1778
February 16 marks a specific low point in the survival of the Continental Army. George Washington wrote a desperate letter to Governor George Clinton of New York. This date represents the peak of the logistical failure of the Continental Congress to supply the troops, a crisis that forced Washington to authorize “foraging” (seizing) livestock from nearby farms to prevent a total mutiny.
While the main army was at Valley Forge, the New Jersey coast was a hotbed of activity on February 16. From the Little Egg Harbor and Chestnut Neck areas, New Jersey “privateers” (legalized pirates) were using the mid-February weather to slip past the British blockade. They were capturing British supply ships bound for occupied Philadelphia. On or around this date, reports were sent to the New Jersey Council of Safety regarding captured British goods—including much-needed blankets and West Indian rum—that were being redirected to the American troops.
1780
During the hard winter at Jockey Hollow, the situation for the Continental Army reached a desperate peak. From his headquarters at the Ford Mansion in Morristown, George Washington wrote several urgent letters on this day. He described the “distressed condition” of the New Jersey and Pennsylvania lines, noting that many men were literally barefoot in the snow. Local New Jersey women, led by figures like Theodora Snowball and others in the Morristown area, were actively organizing “sewing circles” around this date to produce shirts and stockings for the soldiers. This grassroots effort in New Jersey was essential to keeping the army from dissolving during the mid-February freeze.
1781
In the Southern Theater, the legendary tactical retreat known as the Race to the Dan was concluding. General Nathanael Greene had successfully led Lord Cornwallis on a chase across North Carolina. By mid-February, Greene’s army had crossed the Dan River into Virginia, leaving Cornwallis exhausted, short on supplies, and deep in hostile territory. Cornwallis was forced to turn back toward Hillsborough, NC, to recruit Loyalists—an effort that failed miserably and set the stage for the Battle of Guilford Courthouse.