The Battle of Long Island
22-29 August 1776
In the summer of 1776 this site saw both the first coast defense of the newborn United States & the opening of the largest battle of the Revolutionary War. On that original Fourth of July, a small American gun position near here entered into an unequal contest with the British warship Asia, inflicting damage & casualties before being silenced. The challenge to the Asia came as she sailed toward a Staten Island base, convoying troops intended to crush America’s revolution. The next month, their buildup complete, the British opened the Battle of Long Island with an attack across the Narrows, landing on & near Denyse Wharf (stones of which are visible under the Belt Parkway ramp) & southeast of here at Gravesend Bay. There followed a week of struggle in which the American defenders were outmaneuvered & defeated. Only good luck & well-conducted retreat saved the patriot army; the American Revolution almost ended on Long Island.
Marker is on Sheridan Loop, on the right when traveling east.
Courtesy hmdb.org
