2006 Campaign season
The NJ loyalty oath
Pension application of an Outwater's millitiaman
A note to the Govenor from Captain John Outwater
Field Safety guide
Camp Safety
Washington's calls the militia, Dec. 1776
article about Lt. Catterlin
I want to Welcome old and new members to our 2006 campaign season. We are growing, so we may need to adjust to new methods of organizing ourselves at events. Please bear with us, and if you have any problems, ideas, or solutions, tell the officers!
Please try and make several events this season, particularly at paid events and major events, where numbers count! Once again we have an exciting season ahead. Get your gear ready, roll cartridges, and get someone to mow your lawn while you are out on the field. Print out the schedule web page and mark your calendars. See you on the Field!
Your servant,
Glenn Valis, Commander
NJ loyalty Oath
Required for all officers of a Publick nature, civil or military,
appointed, elected or commissioned, by the NJ legislature Act
called; An Act for the Security of the Government of New Jersey,
Sept. 19, 1776.
I, do sincerely profess and swear (or if one of the
people called Quakers, affirm) that I do not hold myself bound
to bear Allegiance to the King of Great Britain.
So help me God.
I, do sincerely profess and swear (or if one of the people
called Quakers, affirm) that I do and will bear true Faith and
Allegiance to the Government established in this State, under
the Authority of the People.
So help me God
"The Petition of John C. Post respectfully shewth unto
your Honourable Body,
that your Petitioner resides in the Township of New Barbadoes
in the County
of Bergen and State of New Jersey, that he was seventy years of
age on the
ninth day of June last. That your petitioner during the war of
the
revolution which freed our now happy country from British bondage
enlisted
in the regular service under Captain David Marinus in the regiment
commanded
by Col Philip Cortlandt, during which time he was engaged in many
skirmishes, in hard fought battles and underwent much suffering
and
fatigue....after the Expiration of the time of his Enlistment
under Capt.
Marinus he enlisted under Capt. John Outwater on the lines for
the Term of
seven Months; and continued in the army during the war under several
different officers...During the seven years of the war which established
our
Independence your Petitioner spent not three months of time at
his home but
was Continually in the service, and during a portion of time having
become
known to the Enemy was hunted like the hare and for safety compelled
to
sleep in his boat on the river, and with no cover but the canopy
of Heaven
to protect him from the storms and chills of the season..."
(from a note byTodd Post)
From the Livingston Papers:
Petition of Peter Wilson and Note Attached of John Outwater
[New Barbadoes, September 8, 1781 ]
May it please your Excellency
The perilous Situation of the frontiers of this County has
induced me to make this Application to your Excellency at the
Request of the Inhabitants, that a part of the Militia of the
State should be called out to the Assistance of the twelve Months
Men stationed here for the defence of the County. This Measure
has become the more necessary as the few Men who were raised for
a Year are reduced in Number by Enlistments into the Continental
Army. One hundred & twenty Men were designed for the Protection
of this Frontier, not above one fourth Part of which are now on
duty here, while Closter which is also very much exposed, is entirely
open to the Depredations of the Refugees, who are indefatigable
in making nocturnal Expeditions for Horses, Cattle, & Prisoners.(1)
On the 9th. of August they carried off fourteen Prisoners &
a very considerable Number of Cattle & Horses-the greater
Part of the Stock they were obliged to quit, but the Prisoners
were safely lodged in
the Sugar House, and on the 30th. ult. they made another Attempt
upon this Quarter but were forced to leave all the Cattle &
Horses they had taken, & in Spite of the Fire of their Gun-Boat,
& Grape Shot to make a precipitate Retreat with the Loss of
three men killed, & 6 or 7 wounded two of whom, one of them
the Capt. of the Gun Boat, are since dead, some of the Others
dangerously wounded, and one taken prisoner. Capt. Outwatcr who
commandcd the Year'.s Men & Militia of the Vicinity who turned
out On the Instant, had one man wounded thro' the Thigh, &
two others slightly scratched. A small party of them succceded
better at Closter last Wednesday night the 4th. Instant having
carried off 10 head of Cattle & 4 Horses, & taken five
white Men & a Negro prisoners. One Cole,(2) of the Militia
of that Neighbourhood, who had deserted to the Enemy a few days
before was their Conductor.
