DOWN MEMORY LANE

52nd street The Battles of

FORT DELANCEY HAD A RICH HISTORY, BUT THERE’S NOTHING TO SHOW FOR IT

By Pat Bonner

As they go about their day-to-day activities, few residents realize that they may be walking or parking their cars on ground where Revolutionary War battles or skirmishes were fought. Although the area around Avenue B and 52nd Street is now mostly one- and twofamily homes, once it was a place where the newly formed Continental Army fought against the loyalists who were supporting the British Empire.

In the late eighteenth century, Bayonne was known as Bergen Neck. In April 1776, when George Washington learned that the British fl eet was sailing for New York, he ordered that a main fort be built at Paulus Hook in Jersey City. In July of that year, he ordered General Hugh Mercer (for whom Mercer Park on the city line is named) to send 500 men to Bayonne to set up two forts: one at First Street and Avenue A and the other between 51st and 52nd Streets east of Avenue B. This uptown site was later known as Fort Delancey.

‘A Notoriously Vicious Character’

One historian, writing 115 years ago, reported that the fort occupied the high land between 51st and 52nd Streets starting about 100 feet east of the Speedway (Avenue B) and adjoining the property to the rear of 99 West 51st Street. Until

Avenue B and 52nd Street is now mostly one- and two-family homes. Once it was a place where the newly formed Continental Army fought against the loyalists who were supporting the British Empire.

recently, there was a marker near the site reading “BERGEN NECK FORT, built by Americans 1776, occupied 1777-1782 by Loyalist Forces who named it Fort Delancey.”

With the British landing in New York, General Mercer was forced to abandon the fort on October 5, 1776, marching his men north to Fort Lee. For the next seven years, Bergen Neck/Bayonne was a sort of no man’s land between the British on Staten Island and the Continentals to the west and north of Jersey City. Fort Delancey was taken over by the loyalists and was commanded by a loyalist named Tom Ward, who reportedly was a “notoriously vicious character” who sent his band of “desperadoes” to plunder the surrounding farms. Farmhouses were looted and then burned.

Holding the Fort

There were both loyalists and rebels living here. Both armies used the area as a source of grain, meat, and firewood. In August 1780, General Lafayette and his troops marched from Fort Lee all the way to Bergen Point where they loaded their wagons with grain and whatever else they could take. The British forces under command of Admiral Howe fired on them from Staten Island, but they were able to get away with their provisions.

Between 1780 and 1782, Fort Delancey was attacked by the Continentals several times. There was a cold snap in early February 1782, and Newark Bay froze. On February 7, a Captain Bowmay and 200 Continental militia walked across Newark Bay to the foot of 56th Street, known then as Refugees Post and attacked the fort. They marched in three columns but were unsuccessful in taking the fort. On March 29 there was another attempt. Small boats from Newark landed at 54th Street and Newark Bay and headed for the fort. They took seven prisoners en route. However, they were intercepted by a party sent out from the fort. Four of the prisoners and two or three of the militiamen were killed.

Lost to the Fog of War

In May 1782, a new British commander, Sir Guy Carleton, arrived in New York with news that there were peace negotiations going on in Paris to end the hostilities. Sir Guy arranged to have notorious loyalists, like Tom Ward, relocated for their own safety. Ward was moved to Nova Scotia. The British abandoned the fort in September 1782 and burned it to the ground.

The ruins of the fort remained for some time, but they have since been replaced by houses. Now, there is nothing to indicate the rich history of the neighborhood. Years ago, a rusty cannon ball was dug up from under an old tree in front of 90 West 52nd Street. There are also stories of an old bayonet and a portion of a cap being dug up near the site. No doubt there are still relics of this era buried a few feet underground over the entire area. There is now parkland by the bay that’s accessible to the public. No doubt, additional Revolutionary War artifacts will be uncovered in the future.—BLP

On February 7, Captain Bowmay and 200 Continental militia walked across a frozen Newark Bay to the foot of Fifty Sixth Street, known then as Refugees Post and attacked the fort.