Hessian Burial Site

Text

Modern forensic technology has enabled the New Jersey State Police to reconstruct a remarkably detailed image of what a Hessian soldier would have looked like—including the uniform, signature facial hair (common among German troops of the era), and a gleaming brass grenadier mitre cap. The most decadent item, an original brass cap, has been carefully preserved by the Museum of the American Revolution for posterity.

This remarkable reconstruction was made possible through the archaeological survey and excavation conducted at the Red Bank site in 2022, which literally unearthed the remains of Hessian soldiers buried for over two centuries. It serves as a haunting reminder of the grim legacy war leaves behind. The reconstructed individual is labeled as #9. Today, the Red Bank Battlefield Archaeology Project is conducting meticulous scientific studies to identify these individuals and recover their lost identities.

Historical accounts from the Whitall family note that by the 1860s, “the last of the bones, including those of Colonel von Donop, washed into the Delaware River.” A separate report from the early 20th century somberly observed that “all that was left of the poor Hessians have been dug up and scattered about as relics.” In 2022, Red Bank made international headlines with the extraordinary discovery of a previously undocumented mass burial site. The remains of 15 Hessian soldiers were recovered, alongside battle artifacts such as musket balls, belt buckles, gunflints, and uniform buttons.

In an evocative illistration, artist Stephen Walsh of the United Kingdom captured the chaos and intensity of the battle that caused many Hessians to fall. His artwork imagines the brutal scene that someone peering out of the Whitall House window might have witnessed in 1777: smoke-filled fields where racially integrated Patriot forces clashed fiercely with British and Hessian troops in bloody battles of attrition. Wave after wave of enemy assaults were repelled by American defenders whose “pluckiness, leadership, and courage” secured a stunning victory against seemingly insurmountable odds.

John Burlingame of the 2nd Rhode Island Regiment also captured the brutal reality of Red Bank through intricate carvings on a powder horn, vividly depicting the chaos and carnage of battle. Though not excavated at Red Bank, this powder horn—now part of a private collection—remains a powerful artifact that offers historians a raw, personal glimpse into the ferocity of the October 1777 clash.

Further insight comes from the Intelligence From Red Bank transmission, where a conversation between field commanders and General George Washington details the Continental Army’s unexpected successes against superior British and Hessian forces. John Hazelwood, a Commodore in the Pennsylvania and Continental Navy, recounts how British warships attempting to advance were bombarded by relentless Continental fire and forced upriver. Only one ship made it close, only to be disabled, attacked, and destroyed after a catastrophic cannon explosion.

In his reply, General Washington lauded Hazelwood and his men, recognizing that the British defeat at Red Bank was a crucial moment—a bold victory that gave soldiers a psychological boost in America’s desperate fight for independence.

The moment of battle induced chaos is forever captured in a reproduction of Frederick Coffay Yohn’s dramatic 1898 painting, The Battle of Red Bank.