Glover's Rock

Glover's Rock. Pelham Bay Park. , Who is this monument dedicated to? , This large, glacial granite rock is named for Colonel John Glover (1732-1797) who, on Oct. 18, 1776, led a brigade of 843 Americans against British General William Howe (1720-1814) and 4,000 British soldiers in the Battle on Pell's Point., John Glover was born on Nov. 5, 1732, in Salem, Massachusetts. He moved to Marblehead, Massachusetts, for a career in the successful fishing industry, with markets in France, Spain, and the West Indies., In 1759, Glover joined the Third Military Foot Company in the Town of Marblehead as an Ensign, and the following year he joined the local Whigs who opposed Britain's transgressions against the colonies. Following the Boston Massacre of 1770, Glover and fellow Whigs gained control over the Tory town government. Glover joined several anti-British committees to limit and subvert British rule including prohibiting trade with England. In May 1775, Glover became a Colonel of the Marblehead Militia, which would become the 14th Massachusetts Continental Regiment. Glover raised a regiment of about 500 fishermen and sailors, including men who were Spanish, Native American, Jewish, and African American. In June 1775, Colonel Glover led his troops from Marblehead to the American camp at Cambridge, helping to obstruct the British army in Boston., On Sept. 13, 1776, he safeguarded the evacuation of New York City through Harlem, across the King's Bridge, and into the Bronx and White Plains. General Howe and a British fleet had landed on Kip's Bay, and the British Army was threatening General Washington's position in White Plains. Glover spied the fleet off Pell's point, the site of present-day Rodman's Neck., On Oct. 18, 1776, Colonel Glover commanded a brigade of four separate regiments, spreading them along Split Rock Road behind the stone walls that marked property lines. He then led 40 men in a direct attack on the British. After an exchange of fire, two Americans were killed, and Glover retreated north along the path with the British in pursuit. Soon, British forces hit the other three Continental Regiments and retreated to Pell's Point. Only 12 Americans were killed, yet between 800 to 1,000 British soldiers were killed or wounded in the battle., Colonel Glover thus enabled General Washington to position and hold his forces in White Plains before moving south. Glover's "Marbleheaders," with their experience as sailors, were also essential in Washington's famous crossing of the Delaware River on Dec. 25, 1776, for the Battle of Trenton. Glover was promoted to Brigadier General on February 23, 1777. After the war, Glover returned to Massachusetts and was elected to the state legislature in 1788 and 1789. He died on Marblehead on Jan. 30, 1797., How was this monument created? , The Bronx Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution erected a tablet on Oct. 18, 1901, to honor the 125th anniversary of Glover's heroic victory. After it was stolen in the 1930s, the Bronx County Historical Society dedicated another bronze tablet on Nov. 11, 1960, to commemorate this important site.