The Maid of the Revolutionary War

If you live in New Jersey, you are surrounded by reminders of the Revolutinary War. We honor General George Washington with numerous statues and murals depicting his crossing the Delaware River and a critical number of tide turning battles such as the Battle of Trenton, Battle of Princeton and Battle of Monmouth to name a few. New Jersey Governor William Franklin, illegitimate son of Benjamin Franklin was a British Loyalist who supported the Stamp Act of 1785 which further encouraged Colonists to rebel against British taxation and the rule of King George. Men in earky days of the colonies were a dominant factor in business, religion and in forming a militia. Fighting broke out on April 19, 1775 when the British army who were stationed in Boston were harassed by the agitated and overly taxed Massachusetts colonials. George Washingron was named commander in chief on June 15, 1775. He assumed command of the army in a field in Cambridge, Massachusetts the following month. Washington served as commanding general for the entire war without a salary. One may imagine women and children were kept out of sight during the Revolutionary War battles. Not quite so for Mary Ludwig Hays, nicknamed Molly Pitcher. She was a plucky woman unafraid to step in when Militia Men needed help. When her husband was injured and no longer able to fight. Mary Ludwig Hays dutifully, patriotically carried water to the troops, the act for which she is most recognized in history. Mary was born near Trenton in 1754 to Maria Margaretha and Johann George Ludwig. She was married to William Hays and after his death to John McCauley. Historians remain unsure of whether Molly Pitcher is a legend born of composite ofseveral other women. During the Revolutionary War, it was common for wives to follow their husbands who enlisted in the Continental Army to fight for independence for the colonies. It must be left to genealogists and today's DNA to validate her existence. In the 1700s, many woman named "Mary" were often bnicknamed "Molly," much as many men named Ian were nicknamed,"John." Thus, wives like Mary Hays moved from Pennsylvania where John was a barber to where he took up his militia duties in New Jersey. The war for independence meant much suffering and loss of life with 165 principal engagements from 1775-1783 fought mainly in New York, New Jersey and South Carolina. Over the course of the war, about 231,000 men served in the Continental Army, though never more than 48,000 at any one time, and never more than 13,000 at any one place. The Washington-led Continental Army was not trained as soldiers and most were farmers with little in the way of weapons, save their own muskets. In those times, Native American attacks to recoup land confiscated by settlers necessitated the use of a weapon for protection. However, over time the colonials and Native Americans in New Jersey, such as Nanticoke Lenni Lenape, the Ramapough Lenape and Powhatan Renape, which to this day have not been recognized by the U.S Federal government to receive federal benefits, managed working relationships, even to helping militias fight the British during the Revolutionary War. Women sewed great coats and other items of apparel for the militias. The problem was that fabrics for these much needed items were limited to wool since wool was in abundant supply. The women also made sure the men had food and water. Interestingly, water was as much to quench the thirst of parched throats as it was to cool down overheated cannons. Women devised a method of carrying twice their weight in water buckets by attaching two wooden buckets on opposite ends of a sturdy oak pole and then attaching the buckets to the pole as they hung from knotted rop0e hangers to keep water from spilling. They would fill the buckets with water from nearby streams and carry the pole across their necks and shoulders until they reached their destination. However in Colonial days, water from streams was often not potable and so women madesure there was plenty ofapple cider. Most colonial towns were situated near the ocean or a river because these were a great source of food. They ate a wide variety of fish including cod, flounder, lake trout, salmon, shellfish like clams and lobsters and halibut. Wives learned to smoke meats and salt preserve fish and game like deer, wild turkey, ducks and geese as well as rabbits hunted by menfolk. In the Revolutionary War, it was left to women to maintain the homestead and care for the children. But when the numbers of men in the Continental Army ranls began to dwindle due to death or injury, women like Molly Pitcher also helped by loading cannons and stockpiling ammumtion in lieu of any formal colonial governmental assistance. According to some historical records, while Molly's husband, William Hays fought in the Battle of Monmouth on a brutally hot day on June 28, 1778, at Freehold, New Jersey, Molly was present and made countless trips to a nearby spring to fill pitchers of cold water for soldiers to drink and to pour over their cannons to cool them down. When Molly saw her husband collapse at his cannon and was unable to continue the fight, she immediately dropped her water pitcher and took his place at the cannon. She manned the weapon throughout the remainder of the battle until the colonists achieved victory. An eye witness documented her heroic acts and reported that a cannon passed through her legs while on the battlefield and miraculously left her unscathed. This documnetation can be found at the National Archives in Washington D.C. Thus, our American independence is a heroic contribution of men and women like Mary Ludwig Hays, aka Molly Pitcher.