To George Washington from Brigadier General Anthony Wayne, 4 November 1779
From Brigadier General Anthony Wayne
New Bridge [N.J.] 4th Novr 1779
10. OClock. A.M.
Dear General
We marched in force to the English Neighbourhood on tuesday morning, for the purpose of making a grand forage, between that place & Be[r]gen, which we have effected without Opposition,1 the troops will return to their Camp near Paramus this Evening.
We found & brought off from Wihoak2 & Be[r]gen upwards of One hundred head of fat Cattle & a Considerable Quantity of Grain, for which I have directed Certificates to be given altho’ I have ground to believe that the greater part was designed for the Enemy, who from every Observation I could make (& I reconnoitred them very minutely) I am of Opinion are preparing for an Evacuation in this Idea joined by most of the Field Officers.
a great number of Shiping, were at the Watering place,3 & others falling down, at 12 OClock yesterday being young flood a Signal was made at that place, when they began to loose their fore top sails in order to make room for others to Water, the persons at whose house I was, say that they water in Rotation, not being space Sufficient but for part at a time to Effect this buisness. what Corroborates the Idea of an Evacuation, is—that they had Intelligence of our being out, two days since—& altho’ there are three large Encampments in the Vicinity of Fort Washington, from which they might with great ease have thrown over a sufficient Number of troops to Oblige us to repass this Bridge, yet they looked tamely on, & Suffered us to carry off the forage & Cattle—which heretofore they used to count upon as their own.
a Captain of a Vessel who was a prisoner at New York made his escape the night before last, & whilst I was at Wihoak, Informed Captain Bowman4 who Comman’d the Advanced Guard that the Enemy had Embarked 12,000 men said to be designed for Georgia—but that the prevailing Idea among the Inhabitants was, that a total Evacuation was going to take place, & many of them much alarmed on the Occation, however he say’s that he is Confident that a very great proportion of their troops are Embarked—but this I only give as his Report.5
I have procured some Persons who live in full veiw of New York & Fort Washington to watch their Motions—so that if any move takes place you may expect the Earliest Intelligence. Interim I am your Excellency’s Most Obt & Very Hume Sert
Anty Wayne
ALS, DLC:GW; ADfS, PHi: Wayne Papers.
Wayne received intelligence in a letter from Col. Silvanus Seely written at Elizabeth, N.J., 11:00 P.M. on 1 November. That letter, perhaps enclosed in this letter from Wayne to GW, reads: “yours of this Date I this moment Recd and Shall take the greates care to fullfill the Contents—in the Interom would inform you that I receivd Information this Evening that the Enemy had Brought over Two Regts from Long Iseland to Statton Iseland and had also a number of Hors on the Iseland that was Ready for som Push—but as my informer was not of the best kind and Exspecting bittor inteligence Every Moment have not wroat or Don aney thing farder than Sent orders to the Offisers Towards woodbridg to keepe a good look out.
“I am Hapy to heare from you for had aneything happened should not have wroat you not Knowing that you was at that Place.
“as soone as I git furder information I will send it with the greatest Disspatch … N.B. Exscuse hast” (DLC:GW; see also GW’s second letter to Wayne, 5 Nov.).
1. For an account of this forage, which began on Tuesday, 2 Nov., see 224–25.
2. Wayne is referring to Weehawken, N.J., located a little more than eight miles south of New Bridge and some two miles northeast of Bergen.
3. The northeastern tip of Staten Island was known as the Watering Place.
4. The unidentified escaped prisoner communicated with either Nathaniel Bowman or Joshua Bowman, both captains in the light infantry.
Joshua Bowman (1746–1780) served as a lieutenant in the 1st North Carolina Regiment from September 1775 until his promotion to captain in September 1776. Bowman commanded his regiment’s light infantry company in 1778 and presumably continued in that position during 1779. He went south with his regiment in 1780 and was killed in battle on 30 March.
5. GW evaluated this intelligence in his first letter to Wayne of 5 November.