The Militia of this County have done so great a Surplus of Military
Duty that I could wish, if the Governor's Ideas coincide with
mine, to have one Class from one of the Regiments of the County
of Somerset, & one Class from this County called to our assistance,
to be Stationed at this Place & at Closter. I am with the
greatest Respect your Excellency's very humble Servant
PETER WILSON [Bergen County, September 10, 1781 ]
I am Parsaonelly Acquainted With the General Desire of the Publick, In Regard to An Augmentation of the Guard, On this frontier, Your Excelency I Am Convinced, Wants No Information, In Regard to the Situation of this County from Your Parshaonel knowledge of the Strength of the De[ . . . ] under my Command, & Capt. Demarests (3) at the Bridges, You take the mater In Your Serius Consideration & Grant the Above Request. I Am With the Gratest Respect Your Excellency's most Obedient & Very Humble Servt.
JOHN OUTWATER
ALS, NN.
I. For a report of earlier Loyalist raids into Bergen County see Petition of the Inhabitants of Bergen County, June 26, 1781. British regulars, Loyalists, and refugees not only attacked and looted Bergen County towns through the spring and summer of 1781, but in May had established a blockhouse at Fort Lee. The Bergen County militia, under thc command of Capt. John Outwater, had reduced the blockhouse even before receiving George Washington's orders to do so (Fitzpatrick, Writings of Washington, 22: 94-95).
2 Probably Benjamin Cole, a private in Col. John Lambs Artillery
of the Continental Army, who had deserted prior to Sept. 4th,
1781 (NJA, Newspaper Extracts, 5:294)
3 David Demerest
Outwater's as a member unit of the BAR and Cont'l Line must follow
the established safety guidelines. This Field Safely Guide is
a quick start on knowing the safety regulations.
Outwater's Militia Field Safety Guide
All members must put safety first. People can be seriously injured if we take unnecessary risks. These are guidelines, and are not the complete safety list. See the Continental Line Black Powder safety regulations or the BAR safety regulations.
Drinking and firearms do not mix.
Every man at arms is to arrive at formation with his musket clean, bright, in good repair, nothing in the barrel, flint firmly held, and with a hammerstall and flashguard (having two point contact) installed.
Cartridges are to be made of bond paper, not newsprint or other
flimsy paper. No more than 120 grains of powder may be used. 100
grains maximum is recommended. Powder must be Black Powder, of
grade 2 or 3 F. 4F may not be used. No staples or tape may be
used in their construction, nor excessive amounts of glue. Cartridges
may not be rolled at an event.
Firing is to be done only with approval when in camp. When fielding,
load only upon command. Hammerstalls should be in place when loaded.
No physical contact with the enemy is allowed. "Mock hand to hand" must be arranged before hand, cleared with the American, British and unit commanders of all concerned, and practiced by the individuals. Usually not worth all the trouble, and is almost never seen in the hobby!
Edged weapons are never used during tacticals by infantry, and must be kept sheathed, excepting only for ceremonial purposes.
You must ascertain after every shot if your firelock has fired. You can do this, if you did not see or feel it fire, by looking at the touchhole. A just fired firelock will have a small jet of smoke escaping. If you are not certain you have fired, dump the charge! Double loads are prohibited! The louder discharge of a double charge is hazardous to the ears, and is immediately noticeable. Take care to never have more than a single charge in your barrel!
Aim at least one foot over the heads of the enemy. Do not fire at any person less than 30 yards away, or with someone less than 45 degrees to the side. E.g. someone steps forward to the side, and is now to your front and side. If he is more or equally forward as side, do not fire. Better to be safe than sorry! The concussion is itself dangerous to the ears, not to mention the hazard of being hit by the flash.
New members must show basic knowledge of the safety practices, manual of arms and basic maneuvers before fielding, and must have a practice session on actually loading and firing their piece before fielding. You may be asked to field without actually loading and firing so that you can be conditioned to tactical conditions before using powder.
Filling of cartridges at events is prohibited. Bring enough to the event. Usually you will need no more than 30 per tactical. Some events you may need more. You must carry extra cartridges, not in your cartridge box/bag, wrapped in aluminum foil. Cartridges must be carried in a bag or pouch, never in a pocket. Powder horns must be empty!
Every man must carry a water container on to the field. If
you do not have a canteen, put a water bottle in your haversack.
Fielding will be hot and tiring. You will hurry out, then stand
in the sun, and then have energetic maneuvers to do. Heat is a
great safety concern, and water is required! Water also is needed
if someone gets powder, dirt or a flash in the eyes or clothing.
The unit officer or NCO in command must carry a first aid kit
with him onto the field.
Camp Safety is also important! More injuries occur around camp than out on the field. Here are a few rules.
Every fire must be monitored by someone, not including children under 12, at all times. Every fire must have a bucket filled with water and a wool blanket near it in case it starts to spread. This is required by both the BAR and CL.
