Combat· American Revolutionary War
Second Raid on New Providence
In late January 1778 Continental Marines from the sloop Providence seized Fort Nassau on New Providence Island in the Bahamas and held it for three days.
Captain John Peck Rathbun planned the raid after learning that the 16-gun ship Mary had put into Nassau for repairs. Shortly before midnight on January 27, the Providence anchored off the harbor, and Captain of Marines John Trevett and Lieutenant Michael Molten took 26 Marines ashore. They scaled the wall by ladder and took the fort from its only two sentries. At daybreak Trevett hoisted the Stars and Stripes. Molten and two men took Fort Montagu, and the Marines deceived the inhabitants about their strength. Five vessels were taken, including the Mary, and about 30 American prisoners were released. The Marines moved the magazine's powder and cartridges to the Providence and spiked the guns. The Providence and the Mary, the latter commanded by Trevett, sailed for New Bedford, Massachusetts. It was the second time Marines had captured and held New Providence.
Record no. 133