December 13, 1776 – The Day that Altered American History in Basking Ridge, New Jersey

The world might have had a different look if it wasn’t for this day’s event.
December 13, 1776 in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.

Basking Ridge, New Jersey’s most famous incident, occurred on December 13, 1776, at about noon. General Charles Lee (1731-1782) was “alarmed” by Major Wilkinson while writing a letter to General Gates about George Washington in an upstairs bedroom of the Widow White’s Tavern. Widow White’s Tavern, named after Ebenezer White’s wife, Mary Brown White, became the centerpiece of Revolutionary War history on that day because It was on this most unfortunate day for General Lee that General Lee became a prisoner of the British Army, leaving General Washington.

It was General Charles Lee vs. General George Washington until Basking Ridge Happened

There was no secret that General Charles Lee had disdain for General Washington. General Charles Lee, who had been captured in Basking Ridge on December 13, 1776, was held by the British as a prisoner until exchanged in 1778. He remarked, “Washington is not fit enough to command a Sergeant’s Guard.” Washington attempted to secure Lee’s release through a prisoner exchange, but he had no captives of similar rank with which to bargain, and Lee remained in British custody for almost 18 months. Based on the capture, no one from Congress was willing to back Lee to lead the Continental Army, and the position remained with General Washington.

During this time, Lee appears to have wavered in allegiance to his adopted country. In 1858, a document titled “Mr. Lee’s Plan, 29th March 1777” was discovered; it advised Howe on how to defeat the Continental Army. Until his death, Lee expressed animosity toward Washington as a “puffed-up charlatan.” In his last will, Lee asked that he not be buried in a churchyard. “I have kept so much bad company when living,” he wrote, “I do not choose to continue it when dead.” Despite these wishes, Lee was buried at the entrance to Christ Church in Philadelphia. If you are in the area, pay Charles a visit and give him a big “thumbs down.”

Widow White’s Tavern

Suppose the British hadn’t discovered that General Lee was at the Basking Ridge tavern. In that case, he might have been able to sway the Continental Congress to select him as the Continental Army’s primary General. Washington would have had to serve as a subordinate. Lee would have most likely retreated (as he did from the Battle of Monmouth), and as they say, the rest would have been history.

Next time you’re traveling in the Basking Ridge area, stop by the signpost on the corner of Cedar Avenue and South Finley Avenue and remember the moment when Basking Ridge’s history changed the world forever.

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