This educational resource is the digital companion to the award-winning exhibit Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall. It teaches the history of slavery in New Jersey to middle school/high school students using fact-based research and primary source documentation. Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall Middle School / High School Education Resource Download Worksheet Request Teacher Resource Book a Class Trip Welcome to Colonial Monmouth! Marlpit Hall in Middletown, NJ stands today as a window into the 18th century. This c. 1762 home and its residents witnessed many of the most exciting, inspirational, and painful chapters in our history, from the fight for independence to the heartbreak of slavery. Join us as we explore what life was like from a unique perspective; through the lens of the enslaved Marlpit Hall. Unbroken Chains: Meet the Taylors of Marlpit Hall Above, the oldest known image of Marlpit Hall, taken in 1886 from the roof of what is now known as the Taylor-Butler house. The house known today as Marlpit Hall was constructed around 1762. Edward Taylor purchased the home in 1771, beginning an unbroken chain of Taylor ownership until 1931. There was also an unbroken chain of slave ownership through at least 1832, where men, women and children worked the fields, grist mill, and inside the house to maintain the Taylor lifestyle. Next > Seeds of Slavery As early as the 1620s, Dutch slave traders were transporting small numbers of enslaved Africans into the New Netherlands, the territory later known as New York and northern New Jersey. But it was not until New Jersey came under British rule in 1664 that the institution of slavery grew into a cornerstone of colonial society. Early English provincial law encouraged settlers to maintain enslaved labor. In one of New Jersey's founding documents, The Concession and Agreement of the Lords Proprietors of the Province of Nova Caesarea, white settlers were granted an additional seventy-five acres of land for every enslaved person they brought with them. Slavery spread quickly in East Jersey. Around 1675, Colonel Lewis Morris expanded his iron works at Tinton Falls in Shrewsbury with the labor of 60 enslaved Africans. His nephew, also Lewis Morris, would become the colonial royal governor of New Jersey. The enslaved labor working at Tinton Manor provided the template for Monmouth County's budding slave society. Sketch of Tinton Manor, c. 1680 By 1720, most enslaved Africans were brought to New Jersey from West Africa through the port at Perth Amboy. Those who came through the West Indies were seasoned for the slave market in a process that exposed them to new foods, disease, language, and agricultural training. Seasoning was a particularly cruel and enduring practice that claimed the lives of countless enslaved Africans. Next > They Were There Click an image to learn about the individual Tom Elizabeth Clarisse York Will Hannah Ephraim T he Taylor family of Marlpit Hall, like many of prominence and wealth in early Monmouth County, relied on slave labor. From around 1780 to 1830, Marlpit Hall was the primary residence of at least ten enslaved African Americans: York, Tom, MaryAnn, Elizabeth, William, Hannah, Matilda, Clarisse, Ephraim, and George. Four were likely born at Marlpit Hall. What is a kitchen family? White families and their enslaved often ate, slept, and worked within very close proximity to one another. Some households referred to enslaved African Americans as their "kitchen family;" a misleading term, given the way these individuals were treated. A n 1818 inventory of Marlpit Hall's upper level kitchen chambers reveals modest provisions for the enslaved: straw beds and bedding, cots, a rocking cradle, and a trundle bed. Wool and linen wheels, as well as a quilting frame, suggest that some women also used this space for spinning and weaving. The "Kitchen Family" Next > Community of "Africa" near present day Matawan Free Black Society Read More I would like to tell you many things...I don't tell all, but I keep it in my heart. Katy Schenck, 1851 Born into slavery in Freehold The enslaved protested their condition daily in different ways. Rather than leaving their African heritage behind, they celebrated it - secretly - through religion, food, and music. Some pretended to be sick or did a poor job of their tasks, such as burning meals, breaking tools, or working slowly. Some staged insurrections or destroyed property. Escaping was also a brave act of resistance. Resistance!! Next > So ... How Do We Know What We Know? The stories of the enslaved at Marlpit Hall were told using primary source documents and material culture. Learn how to analyze and use these tools! Enter the Primary Source Workshop Enter the Primary Source Workshop Many Thanks to Our Advisory Panel : Hank Bitten, Executive Director of the New Jersey Council for the Social Studies Dr. Wendy Morales, Assistant Superintendent of the Monmouth Ocean Educational Services Committee Noelle Lorraine Williams, Director of the African American History Program, New Jersey Historical Commission Upper Elementary Level Resource: Please visit the companion resource for grades 3-5 here , or find it at monmouthhistory.org/colonial-slavery. Professional Development, Clas s Trips or Questions: To arrange a professional development session or a class trip to our award-winning exhibit, Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall , please contact Dana at dhowell @monmouthhistory.org

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The articles in the collection 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth County represent the most complete history of this topic ever assembled. < 250 Home < Previous pg. Next > The Discovery of Samuel Wright's Loyalist Association by Michael Adelberg Virginia’s Gen. Adam Stephen commanded a Continental Army detachment that captured Samuel Wright, leader of a 60-man Loyalist association hoping to join the British Army. - August 1776 - In July 1776, Elisha Lawrence, John Morris, and John Longstreet led associations of Loyalists from Monmouth County to join the British Army at Sandy Hook. Behind them, additional Loyalist associations continued to form. Some assembled and reached the British Army, and some did not. There’s evidence that the disaffected residents at Deal and Shark River were in active communication with British and Loyalists at Sandy Hook in late July 1776. Balthazar DeHart, who gave lengthy testimony about New York Loyalists coming into Shrewsbury Townships, also testified that: There were some vessels of ſorce lying off Shark River, which he supposed were landing some men there to get provision, as he observed flat-bottomed boats with them. And further, this examinant saith that he saw some armed vessels off Deal shore last Saturday, and observed some boats which seemed to be going to said vessels, and that he verily believes that the inhabitants along that shore have communication with the enemy. This is the first mention of the men who would soon form a Loyalist association under Samuel Wright of Squankum. Wright was a known Loyalist. Earlier that year, the Shrewsbury Committee concluded that Wright was a “person unfriendly to the liberties of these Colonies.” It advertised him as an enemy and instructed the militia to “make a strict search and inquiry for arms in his hands... and safely secure them." In March, Wright was summoned to appear before the Monmouth County Committee . He refused the summons and portrayed himself as a pacifist Quaker : I have not done anything worthy of death or bonds, and therefore I do refuse to dy; I think it unreasonable, Gentlemen, to bind a man and not signify the crimes you lay to his charge. Finally, brethren, fling down your arms and fight not against King George, as I have mine, and let us live in love and peace one with the other. Take not up arms against me, but if you do, I do not intend to take mine up against you... Wishing peace and long life, health and salvation to the King and Congress, you and all; I shall remain your friend and servant in all things according to a clear conscience. Samuel Wright’s Loyalist Association By July, the Jersey shore was rife with disaffection. Samuel Breese, Shrewsbury’s militia colonel, resigned his commission due to the “general backwardness of the people… so few ready to turn out, hiding themselves and deserting their homes when called upon to defend the shore." Later that month, the New Jersey Convention directed John Cook of Toms River to “apprehend any persons whom he has reason to suspect of enlisting for the British Army, and take them before the County Committee of Monmouth." But there are no records documenting Cook making arrests. In September, emboldened by British victories over Washington’s army in New York, several dozen disaffected residents from Deal to Manasquan began meeting and plotting to join the British. William Sands of Deal recalled one such meeting at Shark River on September 25. He was “forced to swear secrecy with regards to the proceedings” by Henry Weatherby. Weatherby said that he and others: Were entering into an association and forming a secret encampment in the woods for the purpose of aiding and assisting the British Army and altho’ said associators were not at the time furnished with arms, yet they soon expected them