delay and to reach Trenton by midnight, but the river was so filled with masses of floating ice, and the weather was so thick by reason of a storm of snow and sleet which had just com- menced, that it hardly seemed practicable to cross at all; and when it was decided to move forward regard- less of these obstacles, the transportation was found to be so slow and difficult that it was not until nearly four o'clock in the morning that the last of the troops and cannon were landed in safety on the eastern shore. ||

The expeditionary corps, consisting of two thiou- sand four hundred men, with ten pieces of artillery, was marched in a body by way of the "Bear Tav-

# So called because this particular kind of boat was first constructed to transport iron on the Delaware from the Durham furnaces to Phila- delphia. They were very large, flat-bottomed, and rounded at bow and stern, instead of being square at the onds like scows.

¿ Now known as " Washington's Crossing" on the New Jersey side and Taylorsville ou the Pennsylvania side of the river.

I " General Washington (who lind sat in silence on a bechive wrapped in his cloak while his troops were crossing), as they were about to march, enjoined upon them all profound silenee during their march to Trenton, and said to thom, 'I hope you will all fight like men.'"-Raum's History of Trenton. Uriah Slack, William Green, and David Lanning were among those who rendered most efficient service in ferrying the troops across the river.

* It was recollected by old people many years afterwards that while on this march through Clinton forty of Sullivan's soldiers were furnished with breakfast by Mrs. Hope, wife of Capt. Adam Hope, who was himself a soldier of the Revolution and commanded a company of Hunterdon militin at the battle of Monmonth.

f Gordon, in his " Ilistory of New Jersey," dates the arrival of both these corps December 20th.

HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES IN THE REVOLUTION.

ern,"* to Birmingham (between four and five miles from Trenton), where it was halted, and the men took some refreshment.t The force was then divided into two columns,-one, under Gen. Sullivan, taking the river road, and the other, under Gen. Greene, with Gens. Mercer, Stevens, and Lord Stirling, and accom- panied by the commander-in-chief, moving to and down the Scotch road to its junction with the Pen- nington road, and thence down the latter to Trenton. The columns marched very rapidly and in perfect silence under the direction of a number of guides who were familiar with the routes. Among those who acted as guides on that march are mentioned; the names of Col. Joseph Phillips, Capt. Philip Phil- lips, and Adjt. Elias Phillips, of Maidenhead; Joseph Inslee, Edon Burroughs, Stephen Burroughs, Ephraim Woolsey, and Henry Simmons, of Hopewell ; and Capt. JJohn Mott, Amos Scudder, and William Green, of Trenton. It was also desired by Gen. Washington to find twelve men familiar with the country, who would ride in advance of the columns, unarmed and dressed in farmers' clothes, to gain such intelligence as they might of the position of the enemy's outposts, and to prevent any of the numer- ous Tories who infested the vicinity from carrying news of the advance into Trenton. For this hazar- dous service only three volunteers could be found, and they were John Guild and John Muirheid of Hopewell, and David Lanning of Trenton.

The march of the two columns was so well planned and ordered that both reached the enemy's outposts at Trenton at almost exactly the same time, Sullivan coming in from the west and Washington and Greene from the north. At a few minutes before right o'clock? the Hessian encampments came into view, and, at the sight, Washington, riding to the head of the troops and pointing with his sword towards Trenton, shouted, "There, soldiers, you see the enemies of your country, and now all I have to ask is that you remember what you are about to fight for. March !" They moved

* " The road which leads from McConkey's Ferry (now Taylorsville) runs northeast, and one and a quarter miles from the river it crowd the river road at the Hear Tavern, eight miles from Tresiton; two miles far- thor it crosses tho Scotch rond, seven miles from Trenton. From the Beur Tavern, on the river road, to Birmingham was three and a half miles, nud from Birmingham to Trenton four and a half miles. From Birmingham across to the Scotch road where it bende to the east is about one mille; from this point to Its junction with the Pennington rond is two nud a quarter miles; and from thonce to Trenton one mile."-Raum's History of Trenton,

+ "Gen. Washington with his army halted at the house of Benjamin Moore at Birmingham and ate a piece of mince-plo nad drank a glass uf rider. His men niso partook of some refreshments before marching into Trenton."-Ibid.

¿ Washington in his official report of the Trenton Bight sall, "The upper division arrived at the enemy's advanced pot exnelly at eight o'clock ; and In three minutes after I found from the fire on the lower roud that that division had also got up. The out-guarda mundo but a stull opposition, though, for their ammabers, they behaved very well, keeping up a constant retrenting-fire from behind houses. We presently anw thelr main body formed, but from their undtions they seemed nudle- termined how to act."

forward with great impetuosity, drove in the outposts, and in a few minutes had possession of all the British artillery. The brave Col. Rahl, the Hessian com- mander, surprised, and not yet recovered from the effects of his Christmas potations, rushed frantically out of his quarters and mounted his horse to form his men for defense, but he almost immediately received a mortal wound ; | and, as further resistance then ap- peared hopeless, the place with its troops (except such as had escaped and fled towards Princeton and Bordentown) and military stores surrendered to the American commander.

