Daughan, George C. (2008). If By Sea: The Forging of the American Navy - from the Revolution to the War of 1812. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-01607-5.

The tough, disciplined members of Glover’s Regiment had nautical skills that proved invaluable during the American Revolution. Fogle, Lauren (2008). Colonial Marblehead: From Rogues to Revolutionaries. Charleston, SC: History Press. ISBN 978-1-59629-411-0.On the stormy night of August 29, 1776, the Continental Army faced capture or annihilation after losing the Battle of Brooklyn. The British had trapped George Washington’s forces against the East River, and the fate of the Revolution rested upon the shoulders of the soldier-mariners from Marblehead, Massachusetts. Serving side by side in one of the country’s first diverse units, they pulled off an “American Dunkirk” and saved the army by transporting it across the treacherous waters of the river to Manhattan. John Glover’s Regiment of Marbleheaders accomplished an amazing feat on the night of Dec. 25, 1776. They ferried 2,400 men, plus horses and artillery, across the Delaware River in a blinding snowstorm. At the entrance to the Trenton Battle Monument in Trenton New Jersey are the bronze statues of two soldiers. One of the statues is of Private John Russell, a member of the 14th Regiment. John Glover (November 5, 1732–January 30, 1797) was an American fisherman, merchant, politician, and military leader from Marblehead, Massachusetts, who served as a brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. [1] He is most famous in American history for his regiment rowing Washington across the Delaware, the Battle of Long Island, and leading one of the first integrated regiments in the American Revolution. [2] Early life [ edit ] On Christmas Day, 1776, the Americans had suffered a series of defeats since the debacle on Long Island. Washington’s army had grown tired of retreating. Washington desperately needed to motivate his men to re-enlist at the end of the year.

After the battle, the Marbleheaders led a significant portion of the return crossing, which was more fragmented than the initial effort and even slower-going with about 900 Hessian prisoners in tow. After the Battle of Trenton, Washington attempted to persuade the Marbleheaders to remain in the army for another six weeks by offering a bounty, but few took him up on the offer. William R. Lee, former brigade major of the 14th was commissioned as a colonel on January 1, 1777, and a new regiment was formed. Only nine of the 14th Regiment's thirty-two officers re-enlisted. [22] On preparing to return home, members of the Marblehead Regiment learned that some Continental frigates were in the Delaware River. The men offered to sail the vessels to the relative safety of New England waters, but the offer was refused. [22] After returning home to Marblehead, most of the men took up the more profitable trade of privateering for the remainder of the American Revolutionary War. [23] Founders Online: From George Washington to the Citizens of Marblehead, 2 Novemb …". founders.archives.gov. Glover told Washington “not to be troubled about that, as his boys could manage it.” They managed. Glover’s Regiment

Around 6:00 PM on Christmas night, the Marbleheaders began shuttling soldiers, artillery, and horses across the river. The process would continue into the early morning, much of it in the face of a relentless Nor’easter. All Together Now: Deep down in their bones, true Marbleheaders (see item #1) know the chorus to "Marblehead Forever," sung to the tune of "The Lily of the Valley'': Then Marblehead forever! God bless the good old town! May she never shame her noble ancestry! She was first in Revolution, was first in '61, And from all dishonor we will keep her free! The disease continued its fearful ravages till late in the summer of 1731, and gathered its victims with an unsparing hand,” wrote Samuel Roads in 1881. “Rich and poor, old and young, the learned and the unlettered were alike afflicted by this impartial agent of death.” History Repeats Itself For ''Furreiners'' Only: Isolated and sea-girdled as it is, Marblehead has local idioms just for foreigners, the ''strangers in our midst." To the summer visitor, the expression goes, "Just passing through?" or "One way in, one way out.'' All true Marbleheaders (see item #1) know the story of the town fisherman who was tossed a silver coin by a passing Salem yachtsman whose boat's wake capsized the fisherman's catch. "To hell I pitch it,'' he responded. For state officials, the proper remark is: "What the hell have the laws of Massachusetts got to do with the town of Marblehead?" Edward Holyoke advocated for smallpox inoculation, as did his influential parishioners: Richard Dana, Justice of the Peace Stephen Minot, merchant John Tasker and trader Joseph Blaney. Smallpox Inoculation

True Marbleheader: Time is of the essence in determining who is a Marbleheader and who is not. How long have you lived here? In a crude but generous way, anyone who arrived in town after Doliber in 1629 can be called a Marbleheader. In this Age of Roots, however, a strict definition of family tree is often applied: Your grandfather on both sides should have been born a Marbleheader. But since Mary Alley Hospital closed its maternity ward in the mid-1960's, only those born at home today can claim to have taken their first breath in Marblehead. Going native is getting more and more difficult.Billias, George Athan (1960). General John Glover and his Marblehead Mariners. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Part of the reason may have to do with his personal friendship with the bold, burly John Glover, forged during the Siege of Boston. Glover, like Washington, exercised good taste and decorum. He dressed well, always with two silver pistols and a Scottish broadsword. The rest of the regimental leadership also came from some of Marblehead’s leading families — Ornes, Lees and Gerrys — tied together by blood and friendship. “The officers seem to have mixed with the world,” noted one observer.

The frigate USS Glover (FF-1098) was named for him, and sponsored by Mrs. William S. Pederson, Sr., and Mrs. Claude V. Signer, his great-great-great-granddaughters. John Glover and his family lived in Marblehead, MA where he built a house in 1762, now known as the John Glover House, a National Historic Landmark. The General Glover farmhouse, in Swampscott, MA, and also built in 1700s, is where Glover lived beginning in 1782 after retiring from the military. While living here, he served as a local selectman and Massachusetts State representative. The house still stands today in Swampscott, MA but threatened by demolition. [21] Memorials and legacy [ edit ]The townspeople were skeptical. They believed God, not man, should decide who lived and died. They also knew there wasn’t enough money to inoculate everyone, only the wealthiest citizens. At Town Meeting on Oct. 12, 1720, they voted to ban the practice unless everyone in town received a smallpox inoculation.