To George Washington from Nathaniel Shaw, 5 August 1780
From Nathaniel Shaw
New London [Conn.] August 5. 1780
Sir
I Received yours ⅌ Capt. Hurlbutt1 who sett out for New Port this day in order to Post the Dragoons for the Purpose you Mention and Every Assistance in my Power you May Depend, I Shall give him—their is now a fleet of Ships Just come to an Anchor of[f] this Harbour, Consisting of about Fifteen or Sixteen, I beleive moastly large Ships of the Line, and Imagine they are the same that were of[f] Block Island, they have French Colours Flying, what their Intentions is I Cannot Conceive, the Headmoast Ship came to an Anchor att 3 OClock P.M. and the Stern moast att 8 OClock, as the wind is they might have Continued their Coarse up the Sound, but their not makeing up of the Oppertunity, I Suspect they have sum Design Against this Port,2 we have about one Thousand men hear, & Suppose Govenr Trumbull will Imediately order more, if any movement to morrow will Advise You I am Sir Your very humble Servt
Nathl Shaw
ALS, DLC:GW.
Shaw again wrote GW on 6 Aug. from New London: “I wrote you last Evening that their was a large fleet of Sixteen Sail of Ships lying of[f] this Harbour att Anchor, they Continue in the same Position this Morning 9 OClock one Ship came down from the Westward and Join’d the Fleet. … P.S. its now Eleven OClock and the fleet are under Sail with the Flood tide Consequently bound to the Westward” (ALS, DLC:GW).
On 8 Aug., GW replied to both letters from headquarters near Orangetown, N.Y.: “I have been duly favoured with your two Letters of the 5th and 6th Instant; and thank you for the intelligence contained in them.
“I am also much obliged by your offer of assistance to Captain Hurlbut of expediting the communication. And entreat you will continue to give me the earliest notice of any movement which may be made by the Enemys shipping in the Sound, or of any thing else of consequence which may come to your knowledge” (LS, in David Humphreys’s writing, CtNlHi; Df, DLC:GW; Varick transcript, DLC:GW; GW signed the cover of the LS).
1. See GW to Shaw, 31 July.
2. Between 3 and 8 Aug., British vice admiral Marriot Arbuthnot shifted the position of his fleet from off of Block Island, R.I., to Gardiners Bay at the east end of Long Island, directly south of New London (see Arbuthnot to Henry Clinton, 3 and 8 Aug., in , 447–49; see also Arbuthnot to Sandwich, 20 Aug., in , 3:249–50, and , 203–4).