Editing Rahway, New Jersey (section)

===Revolutionary War and the Battle of Spanktown===
Rahway saw action during the [[American Revolutionary War]] because of its proximity to [[Staten Island]], [[Elizabeth, New Jersey|Elizabethtown]] and [[Perth Amboy, New Jersey|Perth Amboy]]. In January 1777, rebels were victorious against the British in the [[Battle of Spanktown]], which resulted in the death of some 100 British troops.<ref>[https://www.cityofrahway.org/203/About-Rahway History], City of Rahway. Accessed May 20, 2022. "In January 1777, the Battle of Spanktown was fought on St. Georges Avenue in the vicinity of Robinson's Branch and the North Branch of the Rahway River. The battle lasted twelve hours with the rebels getting the best of the British, who lost almost one hundred men."</ref> The battle was named this after Rahway's original name given to it by the first settlers, Spanktown,<ref name=EB11/> which is said to have been chosen "because an early settler publicly took his spouse across his knee and chastised her".<ref>Staff. [https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1897/02/21/117897889.pdf "The Battle of Spanktown; Early History of Rahway and Its Environs"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', February 21, 1897. Accessed November 20, 2012. "The Rahway of to-day is what was known in the last century as Spanktown, the name having been given because an early settler publicly took his spouse across his knee and chastised her."</ref> Spanktown was mentioned in Revolutionary War military dispatches from January 5, 1777, through March 14, 1782.<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/dep/njgs/enviroed/oldpubs/battles.pdf ''Battles and Skirmishes in New Jersey of the American Revolution.''] By David C. Munn, New Jersey Geological Survey, 1976. pp. 99-100. Accessed 29 July 2020.</ref>

The [[Merchants and Drovers Tavern]] is located at the corner of St. Georges and Westfield Avenues. The earliest buildings at the site date to 1795 and the property remains one of Rahway's most prominent historical landmarks.<ref>[http://www.merchantsanddrovers.org/about-us/ About Us], The Merchants and Drovers Tavern Museum. Accessed May 20, 2022.</ref> [[George Washington]] visited Rahway during his travel to [[New York City]] prior to his presidential inauguration in 1789. A marker across the street from the tavern reads:<ref>[http://www.ettc.net/njarts/details.cfm?ID=811 Tavern - Merchants & Drovers Tavern, Rahway] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130723205840/http://www.ettc.net/njarts/details.cfm?ID=811 |date=2013-07-23 }}, Art & Architecture of New Jersey, [[Stockton University]]. Accessed May 20, 2012.</ref>

:''Here, on April 23, 1789, on his way to New York City, Washington was received by troops from Elizabethtown and Newark. He was entertained at the inn kept by Samuel Smith by gentlemen of the town.''

Following the Revolution, Rahway became the home of the first national mint to create a coin bearing the inscription ''[[E pluribus unum]]''.<ref>Hill, Raven. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130723201925/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/mycentraljersey/access/1831862381.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+13%2C+2003&author=RAVEN+HILL&pub=Home+News+Tribune&desc=Colonial+coin+found+at+old+home+in+Franklin&pqatl=google "Colonial coin found at old home in Franklin"], ''[[Home News Tribune]]'', April 13, 2003. Accessed May 20, 2012. "It turned out to be a New Jersey Copper, minted in Rahway or Morristown between 1786 and 1790, the first coins to bear the national motto, 'E Pluribus Unum.'"</ref> A [[United States Post Office]] established in Rahway was one of only six in the entire state in 1791.

Various historical place markers in town document Rahway Revolutionary War history.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.revolutionarywarnewjersey.com/new_jersey_revolutionary_war_sites/towns/rahway_nj_revolutionary_war_sites.htm|title=Rahway, New Jersey Revolutionary War Sites &#124; Rahway Historic Sites|website=www.revolutionarywarnewjersey.com}}</ref>