from the British Army. Weatherby also said that when they joined the British Army, Samuel Wright would be their Captain and Weatherby their Lieutenant. At a second meeting in Long Branch, Sands recalled Weatherby forming plans “to seize Colonel [Daniel] Hendrickson, the Reverend [Charles] McKnight, Captain [Stephen] Fleming and sundry others, who were to be conveyed to Staten Island, where they were to receive forty dollars each for each prisoner taken.” Weatherby said that “if discovered… they would rush the said guards, and if possible cut them off, and then push over to Staten Island and join the King’s troops there.” Sands reported that there were at least 60 men in Wright’s association and he named names. His list included several prominent men: two members of the Shrewsbury Township Committee (Gavin Drummond and David Knott), a future New Jersey Volunteers officer (Thomas Leonard), and two men who would become infamous Loyalist partisans (Philip White and Richard Lippincott). Sands also claimed the group was being secretly aided by “Col George Taylor of Middletown.” Samuel Knott also gave two lengthy depositions. He recalled Weatherby asking “if he would consent to join him and a certain party with which he was engaged.” Knott said he “chose to take time to consider it." At the second meeting, Knott recalled Wright and Weatherby explaining that they were establishing a company of men that “were to join Colonel John Morris in the British service as soon as Morris should land, and assist him in subduing the country to the king of Great Britain." Further, Wright said, “they intended to surprise & disarm the guards, and go in boats to the Hook... sd Wright was at the same time armed with gun & pistol, and said he would see the time where he dare walk the road when the damned rebels dare not show their faces." Knott also named names and estimated Wright’s association at 60 men. The last days of Wright’s insurgency are revealed in depositions taken in November 1776. On November 19, Shrewsbury’s Magistrate, John Longstreet, took a number of depositions from men in Wright’s party who were now in the custody of Colonel Daniel Hendrickson. The depositions describe Wright enlisting men into the New Jersey Volunteers. Theophilus Bennett, for example, recalled signing "the muster roll... to join John Morris and the regulars when they should land" and accompanying Wright when he was seeking additional signatures. Samuel Knott corroborated Bennett’s account, but said he did not sign the muster roll despite being asked “sundry times.” He described a secret encampment in the woods where Wright had the muster roll laid out on a haystack for me to sign. William Smith deposed that: Weatherby asked this deponent whether he would sign for good Government, afterwards they went into the woods where they met Samuel Wright, when sd Wright offered sd deponent a piece of paper with a number of names wrote thereon, and asked him whether he would put his name on sd paper, the sd Wright told the deponent that if he told of their proceedings, death would be his portion. Two of those deposed, Samuel Knott and Jeremiah Bennett, discussed bounties being offered for enlisting. Knott recalled that "Wright's enlistment roll did contain the following… that each subscriber to be allowed eight shillings for subsistence and ten pence per day for wages, and at the end of the rebellion were to have fifty acres of land." Jeremiah Bennett, recalled that "Wright promised... he should have in reward near 200 acres." In early November, Wright’s men assembled in the woods near the shore, while Wright and twelve other men went off in a boat for Staten Island – apparently to return with a ship that would take them to the British. However, Wright’s boat cast ashore at Point Comfort (Keansburg) where it was noticed by Virginia Continentals stationed along the Raritan Bay shore. The Loyalists were taken on November 14. The Capture of Samuel Wright On November 22, General Adam Stephen, commanding the Virginians, wrote Governor William Livingston about “the parcel of Tories” he captured. They were “forming a secret encampment in the woods for the purpose of aiding and assisting the British Army." Stephen suggested having the Tories join the Continental Navy or offering them "some other form of punishment that will be useful to the State. Insignificant as they are, should they be permitted to return, the soldiery would put them to death." Wright and twelve other prisoners were temporarily put under the care of the Monmouth militia’s Major Thomas Seabrook. But the prisoners could not stay in Monmouth County. Charles Petit of the Governor’s Privy Council, explained that the “regular passage of intelligence which has hitherto subsisted between our secret and avowed enemies” in Monmouth County would make it impossible to secure Wright there. He suggested confining Wright and his men in Sussex County in northwest New Jersey. On December 7, Governor Livingston sent five of Wright’s men to John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress with a letter about half of Wright’s party: The prisoners sent to wit: William Valentine, Andrew Wilson, Benjamin Wilson, John Jones & Henry Weatherby were sent hither last week by Genl. Adam Stephen at Amboy -- the first four named are charged with assisting the enemy in endeavoring to get off a vessel which ran on shore some time ago at Point Comfort in Amboy Bay, and giving them intelligence respecting the military stores in this State; Weatherby is charged with having engaged in the King's service as a Lieutenant and enlisting or endeavoring to enlist men in Monmouth County in said service. It is thought unsafe to keep them in this State at present. I am therefore to request that Congress will give orders for their being kept in safety. Some of Wright’s men would ultimately end up jailed in Frederick, Maryland along with a number of Monmouth Loyalists captured by David Forman in late November. It is unclear why Wright was not shipped to Philadelphia with his compatriots, but he would resurface as a dangerous Loyalist partisan later in the war. In October 1778, Wright was one of seven Monmouth Loyalists to have a bounty placed on his head ($100). This was after a string of brutal robberies and a murder in Shrewsbury Township. The other men in the bounty notice included a number of so-called Pine Robbers , including the notorious Jacob Fagan. Related Historic Site : Township of Ocean Historical Museum Sources: Proceedings of the Committees of Freehold and Shrewsbury, Proceedings of the New Jersey Historical Society, First Series, 1846, pp. 195; DeHart’s statement is in Peter Force, American Archives: Consisting of a Collection of Authentick Records, State Papers, Debates, and Letters and Other Notices of Publick Affairs (Washington, DC: U.S. Congress Clerk's Office, 1853), 5th Series, vol. 1, p 602-3; Dennis P. Ryan, "Six Towns: Continuity and Change in Revolutionary New Jersey, 1770-1792" (Ph.D. diss., New York University, 1974) p 193; Monmouth County Historical Association, Curator's Files: "Local Facts about the Revolutionary War Made Public"[Franklin Ellis, The History of Monmouth County (R.T. Peck: Philadelphia, 1885), p138-9; Minutes of the Provincial Congress and Council of Safety of New Jersey (Trenton: Naar, Day, and Naar, 1879) p 497; Peter Force, American Archives: Consisting of a Collection of Authentick Records, State Papers, Debates, and Letters and Other Notices of Publick Affairs (Washington, DC: U.S. Congress Clerk's Office, 1853), 5th Series, vol. 6, p 1641; Franklin Ellis, The History of Monmouth County (R.T. Peck: Philadelphia, 1885), p138; Peter Force, American Archives, (Force and Clarke: Washington, DC, 1837) 4th series, vol. 6, p 1654; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, James Cornelius; Carl Prince, Papers of William Livingston (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1987) vol. 1, pp. 312-5; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives and History, Council of Safety, Deposition of William Sands; New Jersey State Archives, Collective Series, Revolutionary War documents, #32 Samuel Knott deposition; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, Henry Weatherby; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, Examination of Sundry Persons; Massachusetts Historical Society, William Livingston Papers, Minutes, Lord Stirling (Charles Pettit); New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, Henry Weatherby; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, Examination of Sundry Persons; Massachusetts Historical Society, William Livingston Papers, Minutes, Lord Stirling; Dennis P. Ryan, "Six Towns: Continuity and Change in Revolutionary New Jersey, 1770-1792" (Ph.D. diss., New York University, 1974) p 178; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, Examination of Sundry Persons; Carl Prince, Papers of William Livingston (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1987) vol. 1, p 186, 182, 315 note. William Dwyer, The Day is Ours! An Inside View of the Battles of Trenton and Princeton (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1998), p38. Harry Ward, Major General Adam Stephen and the Cause of American Liberty (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 1989) pp. 146-7; New Jersey State Archives, Bureau of Archives of History, Council of Safety, box 1, document #34; National Archives, Papers of the Continental Congress, reel 82, item 68, #107. Library of Congress, Peter Force Collection, series 7C, box 31, folder 2, 68:155; New Jersey State Archives, Supreme Court Records, #33977; Princeton University, Firestone Library, CO387, Barricklo Coll., box 1, folder Miscellaneous; David Bernstein, Minutes of the Governor's Privy Council, 1777-1789 (Trenton: New Jersey State Library, Archives and History Bureau, 1974) p 91-2. Previous Next

