Guest blogger George Weghorst shares a deceptively familiar story from the earliest days of the American Revolution.
Kate shares an account of a stop on The Liberty Trail in New Jersey, centered around the dramatic capture of the British supply ship HMS Blue Mountain Valley during the American Revolution. After a grueling 13-week voyage, the ship limped into Sandy Hook, where Patriots seized its first mate and launched a surprise boarding operation. Expecting military supplies, they instead found a cargo of coal, porter, beans, potatoes, sauerkraut, and hogs—more fit for a feast than a fight.
Learn more about how The Liberty Trail is blazing paths across the east coast.
Visiting historical sites provides unrivaled experiences and education opportunities.
John Laurens, a Revolutionary War hero and close friend of Alexander Hamilton, was a strong opponent of slavery despite his father being a wealthy slave trader. He proposed enlisting enslaved people into the Continental Army and freeing them after the war. Laurens was killed at the Battle of Tar Bluff in 1782 at just 27 years old. Recent excavations at the site uncovered relics from the battle, including a slave tag from 1836, highlighting the ongoing struggle against slavery. Laurens would likely have supported later efforts like Harriet Tubman’s 1863 Combahee Ferry Raid, which freed over 700 slaves.
Uncovering History
We invite you to visit the preserved locations along the Liberty Trail and to immerse
yourself in the extraordinary events that determined the fate of a nation.
Located in northern New Jersey, the Nathaniel Drake house offers a unique glimpse into life during the American Revolution. Once housing George Washington and his officers in 1777, it proves itself a vital landmark in the state.
Used by both sides during the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the Munroe Tavern, it was most famously used Hugh Percy during his relief march to aid the retreating British column from Concord.
In the days leading up the Battle of Lexington and Concord, James Barrett stored military supplies, including small cannons, from that were smuggled out of Boston amid rising tensions with the British.
This park preserves the story of Charles Pinckney and his contributions to the U.S. Constitution, and of 18th century plantation life for free and enslaved people of Snee Farm inhabitants.
Treacherous waters and Patriot fire foil a British attack on Charleston Harbor
Francis Salvador, the first Jewish person to die in the Revolutionary War, was a London-born pioneer who moved to South Carolina in 1773. A vocal supporter of independence, he became the first Jewish person to hold political office in the state. Known as the "Southern Paul Revere," Salvador warned of attacks during the war but tragically died in an ambush in 1776 at just 29 years old, leaving behind a legacy of courage and commitment to freedom.
A precursor movement to the Battle of Monmouth, this Quaker meeting house was surrounded by the encampment of British troops under Alexander Leslie in mid-June of 1778.
Located along the Great Pee Dee River, Snow's Island served as Francis Marion's favorite refuge for his militia in the swamps of South Carolina
Once a simple ferry site, it gained prominence after Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox," mustered the Williamsburg militia into his ranks in August of 1780
This battleground was the site of three British camps, attacked by Patriot troops on August 6, 1780. It was a fight primarily between countrymen.
During the British occupation of Charleston in 1781, these grounds were part of a British outpost to supply ammunition and provisions to patrolling British troops.
A surprise Patriot attack on Loyalist recruits is a blow to the British