George Washington Papers
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https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-26-02-0022

From George Washington to Colonel Christopher Greene, 15 May 1780

To Colonel Christopher Greene

Head Quarters Morris Town 15th May 1780

Sir

Be pleased immediately upon the Rect hereof to set your Regiment to work in making Fascines.1 They are to be from 12 to 18 feet in length and 10 inches thick, well bound and cut square at both ends—of these kinds they may make as many as they can till further orders, and a few hundreds 6 feet long and 15 inches thick—a number of split stakes of hard wood will also be necessary to fix the Fascines, they must be 4 feet long and 3 inches square—I have some reason to think that Genl Gates last fall provided a parcel of platform Plank and several other Articles necessary for the construction of Works2—Be pleased to make an enquiry and if you find any such, have them collected. I am &c.

P.S. Be pleased to have all the public Boats and Craft collected and if they want any repairs direct the Qr Mr to have it done.3

Df, in Tench Tilghman’s writing, DLC:GW; Varick transcript, DLC:GW.

1GW ordered Greene’s 1st Rhode Island Regiment, then stationed at Newport, R.I., to construct these siege materials for potential combined operations with the expected French expeditionary force.

3Greene replied to GW on 4 June.

Deputy quartermaster Ephraim Bowen, Jr., later received money from Rhode Island officials to cover expenses he had incurred for boat and hospital repairs (see Bartlett, R.I. Records description begins John Russell Bartlett, ed. Records of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, in New England. 10 vols. Providence, 1856–65. description ends , 9:145). In mid-July, Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene wrote Rhode Island governor William Greene, asking that Bowen be provided with funds to collect flat-bottomed boats for the combined operations (Greene Papers description begins Richard K. Showman et al., eds. The Papers of General Nathanael Greene. 13 vols. Chapel Hill, N.C., 1976–2005. description ends , 6:107).

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