taking into consideration the spirited exertions of
the '"unties of Morris, Sussex, and Somerset in the
raising of minute-men, do approve of, and thank
lli. n fur, their zeal in the r i cause, and will
take the same into further consideration at their next
meeting"; showing that bodies of minute-men had
already been raised in the counties named, A minute-
men organization was also formed in Hunterdon at
about the same time.
The following resolutions of a meeting in llill -
i ugh township show the form in which action was
taken in enrolling the militia in Somerset County,
'lli, \ ate interesting as being the only memoranda
referring i" this early period of the action of the
people in defense of their liberties. The original was
found accidentally among -"ii id papers on a book-
Btand in New York.
'•At i i- til... p. lm ipal freeholders, and ""i. on of Militia, ..f
the Town hip ■■! Bill thorough, County £
Jersey, bold this 3d of May, 177:.. at I
agr 1 a- l..ll..»-,— viz. :
"1 i That the Companl I Militia this .lay assembled Inrodochooso
officers for their respective Companies.
•••.'.I. That tli" officers -.. devised -hall i bi
Minuto-Mon, who are to beat up for volunteers to raise said Company, to
consist of GO men, who aro to bo e\- i l wcok, and to bo
ready at a minute's warning to uiar.li ill defense of tho liberty of OUT
country,
".;.]. Thai tho men so voluntarily enlisting in -aid Company shall
recelvo one shilling ami sixpence for every put ..f a day they are em-
ploy, k I in being .\.i.|-..l by any "l" Hon "Hi' ■■<•, ami Hi. ■:■. . ■. i ■■-
portion.
"4th. Tim ln.es lid Company shall march In defense of their conn-
i, | ihi Captain tort elvi six shillings, the 1st Lieut, live shillings, tho
.j.i l.i. mi. four shillings, and each ..i the Inferloi officers, three shillings,
all Proc. per .lay; Willi provisions mid ainuiilliitioli, and to those who
aro ahlo, Anns; all the above money to he raised by tax on tho inhabi-
tants of said Town-hip. in the same manner the Provincial Taxes aro
".'.th. In pursuance ..f the Bret anil.. ..f tho above agreement, tho
Companies bore assembled choose the following gentlemen their officers,
—viz.:
"f.r the Wlhiorough Company.— John Ton Eyck, (apt.; Peter D.
I i. lit. ; .la. ohilS Quirk, 'Jd Lieut.
" For Vu ftfQZsfbiu Company*. — Hendrick Probasco, Copt.; John Smock,
1st I.ieut.; Gasparns Van Mostrand, 2d Lleul
•■For ii" Bhanni I. I bmpmy. — William Ver Bryck, Copt. ; Boellf Peter-
son, 1st I.ieut.; Cornelius Peterson, 2d l-i.-ut.
li Forthe Company of Grenadier*.— Cornelius L..tt, Oapt; John Bonnet,
I.ieut.; Cornelius Van Dorveer, 2d I.ieut.; Garret Garrison, 3d Lieut.
"8th. The above officers procooded, accordlne; to the authority given
tb. in in the second artiole, to th.- choice ..t" officers for the Company of
Minut. -Men, when th.- following men were nnanlmously chosen: s"bi
i apt., Cornelius I.ott; for 1st Lieut., John Kevins; for 2d [dent., Garret
R. Garrison.
"7th. 'fhe officers of tho Militia and the Oommlttoe of Observation aro
desired to meet together ami appoint a Committee t.> prot Ide the above
Company with Aim- and ammunition.
" May in, 177.'..— The Offli *» of Ob-
sorvatlon, having mot, nnanlmously ohose Hondrlck Van aliddlcsworth,
I Ton Eyes and Dirci Low, to provide ammunition for said Com-
pany, ami alius for those that'are not able to buy for themselves, and tho
aforesaid gentlcmt d are desired t.. tale- 640 Proc in i y on th.. credit
of tho Town-hip. to buy 140 pounds powder, 120 pounds lead, and 210
Hints; and if the said Company should !'•• • ailed m march in defense of
tii.ii country, it nol provided for, then th.. aforesaid Bendrlck Van Uld-
dleeworth, Conrad Ten Eyck, and Dlrck Low are to find provisions on
tl re. lit ot th.. t..w n-iiip a- above -aid.
