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Battle off Fairhaven

1775 in the Thirteen ColoniesBattles of the American Revolutionary War in MassachusettsBattles of the Boston campaignConflicts in 1775Fairhaven, Massachusetts
Military history of New EnglandNaval battles of the American Revolutionary WarNaval battles of the American Revolutionary War involving the United States
1st Naval Battle American Revolution Plaque Fort Phoenix
1st Naval Battle American Revolution Plaque Fort Phoenix

The Battle off Fairhaven was the first naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War. It took place on May 14, 1775, in Buzzards Bay off Fairhaven, Massachusetts (formerly known as Dartmouth, Massachusetts) and resulted in Patriot militia retrieving two vessels that had been captured by HMS Falcon. The patriots also captured the 13 man crew of the Royal Navy, the first naval prisoners of the war.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Battle off Fairhaven (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 41.54 ° E -70.83 °
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Address

Bristol County



Massachusetts, United States
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1st Naval Battle American Revolution Plaque Fort Phoenix
1st Naval Battle American Revolution Plaque Fort Phoenix
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Acushnet Fort

Acushnet Fort was a fort that existed from 1776 to around 1820 on Eldridge Point in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It was originally built with Commonwealth resources during the American Revolution in 1776 with ten guns. Rebuilt in 1808 under the federal second system of fortifications, it could accommodate 40 men and had six guns and a magazine.The fort's exact location, especially in the Revolution, is uncertain. The fort appears in the Secretary of War's reports for 1808 and 1811; thus it was a federal fort at that time. In 1808 the entry is: "At the entrance of the inner harbor of New Bedford, two miles below the town, a small enclosed work has been erected of stone, brick, and sod. It commands the entrance into the harbor for a mile and a half in a direct line...". In 1811 the entry is: "At Eldridge Point, which commands the entrance of the harbor; an enclosed work of masonry, mounting six heavy guns...". The "two miles below the town" implies the fort was at or near Clark's Point, later the site of Fort Rodman. Another possibility is the area of Fairhaven known as Poverty Point or Oxford Point, part of which was once owned by the Eldredge family, although this is north of the harbor entrance. Fairhaven was part of New Bedford until 1812.A list of fort commanders shows that the Eldridge Point fort was commanded by Captain James Thomas of the Dragoons in 1810–1811, followed by 1st Lt. Henry Whiting, also of the Dragoons, in 1811–1812.By the time Fort Rodman was built in the 1850s, the fort no longer existed.