“They answered him with three cheers ...": New Jersey Brigade Losses in the Monmouth Campaign, 17 June to 6 July 1778 (original) (raw)
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1778 Nine Month Levy Statistics Out of 266 pensions found 26 men (9.5%) claimed prior service in the Continental forces. Eight served in the 1st New Jersey Regiment of 1776; one in the 2nd New Jersey; ten in the 3rd New Jersey; two in Thompson's Rifle Battalion; one in the 3rd Pennsylvania Battalion; one in the 5th Pennsylvania Battalion; one in the 1st New York Battalion of 1776; one as an artificer and one with the Pennsylvania State Navy. This does not include a large number of men who saw varied service with the militia of the State of New Jersey many of whom saw some limited combat. Of sixteen men who stated the location where they joined the army nine joined at Mount Holly, New Jersey, six at Valley Forge and one at Trenton. (Breakdown as follows: 1st New Jersey, two men joined at Mount Holly, four at Valley Forge; 2nd New Jersey, two joined at Mount Holly, one at Valley Forge; 3rd New Jersey, four men joined at Mount Holly, one at Valley Forge, one at Trenton; 4th New Jersey, one man joined at Mount Holly.)
Events Following the Battle of Monmouth, late June and July 1778
Contents: 1. “Detached to assist in burying the dead …”: Battle’s Aftermath 2. “The March has proved salutory to the troops.”: Post-Battle: The Continental Army Moves North 3. “A very irregular & ill managed Embarkation.”: Post-Battle: British March to Sandy Hook
A Hill on the Periphery: New Insights on the Battle of Monmouth, June 28, 1778
Draft Submitted to the Bulletin of the Archaeological Society of New Jersey
Americans fought their longest single-day battle during the War for Independence on June 28, 1778 at the Battle of Monmouth in central New Jersey. Extensively studied archaeologically and historically, this important battle showcased Washington’s ability to stand against the British Army and hold the field of battle. Equally important to this success was the role of the New Jersey militia in harassing the British Army in the days before the battle and commanding key, elevated terrain. Such terrain enabled the Americans to advance from the flat plains of Englishtown toward the undulating topography of Monmouth Courthouse. Recent metal detection and military terrain analysis resulted in the archaeological identification and interpretation of an undocumented skirmish that took place between American and British forces at the western, formerly understudied outskirts of the battlefield. Recovered musket balls forced a re-examination and identification of key terrain that may have influenced the course of the battle.
“Return of the Number of Men, Wagoners, Women & Children victualled at Monmouth the 27 & 28th June 1778 inclusive,” (Sir Henry Clinton Papers, vol. 36, No. 5, William L. Clements Library, the University of Michigan); “State of the Forces under . . . Sir Henry Clinton, 3 July 1778,” (Library of Congress, Mss. Division: PRO CO 5:96, p. 77). Edited by Todd W. Braisted, James L. Kochan, Donald M. Londahl-Smidt, and Garry Wheeler Stone. Substantial numbers of women disobeyed orders to travel by ship, instead following the overland. This despite threats they would be drummed from their corps is discovered. The number of permitted women was laid out in army orders dated “Camp at Mount Holly, 20th. June, 1778. … The Regiments to draw for their Women at the rate of two per Company only, and all provisions Returns to be signed by the Commanding Officer.” The preceding order made no mention of children. Army orders dated “Camp at Crosswicks, 23d. June, 1778 … Many of the Women who were sent on board the Transports from Philadelphia being at present with the Army, the Commanding Officers [of corps] will give in returns as soon as may be convenient of the number of such Women in their respective Corps, and they will specify by whose permission those Women rejoined the Army. The Names, Country, and Profession of all followers of the Army, who are not already registered, must be give in to Capt. [Edward] Madden of the 15th. Regiment [who had been Acting Town Major of Philadelphia upon capture of that city], before to-morrow morning. Any person not giving in his [or her?] name according to this order will be liable to be imprisoned.” Still no mention of children, though their numbers do appear on the June 1778 Monmouth return. Too, it is uncertain whether men and women had to register their names, countries and professions with the army and whether this document still may be found in the Clinton Papers at the Clements Library in Ann Arbor. “Journals of Lieut.-Col. Stephen Kemble, 1773-1789; and British Army Orders …” New-York Historical Society (Boston: Gregg Press, 1972), 595, 596, 598.
