Red Bank Battlefield

Red Bank Battlefield in National Park, New Jersey

At first glance, Red Bank Battlefield could be any community park: a pleasant expanse of trails and trees, picnickers and joggers overlooking the Delaware River.

But picture yourself in this same leafy glade on October 22, 1777. On that day, outnumbered, inexperienced continental soldiers faced battle-hardened Hessians—and trounced them. Their tenacity and valor set the tone for the American Revolution. 

British troops had recently captured the capital of Philadelphia. By 18th-century military conventions, that should have been the end of it. But the upstart patriots refused to surrender. The rout at Red Bank “slowed the British roll,” says Jennifer Janofsky, Rowan University history professor and Red Bank Battlefield director. “From there, the rebellion moved forward with even more momentum.” 

The victory also won a new ally in the French. As John Adams wrote to wife Abigail, Red Bank “was defended with a magnanimity which will give our country a reputation in Europe.”

Pre-war, this was the home of James and Anne Whitall and their eight children. Devout Quakers, they were appalled to see their apple orchards turned into a war theatre. By some accounts, Anne stayed at her spinning wheel until the first shots were fired and only dove for cover when a cannonball crashed through the wall.

Start to finish, the skirmish lasted just 45 minutes—from 4:15 to 5pm. But it took a brutal toll, leaving nearly half of 1,200 Hessian troops dead or dying in the fields, along with 14 members of the Rhode Island regiment. (The colonial forces, 500 strong, also included African American and Native American combatants, side by side with white New Englanders.)

Meanwhile, as the ground assault raged, British and American ships duked it out on the Delaware. The next day, under relentless fire, the man-of-war HMS Augusta exploded. Legend has it that the detonation shattered the windows of a Philadelphia jail, with a blast that could be heard as far away as Cape May County.

So, not your typical community park.

The Whitall home, later a field hospital for the wounded, is now a museum. Here you can view artifacts of the conflict, like musket balls, cannonballs, howitzer shells, grapeshot, and other weaponry. There’s a small-scale reproduction of Fort Mercer, the earthen stronghold built by the Americans that proved impenetrable to the enemy. Remnants of the trenches are still visible on the grounds, marked by interpretive signs that tell the story of the conflict.

In 2022, the site generated headlines when a public archaeological day turned into a forensic investigation. According to Smithsonian Magazine, a series of four digs unearthed hundreds of artifacts, including a buckle from a military uniform and a rare gold coin dating to 1766.

Then, unexpectedly: a human femur.

What started as a routine history project developed into a full-blown scientific analysis. Eventually, researchers found the remains of 15 souls, presumably Hessian soldiers who were dumped into a mass grave.  

“We have crania, we have jawbones, we have leg bones,” says Janofsky. “The New Jersey State Police Forensic Anthropology Unit has done stable isotope analysis to examine the teeth, to see if they can determine geographic origin.” Ongoing DNA testing could identify at least one of the dead. “It’s a very remote possibility that could connect somebody to a modern-day descendant population, which would be quite remarkable.”

Forty-four acres of the original 400-acre plantation have been preserved for the public. You can visit from sunset to sundown every day but Christmas and New Year’s. There are pavilions, picnic tables, and playgrounds for the kids, and several vintage gardens. Throughout the year, the park offers educational programs such as hearth-cooking demonstrations, children’s camps and other special events.

The annual 18th Century Field Day and Fall Festival will be held Sunday, October 20 (rain date October 26). Past festivals have included live music, games, a petting zoo, and demonstrations of colonial crafts like glassblowing and basket-weaving. Reenactors are always on hand to perform artillery drills before recreating the epic showdown.

The Battle of Red Bank was brief and took place early in the Revolutionary War. Still, it went down in history as a turning point in the conflict, displaying the never-say-die spirit of the freedom fighters. Their fortunes rose and fell repeatedly over the years, but they fought on until victory was won, with the surrender of British General Cornwallis to George Washington in 1783.

Today, Red Bank Battlefield could not be more placid. The air is filled with the call of geese and the sounds of kids at play. But think back to sights and sounds of October 1777: the crack of gunfire, the clouds of black soot kicked up by cannon fire, the stamp of Hessians soldiers in retreat and the jubilant cries of the victors.

As our nation nears its 250th birthday, amid social and political divisions that call into question the very definition of liberty, it’s a good time to reflect on the courage and commitment of those who sacrificed for our freedom. A visit to Red Bank Battlefield illustrates why New Jersey has been called the crossroads of the American Revolution.