PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA—During the Battle of Red Bank, fought on October 22, 1777, American forces defending Fort Mercer and the Delaware River against an army of Hessian soldiers fired a cannon that exploded and killed 12 American soldiers. Archaeologists from John Milner Associates (JMA) were investigating the battlefield in National Park, Gloucester County, New Jersey, as an American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) project, when they found musket balls, shell fragments, buttons, buckles, ramrods, and possibly the massive cannon. “Everyone was surprised when the ground-penetrating radar picked up a large anomaly about two feet down. Maybe the force of the explosion rocketed it into the earth. Or maybe it was buried along with other artillery pieces before the Americans retreated,” Jennifer Janofsky, curator of the Red Bank Battlefield Park, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. The archaeological team also looked for remains of the hundreds of Hessians who died during the battle. “While they did find small bone fragments, as well as an eighteenth-century button, it will take lab analysis to determine if the bones are human. Given the sandy nature of the soil, the bones were quite soft and difficult to identify,” she added. To read more about the archaeology of the American Revolution, go to "Small Skirmish in the War for Freedom."