" It is further agreed that the abovo agreement -hall besubji t
alterations ana additions a- the Provincial Cons -hall think proper.
" By ordei ol tho oasembb/.
"John IIutist DUMOMT, Chairman,
â– â– la ii u p. Vuoom, ottrk."
We give a li-t uf the members of ('apt. P. D.
Vr t's company, cat ml led after i he above action; ii
is evidently nol complete, but it contains all now ro-
coverable: Jacobus Amerman, Albert Amerman,
John Amerman, Thomas Auten, John Brokaw (lieu-
tenant, killed i. Abraham Brokaw, Peter lirokaw
(corporal . George Brokaw, Jacobus Bergen (cor-
putali. Jacob Cook, Jacob W. Cook, Jacobus Cor-
-linw, Bergun Coevert (fifer), Thomas Coevert (cor-
I'eier Ditmas, Nicholas Dubois, I
Dumont, Thomas Dwere, Jacobus Dubois, Minne
sergeant), William Griggs, Augustus llarts-
liutigh, llarmun A. Iloagland, Luoas 1 luaj land, l'eter
Soagland, Dirck Buff, Abram Low, Peter Leyster,
Hugh McAllum, lien. hick Post aergeant . Peter
Perlee, Thomas Skillman, Joakim Quick
Peter Quici sergeant . Abram Stryker, Jonathan
Spader, Albert Stothoff, Benjamin Taylor -•
\Villett Taylor, Abraham Taylor, Abraham V
* Battle of Germantown, Oct I. 177'.
32
HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.
dalen (sergeant), John Van Arsdale, Garrett Van Ars-
dale, John Van Dyck, AVilliam Van Dyck, Andrew
Van Middlesworth (sergeant), Tunis Van Middles-
worth, Jacohus Van Nuyse, Coert Van Waggoner,
Jacobus Voorhees, Rynier Veghte [lieutenant, Sec-
ond Battalion ; captain ditto), Peter Voorhees, Peter
Vroom, Jacob Winter (corporal), Peter Winter, Coert
Van Voorhees.
"At a meeting of the Committee of the Township of Hillsborough
held at the house of Garret Garretson, the 3d day of July, 1775, it was
unanimously agreed that the boundaries of the Company called Millstone
Company are as follows, — viz: Beginning at the mouth of Millstone
River, thence along the said river to the houBe of Geretie Cornetry, then
along her westward bound to and still continuing westwardly to the
house of Court Van Vorehase, then westwardly to a small brook, and
thence down the said brook to the Amwell Road, then westwardly along
the said road till it comes to the 2 rod road that leads to Millstone road,
continuing along said road, thence along Millstone Koad to Raritan
Bridge, thence along the Raritan River to the place of beginning.
"Peter D. Vroom."
The "ordinance," also passed on the last day of the
session, and having for its object the raising of funds,
principally for the purpose of carrying out the pro-
visions of the militia bill, recited and declared that :
" Whereas, It has become absolutely necessary, in the present dangerous
and extraordinary state of public affairs, in which the usual resources
of government appear to be insufficient for the safety of the people, and
in which the good people of this Province have therefore thought proper
to choose Deputies in this present Congress, that a fund bo provided for
the use of the Province : W r e the said Deputies being persuaded that every
inhabitant is willing and desirous to contribute his proportion of money
for so important a purpose, do, pursuant to the powers intrusted to us by
the people, resolve and direct that the sum of Ten Thousand Pounds,
Proclamation Money, be immediately apportioned and raised for the use
aforesaid; the same to be apportioned laid out and disposed of in such
manner as hereinafter is directed."