The articles in the collection 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth County represent the most complete history of this topic ever assembled. < 250 Home < Previous pg. Next > William Marriner and John Schenck Raid Brooklyn, New York by Michael Adelberg In June 1778, twenty men in two boats left Middletown Point and rowed through the night. They landed in Brooklyn where they took two Loyalists and four slaves, and liberated two prisoners. - June 1778 - Throughout the Revolutionary War, New York City was the hub for the British Army in America. To maintain the army, continuous re-supplying was necessary and most supplies entered New York Harbor via Sandy Hook. This created an opportunity for American sailors to prey on supply ships and boats in the narrow sea lanes that led into New York Harbor. State governments issued “Letters of Marque” that licensed ship captains to act as privateers with the ability to seize British and New York-bound vessels. But, along the Monmouth County shore, most of the maritime actions against the British were not conducted by licensed privateers. As the war progressed, local boatmen went from opportunists preying on disabled ships to deliberate attackers of British assets. The first of these boatmen to launch a New Jersey Government-authorized attack behind British lines was Wiliam Marriner. Historian Richard Koke described Marriner as a shoemaker from New Brunswick, though some antiquarian sources suggest he lived as a boatman at Middletown Point. Marriner is also identified as a New Yorker in a 1778 letter. All might have been true: men in the maritime trades often changed vocation and location based on the season or opportunity. The Marriner-Schenck Raid of Brooklyn On May 21, 1778, the New Jersey Council of Safety authorized Marriner to lead a raid against Flatbush, Brooklyn, to capture prominent Loyalists: Agreed, that William Marriner have permission to call upon… a number of volunteers & to proceed to Flatbush to bring off Mr. [Theophilus] Bache, Mr. [David] Matthews, Major [James] Moncrieffe and as many others as he shall think proper. However, Marriner needed a party of volunteers to take this dangerous mission with him. The punishing raid against Middletown Point, in which Loyalists targeted and burned the vessels of boatmen, gave Marriner the volunteers he needed. Marriner teamed up with a Lieutenant of a local militia company, John Schenck; they, with twenty men, rowed through the night to Brooklyn in two barges. The Marriner-Schenck raid of Brooklyn was anticipated by Colonel Matthias Ogden of the New Jersey Line. On April 9, he wrote George Washington: I have received such certain intelligence of the situation of our Officers that are prisoners on Long Island [Brooklyn], that I think a landing might be effected there in the night, & that between twenty & thirty of our Officers might be brought off with very little risque—I would propose embarking with about thirty men in three row boats, at, or near Middletown Point, tis eighteen miles from thence to New Utrecht bay where I would land, from the place of landing to New Utrecht town is one quarter of a mile, I would there seize the small militia guard kept for the purpose of giving the alarm. Ogden was never authorized to raid Brooklyn, but his plan likely circulated and promoted the idea of attacking Brooklyn from Middletown Point. On June 11, the New Jersey Gazette reported briefly on the Marriner-Schenck raid against Brooklyn "from Middletown Point to Long Island in order to take a few prisoners from Flatbush.” They “returned with Major Moncrieffe and Mr. Theophilus Bache” and “four slaves and brought them to Princeton." The report noted that the raiders also went to the house of Mayor David Matthews, but he was in Manhattan, so he could not be taken. The New York Gazette , a Loyalist newspaper, corroborated this report and added the detail that the raiding party apparently plundered the house of William Nichol, Esq. As the first raid of its type against Brooklyn, the Marriner-Scheck raid drew excited commentary. An anonymous New York Loyalist wrote: It is perhaps the most extraordinary circumstance which ever took place: a party of men to land on a clear evening, pass five miles on a public road, by great numbers of houses, enter a town, take off two of the principal inhabitants and return and embark unmolested -- it is not a pleasant telling story. Alexander Graydon, a captured Continental Army officer detained in Brooklyn, was freed by Marriner’s party. He wrote: “One Marriner… made a descent with a small party on the Island, with the view of getting Matthews in his clutches." Marriner did not take David Matthews, but did capture Major Moncrieffe and Theophilus Bache. He also liberated Graydon and another officer, Colonel Forrest, "by means of his magical power.” Graydon said Marriner’s party "consisted of twenty militiamen, in two flat-bottomed boats.” Graydon further discussed Marriner’s raid and his risky escape: At his landing on Long Island, he left his two boats under guard of five men, while he visited the interior; but these five men, hearing a fire, which was kept upon us by the Flatbush guard, concluded that Marriner was defeated and taken; so, without further ceremony, they took one of the boats and made their escape. The other boat, as we reached shore, was going adrift; we were much crowded into her, but it fortunately was very calm, otherwise we could not have weathered it. Graydon claimed that Marriner previously had been captured and jailed in New York. He "had long been confined and cruelly used [by Matthews]… and knew him personally." Nathaniel Scudder, a member of the Continental Congress but in Freehold at the time of the raid, reported on the raid to Elias Boudinot (the Commissary of Prisoners for the Continental government): He [Marriner], with a party of Monmouth militia, last Saturday night passed over to Long Island, and surprised the town of Flatbush - brought off Major Moncrieffe and Theophilus Bache – a Continental Captain who was prisoner there, & 4 Negroes, without any loss on his side, having performed the whole movement in about ten hours. The Major and Mr. Bache are at Mr. Livingston's [Gov. William Livingston] in Princeton & really look silly enough. The Brooklyn Loyalists, Bache and Moncrieffe, did not stay in Princeton for long. They were exchanged in July. The success of the Marriner-Schenck raid led to similar actions later in the year. In September, a Monmouth militia captain, Samuel Carhart, led a small raid against Brooklyn in which he sacked the houses of two Loyalists, Jacob Carpenter and Wiliam Cook. In October, Marriner, now carrying a Letter of Marque from the State of New Jersey, led another raid against Brooklyn. He would again capture two prominent Loyalists. This raid and Marriner’s exploits as a privateer are the subject of another article. Related Historic Site : The Lott House (Brooklyn, New York) Sources : Anonymous Account in Richard J. Koke, "War, Profits, and Privateers Along the Jersey Coast," New York Historical Society Quarterly, vol. 41, 1957, p 295; Nathaniel Scudder to Elias Boudinot, Boudinot, J. J. (ed.). The Life, Public Service, Addresses, and Letters of Elias Boudinot, (New York: Da Capo Press, 1971) vol. 1, p 174; Matthias Ogden to George Washington, The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 14, 1 March 1778 – 30 April 1778, ed. David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2004, pp. 440–441; Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey 1775-1776 (Ithaca: Cornell University Library, 2009) p 239; Library of Congress, Early American Newspaper, New Jersey Gazette, reel 1930[ Kenneth Scott, Rivington's New York Newspaper: Excerpts from a Loyalist Press, 1773-1783 (New York: New York Historical Society, 1973) p 127; Archives of the State of New Jersey, Extracts from American Newspapers Relating to New Jersey (Paterson, NJ: Call Printing, 1903) vol. 2, p 320; Alexander Graydon, Memoirs of His Own Time: With Reminiscences of the Men and Events of the Revolution (Nabu Press, 2010) p316; Kenneth Scott, Rivington's New York Newspaper: Excerpts from a Loyalist Press, 1773-1783 (New York: New York Historical Society, 1973) p 152. Previous Next

