Battle of Pine's Bridge

Battle of Pine's Bridge
Part of the American Revolutionary War
Date May 14, 1781 Location Yorktown, New York Result British victory
Belligerents
United States	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
Christopher Greene   †	James DeLancey
Strength
	200 infantry 60 Cavalry
Casualties and losses
at least "6 killed, 5 wounded, 33 captured" ["Return of the Killed, Wounded and Missing of the Detachment of May 14, 1781" in Papers of Continental Congress]	Unknown

The Battle of Pine's Bridge was a minor yet exceptionally violent engagement during the American Revolutionary War, near the town of Yorktown, New York, on May 14, 1781. ^[1] It is considered one of the bloodiest small-unit actions of the war. ^[2]

Loyalist forces under the command of James De Lancey surprised an American Patriot defensive position at the Davenport Inn, guarding the Pine's Bridge crossing of the Croton River. As the sole crossing over the river, the bridge served as a critical, strategic artery for communication and supply lines of the Patriot forces. It was guarded by the 1st Rhode Island Regiment (which had many African-American and some indigenous soldiers) along with detached soldiers of the Massachusetts Continental Line and the New Hampshire Continental Line on the north bank of the Croton River.

Colonel Christopher Greene, the unit's commander, and Major Ebenezer Flagg, Greene's second-in-command, were killed in the action, along with at least six African American soldiers of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment (two more later died of their wounds). An account of the attack claimed that Greene's body "was found in the woods, about a mile distant from his tent, cut, and mangled in the most shocking way." ^[3] This brutality is often attributed to the Loyalists' particular hatred of Greene for commanding an integrated unit, the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, which included many Black soldiers. While the battle’s death records are incomplete, reports suggest that at least 45 men were killed, with dozens captured. The captured freedmen were allegedly transported to the British West Indies to be sold back into slavery. ^[4]

The exact burial locations of African American soldiers who died in battle are unknown. ^[5] Greene and Flagg were buried in unmarked graves at the First Presbyterian Church cemetery in Yorktown. In 1900, the State of New York erected a stone marker over their graves. ^[6] Nearby, the Monument to the 1st Rhode Island Regiment honors the memory of the defenders of Pine's Bridge. The heroic sculpture by noted sculptor Jay Warren depicts three figures, Col. Christopher Greene and two of his soldiers—an African American and a Native American. ^{[1] [2]}

References

1. DiSanto, Victor J. (February 22, 2024). "The First Rhode Island Regiment and the Pines Bridge Monument". Journal of the American Revolution.
2. "Pines Bridge Monument". Town of Yorktown, NY. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
3. "Papers of Col. Christopher Greene". Rhode Island Historical Society. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
4. "The Davenport House". Clio. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
5. Williams-Myers, A.J (2007). "Out of the Shadows: African Descendants -- Revolutionary Combatants in The Hudson River Valley; A Preliminary Historical Sketch". Afro-Americans in New York Life and History. pp. 31 (1): 97.
6. "Burial Place Historical Marker". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved March 8, 2026.

41°11′46″N73°52′23″W / 41.196°N 73.873°W / 41.196; -73.873