"What is this you have been about to day?": Forman’s Additional Regiment at the Battle of Monmouth
Colonel David Forman’s Additional Continental Regiment was formed in the spring of 1777, filled largely of men from Monmouth County, New Jersey. Despite being a home-grown organization, Forman was never able to enlist more than a hundred men, far below the number needed to form a complete regiment. By early July 1778, just thirty-eight days after the 28 June Battle of Monmouth, Forman’s Regiment consisted of only four companies, numbering only seventy-four enlisted men; in 1778 a full regimental complement was 553 enlisted men.
Contents 1. Overview 2. New Jersey Troop Experience, 1777 Reenlistees, and the Effect of Short-Term Levies 3. Numbers of Veteran Soldiers in the 1781 New Jersey Regiments, and Barber’s Battalion in the South 4. Combined Statistics for: Giles company, 1st New Jersey, and Helms’ Company, 2nd New Jersey, 1 August 1781 5. Statistics for Capt. Giles Mead’s company, 1st New Jersey Regiment, Dobb’s Ferry, 1 August 1781 6. Statistics for Capt. William Helms company, 2nd New Jersey Regiment, northern New Jersey, 1 August 1781 7. Statistics for Five New Jersey companies in Lt. Col. Francis Barber’s Battalion, the Marquis de Lafayette’s Detachment, Head of Elk. Maryland, 11 April 1781 Appendices 1. Analysis: “Muster Roll of Captain Giles Meads Compy and first Jersey Rigmt. Commanded by Colo Mathias Ogden Taken for the Months January Feby March Aprill June and July 1781” 2. Analysis: “Muster Roll of Capt. Helms Compy. 2d Regt. Jersey … Comd. by Col. Elias Dayton. For the Months of Jany. Feby., March, April, May, June & July 1781” 3. Returns of Five New Jersey Companies in Lt. Col. Francis Barber’s Light Battalion, Head of Elk, Maryland, 11 April 1781 4. Overview: The Use of Short-Term Levies to Fill Continental Regiments, 1777-1782
I have to voice my gratitude to Bob McDonald who shared the manuscript of this diary as well as his transcription-in-progress, way back in the dark ages. From that initial contact, we worked on deciphering seemingly indecipherable words and phrases, clarifying various mentioned names, places, and other references, and attempting to identify the diary author. Bob’s initial kindness resulted in a number of collaborations since then, and a cherished, long, but too often long-distance, friendship. Bob, you are an amateur historian in the best sense, for the love of the subject, a wonderful mentor, and a valued comrade. Contents 1. Identity of the Diary Author 2. Composition of Maj. Gen. William Alexander, Lord Stirling's Division, 1777. 3. New Jersey Field Officers. 4. New Jersey Brigade Strength returns, November and December 1777, and June 1778 5. Diary Transcription Appendices A. “About an hour before day we dashed through the river again …” The October 1777 Schuylkill Expedition B. First-Person Accounts of Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth C. Additional Articles on the New Jersey Brigade and the Campaigns in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, 1777-1778 _______________ Continental Army officer's diaries abound, but quality and content vary. The diary this article is centered on is not remarkable for its content (many others offer considerably more details of battles and everyday life) but for the period it covers. From June 1777 to July 1778 the four New Jersey regiments took part in their most arduous and eventful campaigns of the entire war, fighting in three major battles (Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth), two minor battles (Short Hills and White Marsh), and numerous smaller actions (including Staten Island, August 1777, and Coopers Ferry/Haddonfield, April 1778), besides participating in the White Marsh camp and Valley Forge winter cantonment.
In the late 1980s I took it upon myself to embark on a history of the Second New Jersey Regiment, 1777 to 1783. This, of course, was a Quixotic undertaking, but it took me much farther than originally intended. This pre-internet project led me to visit several research libraries, plus a voluminous correspondence with, among others, librarians at the Clements Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. I was still interested in the Sixth Pennsylvania Regiment, which I also continued to delve into. Those first research aims, though not entirely forgotten, fell into the background, but they impelled me to dig deeper, and write on a number of other related subjects. I dedicate this to original inspirations, and where they may lead you.
Introduction. In the late 1980s I took it upon myself to embark on a history of the Second New Jersey Regiment, 1777 to 1783. This, of course, was a Quixotic undertaking, but it took me much farther than originally intended. This pre-internet project led me to visit several research libraries, plus a voluminous correspondence with, among others, librarians at the Clements Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. I was still interested in the Sixth Pennsylvania Regiment, which I also continued to delve into. Those first research aims, though not entirely forgotten, fell into the background, but they impelled me to dig deeper, and write on a number of other related subjects. I dedicate this to original inspirations, and where they may lead you.