An account of the Trenton fight ( for it could not with propriety be termed a battle, in view of the slight resistance made by the enemy and the very in- significant loss sustained by the Americans) was soon after published by order of the Continental Congress, having been transmitted to that body by the New Jersey Council of Safety with the explanation that it was furnished by "an officer of distinction in the army." Following is the account referred to :

" HEADQUARTERS, NEWTOWN, BUCKS COUNTY, " December 27, 1776.

" It was determined some days ago that our army should pass over to Jersey at three different places and attack the enemy. Accordingly, about two thousand five hundred men and twenty broas field-pieces, with His Excellency General Washington at their head, and Major-General Sullivan und General Greene in command of two divisions, passed over on the night of Christmas, and about three o'clock in the morning were on their march by two routes towards Trenton. The night was Bleety and cold, and the rouds so slippery that it was daybreak when we were two miles from Trenton. But, happily, the enemy were not apprised of our design, and our advanced parties were on their guard, at half a milo from the town, where Gon. Sullivan's and Gon. Greene's divisions came Into the same road. The guard gave our advanced parties several smart fires us we drove them, but wo soon got two fiehl-pieces at play, and several others in a short timo, and one of our columns pushing down on the right, while the other advanced on the left, into the town. The enemy, consisting of about one thousand five hundred Hessinus, nuder Col. Rahl, formed and nudde some smart fires from their musketry and wix field-pieces; but our people presved from every quarter and drove them from their cannon. They retired towards a field behind a piece of woods, up the crock from Trenton, and formed in two bodies, which I expected would have brought on a start action from the troops who had formed vory near them ; but at that instant, as I came in full view of them from the back of the wood, with His Excellency Gen. Washington, an offer informed him that one party had grounded their arms and sur. rendered prisoners. The others soon followed their example, except a part which had got off, in the hazy wenther, towards Princeton. A party' of their light-horse made off on our first appearance.

" Too much praise cannot be given to our officers and men of every regiment, who seemed to vie with each other : and by their activo and spirited beivier they son put an honoralde issue to this glorious day.

i " Colonel Rabl, the Hossian commander, whose headquarters were at the City Tavern. corner of Warren and Bank Streets, opposite Still's Mivy, wie mortally winumled during the early part of the engagement, hing shot from his horse while endeavoring to form his dismayed and disordered trois. When, supported by a file of sergeants, ho presented bis aword to Con. Washington (whose countenance beamed with com- plureney at the success of the day), he was pale and bleeding, and in bruken accents seemed to implore the attention which the victor was well dispward to bestow upon him. He was taken to his headquarters, where he died."-Raum's History of Trenton.

The shot that killed Rahl was sold to have been fired by Cot. Frederick Frelinghuysen, of Summerset County.

tion. Washington, however, in his report said: " But the quantity of lee madly that night impeded the prasage of the bonte so ninch that it was three o'clock before the artillery could all be got over, and near four before the troops took up their Hne of march."

HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

I was immediately sent off with the prisoners to McConkey's Ferry, and have got about seven hundred and fifty safe in town and a few miles from here on this side of the ferry,-viz., ono lieutenant-colonel, two majors, four captains, seven lioutenants, and eight ensigns. We left Col. Rahl, the commandant, wounded, on his parole, and soveral other officers and wounded men, at Trenton. We lost but two of our men that I can hear of,-a few wounded,-and one brave officer, Capt. Washington, who as- sisted in securing their artillery, wounded in both hands."*

From a narrative detailing events of the Trenton fight, and published in 1781 in the Pennsylvania Journal, the following is extracted :

" Abont eight o'clock in the morning an attack was made on the picket-gnard of the enemy. At half-past eight o'clock the town was nearly surrounded, and all the avenues to it wero seized except the one left for Gen. Ewing; to occupy. An accident here liked to have deprived the American army of the object of their enterprise. The commanding officer of one of the divisions sent word to Gen. Washington, just before they reached the town, that his ammunition had been wet by a shower of rain that had fallen that morning, and desired to know what he must do.# Washington sent him word to "advance with fixed bayonets.' This laconic answer inspired the division with the firmness and courage of their leader.

"The whole body now moved forward in sight of the enemy. An awful silence reigned in every platoon. Each soldier stepped as if he carried the liberty of his country upon his single musket. The moment was a critical one. The attack was begun with artillery, under com- mand of Col. Knox. The infantry supported the artillery with firmness. The enemy were thrown into confusion at evory quarter. One regiment attempted to form in an orchard, but was soon forced to fall back npon the main body. A company of them entered a stone house, which they defended with a field-piece judicionsly posted in the entry. Capt. Waslı- ington advanced to dislodge them with a field-piece, but, finding his men exposed to a close and steady fire, he suddenly leaped from them, rushed into the house, seized the officer who had command of the gun, and claimed him as a prisoner. His men followed him, and the whole com- pany were made prisoners. The captain received a ball in his hand in entering the house. In the meanwhile, victory declared itself every- where in favor of the American arms."

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History of Hunterdon and Somerset counties, New Jersey : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 13

Author: Snell, James P; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885 Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck Number of Pages: 1170

Author: Snell, James P; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1170