Do not leave sharp weapons laying around. Put tomahawks, axes either into a log or back in their sheaths. The public is NOT allowed to handle edged weapons.
Be wary of handling cast iron around the fire. It can hot enough to burn you badly for many minutes after it comes off the fire. Use a rag or glove to protect your hands.
Use caution and common sence when cutting wood and around fires!
To the Friends of America in the State of New Jersey
The Army of the American States under my Command being lately greatly reinforced, and having again entered the State of New Jersey, I most warmly request the Militia of Said State at this Important Crisis to Evince their Love of their Country, by boldly Stepping forth and defending the Cause of Freedom. The Inhabitants may be Assured that by a manly or spirited Conduct they may now relieve their Distinguished State from the depredations of our Enemies-I have therefore dispatched Coll. Neilson, Majors Taylor, Van Emburgh, + Frelinghuysen together with some other Gentlemen of your State to call together and Embody your Militia, not doubting but Success will attend their Endeavors-
GeGeorge Washington
Trentown
31 Dec. 17
76
From an article in the Warren Township Historical Society newsletter, on line, about the area around O'Conners Restaurant area east of Mt. Bethel Road. Interesting information on Lt. Catterlin, who served in Outwater's while it was State Troops.
Was the area surrounding what is now O'Connor's Restaurrant
on Mountain
Blvd., at the Warren-Watchung border, once the site of the township's
first
village? Evidence collected by George Bebbington seems to point
in that
direction.
According to Bebbington, General Erskine's route maps for Washington's
army
show the original location of the Mount Bethel Baptist Meeting
House and
Joseph Catterline's Tavern, both located in the valley between
the First and
Second Mountains near where O'Connor's stands now. Such buildings,
says
Bebbington, are usually strong components of a village center.
Both the
tavern and the church were on what would become a portion of Mountain
Blvd.;
a school house was less than a mile to the west on the same road,
then
called the Old Somerset Road.
On the east side of today's restaurant can be found a cluster
of very old
houses, most of them on the Nesco property. One of these, said
to be
Watchung's oldest house, was built around the year 1700. Mr. and
Mrs. A. H.
Santucci owned the homes in the l970s. Could this also have been
part of
that early community?
This neighborhood had strong ties with Scotch Plains for it was
in l767 that
15 members of the Scotch Plains Baptist Church sought their dismissal
so
that they might constitute their own separate organization, what
was to
become the Mount Bethel Church. They wished to worship in the
building where
"they had been meeting." That building, on land supplied
by Captain Samuel
Dunn, had been erected in l761. Family names of the church members
were
Sutton, Jennings, Worth, Pound, Tingley, Coon, Cowart, Bloom and
Hayden.
Among their neighbors were the Tongler, Kingsley, Jones, Cox,
Vermulen,
Dunn, Smalley and Jobs families. Some of these families may have
lived in
the small community that probably surrounded the tavern, school
and church.
Was this tiny village ever called Mount Bethel? The area on top
of the
Second Mountain became known as Mount Bethel when the Baptists
moved there
in l785, and they may have taken their name to the area when they
moved
their church building to its new site. Or did the cross-roads
village have a
name associated with one of its well-known residents, possibly
Joseph
Catterlin, the local innkeeper? We do not know.
Ancient records show that Joseph Catterlin was an innkeeper at
least from
l778 to l799. A newspaper extract shows that Isaac Morse, executor
of the
Estate of Joseph Morse, Jr., advertised that he was collecting
and settling
all notes and debts on April 3, l780, at the house of Joseph Catterling,
innkeeper in Somerset County. Joseph Catterlin was also the witness
to the
will of one Francis Dunn (along with Nahun Dunn and Runah Tingley)
on
December 15, l776. Joseph Catterlin was an initial subscriber
to the New
Jersey Gazette in l777, some evidence that the newspaper would
have been
available to his inn's patrons, a common practice in Colonial
times.
In May 1778 a tax ratables list for Bernards Township (which then
included
Warren) lists Joseph Caterline as owning 93 acres, two houses,
three cows
and two pigs.
Reignette March in her book, Scotch Plains (l936), reprints a
newspaper
notice about a Mr. Casterline of the Blue Hills: "On Friday
morning (June
l780), on the mountain near Scotch Plains, a party of villains
from Staten
Island, who had come over to the East Jersey hills to steal horses,
were
discovered by Mr. Casterline, an officer of the Militia, who killed
one
Inslee, and took three others - Lesegh, Hutchinson and Closson.
A court
martial is now sitting." This probably relates to Joseph
Catterline.
