On This Date October 6, 1778- Battle of Chestnut Neck

October 6, 1778 – the Battle of Chestnut Neck (today’s Port Republic). The battle occurred after
a fleet of nine British ships, carrying 400 British and Loyalist troops, attacked the trading port of
Chestnut Neck in Little Egg Harbor in southern Ocean County. Chestnut Neck had been an
important port for American privateers, and also a busy trading center through which a large
volume of supplies bound for Washington’s army went through during the encampment at Valley
Forge. Forewarned of the attack, much of the town’s citizens and militia were able to retreat,
allowing the British to recapture only a small number of supplies while torching the village.