In Marblehead for thirty years, and more, after the Revolutionary War, the familiar forms of the veterans of that hard and long continued struggle were seen walking back and forth at the heads of the wharves, on Irving's Hill, or at the street corners, and the story they told of battles fought, of marches and of camp life was as familiar, throughout the town, to old and young, as any household words. But it was so evenly matched with the scenes of every day life, the hazards and storms at sea, of spars carried away and anchors lost and the vessel on beam-ends, of sailing to the Banks and never returning, that the two stories blended into one, and each life as a whole was a life of adventure, toil and danger; and rarely was a careful record made of passing events; so that many a story of real life, more thrilling than that of any fiction, has been forgotten and lost. When, about two years ago the Bronx Chapter of The Daughters of the American Revolution of Mount Vernon, N. Y., placed a bronze tablet on "Glover's Rock," many asked: "Where is Glover's Rock? and what does it mean?" and were surprised to learn that it marked the spot where General Glover met the enemy, more than five times his number, and fought one of the most skilful and successful battles of the war. This aroused a long cherished wish of the author to follow General Glover and his regiment through the war of the Revolution. Under that inspiration, the following paper was prepared and presented to the Marblehead Historical Society, May 14, 1903.