The articles in the collection 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth County represent the most complete history of this topic ever assembled. < 250 Home < Previous pg. Next > Richard Lippincott as an Active Loyalist Partisan by Michael Adelberg Richard Lippincott was the most active Monmouth Countian in the Associated Loyalists. In 1781, he kidnapped a prominent non-combatant at Toms River in addition to other incursions. - April 1781 - As noted in prior articles, the Associated Loyalists were a paramilitary group of Loyalist refugees who sought to punish Whigs (supporters of the Revolution) for real and perceived abuses against Loyalists. Their Board of Directors designated three Monmouth Countians—Thomas Crowell, Clayton Tilton and Richard Lippincott—as “captains.” Over time, however, Lippincott emerged as the most active and menacing Associated Loyalist to Monmouth County Whigs. In March 1781, he led an attack on the Monmouth shoreline , and his partisan activities continued afterward. Just two weeks after bringing the ship, Hannah , back from Little Egg Harbor, Lippincott was back in front of the Board of Directors. On April 7, the Board’s minutes record: Captain Lippincott informed the Board that Nathaniel Wardell, as associator of his company, was taken prisoner the 30th of March last, by a party of rebel twelve-month men [ State Troops ], who stripped & otherwise ill used him - he also informed that some of his people had just taken a noted rebel prisoner. This documents that at least a few of Lippincott’s men were active in Monmouth County in early April. On May 15, the prize money from the Hannah taken by Richard Lippincott in March was divided: 10% for the Board's charity fund, 5% for the Board, and remaining to be divided among Lippincott's men (half for officers, half for the rest). It was noted that Lippincott used some of his funds to purchase arms and supplies for his company. Richard Lippincott Returns to Monmouth County On May 26, the Board approved Lippincott’s next proposal. The Board’s minutes record Lippincott’s request “for the party under him to encamp at Sandy Hook." The request was considered and approved two days later: Captain Lippincott, having received his provisions and being ready to proceed on this intended excursion, the Board gave orders to proceed immediately - They also gave him instructions... and a certificate to pass the guard ship without molestation. Unlike Lippincott’s March trip when Lippincott left Sandy Hook and went 60 miles down the Jersey shore, it appears that Lippincott’s stayed near Sandy Hook this time. Documentation is lacking, but this deployment was difficult for Lippincott and it apparently only consisted of small parties raiding areas contiguous to Sandy Hook. On July 9, the Board released a prisoner errantly taken by Lippincott: Captain Lippincott having sent here John Alward as a prisoner, and the Board being informed he is an inoffensive trader . They ordered Mr. Chaloner [keeper of the Provost Jail] to grant him a parole. Lippincott was still at Sandy Hook in late July. His activity was apparently limited by men refusing orders. The Board recorded on July 31: The Secretary wrote a letter to Captain Lippincott, directing him to call on all those of his company who refused to do duty, and if persisted in refusing, to recall his certificate [to be on Sandy Hook] he had given them. The threat to recall Lippincott in disgrace from Sandy Hook, likely prompted him to attempt a more ambitious action. Lippincott apparently went to Toms River with a party too small to battle the State Troop guard there. Instead, Lippincott “man-stole ” one of the village’s Whig leaders, James Randolph. Randolph was the Port Marshal at Toms River and the Dover Township Coroner, but these were civil positions. He was a non-combatant whose primary offense, it appears, was having kin who were officers in the militia and Continental Army. On August 15, Thomas McKean of the Continental Congress wrote to Thomas Bradford, the Continental government’s Commissary of Prisoners, about the capture of Randolph: Colo. Randolph informs me that a party of the enemy, or rather Tories employed by the Board of Directors [Associated Loyalists], as they are called, have on Friday last, taken his brother, James Randolph, an inhabitant of Monmouth County not in arms, as a prisoner; and from their threats has reason to apprehend the most cruel treatment of him; if they do not murder him, on account of his avowed & decided conduct in support of the liberties and independence of his country. McKean asked Bradford to “remonstrate in the warmest manner against this conduct” and threaten “immediate retaliation” for the taking of non-combatants: If such measures are pursued by our inveterate enemies, they will before God and man be solely responsible for the consequences. Our vengeance has been slow, but it may nevertheless be sure. The controversy surrounding Randolph’s capture may have led Lippincott to lay low for the next few months. Richard Lippincott Seeks Prisoner Exchange However, in November 1781, Lippincott sought to negotiate a prisoner exchange . The Board’s minutes record on November 7: Mr. Hendrick Smock to Captain Lippincott, that he might find him out of parole for twenty days to effect the exchange of seven Associated Loyalists now confined in irons in Burlington gaol, and to inform him that five prisoners taken by Capt. Tilton [Clayton Tilton] in New Jersey & now in the Provost [Jail], will also be ironed until the active Loyalists are treated as prisoners of war. Lippincott did not take Smock. Instead, on December 26, Lippincott appeared before the Board to request a Flag "to transport Hendrick Vanderveer, Elisha Shepard, Jacob Shepherd, Joseph Maxson, Jacob Compton and Britton Mount, prisoners of the aforesaid Associated Loyalists, to New Jersey for the purpose of an exchange.” But Lippincott never left New York with the prisoners. On December 27, he informed the Board “that Associated Loyalist prisoners in New Jersey, whom he meant to have exchanged, have been sent to Burlington jail and there confined in irons." It was common practice to move dangerous prisoners from the Monmouth County jail in Freehold jails in safer locations. As a result, the potential exchange was called off. It is probable that Lippincott’s attempts to craft an exchange fell on deaf ears. Anger at the Associated Loyalists in New Jersey was reaching a crescendo in December 1781. Just a week before Lippincott called off the exchange, the New Jersey Assembly endorsed and sent to the Continental Congress a report written by Thomas Henderson of Monmouth County. The report called the Associated Loyalists "a new fangled body of Executioners” and reversed the legislature’s prior disavowal of retaliation as a government policy. It called for eye-for-an-eye retaliation for each abuse committed by Associated Loyalists so that "the vengeance of an injured people may fall on British officers and other citizens whose credit and influence may induce the British Commander in Chief to do justice." As for Lippincott, he apparently avoided additional partisan activity during the winter of 1781-1782 before re-emerging in April to undertake the most notorious act of the final year of the Revolutionary War. Lippincott implemented the brazen hanging of Captain Joshua Huddy in retaliation for the murder of an Associated Loyalist, Philip White, two weeks earlier. Related Historic Site : United Empire Loyalists Heritage Centre Sources : Clements Library, Proceedings of the Board of Directors of the Associated Loyalists, April 1781 p. 5; Clements Library, Proceedings of the Board of Directors of the Associated Loyalists, May 1781 p. 10, 13; Clements Library, Proceedings of the Board of Directors of the Associated Loyalists, July 1781 p. 6, 22; Information on James Randolph is compiled in Michael Adelberg’s Biographical File, unpublished, Monmouth County Historical Association; Thomas McKean to Thomas Bradford, Letters to Delegates of Congress, vol. 17, p524 ( www.ammem/amlaw/lwdg.html ); The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, December 15, 1781, p 58; Clements Library, Proceedings of the Board of Directors of the Associated Loyalists, November 1781 p. 5; Clements Library, Proceedings of the Board of Directors of the Associated Loyalists, December 1781 p. 4-5; Princeton University Library, Microfilms Collection, #1081.133, Board of Associated Loyalists, June 6, June 24, 1782. 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ALLEN HOUSE 400 Sycamore Ave, Shrewsbury - Audio Tour - Take the full audio tour, or focus on your areas of interest! Discover what life was like when the Allen House was the bustling Blue Ball Tavern. Enjoy your visit! FULL TOUR Station One Introduction Station Two Josiah Halstead and Tavern Life Station Three Servants, Slaves, and Services Station Four A Sad Ending Station Five The Revolution, Piracy and A Little Massacre Transcript Continue your tour with nearby historic sites Christ Church and Cemetery The first parish church building was built on this site in 1732-33. In 1738, King George II granted the church its official charter, which is still on display in the church. During the Revolution the church was used as barracks by patriot soldiers. Since it was a symbol of the British Crown, these soldiers shot at the pulpit and at the orb and crown on the steeple atop the church building. The Quaker Meeting House The Shrewsbury Meeting is the oldest rural religious congregation in NJ. Dating back to the mid-1660s. The Meetinghouse was rebuilt in its present form in 1816, and is listed on the state and national registries of historic places. The cemetery features the names of many local settlers, and people are welcome to visit to search for the graves of ancestors. If you have enjoyed this experience, please consider supporting us using the donate button above!