The amounts to be raised under this ordinance by
the several counties of the province were apportioned
to them as follows : Bergen, £664 8s. Od. ; Burlington,
£1071 13s. 4d. ; Cape May, £166 18s. Od. ; Cumber-
land, £385 6s. Sd. ; Essex, £742 18s. Od. ; Gloucester,
£763 2s. Sd. ; Hunterdon, £1363 16s. Sd. ; Middlesex,
£872 6s. Sd. ; Monmouth, £1069 2s. Sd. ; Morris, £723
8s. Od. ; Salem, £679 12s. Od. ; Somerset, £904 2s. Od. ;
Sussex, £593 5s. 4d.
Other sections of the ordinance pointed out the
manner of assessing and collecting the tax, and pro-
vided that when the amount collected in a county
should be received by the county collector, he should
pay the same over to the county committee, " to be
disposed of by them in such manner as they in their
discretion shall think most proper" to meet expenses
arising from the exigencies of the times. After the
adoption of these measures for the public safety it
was by the Congress
" Ordered, That Mr. Fishor, Mr. Tucker, Mr. Daniel Hunt, Mr. Fre-
UnghuyBen,Mr. I. Pearson, Mr. Dunham, Mr. Schureman, Mr. John Hart,
Mr. Borden, Mr. Dearo, Mr. Baldwin, Mr. Bclionclt, Mr. Ralph Hart, and
Mr. Heard, or any three of them, in conjunction with the President or
Vice-President, bo a Committee of Correspondence, with power to con-
vene this Congress."
Of the fourteen members composing this committee,
seven were of the counties of Hunterdon and Somer-
set, — viz., Messrs. Fisher, Tucker, Hunt, Freling-
huysen, Schenck, and the two Harts. Immediately
after the appointment of the Committee of Corres-
pondence the Congress adjourned, June 3, 1775.
It is a rather remarkable fact in the history of this
Provincial Congress of New Jersey that, although one
of its first acts was to declare that its members had
" assembled with the profoundest veneration for the
person and family of His Sacred Majesty George III.,
firmly professing all due allegiance to his rightful
authority and government,"* the close of its first ses-
sion was marked by the adoption of the most vigorous
measures in preparation for armed resistance to that
sovereign's authority.
Two weeks from the day on which the Congress of
New Jersey closed its session at Trenton, a force of
British regulars moved from Boston to Charlestown,
and marched in splendid order and perfect confidence
up the acclivity of Bunker Hill to attack the slight
defenses of the patriot force that stood waiting for
them in silence upon the summit. Twice were the
scarlet lines hurled back in disorder down the slope,
but as often did they re-form and return to the assault.
Their third charge was successful ; the provincial
forces, undismayed, but with empty muskets and car-
tridge-boxes, were at last forced from their position,
and the soldiers of the king carried and held the
blood-soaked crest. This event — the battle of Bunker
Hill — is as well known and conspicuous in history as
that of Marathon or Waterloo, and it was more im-
portant in its results than either. Just before its
occurrence Gen. George Washington had been ap-
pointed! by the Continental Congress! commander-
in-chief of the forces of the United Colonies, and
immediately afterwards he assumed command of the
army at Cambridge and disposed his thin lines to
encircle the British forces in the town of Boston.
In less than a week after the memorable battle in
Charlestown, the startling news had been received in
Philadelphia, and was known in every township of
New Jersey. In this alarming state of affairs the
general Committee of Correspondence of the Province,
exercising the powers intrusted to them, called a
second session of the Provincial Congress, which
body accordingly convened at Trenton on the 5th of
August following. Eighty-three members were in
attendance. Those of Somerset County were the
same as at the previous session, except that Nathaniel
Eyers,| who had been elected with the other delegates
at the county-meeting of the 11th of May, was now
present, in place of John Roy, who had attended the
first session. The Hunterdon County deputies were
» Minutes of the Provincial Congress and Council of Safety, 1776-76,
p. 171.
f Juno 15, 1775.
} The Continental Congress had convoned in Philadelphia on the 10th
of May, 1776.
g Elsewhere found spelled Aii-s and Ayors.
HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES IN TIIK ItKVoUTloX.
33
the same as at the May session, except thai Abraham
Bonnel] ami Joseph Beavers were present in place of
Jacob Jennings and John Uasset.
The Congress at this session adopted a number of
measures for promoting the public safety, the princi-
pal of which were a resolution to provide for the col-
lection of the ten thousand pounds tax ordered at the
May and dune session, and a resolution "for further
regulating the Militia, etc.," the first named being the
first business that was attended to after the opening
of the session. It appears that many obstacles had
been encountered in the collection of the tax, and
that in a great number of instances payment had
been avoided or refused. The Congress therefore
(Aug. 5, 1775) resolved:*
"1. That tho several pornous npjiointeil in ptirsunncc of tlie ordinance
of this Congress in their lost session to«colloct tho quotas of the several
Townships, (io pay the in y hy them colic, ted t,, th<' County Collector
i A lie- tenth liav of September next; and if any persons within
their respective districts shell hare refused payment, that in such case
th<-y do make and deliver iu u list of numc.-. ,<f the delinquents to their
several Committees, together with their receipts and vouchers for the
] oy which they shall havo paid to the aforesaid County Coll-', i >r
"2. R&olvcd, That the several Committees do furiii-1, 1 1 1 â– - Provincial
Congress at thoir next scssl-.n with the names of all such persona within
their disoi. ts us shall hare refused to sign the Aaspelatlon roc, unmonded
in (he hist Congress, or olio of u similar nature, and of nil such le* shall
lone refused to pay their respective appointments.
'•:•.. Resoleed', That Ho- respective Committees in this Colony do return '
to the Provincial Congress at their next s. -
Associations signed in their districts, agreeahh- to the former order of
II" I in,;, |,,. ;, .|||. I V, III, II,,. I,,, I, I ll -..I,.. I,.,,,.- -I â– ,,,..! til,.
same.
"4. JBesosn â– /, 'th.it ll,. Assessors and Collectors appointed to apportion
me I collect lie' sai.i i j ,1, live such reward for theli Is
trouble therein as the Assessors and Collectors aro hy law entitled l"
for assessing and collecting the provincial taxes.
"o. llt*o\vc*l, That in case any part of the sum of ten thousand
Pounds, bj the said ordinance directed to be raised, shall from ti
of piihllc affairs he found I,, !»■,, > lb] th< purpose* thereby i 1 1 -
tended; in snch case Die surplns !»,■paid by the seTeral Conntj I ornmlt-
pes into Ihc hands of the I'ounly (',,]!,•< |,,i- upp,, luted bj act of As-
s,nii,ly, to i„- by them applied towards discharging th
C itlas m Ho. pui.ii. taxes of the Province.
"0. Bssohwi, That the several Committees to wb the disposal of the
I ii. i io ly was, hy ii i. in.. in i it,, last seas! Intrusted, do
a., ,.n ni p. ill,. Provincial Congress tor their several disbursements, aud
which they may have been applied '
In adopting "the plan for further regulating the
Militia, clc.," the I 'ongress
i i overs] County or (where there i* doC ry]
the Township ComSmttei i n rail the names ol nit the Militia Offl-
oei nwlthlntholi respective Districts to the Provincial Con gre s s ,
or to the i',, n, nun i Safety, to bo by them iml
ii. a. ..I ih.. i outinental I i
" Hetoh-fil, 2. Thai all ,11,
... . r. or appointed, pursuant to an ordlnani ol
the! Isust Ion, be appointed bj thi I mj ress or, during thi li
Li C in I .- 'i, i>
" /,'.."/,,,/, :i. Thai where the Inhabitants -f dlflorenl Townships havo
I n smbodlod Inl Company, Battallon,oi Regiment, beforo the
""Hi day of .1, last, It Is not Ih" intention ... , that they
should he dissolved, provid"-! they "..vein thrmSOlVOS SOOOrding tO the
mi. and 'if tii "- ol Hi" same."
