Provisions Taken from Shore Residents for the Continental Army

With more than 10,000 British troops, thousands of sailors, and thousands more Loyalist refugees, the teeming population of Revolutionary War-New York City was in constant need of food. Monmouth County’s long shoreline—20 miles on the Raritan Bayshore and 50 miles of Atlantic shoreline - was also teeming with so-called “London Traders” (Loyalist middlemen who sold goods from New Jersey to the British). Further, the livestock of Whigs (supporters of the Revolution) living near the shore was also vulnerable to capture, as when Loyalist raiders attacked Tinton Falls and took dozens of livestock in June 1779. Keeping provisions secure and away from the shore was, therefore, a continuous interest of New Jersey and Continental leaders.

First Impressments

The first time the New Jersey government took an interest in Monmouth County’s vulnerable livestock was July 23, 1776. Daniel Hendrickson, the Colonel of the Shrewsbury militia, came before the New Legislature to warn that "all stock on the sea coast… be in danger of falling into enemy hands." The Legislature directed Monmouth County’s Revolutionary leaders to “without delay, remove all stock on their coast which may be in danger of falling into the hands of the enemy, back into the country." William Applegate of Freehold, recalled participating in the campaign to take livestock at this time. He wrote: "Marched from Freehold to Middletown to bring off & secure the cattle & c., the British having at that time arrived in the Narrows."

Farmers were given vouchers for the impounded livestock. But the vouchers were to be paid in low value New Jersey or Continental currencies. Clayton Tilton was a shore resident who had cattle taken in 1776. After this and other harassments, he turned Loyalist. Later in the war, he became a captain in the vigilante Associated Loyalists and was indicted for murder in the Monmouth County courts.

In early 1777, Loyalist raiding parties from Sandy Hook began coming into Monmouth County via the Raritan Bayshore. This came to the attention of George Washington, who wrote Governor William Livingston on April 4, 1777: “I think the removal of the provisions in the County of Monmouth within reach of the Enemy (if they make descents) of so much Consequence, that I shall direct Colonel Forman [David Forman] to set about that work as soon as he collects a sufficient force to do it effectually."

Forman dispatched Captain John Schenck to seize the goods of Shrewsbury Township residents. On April 15, Schenck recorded taking a variety of provisions, including guns and wagons:

• Deborah Wardell ("wife of Joseph Wardell absconded”) - 2 horses, wagon, 6 bushels of potato;

• Zilpha Corlies - 2 horses, wagon, gun;

• William Corlies - 2 horses, wagon, gun;

• Jacob Hance - horse;

• Benjamin Corlies - 30 bushels of corn.

One of Schenck’s men, Job Throckmorton, later wrote that in May 1777 he went from "Freehold to Middletown to bring off & secure the cattle, horses & sheep to Freehold, to prevent their capture."

It is probable that other impressments occurred at this time, but documentation is lacking.

Washington and Livingston again considered impounding provisions along the Monmouth shore in early 1778. On January 12, Livingston wrote Washington about “great quantities of grain in the county of Monmouth in places much exposed to the Enemy.” He further wrote:

The purchasing of this would be doubly advantageous, by supplying ourselves, and keeping it from the Enemy. From Shrewsbury Middletown Point & Amboy, I believe, New York receives considerable Supplies; and it is not in our power to secure by our Militia, those places from that infamous traffic.

A few weeks later, Washington, from Valley Forge, wrote about the need to destroy supplies on the Jersey shore, because they were accessible to the British and not the Continental Army: "As it is impossible to secure the hay on the Jersey shore for our own use, it is certainly advisable to destroy it, that the enemy shall derive no benefit from it." It is unclear if Washington’s uncharacteristically harsh order was put into effect.

In December 1778, Washington again worried that livestock on the Monmouth shore would fall into British hands. He wrote Livingston on December 7, 1778 “that the enemy shortly intend to make a forage upon the Monmouth coast.” He further wrote that this:

Obliges me to desire your Excellency to give orders to the militia in that County to remove the stock near the coast, and to have particular regard for the houses of the disaffected, who always have previous notice to the designs of the enemy and lay up stores of provisions that may be at hand when they [the British] make their descent. By doing this, they screen themselves from the charge of having voluntarily contributed.

