Moses Broadwell

​Born in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, Broadwell joined the Continental Army during the American Revolution in 1780 at age sixteen. He served with the 3rd New Jersey Regiment through the rest of its service during the war, including during the battle of Springfield, New Jersey. After the war, he settled in Pleasant Plains, where he died and was originally buried, his family later moving his remains to Oak Ridge Cemetery.

Biography

Moses Broadwell was born in Elizabethtown, New Jersey on November 14, 1764. The woman whom Broadwell would marry, Jane, was born just three years later in 1767 in the same neighborhood; the two were second cousins. At the age of sixteen, Broadwell enlisted in and served with the 3rd New Jersey Regiment during the Revolutionary War, joining in 1780. He served until the end of the war and five years later, on November 5, 1788, he married Jane Broadwell. Together the two had twelve children over the course of their marriage.

They did not stay in New Jersey much longer after the war had ended and they soon moved to Hamilton County, Ohio and lived in what became the town of Columbia. By 1804, the family then moved to Clermont County, Ohio, just to the east of Hamilton County. There they lived for the next sixteen years, before they ultimately decided to continue migrating further west, this time to Illinois. In 1820, the family sold their property in Ohio and took a boat from Cincinnati, Ohio to St. Louis, Missouri. From there the Broadwells began their journey into Illinois before they eventually settled in Pleasant Plains in Sangamon County.

Here Moses Broadwell and his family lived their lives just off of Richland Creek. In December 1823, Broadwell was able to purchase just over 2,100 acres of land so that he could build his own farm as well as a brick house for his family. This home is believed to be the first brick house ever to be constructed in Sangamon County and became known as the Broadwell Inn, a drawing of which can be seen above. Moses Broadwell passed away only four years later in 1827 and was first buried on their family property. He was later reinterred in Oakridge Cemetery in 1862 and is where he remains today.

The American Revolutionary War and the 3rd New Jersey Regiment

Between 1775 and 1783, the Thirteen Colonies, of what would become the United States of America, fought for independence from the British in what became known as the American Revolutionary War. By the time Moses Broadwell had entered the war in 1780, The Thirteen Colonies were in a brutal fight against the British, and by that point the French had gotten involved in support of the Colonies. One of the most crucial battles of the war took place during the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 which led to the consolidation of troops on both sides. Because of this, just one year after Broadwell had joined the Continental Army, larger fighting and battles had ceased, with only minor skirmishes taking place. Peace talks were being negotiated with the British in Paris and by 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed, effectively ending the Revolution.

During his short time in the war, Broadwell was part of the 3rd New Jersey Regiment. This regiment was first established by Colonel Elias Dayton in 1776 and was formed in Elizabethtown, where Broadwell was from. The group also became known as the “Jersey Blues” during their time in service due to their blue uniforms with a red stripe lapel. The regiment saw action during the battle of Brandywine and Germantown in 1777, the Battle of Monmouth at Freehold in 1778, the Battle of Newtown in 1779, and even participated in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781. They were later discharged at the end of the war in 1783 in New York and those serving returned home.

Sources used:

- “About,” The 3rd NJ Regiment “Jersey Blues,” accessed June 23, 2023, https://www.jerseyblues1776.org/about.

- “Broadwell, Moses,” Papers of Abraham Lincoln Digital Library, accessed June 23, 2023, https://papersofabrahamlincoln.org/persons/BR16669.

- “Continued History of the 3rd New Jersey ‘The Jersey Blues’,” The 3rd NJ Regiment “Jersey Blues,” accessed June 23, 2023, https://www.jerseyblues1776.org/_files/ugd/e0c32a_1fedae17e48a4475a344589340f60b30.pdf.

- John Carroll Power and S. A. Power, History of the Early Settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois (Springfield, IL: Edwin A. Wilson, 1876), 142.

- “Overview of the American RevolutionaryWar,” American Battlefield Trust, accessed June 23, 2023, https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/overview-american-revolutionary-war.

- Revolutionary War: American Revolution,” American Battlefield Trust, accessed June 23, 2023,  https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war. 

- “Revolutionary War Patriots,” The Historical Marker Database, accessed June 23, 2023, https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=156871.

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