Battle of Bound Brook - Aftermath

Aftermath

The Continental Army response was immediate; Washington sent a large force under Major General Nathanael Greene to reoccupy Bound Brook. The British had already left by the time they arrived; Greene sent a detachment to harass their rear guard. This detachment caught up with the British near Raritan Landing, where they killed 8 and captured 16.

General Howe reported that about 30 Americans were killed and 80 to 90 were captured, while General Lincoln reported that 60 of his men were killed or wounded. Howe claimed no deaths and seven wounded among the British and Hessians. Washington reported that "he enemy lost the post at Eleven O'Clock the same day, & our people took possession of it again", and that the army's losses were "trifling and not worth mentioning". He did, however, also report that between 35 and 40 killed or captured, and the loss of three field cannons. General Greene reported to his wife, "The British Generals breakfasted and I at the same house that day".

Washington, concerned that the attack presaged an early start to the campaign season, worried that his troops were not yet in place to deal with major British movements. Two weeks later, after no further major activity, the Americans learned that "the Enemy are to take the field the first of June."

Washington recognized that Bound Brook itself was a difficult place to defend. On May 26 he withdrew the garrison, and on May 28, he moved part of his army from Morristown to a new entrenched camp near Middle Brook, just north of Bound Brook but well protected between the first and second Watchung Mountain ranges; other troops were stationed near Princeton. From the top of the Watchung Mountains Washington monitored British movements while the two sides continued to skirmish. Both sides also engaged in intelligence gathering, each trying to determine the strength and intentions of the other.

On June 12 Howe marched a significant force (more than 18,000 men) out of New Brunswick, through Bound Brook, and as far as Somerset, apparently in an attempt to draw Washington out of the hills. Washington, aware that Howe had left the army's heavy baggage behind, was not fooled and refused to move. Howe then abruptly retreated back to Piscataway on June 19, upon which Washington had some of his troops give chase, and he moved down out of the hills. A week later Howe tried to spring a trap on one of Washington's detachments that would have cut the American retreat into the hills off; this effort was repulsed in the Battle of Short Hills. After this failure, Howe embarked his army on transports and set sail for the Chesapeake Bay, intending to take Philadelphia from the south.

The battle site in Bound Brook is marked by signs and interpretive plaques.