DIGITAL RESOURCES CLASS TRIPS PROF. DEV MCHA is a proud partner of the grades 5-12 History Happened Here initiative. Students are welcome to click here to learn how to use our resources to discover our fascinating Monmouth County history, and how it fits into the larger framework of American history. Education Programs DigRes Digital Education Our award-winning exhibit on slavery in New Jersey, Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall , is now the focus of two grade-banded digital companions, tailored to NJ curriculum standards Colonial History (Upper Elementary level) General Monmouth County History (Intermediate-through-Secondary level) Digital resources are currently only available for laptop/PC viewing CLICK the image to access the resource 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth - For educators and high school level students - In celebration of the 250th anniversary of our nation, MCHA is proud to announce the newest project by author and renowned historian Michael Adelberg. The incredible 250-article collection is the most complete history on this topic ever assembled! It is free and digitally accessible on our website. Visit today to learn about Monmouth as a microcosm of Revolutionary War activity. Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall Using primary sources and artifacts from the MCHA collections and material culture from the historic c. 1756 Marlpit Hall in Middletown, this exhibit tells the stories of seven of the 12 known enslaved individuals who inhabited this residence. The larger story of slavery in New Jersey is also explored through careful research and documentation. Upper Elementary Level Middle School / High School Colonial Kids Education Page This upper elementary resource focuses on the Colonial Era. Discover what 18th-century life was like for the people who lived at the historic Covenhoven House in Freehold! Monmouth County Education Page This intermediate/high school resource focuses heavily on primary sources from the collections of MCHA and beyond to illustrate the rich history of Monmouth County! Colonial era documents, WWII artifacts and ephemera, newspaper articles, and other unique objects help students connect American history to fascinating local history. Trips On-Site Education: Covenhoven House and Monmouth Battlefield! 150 W. Main Street, Freehold, NJ 07728 Grades 2-6 The battlefield books up quickly. Book NOW for 2026, the 250th anniversary of our nation!! This beautiful 1752 historic house museum offers students a window into the Colonial era. Situated on what was known as the Burlington Path, Elizabeth Covenhoven's stately residence was used by General Clinton as the British headquarters in the days before the Battle of Monmouth. Our new exhibit, Choices , will explore the options our various forebears were faced with during the American Revolution. Would you side with the Patriots...or Loyalists? Stay to defend your home, or flee to safety? For the enslaved, the British promised freedom if they fought for the crown...but could this promise be trusted? Students will tour the house and learn about life in the Colonial era through the various historical figures who lived in and visited this home. Groups of students will rotate out to nearby Monmouth Battlefield, the next stop for the British where they clashed with the Continental Army at the Battle of Monmouth. There they will learn about the battle from the park historian and participate in a pre-selected choice of activities, including a battlefield hike, museum scavenger hunt, cannon or musket drill! Covenhoven House Program Only This 90-minute program includes a fun tour of this historic house museum, a hearth cooking demonstration, and a spy code-cracking activity! Students are welcomed into the home by a costumed interpreter, where they will be transported by the sights and sounds of the 18th century as the delicious scent of cinnamon applesauce cooks gently in the kitchen. Dates book very quickly - we cannot stress enough to secure your date early! Hope to see you soon! INQUIRE Recent Review from Mr. Iosue at St. Rose of Lima School: Taking our fifth graders on a trip to the Covenhoven House was a no brainer. As a local historical site I knew this would allow the students to connect on a deeper level. As we toured the home the children were extremely engaged in all of the aspects of colonial life demonstrated to them. The presenters were very knowledgeable and receptive to questions and comments. It was a day that will remain with our students for a long time because of the dedication of the staff. The program was well organized and structured while being exciting and filled with suspense. Every room had a rich history and as it all was explained to us, our fifth graders were able to see the classroom experience come alive. I truly would recommend a trip to the Covenhoven House to any teacher! The kids have not stopped talking about it...from the kitchen to the garden...they loved it all! Thank you to the association! Marlpit Hall Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall 137 Kings Hwy, Middletown, NJ 07748 Program is tailored for attending grade band (click here for pdf) $10 per student grades 3-12 (Approx. 90-minute program) Combination trips with the historic Murray Farmhouse at Poricy Park or the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center are also available! Freehold High School students, 2022 This c. 1762 house features our award-winning exhibit, Beneath the Floorboards: Whispers of the Enslaved at Marlpit Hall . Students Grades 3-6* tour the historic house museum to learn about slavery in New Jersey through the lens of those who were once enslaved at the residence. The personal stories of these individuals are explored, reconstructed through primary sources such as birth records and freedom papers. Students are given the opportunity to investigate the process of creating historically accurate stories using primary sources; they leave the exhibit with a solid understanding of the institution of slavery in New Jersey, and the skills needed to think like historians. Students grades 7-12** are engaged in an in-depth Primary Source Workshop after the guided museum tour to learn about the processes involved in analyzing documents such as birth records, inventories, freedom papers, as well as "for sale" and runaway ads. What can these sources tell us, what questions do they leave us with, and how can we use our understanding of history to develop possible theories? Students leave with the skills to conduct responsible analysis and interpretation of historic documents, and a solid background on the components of slavery in New Jersey. *For a longer program for grades 3-6 , pair Marlpit Hall with the historic Murray Farmhouse at Poricy Park ! Students will gain a fuller understanding of the Colonial era in this dual program. Murray Farmhouse visitors will learn about Patriots and Loyalists in Monmouth County, as well as have a chance for hands-on activities such as churning butter and grinding spices. ** Grades 7-12 can pair Marlpit Hall with a trip to the historic T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center in nearby Red Bank. This dual program is an excellent segue from slavery to an emphasis on the many successes of Black men and women post-1865. INQUIRE Recent Testimonial Saint John Vianney High School History Club recently visited Marlpit Hall in Middletown. This 18th-century farmhouse holds layers of history regarding slavery in Monmouth County. Thanks to the Monmouth County Historical Association, our guided tour delved into the lives of the seven slaves who once called this place home. From their daily routines to the broader narrative of slavery in Monmouth County, every detail was thoughtfully explored. The interactive workshop afterward was equally enlightening, as students engaged with primary sources, including descriptive want ads offering rewards for runaway slaves. The tour was a powerful learning experience. For fellow educators seeking impactful experiences for their students, I can't recommend this tour enough. The insights gained at Marlpit Hall are invaluable for understanding our shared history. I'm already planning future visits with the MCHA and eagerly anticipating the opportunity to incorporate their educational web resources into my early American history lessons. It's a journey worth taking, enriching both educators and students alike. Kenneth Brumbaugh Social Studies Teacher/Saint John Vianney High School Early College Academy, Adjunct Professor/Brookdale Community College Hybrid Virtual Programs! Marlpit Hall comes directly to your classroom with MCHA's hybrid virtual class trip, bringing your students the best of both worlds! This webinar package includes: - A video tour of Marlpit Hall, learning directly from the curators who built the exhibit. A professional educator will then be available after the presentation for a live Q&A, to answer any questions the students might have. - Grades 7-12 will also be guided through the Primary Source Workshop, in which the skills to critically analyze historical primary source documents are developed. - All grades receive professional lesson plans and activities based on the exhibit material - Students are encouraged to explore the free digital education pages above as a pre-or-post trip activity. - MCHA educators are always available by email to any questions that teachers or students may have, so feel free to reach out! INQUIRE PD Professional Development MCHA offers free professional development training for all grade levels. Our PD program is given by professionals in the field, and presents educators with a two-fold approach to understanding the topic on an in-depth level. First, educators experience a curator-led tour of the exhibit, where they gain the background necessary to bolster their confidence level in the subject matter. They then take part in a Primary Source Workshop in which they learn how to analyze documents from the era to extract information in the most useful way, applying curriculum standards into guided classroom discussion. They are prepared with the most commonly asked questions from students, and provided answers according to top scholars in the field. This workshop can be applied in the classroom as well via the digital companion to the exhibit, and has been found useful by ELA educators as well. The program runs approximately 2 hours long. The Elizabeth Van Cleaf Institute is a multi-day workshop that runs during the summer and is by application only. Click here to learn more! Want to book a trip or PD training? Have questions? Suggestions? Compliments (yes, please!)??? Contact Dana at dhowell@monmouthhistory.org Thank you to our advisors and supporters on the Beneath the Floorboards digital programs: Hank Bitten, Executive Director, New Jersey Council for the Social Studies Dr. Wendy Morales, Assistant Superintendent, Monmouth Ocean Educational Services Commission Dr. Jason Fitzgerald, Dr. Rich Veit and Dr. Bill George, Monmouth University Noelle Lorraine Williams, Director of African American Education at the New Jersey Historical Commission The New Jersey School Boards Association The New Jersey Center for Civic Education Many Thanks to Our Education Sponsors and Supporters Larry & Paula Metz Sam & Laurie Landy Bill Mehr

