The 14th Continental Regiment twice had a role in saving the American Revolution. If not for them, the United States would have gone the route of Canada. The unit was created as a militia in January, 1775 in anticipation of trouble with England. Most of the men were fishermen. Some were free blacks. Their commander was John Glover. They brought their skills to the Continental Army outside Boston after Lexington and Concord occurred. Not long after joining Washington’s army, one of them clowned arriving Virginians for their hunting outfits. A brawl ensued that was broken up by Washington himself. They first saw action in the defense of New York City. After the army was badly defeated in the Battle of Long Island, the army retreated to entrenchments. That day, the Marbleheaders crossed the East River to join the defenses. The British would have attacked the next day and almost surely would have won and the Revolution may very well have been crippled. However, Washington came to his senses and decided to escape. The Marbleheaders were called on to man the boats that would conduct the evacuation. On a thankfully foggy night, they ferried all the men, horses, and artillery across. (see painting below) Washington did not lose a single man. In the Battle of Pell’s Point, they acted as a rearguard when the British landed behind American lines. They were part of the retreat across New Jersey after the loss of New York City. All that marching must have been hard on fishermen. They crossed the Delaware with the rest of the army. When their and many other soldiers’ enlistments were ending in January, Washington decided to use them for a very daring recrossing of the river to attack the Hessian garrison in Trenton. They manned the Durham boats that were 60 feet long and 8 feet across. They used long oars on the downstream side and poles on the upstream side. Glover’s men the soldiers, horses, and cannons across and then marched to participate in the battle. They were immortalized in the famous painting. In spite of the glory and satisfaction of saving the Revolution once again, most of them returned home in January when they refused to reenlist. They turned to the much more lucrative privateering.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_Continental_Regiment
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/john-glover-and-marblehead-men-massachusetts
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