Martin's Tavern and The Battle of Brandywine

Martin's Tavern and The Battle of Brandywine. September 11, 1777. , Major General John Sullivan sent a message to George Washington, stating that reports of a British attempt to cross the Brandywine north of the Continental Army were false. Sullivan met “Major Joseph Spear of the Militia who came (last night) This morning from a Tavern called Martin’s on the Forks of the Brandywine.” Spear rode from Martin’s Tavern to what is today Longwood Gardens without spotting the roughly 9,000 British who would soon pass to the south of Marshallton. This mistaken report led Washington to recall orders that may have changed the course of the battle., Joseph Galloway’s spy map and presence at the Battle of Brandywine provided British General Sir William Howe with the information needed to defeat Washington. Galloway was a former speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly and leader of Pennsylvania’s Loyalists. His knowledge of the region around Martin’s Tavern, most importantly key fords crossing each branch of the Brandywine, gave Howe the opportunity to nearly surround the Continental Army. The Americans were not without local intelligence. Washington had at his disposal militia commander John Hannum, and was eventually warned of Howe’s plan by Squire Thomas Cheyney, both of whom are mentioned as having spent the previous night at Martin’s Tavern. This map is the first drawing to record the exact location of Martin’s Tavern along the Strasburg Road., (caption) , The First Cartographic Record of Martin’s Tavern , British Spy Map by Joseph Galloway, 1777-78.