Five days later, Livingston directed Colonel Asher Holmes, commanding the Middletown militia:

I do hereby direct you, upon intelligence received of the enemy's approach or invasion of Monmouth, to remove to a place of safety, by such a number of militia as you may find necessary for the purpose, livestock, provisions and carriages as may be in danger of falling into the enemy's hands, on notice first given to owners & their neglecting or refusing to do the same.

Unlike earlier impressments in which farmers along the shore were compensated for their losses, this time, the farmers had to pay the militia for safekeeping their livestock inland. Holmes would have his expenses paid "by the owner or owners of such livestock, provisions & carriages removed.”

Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee and Later Impressments

A year later, Major Henry Lee was stationed at Freehold with his cavalry regiment. In December, Lee proposed seizing the goods of disaffected living along shore. Washington was cool to the idea. He cautioned Lee that any actions must “not be incompatible with the laws of the State" and asked Lee to familiarize himself with New Jersey law. Lee was feuding with Quartermaster agent, David Rhea, and admiralty court judge, John Imlay. Imlay asked Livingston to complain about Lee to Washington. While Washington had previously supported what Lee was proposing, he pulled Lee out of Monmouth County on January 7, 1780.

Only three weeks later, Colonel Caleb North was sent into Monmouth County for the second time, with his Pennsylvania regiment, to curb the illegal trade to and from the Monmouth shore. He arrived with a letter from Washington instructing township magistrates "to furnish the quantity of provision required, provided I would assist them with a guard, where necessary.” The result was that North and the magistrates of Middletown and Shrewsbury townships:

Impressed the following quantity of provision: forty seven barrels of beef and pork, fifty barrels of Tory bread which was taken aboard a brig near Middletown, the full quantity of grains, which is sent to the neighboring militia, with orders to be prepared for immediate use, and one hundred six head of good cattle (chiefly from the townships of Middletown and Shrewsbury) as being most in the power of the enemy.

North further noted that the Commissary Agent for Monmouth County, John Lloyd, “being well acquainted with the stock and disposition of the people and this place” concurrently impressed provisions from shore residents and “came on to camp with the cattle, beef, pork & biscuit.”

Loyalist raids in spring 1780 led to new efforts to impound provisions. On June 18, Commissary Officer Azariah Dunham wrote Washington about “several thousand bushels of Indian meal in the County of Monmouth belonging to the public in the greatest danger of spoiling.” Dunham would send David Forman to collect the provisions. Meanwhile, David Rhea employed Captain Joshua Huddy to round up provisions in Shrewsbury Township: Rhea wrote of Huddy, "he has drawn five teams from the remote parts of Shrewsbury, I expect more from that quarter tomorrow."

Later that month, Livingston wrote the Continental Congress. He acknowledged a request from Congress to raise horse teams in anticipation of driving provisions to the French fleet on its arrival on the Jersey shore. Livingston noted "a resolution of both houses directs Magistrates to impress all the teams they possibly can in the counties of Hunterdon, Burlington, Monmouth, Middlesex, Somerset and Sussex."

David Forman set about the difficult task of raising provisions for the fleet. He wrote on July 12: "It would give me great pleasure to give our allies assistance - [but] in the present situation of officers in the county I fear little will be in my power.” This is a reference to the many Whig leaders captured by Loyalist raiders in 1780. Forman also recalled the difficulties raising provisions for the French fleet when it anchored at Shrewsbury Inlet in July 1778 due to the disaffection of shore residents:

When Count D'Estaing lay off Shrewsbury, he was exceedingly imposed on in point of price & could draw but little supply - the disaffection in Shrewsbury is since that time greatly increased...  yet I am convinced that several hundred sheep and some cattle might be taken from some people who at several times withheld supplies from the American army & are strongly suspected of sending supplies to the enemy.

