1 DECEMBER 1778 “COME AND TAKE IT!” The colony of Georgia was a late arrival to our Revolutionary War, her citizens needing British protection from hostile Creeks and Cherokees to their west. Nevertheless, the Continental Congress authorized the construction of forts Read More
16-18 OCTOBER 1775 THE BURNING OF FALMOUTH Royal Navy North American theater commander, VADM Samuel Graves, took a hardline against the rebellious activities of Patriots in New England’s coastal towns. He ordered Royal Navy LT Henry Mowat in HMS CANCEAUX, 6, Read More
27 JUNE 1775 THOSE SNEAKY PATRIOTS! “Our Liberty Folks are really very active in Fomenting a Flame throughout the Province… but [with] 200 Soldiers & a Sloop of War I think that I should be able to keep every thing quiet Read More
12 JUNE 1775 250th ANNIVERSARY UNITY vs. HMS MARGARETTA In June 1775 civilian Ichabod Jones, captain of the schooner Unity, requested clearance from British ADM Samuel Graves to carry a load of provisions from Boston to the far-flung town of Machias Read More
9-15 MAY 1775 PINE TREE NAVAL ENSIGN Samuel Thompson was a Brunswick (modern Maine) tavern owner appointed to command the Brunswick Militia in 1774. The seeds of revolution were starting to sprout in New England in 1774, and Thompson was ordered Read More
29 APRIL 1777 INTERCEPTING THE SUGAR FLEET In the earliest days of our nation, the Marine Committee of the Continental Congress was not hesitant to give tactical direction to our naval forces afloat. On this day, the Committee instructed that an Read More
26 FEBRUARY 1775 LESLIE’S RETREAT The garrisoning of Royal troops in the private homes of Boston residents risked the discovery of weapons and munitions stores hidden by Patriot colonials. Such stores were secretly moved out of the city, prompting periodic expeditions Read More
20 DECEMBER 1776 THE INDOMITABLE LEXINGTON Many of the original thirteen colonies organized their own navies during the Revolutionary War. For example, in February of 1776 the Maryland Committee for Safety sent Abraham Van Bibber to St. Eustatius in the Dutch Read More
6 SEPTEMBER 1776 FIRST SUBMARINE The world’s first operational submarine was the brainchild of physician and inventor David Bushnell while a student at Yale College in 1771. During the 1775 British blockade of Boston, he and his brother Ezra gave the idea physical Read More
29 JUNE 1776 BATTLE OF TURTLE GUT INLET The six-gun civilian brig Nancy headed north from St. Thomas and St. Croix. Her Master, Hugh Montgomery, had shipped a cargo that would bring a handsome profit in his homeport of Philadelphia. Nancy Read More