DONATE NOW PLANNED GIVING MATCHING GIFTS SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS DONATE ARTIFACTS Donate Now Anchor 1 The Monmouth County Historical Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We rely on the generosity of our amazing donors to help us do the work of making history relevant and accessible for all ages, from award-winning exhibits to digitally accessible programs to engaging K-12 education. The Association is committed to preserving its outstanding collection. Your gift of any size is greatly appreciated! DONATE 3rd Annual Farm to Fork Honoring Carol Stillwell of Stillwell-Hansen Saturday, October 4th, 2025 We had another phenomenal event this year - thank you to all of our sponsors and supporters. We could not do it without your help! Please click here for the ad journal video. Many Thanks to Our Garden Party Supporters! The 50th anniversary celebration of this MCHA tradition was a wonderful success thanks to all who donated to help us protect and preserve Monmouth County History. Click here to view the ad journal of our supporters. Planned Giving Planned Giving As we look to grow and increase the number of services and programs in our community, we need to build upon our strong base of support through estate and planned gifts. Many loyal donors have included Monmouth County Historical Association in their wills or named the Association a beneficiary of their IRA or other retirement plan. Those who have included the Association in their estate plans can receive recognition today by sending in a simple one-page, non-binding form, located here . For more information regarding bequest intentions or other planned gifts, please contact us at (732) 462-1466 x10 or at seadon@monmouthhistory.org . Please consider including Monmouth County Historical Association in your estate plan. Thank you for your commitment to the Association. Matching Gifts Matcing Gift Did you know many companies offer a matching gift program to encourage philanthropy among their employees? And that some companies will even match to spouses and retirees? By simply completing a matching gift form (on-line or paper), you may be able to double, or even triple, the impact of your gift! Please check with your company’s Human Resources department to see if your compa ny offers a matching gift program. For additional information about Matching Gifts, please email finance@monmouthhistory.org Already have your matching form? Please mail it to: MCHA Attn: Matching Gifts Department 70 Court Street Freehold, NJ 07728 MCHA is a public charity classified as exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The tax ID number is 21-6000082. Sponsors and Supporters Sponsors Your corporate support helps MCHA collect, preserve, and interpret Monmouth County’s rich history and culture while making its resources available to the widest possible audience. Event Sponsorship and Underwriting Be recognized as a community leader through your company’s sponsorship or underwriting of one of the many signature events hosted by MCHA throughout the year. Historic House Museum Sponsorship Your support will help MCHA to preserve and interpret the county’s vanishing architectural heritage through sponsorship of an Historic House Museum. Please contact us at seadon@monmouthhistory.org or (732) 462-1466 for further information. Education Sponsorships Is your organization interested in aligning itself with the education of thousands of students and lifelong learners in Monmouth and Ocean counties? Become an education sponsor today. Contact seadon@monmouthhistory.org or (732) 462-1466 for further information. Corporate Volunteers Help MCHA as a corporate volunteer team. We have numerous opportunities for corporate volunteers. Donate Artifacts Artfacts To schedule an appointment, please contact: Bernadette Rogoff, Director of Collections (732) 462-1466 x17 Email below: We welcome new pieces into our extensive collection! Mail

The articles in the collection 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth County represent the most complete history of this topic ever assembled. < 250 Home < Previous pg. Next > The Disaffection of Rhoda Pew and Murder of James Pew by Michael Adelberg This sketch idealizes the life of Loyalist women behind British lines. Rhoda Pew of Middletown was arrested for visiting her Loyalist husband, exiled to New York, and then widowed after his murder. - November 1777 - Antipathy toward Loyalist refugees was raised to a higher level in fall 1777. Monmouth Countians were killed and wounded in combat a month earlier at the Battle of Germantown and, while hundreds of Monmouth militia were there, several Monmouth militiamen were captured and killed in a clash with Loyalists near Shrewsbury . Dozens of Monmouth militiamen captured at the Battle of Navesink remained in prison a half year after their capture. Along the shore, illegal trade flourished between Monmouth’s disaffected and Loyalists on Sandy Hook. James Pew was a boatman who lived on a midsized farm along the Raritan Bayshore. At some point in 1777, he went over to Sandy Hook and became one of the so-called “London Traders”—disaffected Monmouth Countians who acted as middlemen in the illegal trade between Monmouth County and British commissary officers on Sandy Hook and Staten Island. On November 17, Rhoda Pew, his wife, was indicted by the New Jersey Supreme Court for “voluntarily and unlawfully boarding a sloop of war belonging to the enemy when said sloop was lying off of Sandy Hook." She allegedly spent six days there, likely visiting with her husband. Rhoda Pew was fined and remained at home in Middletown, but her and husband’s Loyalism was now well understood. She may have requested permission to join him behind British lines. On May 29, 1778, Colonel Asher Holmes was directed by the New Jersey Council of Safety to “send the following women to their husbands in the enemy's lines." Rhoda Pew was one of the four women listed. The Murder of James Pew James Pew continued to trade illegally along the Raritan Bayshore where he, according to his wife, “had belonged to one of his Majesty's vessels in the Quarter Master's Department.” On one of his trips, he took some extra time to visit with family in Middletown Township. He was taken prisoner by “a party of rebels.” In 1782, Rhoda Pew wrote about her husband’s fate after he was captured: [He] was carried to Freehold and put into gaol, where he was kept confined for five days, and then put to death by the sentry, who discharged his musket through the wicket hole [in the cell door], and shot the prisoner through the body while he was sitting on the bench before the fire; he then took another musket, and shot him a second time through the body, the first bullet lodged in the chimney back and the second went into the floor. When Rhoda Pew learned that her husband was captured, she risked imprisonment by returning to Monmouth County. She went to Freehold “to carry her husband some cloathes.” There, “she found him murdered as described above and his corpse lying on the floor in prison... this deponent further saith that the rebels never punished the murderer." In a second statement, Rhoda Pew further testified that the murder occurred on November 10, 1778. She was specific about the murderer: He was Murdered by one James Tilley who was Sentry over the deceased at the time; the Coroner's Inquest brought him (Tilley) in guilty of Willful Murder; that he was confined in consequence thereof, but was released within three or four days afterwards, and is now at large. Antiquarian accounts further suggest that James Pew was taken while visiting family on the Middletown shore, and that Tilley claimed Pew was trying to escape when he was shot in his prison cell—which seems improbable. An antiquarian source disagrees with Rhoda Pew’s account with respect to the timing of James Pew’s murder—suggesting the murder occurred in fall 1779. There is no evidence to suggest that James Pew was a violent man and we do not know what motivated Tilley to shoot him twice at close range. James Tilley’s fate is unknown, but there is no evidence of his trial in surviving Monmouth County court records. Similarly, there is no record of Tilley serving in the militia or paying taxes. This suggests that Tilley, to avoid retribution from Loyalists, left Monmouth County shortly after the murder. Or perhaps he changed his name and weathered the rest of the war quietly under an alias. Disposing of the Pew Family Estate The disposition of James Pew’s estate after his death became complicated. In November 1779, the New Jersey Assembly received a petition from Wiliam Pew “and others.” The petition argued that: That the last will & testament of James Pew, deceased, was burned by the enemy in the house of Thomas Henderson, Surrogate for the County, in their passage through this State in the month of June 1778 -- and praying that an authenticated copy of the will, produced to the House, may be confirmed as the last will & testament of James Pew, deceased. Ordered, that the petitioners appear at the next session and present their case, must also advertise their petition, to allow rival heirs the opportunity to present their cases. A new will was presented to the Assembly on November 26. Presumably, it transferred James Pew’s estate to William Pew. The Assembly passed "An Act to Confirm a Copy of the Last Will and Testament of James Pew, late of the Township of Middletown in the County of Monmouth" in October 1780. William Pew chose not to hold onto the estate. The 300-acre estate was advertised for sale in the New Jersey Gazette in January 1782: “The plantation lies very pleasantly situated by the side of the salt water... a good house and barn.” The vulnerability of the estate to British/Loyalist attack was referenced, “it will be very valuable when the British leave New York.” Surviving documents do not state why James Pew’s estate was not seized and sold with other Loyalist estates. Perhaps William Pew, who was apparently a good Whig, was seen as a worthy inheritor of the family’s property. Throughout the estate confiscation process in Monmouth County, exceptions to the normal rules were made for the kin of Loyalists . In April 1782, the hanging of Captain Joshua Huddy led to the court martial trial of Richard Lippincott, the Shrewsbury Loyalist who led the hanging party. Rhoda Pew’s account of her husband’s murder was memorialized on June 9, 1782, as part of that trial (in order to document the abuses committed against Monmouth Loyalists). If not for this trial, James Pew’s murder would have went undocumented and would be forever lost to history. As for Rhoda Pew, as a Loyalist woman behind British lines, she received nothing from her husband’s estate. She likely lived very modestly in New York as a widow without family wealth to draw down. She was illiterate; she signed the deposition of her husband’s murder with an “X.” In April 1783, Rhoda Pew left New York for Canada with three children. Related Historic Site : Museum of the City of New York Sources : New Jersey State Archives, Supreme Court Records, #37510; National Archives, revolutionary War veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - James Pew; Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey 1775-1776 (Ithaca: Cornell University Library, 2009) p 243; Testimony of Rhoda Pew, Library of Congress, Richard Lippincott Court Martial, reel 1, #158-65; Transcript of the Court Martial of Richard Lippincott, http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/halew/Lippincott.html ; Edwin Salter, Old Times in Old Monmouth (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1970) p 38-9; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, November 25, 1779, p 47; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, September 26, 1780, p 273; The Acts of the Council and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (Isaac Collins: Trenton, 1784) p151 Archives of the State of New Jersey, Extracts from American Newspapers Relating to New Jersey (Paterson, NJ: Call Printing, 1903) vol. 5, p 370; David Bell, American Loyalists to New Brunswick: Passenger Lists (Formac, 2015). 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COVENHOVEN HOUSE 150 W Main St., Freehold - Interactive Experience - Take the full audio tour, or focus on your areas of interest! Explore our digital gallery for more insight into the world of the Covenhovens. Please be respectful of the historic structure and refrain from touching the building. Enjoy your visit! FULL TOUR Station One The Property & Family Station Two Architectural Details Station Three Lives of the Enslaved Station Four General Clinton's Arrival Digital Gallery Explore Our Collections Continue your tour with nearby historic sites Monmouth Battlefield State Park The park preserves a splendid rural 18th-century landscape of hilly farmland and hedgerows that encompasses miles of hiking and horseback riding trails, picnic areas, a restored Revolutionary War farmhouse and a visitors center. Old Tennent Presbyterian Church The Covenhovens were parishioners of this very church, still standing today. Travel there to follow in their footsteps! The church has a fascinating history not only in Old Freehold (now Manalapan) but has historic ties to Scotland as well. Further Reading Adelberg, Michael (2010). The American Revolution in Monmouth County: Theater of Spoil and Destruction. Charleston, SC: The History Press. Lender, M. E., & Stone, G. W. (2017). Fatal Sunday: George Washington, the Monmouth Campaign, and the Politics of Battle . Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. Hodges, G. R. (1997). Slavery and Freedom in the Rural North: African Americans in Monmouth County, New Jersey, 1665-1865. Madison, WI: Madison House. Symmes, Frank (1897). History of the Old Tennent Church . Tennent, NJ: J.S. Yard. Transcript If you have enjoyed this experience, please consider supporting us using the Donate button above!