Information like this from Forman pushed Washington to return Major Lee to Monmouth County to impound livestock. On July 24, Washington wrote Lee: “I am informed by General Forman that there is a great number of horses in Monmouth County [are] within the enemy's power, belonging to disaffected persons." He ordered Lee:

To prevent the enemy from having benefit of these, you will immediately set about driving off from that part of the country, all horses fit for riding or wagon service, and deliver them to the Quartermaster General, giving certificates to the persons from whom they are taken. You will do the same with respect to cattle.

Washington then wrote Forman about Lee’s orders. He asked Forman to confidentially cooperate with Lee: “He will apply to you for advice, which you can give him privately, as I imagine it will not be prudent for you to appear in this matter."

The next day, July 25, Lee was at Shrewsbury. He acknowledged Washington’s order but also referred to an urgent need to go to Easton, Pennsylvania. He wrote Washington:  "I shall arrange matters here & commit the execution of them to Capt. Rudolph." Forman went to Shrewsbury to assist Lee’s men. He wrote from Shrewsbury on July 27 that he was with Captain Rudolph “respecting the horned cattle and horses from the parts of Shrewsbury and Middletown.” But Forman was disappointed:

Major Lee has marched all his horse previous to my getting this letter to East Town [Easton] except Capt. Rudolph's troops, about 24 in number. From a conviction that so few was entirely unequal to the task, I procured press warrants to the amount of about thirty for the militia to operate with him, and yesterday morning Capt. Rudolph, I expect, began to collect from the seaboard side of Shrewsbury.

Forman noted that his goal was to impound 1,000 livestock, but he and Rudolph had taken only 160. He blamed the shortfall on Lee, who was in Easton by July 30. Lee wrote from Easton that his officers were “discontented” by the “evident neglect” of commissaries while he was in Monmouth County. He mentioned his recent service at Shrewsbury “for the purpose of impressing teams" without noting his decision to prematurely quit that mission. Forman further complained that Lee had allowed shore residents to voluntarily drive their livestock inland, rather than have it impounded:

Success would not be considerable as I expected, occasioned by an order from Major Lee which has given the inhabitants the week before to drive up all their live cattle. That order will induce, I apprehend, the people to secret part of them.

While the 160 head of livestock was far less than projected, it was still a large quantity. And, the French fleet never returned to Shrewsbury. The livestock were, instead, penned inland for several months and then finally marched to the Continental Army in January 1781. Two Monmouth County militiamen recalled driving the livestock all the way to Tappan, New York. Samuel Holmes wrote:

He marched as far as Tappan [New York] under the command of Lieutenant Isaac Imlay of Upper Freehold, where they drove about 250 horses and cattle from Shrewsbury, John Lloyd, Esq., of Upper Freehold was their commissary on that occasion, after delivering the cattle, he served out the month at Morristown.

John Clark also recalled marching all the way to Tappan, New York: "I was employed by the commissary to drive wagons, haul forage & provisions to Trenton [Tappan] from Monmouth Court House and was engaged in this service until April."

Livestock impressments continued to occur at the direction of David Forman. As head of the extra-legal Retaliators, Forman impounded goods from several disaffected citizens. Then, in June 1782, Forman used his power as judge of court of common pleas to issue warrants for impounding livestock from four disaffected citizens. However, these were local events that were not endorsed by state or Continental leaders.

The right of the government to impound provisions was unclear. At times, Washington and Livingston restrained officers from impressing provisions; at other times, they championed it. In either case, the confiscation of valuable property from citizens without due process was a troubling practice. The confiscation of goods from two Middletown farmers without a full jury trial led to Holmes v Walton, in which the New Jersey Supreme Court struck down a law that enabled goods to be seized without a full trial. After this decision—issued in the fall of 1780—the New Jersey and Continental governments never again attempted to impound provisions from Monmouth County’s citizens.

Related Historic Site: Valley Forge National Historic Park

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