Revolutionary War battlefields often romanticize combat, but this mass grave just outside Philadelphia shows the violence soldiers actually experienced

A team of historians, archaeologists and forensic anthropologists is trying to identify 15 German soldiers who were unceremoniously dumped in a ditch after trying to help the British capture Philadelphia.

By: Jennifer Janofsky, Rowan University and Wade Catts, Rowan University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: August 28, 2026

Words: 1,556

Last Updated: 1 month, 3 weeks ago

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By Jennifer Janofsky, Rowan University and Wade Catts, Rowan University

“I think I found a bone.”

A volunteer whispered that to us on the last day of a public archaeology project at the Red Bank Battlefield Park in southern New Jersey in June 2022. Over the course of four days, dozens of volunteers worked under the supervision of trained archaeologists and other professionals to dig, sift and identify artifacts at the site of the Battle …

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