New Jersey Volunteers

In 1776, American loyalist soldiers, formed the New Jersey Volunteers, which was raised in Province of New York, first, as three battalions and eventually as six, of 500 men each.

The New Jersey Volunteers saw their first combat at the Battle of Long Island, during the British New York Campaign offensive and following the defeat and flight, of the Patriot forces, was assigned to the initial British garrison, of the occupation army, in New York City.

Brigadier General Cortlandt Skinner conducted regular operations, in the region north of New York City, in Westchester County, New York, between Morrisania and the Croton Rivers, which was known as the "Neutral Ground". Lawlessness and guerrilla warfare occurred between Skinner's "Skinners", marauders and their rivals, the British loyalist raiders, De Lancey's "Cowboys" who, both, stole cattle, looted, and gathered military intelligence, in the New York countryside.

One battalion, of "Skinner's Greens", another nickname, for the loyalist New Jersey Volunteers, because of their green, wool, uniform coats, was later sent to East Florida, assisting in the capture of Savannah, others served in the Battles of Eutaw Springs and King's Mountain, with a detachment, participating in the Siege of Yorktown.

On September 6, 1781, the 3rd Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers, took part in the raid, on New London, Connecticut, commanded by Brigadier General Benedict Arnold and fought at the Battle of Groton Heights.

In 1783, the disbandment of the New Jersey Volunteers regiment, occurred, after the British lost the war, in the loyalist settlement of Digby, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, British Canada.

• Crary, Catherine S. "Guerrilla Activities of James De Lancey's Cowboys in Westchester County: Conventional Warfare or Self-Interested Freebooting?" In The Loyalist Americans: A Focus on Greater New York. Tarrytown, NY: Sleepy Hollow Restorations, 1975.
• Diamant, Lincoln (September 1987). Skinners: Patriot "Friends" or Loyalist "Foes" (PDF). {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
• Gue Belle Willey and John D. Felter (1922). The Neutral Ground. Boston: Stratford Company. p. 1. revolutionary war neutral ground.
• Kemble, Lieut. Col. Stephen. Journals of Lieut. Col. Stephen Kemble, 1773-1789: And British Army Orders: Gen. Sir William Howe, 1775-1778; Gen. Sir Henry Clinton, 1778; and Gen. Daniel Jones, 1778, American Revolutionary series: British accounts of the American Revolution, British accounts of the American Revolution, Volume 16 of Collections of the New-York Historical Society for the year ... New York: Ardent Media, 1972.
• Lossing, Benson J. The Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution, 2 vols. Reprint, Rutland, VT.: C. E. Tuttle Co., (1851) 1972.
• Shenstone, Susan Burgess. So Obstinately Loyal: James Moody, 1744-1809. Montreal: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, 2001.
• Stryker, William Scudder. "The New Jersey Volunteers" (loyalists) in the Revolutionary War. Trenton, NJ: Naar, Day & Naar, 1887.
• Ward, Harry M. Between the Lines: Banditti of the American Revolution. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 2002.

• Index to New Jersey Volunteers History - The On-Line Institute for Advanced Loyalist Studies
• 4th Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers, Captain Samuel Hayden's Company, recreated unit