The articles in the collection 250 for the 250th: The American Revolution in Monmouth County represent the most complete history of this topic ever assembled. < 250 Home < Previous pg. Next > Militia Family Suffering After the Battle of Navesink by Michael Adelberg The Sugar House warehouse in New York was converted into a prison that held roughly 500 prisoners. Most of the militiamen captured at the Battle of Navesink were confined here. - February 1777 - By 1777, both the British and Continental governments were struggling to house and feed thousands of captured enemy combatants. The British Army in New York City was faced with the acute problem of holding 4,000 prisoners in a city that was already overcrowded with British troops and Loyalist refugees. Lacking alternatives, the British converted old warehouses and non-seaworthy ships into improvised prisons. These impromptu prisons were horrible places where hundreds died from inadequate food, shelter, and clothing. American prisoners had few beds and blankets. The skimpy twice-a-week prisoner rations (1/2 lb. of biscuit, 1/2 lb. pork, 1/2 pint of peas, cup of rice, 1/2 oz. butter) was rarely fully allotted. Following the defeat at the Battle of the Navesink , more than 70 Monmouth militiamen were put into these miserable jails. Monmouth Militiamen in British Prisons Historian Edward Raser studied 72 Monmouth militiamen captured at the Battle of Navesink. Five died in jail within two months and five others died in prison over the next year. At least seven of these men were married and at least four were fathers. Two of the prisoners were paroled from jail to become tailors for the British Army. The captured officers (Capt. Barnes Smock, Lt. Joseph Brown, Lt. Thomas Cook, Lt. James Whitlock, Ens. Tobias Polhemus) were eventually paroled to private homes on Long Island. Several of the captured militiamen discussed their time in prison in their postwar veteran’s pension applications after the war. Garrett Wikoff recalled his eighteen months of confinement: Together with about seventy other persons, were taken prisoner and carried on board a 64-gun ship then lying near Sandy Hook where he remained three days and three nights closely confined in her hatches. He was then taken, together with his comrades, to New York and imprisoned in the Old Sugar House, as it was then called. He remained there a prisoner to the enemy until the 8th of August 1778. Other Monmouth militiamen offer similar narratives. A few additional details are offered below: James Morris: “he was very sick with small pox, and looked very miserable, his hair was nearly all off his head." Cornelius Vanderhoff: "detained for 18 or 20 months until there was little number [left alive], for want of humane treatment” Matthias Hulse: “confined to the Old Sugar House… remained a prisoner there from the time he was taken, in close confinement, until the 12th day of May, when he was exchanged” Linton Doughty: “was confined for 19 months - for this time, on his return home received pay." Henry Vunck: “suffered while a prisoner great privations… in poor clothing and scanty & unwholesome provisions. Many of the prisoners died in consequence of this treatment.” Elisha Clayton may have had the most interesting recollection. He was “compelled to work at his trade in making clothes for the enemy; while thus employed he watched [for] his opportunity and made his escape, accompanied by a British soldier whom he induced to desert from the enemy.” Attempts to Support the Prisoners The Continental Commissary of Prisoners, Elias Boudinot, sought provisions for the prisoners of war. He engaged John Covenhoven, formerly Monmouth County’s leading delegate in the New Jersey Assembly prior to capture by a Loyalist party on November 30, 1776. Covenhoven signed British protection papers and, after that, he retired from public life. But raising provisions for prisoners of war at Boudinot’s request brought him back into a leadership role. Boudinot wrote Covenhoven on January 17, 1778: I must again beg that you will exert yourself on this occasion, and add a few quarters of beef (say 10 or 12) and 100 bushels of Indian corn -- I enclose two passports for the sloop, and most heartily wish she may go off on the first open weather. Boudinot promised to pay for the provisions that could be raised. Covenhoven’s response has not survived but it was apparently encouraging because Boudinot directed an associate, "I hope you will soon receive a boat load of flour from Middletown Point." Covenhoven further responded on January 30: I have purchased a quantity of wood which is this day setting out for New York with a few lbs. of flour; I have also engaged a quantity of wheat… will be ready when the boat returns. The beef you desired to be sent I have not got & will be difficult to be had; purchased between two & three hundred bushels of rye. Covenhoven noted delays with shipping these goods to the prisoners in the winter because "the boat was froze up" at Middletown Point. Paroled Officers and the Special Status of Capt. Barnes Smock and Lt. James Whitlock Consistent with the social class-focused attitudes of the day, special attention was given to the captured officers. Several were paroled from prison to private homes on Long Island. However, two of the officers, Captain Barnes Smock and Lt. James of Whitlock, were denied this lenient treatment for several months because they had signed British protection papers during the Loyalist insurrections . The harsh treatment of Smock and Whitlock caught the attention of Elias Boudinot. In December 1777, Boudinot compiled a report to Congress titled, "State of Charges Against the Prisoners in the Provost of New-York.” It included this paragraph: Captain Smock and Whitlock discussed entering the service after taking oaths of Allegiance last winter to the King of Great Britain. They acknowledge the fact, declaring their faithful adhesion to their oaths as long as protected, but when the English left the Jerseys, they took the benefit of General Washington's proclamation. If this is a crime, it was equally so in the first instance, after submitting to our Government. Boudinot was not successful in negotiating parole for Smock and Whitlock. In March 1778, he wrote George Washington about Smock and Whitlock and a few other captured New Jersey officers who were denied parole on Long Island. “That having repeated my Applications for the relief of the seven remaining Officers in the Provoost, I could not succeed, and as the objections against the liberation of Smock, Whitlock and Skinner are rather trifling,” Boudinot called for a general prisoner exchange as the best way to help these men. The next month, April 1778, Boudinot and his British counterpart negotiated a "Draft of the Proposed Cartel for Prisoner of War Exchanges." That document lists eleven officers, including Smock and Whitock, who “remain yet unexchanged” as "the objects of particular exception” The cartel proposed to move these eleven men to the top of the list of men to be exchanged: We do hereby specially stipulate and declare, that the aforesaid officers shall be immediately exchanged on the terms of this cartel, for any officers of equal rank, or others by way of equivalent or composition; which have been or shall be delivered in lieu of them. The draft cartel was not immediately executed, but it appears to have helped Smock and Whitlock. A “List of Whig Officers on Parole on Long Island” compiled by Boudinot in August 1778 includes Smock and Whitlock as paroled in Brooklyn. Other documents related to the paroled officers corroborate this. The officers paroled to Long Island received vastly better treatment than the rank & file left in the British prisons, but parole was not without insults and dangers. Two Monmouth militia officers paroled on Long Island, Thomas Little and Tobias Polhemus, petitioned British general James Pattison on August 29, 1778, about “daily and repeated insults” from British troops: This treatment we bore with patience, but...they continued and their brutality [and] carried them so far as to beat us in a cruel manner. They openly declared that they came to our quarters with a formed design to perpetrate these violences and that they were determined to murder us. Attempts to win the exchange of these paroled officers failed more often than not. Lt Thomas Cook, a prisoner on Long Island, wrote to Nathaniel Scudder in August 1780: My brother informs that Lewis Thomson was sent here to effect an exchange, it has answered no valuable purpose to that end, the influence of such men is very little in this place. Had he been of my rank, it is possible it would have been done... I am at a loss to know the reasons why an exchange do not go on for me, the officers in general are in a very disagreeable circumstance [sic]; it is fifteen months since our bond was paid [permitting parole to Long Island] or the last Public supplies were sent to us. Edward Raser noted that the first five militiamen were exchanged in May 1777, probably due to serious illness. Most of the Monmouth prisoners came home as part of the general prisoner exchanges conducted in the summer of 1778. Once exchanged, Barnes Smock returned to the militia as captain of his Middletown