W3R Blog (Baylor Massacre)

[Albert]

http://w3r-commons.org/blog/

The Baylor Massacre

by Joe Ryan
[reprinted from nj.com]

On Sept 28, 1778, British troops ambushed about 120 Continental
dragoons near the banks of the Hackensack River, bayoneting and
clubbing many of them to death as they slept in a hayloft.

The Americans, led by Colonel George Baylor, had been patrolling near
the present-day town of River Vale to keep an eye on British troops in
northern Bergen County, which was thick with Tories.

Historians suspect the British had been tipped off by a farmer. They
arrived at about 1 a.m., surrounding several barns and houses near
what is now Rivervale Road. Survivors recalled the British soldiers
stabbing widely and screaming, “Kill him!”

At least 20 Americans died. The survivors ran toward Paramus after
hastily burying their comrades in abandoned tanning vats along the
Hackensack River. The mass grave was discovered in 1967.

Historians call it the Baylor Massacre. On the 200th anniversary,
officials held a military funeral to honor the victims.

- The New Jersey Historical Commission contributed to this report.

See also: http://www.answers.com/topic/baylor-massacre

[DPowell]

See BCHS website for more info on this subject:
It was straight from the horse's mouth (so to speak) for James D. Blauvelt had "often heard his grandfather and Capt. Hering discuss the incident," telling how General No-flint Grey burst through the door on a moonless autumn night and how unarmed American dragoons, barely roused from sleep, had been bayoneted in his barnyard. James had already attained thirty years of age by the time grandfather Cornelius D. Blauvelt died in January 1832. Furthermore, James' father, David C. Blauvelt, had been a small boy, five years old, when the British bayonet-butchers came to call - and the horrific sights and sounds of that cold dawn must have left some impression upon his young mind and memory....

http://www.bergencountyhistory.org/Pages/baylormassacre.html

[Albert]

The Price of Freedom: A Patriot’s Grave