1737
One of the most influential writers of the era, Thomas Paine, was born on this day in Thetford, England. Paine’s 1776 pamphlet, Common Sense, used accessible language to argue for total independence from Great Britain, shifting public opinion and directly influencing the Declaration of Independence. He later wrote The American Crisis, which famously began with the words “These are the times that try men's souls,” a series read to Washington’s troops to bolster morale before the Battle of Trenton.
1777
The Battle of Fort Independence concluded. Acting on orders from General Washington, American Brigadier General William Heath ended a multi-day assault on the British outpost near Manhattan. The diversion was intended to draw British troops away from the ongoing conflict in New Jersey.
1779
Following the fall of Savannah in December 1778, British Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Campbell led a force of approximately 1,000 men to capture Augusta, the temporary capital of Georgia. The British entered Augusta on January 29, 1779, establishing it as a critical outpost to secure their left flank and recruit local Loyalists. This capture marked the farthest inland point of the British Southern Strategy at that time.
1780
During the second major winter encampment at Morristown, the Continental Army experienced a rare moment of reprieve from a season of near starvation. In a letter dated January 29, 1780, General George Washington noted that the provision situation had finally become “comfortable” compared to the preceding weeks of extreme scarcity. Washington specifically credited the exertions of New Jersey's local magistrates and inhabitants, whose emergency supplies of grain and cattle saved the army after blizzards had blocked all major supply routes. Just weeks earlier, soldiers had been reduced to eating roasted shoes and tree bark to survive the coldest month on record.