Records in the State Archives reveal that Joseph Catterline "of
the Blue
Hills" had an extensive and varied military record. Early
in the war he was
appointed to recruit mem in Somerset County for the Continental
service.
They were to rendezvous at the Somerset County Court House on
October 10,
l777. He was commissioned a first lieutenant of the Somerset County
Militia,
seeing active service under Captain Jacob TenEych in November
1777, and he
later led a group of Continental Army enlistees to camp at Valley
Forge on
May 21, l778. In September 1778 he was serving in Captain Philip
VanArsdale's company of militia.
Catterline served eight days as a lieutenant in Captain David
Smalley's
company, recruiting men for the State Troops in June l779. He
commanded a
detachment of 25 men in service at Morristown in August 1780,
then served as
a lieutenant in Captain John Outwater's company defending the
state's
frontiers. Catterline was stationed in Bergen County from April
1 to
December 31, l781, served in Captain Peter Ward's company until
December 15,
l782, which included an engagement with the enemy at Fort Lee,
and then he
rejoined Outwater's unit, serving with him from July 1 to September
16,
l784. Lt. Joseph Catterline was also in charge of Signal Beacon
#7 located
"near the Quibbletown Gap," just south of his tavern.
In all, Catterline's
military record was an impressive one.
Joseph Catterline's ancestry is a matter of some conjecture, although
it is
clear the name "Joseph" was a family favorite. One researcher
reports a
"Joseph" with 21 children who is also said to have served
in the Morris
County Militia during the Revolution. Supposedly members of the
Morris
branch are descended from one Francis Catterline (b. 1690) who
was born in
France, left because of religious persecution, settled near Union,
N.J.,
where he had three wives and 26 children. A will dated June 5,
1760, proved
Dec. 27, l768, of Francis Catterling of Morristown lists his children,
Francis, Isaac, James, Benjamin, Jacob and Joseph.
Warren's Joseph Catterline (or perhaps a son of the same name)
is mentioned
in Littell's Genealogies of the First Settlers of the Passaic
Valley, where
the author states that Hannah Willcox, the daughter of Daniel,
married
Joseph Casterline, and had a son Mulford Casterline, who married
in l823. We
know nothing else of Joseph's life although his ancestors may
be among those
recorded in the tax and Bible records of Woodbridge Township (1668-1781).
There, we find four children born to Barnard and Alice Catterlin:
Joseph,
born Dec. 22, l703, Nathaniel, born Jan. 30, l705, Ann, born Feb.
19, l707,
and Mary, born Aug. 30, l709. The first two were apparently born
in the
Woodbridge area, while the latter were Piscataway births. Records
of another
brother or perhaps uncle, Jonathan, can also be found. Barnet
Catterlin's
ear mark appears in the Piscataway records for l709. Moreover,
a Caterline
of Middlesex County leased land from John Parker in l720 which
was probably
a tract purchased from the Indians in the Blue Mountains "on
the west side
of Governor Lawrie's tract," that is, in what is now Warren
Township. On
June 8, 1733, Jennet Parker, creditor, was granted the administration
of
Barnet Caterline's estate. A list of Woodbridge's 3rd Co., New
Jersey
Militia, under the command of Col. T. F. Farmer in 1715 contains
the names
of Jonathan and Joseph Catterlin.
On Aug. 23, l748, Jonathan Catterlin appealed to the East Jersey
Proprietors
to protect his interests from the claims of the Elizabethtown
Associates,
stating he had settled on Dockwra's 3,000 acre tract on the south
side of
the "Pisick River." He testified that he had held possession
since about
1720, paying a yearly rent to Dockwra's heirs. Others living on
Dockwra's
land were Jonathan Casterlin Jr. and Vinson Casterlin. A Jonathan
Catterlin
is mentioned as a constable of the Somerset County Court of Oyer
and
Terminer on Aug. 8, l751. The Somerset County Road Book (l775-1805),
on page
5, shows Joseph Catterline among the signers of a Oct. 27, l779,
petition to
the County Freeholders asking for the erection of a bridge of
the Passaic
River "past the one on the Dead River."
When Joseph Catterline departed Warren, if he did, or where he
moved, or
when he died, has not been determined. We do not know whether
he was related
to the Catterlines of Morris County or to those who lived in Sussex
County.
What is clear is that the small village that clustered about his
tavern
gradually disappeared into history, its demise perhaps hastened
by the
decision of the Baptists to move their meeting house to Stony
Hill (or did
they move because the village had declined?). The old mushroom
farm with its
underground caves that was built near the spot nearly a century
and a half
later provided a new center of interest and the inns and steakhouses
that
followed it have continued to mark the spot.
[By George Bebbington]