Ten resolutions succeeding these above quoted di-
rected the organization of the militia of the province
• Fids Minutes Provlnclal.Congress and Council ol Safety, I
into regiments and battalions, and the number of
each of these organization- to lo- appointed to the
several counties; established the order of their prece-
dence ; prescribed the manner in which they were to
I,, raised, armed, and governed : provided for the col-
lection of fines from "all effective men between the
ages of sixteen and fifty who shall refuse to enroll
themselves and bear arms," or who, being enrolled,
should absent themselves from the muster, ami di-
rected how such fines should be applied. The troops
directed to be raised ami organized were to be equal
to about twenty-six regiments, apportioned to the dif-
ferent counties as follows: The militia of Bergen
County to i iposc one regiment ; of Essex, two regi-
ments or four battalions; of Middlesex, two n
in. ut-; of Monmouth, three regiments; of Morris and
Sussex, each two regiments and one battalion; of
Burlington, two regiments and a company of rangers ;
of Gloucester, three battalions; of Salem, one regi-
ment; of Cumberland, two battalions ; of Cape May,
one battalion; of Somerset, two regiments; and of
Hunterdon, four regiments. And it was provided
"that the precedency of rank in the militia shall
take place in the following order: 1. Essex; 2. Sa-
lem; 3. Gloucester; 4. Morris; ■"•. Sussex; li. Cape
May; 7. Monmouth; 8. Somerset; 'J. Bergen; 10.
Cumberland; 11. Middlesex; 12. Hunterdon; 13.
Burlington; and that, when there may In- more than
one regiment or battalion in a county, the precedency
shall be determined by the county committee, accord-
ing to their former seniority.''
Besides providing for the organization and arming
of the militia, as above mentioned, the Congress re-
solved :
"That for the purposo of effectually carrying Into execution the
ret immendatl t the Continental Congress respecting the appoint.
ment of minuie-iuen, four thousand able-bodied sffl Uvfl men bs en-
i enrolled in tho several counties in this Province, under offi-
cers to DO appointed and commissi 1 hy this Congress or Committee of
Safety, who shall hold themselves in "'li-t.itit te.e lit.,
any phi,,, where their assistance may be required for
t this "i any neighboring colony. 11
These •■minute-men" « ere to I nlisted for a term
of four months, at the end of which time they were
lobe " relieved, unless upon actual service." They
were given precedence of rank over the common mi-
litia of the province, and whenever called into actual
service Were " to receive the like pay as the < '"lltillcn-
tal Army, and be furnished with Camp-equipage and
provision-; and also be provided for, if wounded and
disabled in the service of their country." Their offi-
cers were to be nominated by the several county com-
mittees, or in Counties ha\ ing no general committee I
by tin' tow nship committees jointly, " with assurance
thai as soon as their companies are completed, they
shall receive eominis-ion- from the Provincial Con-
gress or the i ommittee ol *-:iit-. 1 he organisa-
tion of the "minute-men" was directed to bi
in companies of sixty-four men each, including offi-
cers, these companies to In- formed into ten battalions
34
HUNTERDON AND SOMERSET COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.
for the whole province, and the apportionment to the
several counties to be as given below, — viz : Bergen
County to furnish one battalion of four companies ;
Essex County, one battalion of six companies ; Mid-
dlesex County, one battalion of six companies ; Mon-
mouth County, one.battalion of six companies ; Som-
erset County, one battalion of five companies ; Mor-
ris County, one battalion of six companies ; Sussex
County, one battalion of five companies ; Hunterdon
County, one battalion of eight companies ; Burling-
ton County, one battalion of five companies ; Glou-
cester and Salem Counties, one battalion of seven
companies, — four to be furnished by Gloucester and
one by Salem ; Cumberland County to furnish three
companies, and Cape May County one company, all
to act as " independent companies of light infantry
and rangers."
