With the July 4th holiday fast approaching, Balladeer’s Blog offers readers another seasonal post regarding overlooked military actions.

JANUARY 8th, 1776 – In Charlestown, Massachusetts British troops and American Tories were attending a performance of General John Burgoyne’s play The Blockade of Boston. The play was a farce ridiculing the supposed inadequacies of the American rebels. An unknown number of American soldiers carried out a raid on the town, panicking the theater audience, capturing 5 British soldiers and destroying 8 Tory buildings.

JANUARY 12th – At Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, the HMS Glasgow and HMS Sloop Swan landed 250 British soldiers and Marines. The Brits clashed with approximately 50 American men of Richmond’s Regiment and forced them to retreat. Throughout the night the Redcoats pillaged supplies, stole livestock away to the two ships and burned down homes and barns.

JANUARY 13th – After daybreak, Captain William Barton led…