Whaleboat Warriors: The Privateers of Raritan Bay and Matawan Creek

The Revolutionary War in New Jersey was more than a contest between George Washington’s Continentals and the red-coated British. Thousands of New Jerseyans took up arms on one side or the other without ever putting on a uniform. Many boarded privately owned whaleboats and small ships in the Raritan Bay to attack the British. Historian Michael Adelberg will discuss the privateers of the Raritan Bay and their base of operations in the Matawan Creek in a lecture that will feature the original reports of the privateer activities.

After the lecture, Adelberg will hold a book signing for his new book, The American Revolution on the Jersey Shore, and then return for a discussion of the fascinating Revolutionary War career of John Burrowes, Jr., of Matawan. He rose to the rank of major in the Continental Army and then held a number of civilian offices including serving as the sheriff of Monmouth County.

About Michael Adelberg

Michael Adelberg has been researching the American Revolution in Monmouth County, New Jersey, for over thirty years. He is the author of the newly published, The American Revolution on the Jersey Shore; the award-winning The American Revolution in Monmouth County; and three other books. His essays on the American Revolution have appeared in The Journal of Military History, The Journal of the Early Republic, The Wilson Quarterly, and other scholarly journals. Adelberg’s research has been recognized by the New Jersey Historical Commission, the New Jersey Studies Academic Alliance, the David Library of the American Revolution, the public television program NJ Today, and the government of Monmouth County.