Whatever arms and accoutrements were obtained
by the county and township committees were directed
to be issued to the minute-men in preference to the
militia until the former were armed and equipped,
the remainder to be used for arming the militia. It
was
" Resolved, That this Congress do recommend to the several County
Committees in this Colony that they immediately employ gunsmiths to
make such a number of arms as they shall judge to be necessary and
wanting in their respective Counties ; and that in the manufacture of
said arms particular attention be paid to the directions of the Continental
Congress."
It was also by the Congress
"Ordered, That the several County Committees do appoint one Surgeon
to each Regiment and Battalion belonging to their respective Counties;
and certify the name of such Surgeon to the next Congress, or to the
Committee of Safety, in order to bis being properly commissioned."
The above mentioned, with the appointment of
Philemon Dickinson as brigadier-general, were all the
important military measures adopted at this session.
The Congress adjourned on Thursday, August 17th,
after a session of seventeen days, its last act prior to ad-
journment having been the appointment of Hendrick
Fisher, Samuel Tucker, Isaac Pearson, John Hart,
Jonathan D. Sergeant, Azariah Dunham, Peter
Schenck, Enos Kelsey, Joseph -Borden, Frederick
Frelinghuysen, and John Schureman as a Committee
of Safety to control public affairs during the recess.
Of these eleven members, seven were of the counties
of Hunterdon and Somerset.
This was the first Committee of Safety of the pro-
vince of New Jersey, — a body which came to be
greatly feared by those inimical to the cause of Amer-
ica. During the times when the Congress was not in
si'ssiwii this committee wielded extraordinary and
almost unlimited power.* It does not appear, bow-
* 31 r. Charles I>. Deshler, in his excellent paper read before tho Now
Brunswick Historical Club at its fifth anniversary, says of this Commit-
tee of Safety: " In ofloct it constituted a practical dictatorship, residing
riot in one man Indeed, but in a majority vote of eleven or more persons,
who were appointed by the Provincial Congress from time to time. Its
members were invariably chosen by the deputies to tho Provincial Con-
gress from among their own number, and woro men upon whom thoy
could roly for courage, prudence, firmness, activity, and sagacity. They
exercised, as a committee, all the powers intrusted to or assumed by tho
ever, that it became necessary for the committee to
exercise this power in any very important public
business in the less than seven weeks which inter-
vened between its formation and the reassembling of
the Provincial Congress. During that interval the
sessions of the committee were held at Princeton.
At its August session the Congress of New Jersey
had provided for a new election of deputies from the
counties of the province by the adoption of the fol-
lowing preamble and resolution :
" Wliereas, It is highly expedient, at a time when this Province is
likely to be involved in all the horrors of a civil war, and when it has
become absolutely necessary to increase the burthen of taxes already
laid upon the good people of this colony for tho just defense of their in-
valuable rights and privileges, that the inhabitants thereof should have
frequent opportunities of renewing their choice and approbation of the
Representatives in Provincial Congress. It is therefore Resolved, That
the inhabitants in each county qualified to vote for Representatives in
General Assembly do meet together at the places hereinafter mentioned
on Thursday, the twenty-first day of September next, and then and
there, by plurality of voices, elect and appoint any number not exceed-
ing five substantial freeholders as Deputies, with full power to represent
such County in Provincial Congress to be held at Trenton, in the County
of Hunterdon, on Tuesday, the third day of October next."
The places designated for holding this election in
Somerset and Hunterdon Counties were, respectively,
" the Court-House in Hillsborough" and " the house ,
of John Ringo in Amwell." The meetings were ac-
cordingly so held at the time specified, and resulted
in the election of Hendrick Fisher, Cornelius Van
Muliner, and Ruloffe Van Dyke for Somerset, and
Samuel Tucker, John Mehelm, John Hart, Charles
Stewart, and Augustine Stevenson for Hunterdon.
County.
The Provincial Congress of New Jersey, composed
of the deputies then recently elected, as mentioned
above, convened at Trenton on Tuesday, the 3d of
October, 1775. No organization was effected on that
day, as but few of the members were present ;f but on
Provincial Congress, save that of legislation. They conducted all the
correspondence and conferences with the Continental Congress and Pro-