company; he was captured again by Loyalist raiders in May 1780. James Whitlock was listed in a 1778 prisoner schedule as “broke parole.” For this offense, he was not exchanged until December 1780. He was probably very ill and died soon after this release. New Jersey Government Provides Relief to Families of Some Captured Militiamen New Jersey leaders sought to help the prisoners and their families. On September 20, 1777, David Forman petitioned the New Jersey Legislative Council for ongoing militia wages to the families of men captured at the Battle of the Navesink; the Council approved the petition on the same day, but apparently lacked the power to appropriate funds. So, in November 1777, Asher Holmes and Nathaniel Scudder petitioned the New Jersey Assembly "setting forth that a great number of militia of the county of Monmouth under their command have at different times been taken prisoner by the enemy, some of whom have perished in confinement, and other in their family are in great distress." They requested relief for the suffering families. It does not appear that the Assembly acted on the petition. However, in March 1778, the New Jersey Council of Safety, on which Scudder served, "Agreed, that there be paid to Col. Asher Holmes, the sum of £120 -- for use of the wives, widows and children, of such militia inhabitants of Monmouth County, who have either been taken prisoners by the enemy or killed in battle, & who appear objects of public charity, to be distributed among them at [his] discretion." Holmes received £120 for the relief of the following "suffering families": James Hibbetts, Peter Yateman, Samuel Hanzey, John Bowes, Abraham Marlat, Nathan Marion, Joseph Davis, William Norris, William Cole, Alexander Clark, Lambert Johnson, and Obadiah Stillwell. Why the families of these men merited relief while others did not was not stated. In June 1781, the New Jersey Assembly returned to the Battle of Navesink. On June 4, it voted 29-1 to give James Whitlock legal title to the estate of his brother, John Whitlock. The next day, the Assembly voted half-pay pensions (£2 S5 per month) to the wives of five men killed at the battle. They were: Isabella Hibbetts [widow of James Hibbetts], Mary Stillwell [widow of Obadiah Stillwell], Elizabeth Cole [widow of William Cole], Mary Winter [widow of James Winter], and Penelope Davis [widow of Joseph Davis]. Perspective By any measure, the Battle of the Navesink was the worst moment of the war for the Monmouth militia and many of the seventy-two men captured and their families suffered for years afterward. However, many other militiamen and their families suffered from militia service at other times for other reasons. A few examples are offered below based on postwar pension application narratives: Job Clayton : “His four older brothers were made prisoners by the refugees and confined many months in the Sugar House, at the City of New York.” William Johnson : "My father, a Whig, was robbed of between five and six pounds of hard money. I myself, was robbed of thirty pounds and my coat, vest and even my shoes.” Rachel Lake , regarding the service of her dead husband, John Smith: “She lost a child in his absence… They were robbed and plundered by a party of Tories one time during the war, and upon another occasion they were robbed of about twenty sheep, which were also driven off by the Tories." Rebecca Shepherd , wife of Captain Moses Shepherd (in the application of John Truax): "She was informed that the enemy intended to take her off, this information caused her to leave her home at night… the refugees took the slay [sic] & horses and brought them off to Sandy Hook." Altche Sutphin , regarding the service of her husband, Derrick Sutphin: “He was called out the same week as the wedding… when a fellow soldier by the name of William Thomson was killed on Middletown Highlands… The wedding party dared not remain overnight at the house, but dispersed early in the evening for fear of the Tories who would be upon them - that the bride remained at his house while the groom, the said Sutphin, was called out in the service." Mary Wall , regarding the service of her husband, James Wall: “She was sometimes left with small children and such assistance as could be secured in the affected state of the country exposed to the ravages of a cruel enemy without any male about the house… the enemy were always willing to make daring inroads into the county to capture those who were obnoxious to them or plunder their houses." Asa Woolley : "He suffered from the cold, his feet were frozen, his eyes much injured, so that he was not able to read for seven years. The injury arose from the flash of a gun when fighting the Enemy... he obtained a furlough from Captain [Richard] McKnight to visit his friends but in a few nights his comrades were taken prisoner, and carried to New York." Related Historic Site : The Prison Ship Martyrs’ Monument (Brooklyn) Sources : Ammerman, Richard, “Treatment of American Prisoners during the Revolution.” New Jersey History, vol. 78 (1960), pp. 263-5; Edward Raser, "American Prisoners Taken at the Battle of the Navesink," Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, vol. 45, n 2, May 1970; William Smith, Historical Memoirs of William Smith: From 26 August 1778 to 12 November 1783 (New York: Arno, 1971) p 321 note; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Cornelius Vanderhoff; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Job Clayton; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Linton Doughty; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans' Pension Application, Joseph Van Note of Ohio, S.11617; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Elihu Clayton; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - John Eldridge; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Matthias Hulce; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans' Pension Application, Garret Wikoff of NJ, www.fold3.com/image/# NJ 28142503; Receipt, National Archives, Revolutionary War Rolls, Coll. 91, p195; Journals of the Legislative Council of New Jersey (Isaac Collins: State of New Jersey, 1777) p111; John Fell's Journal, Brooklyn Historical Society, coll. 1974.225; Elias Boundinot to Congress, Library of Congress, Peter Force Collection, 7E, reel 3, Elias Boudinot Papers; Elias Boudinot to John Covenhoven, Elias Boudinot Letterbook, Wisconsin Historical Society, p63-6; Princeton University Library, CO230, Elias Boudinot to John Covenhoven; List of Officers, New Jersey State Archives, Dept. of Defense, Revolutionary War, Numbered Manuscripts, #3994; Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey 1775-1776 (Ithaca: Cornell University Library, 2009) p 214; Elias Boudinot to George Washington, The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 14, 1 March 1778 – 30 April 1778, ed. David R. Hoth. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2004, pp. 16–24; Elias Boudinot, The Elias Boudinot Letterbook (Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 2002) p114; Draft Prisoner Cartel, The Papers of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, 1768–1778, ed. Harold C. Syrett. New York: Columbia University Press, 1961, pp. 466–472; List of Prisoners, New Jersey State Archives, Dept. of Defense, Revolutionary War, Numbered Manuscripts, #3967; List of Prisoners, National Archives, Collection 881, R 593; Rufus Lincoln, The Papers of Captain Rufus Lincoln, ed. by James M. Lincoln. (Cambridge, MA 1903) p. 29-40; Samuel B. Webb, Correspondence and Journals of Samuel B. Webb (NY: Arno, 1969) v2, p123; List of Captured Officers, National Archives, Collection 881, R 593; Elias Boudinot, Accounts for Prisoners, New Jersey State Archives, Dept. of Defense, Revolutionary War, Numbered Manuscripts, #3976; Thomas Cook to Nathaniel Scudder, National Archives, Papers of the Continental Congress, reel 93, item 78, vol. 5, #499; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, September 14, 1780, p 258; Thomas Little and Tobias Polhemus, Memorial, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Irvine-Newbold Papers, box 77, folder 29; List of Suffering Families, New Jersey State Archives, Dept. of Defense, Revolutionary War, Numbered Manuscripts, #1148; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, November 22, 1777, p 28; Minutes of the Provincial Congress and the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey 1775-1776 (Ithaca: Cornell University Library, 2009) p 214; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, May 22 and June 4, 1781, p 8-32; The Library Company, New Jersey Votes of the Assembly, June 5, 1781, p 34; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Asa Wooley; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - John Smith; National Archives, Revolutionary War Veterans' Pension Application, James Wall of NJ, www.fold3.com/image/# 20365758; National Archives, revolutionary War veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - William Johnson; National Archives, revolutionary War veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - John Truax; National Archives, revolutionary War veterans Pension Applications, New Jersey - Derrick Sutphin. 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