"1st Pennsylvania Cont./1st Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment" Topic

The OB in the Osprey Trenton and Princeton Campaign book shows the 1st PA. Rifle Regiment in Sterling's Brigade. It also has the 1st PA. Continental Regiment in Mercer's Brigade.

There are other sources which say these are the same unit. So are they the same or two different units? Then which brigade does it belong in?

The PA Rifle Regiment (I don't think they had a number designation, also known as Thompson's Rifles) were at Trenton. On Jan 1, 1776 they became the 1st PA Continental Regiment so, yes, they are the same unit. I don't have an idea if they were shuffled between brigades from Trenton to Princeton.

Both the Osprey book and the BG Scenario Book 2 shows them as two different regiments. None of my standard "go to" references clears this up. Just surfing the web (dangerous as that is) I see that perhaps the PA Rifle Regiment is yet another unit. So far I have:

1st PA Rifle Regiment
1st PA Continentals
PA. Rifle Regiment.

I am hoping that SM or HG would jump in and clear this up.

Thanks.

The books show the PA Rifles and the other units existing at the same time in 1777? The Pennsylvania Rifles changed designation in 1777, and the regiment they became was known variously as the 1st PA Rifle Reg't, the 1st Continentals, and the 1st Pennsylvania. They are all the same unit.

Here is what Nafziger shows for December 1776. If I am reading this right it shows the PA. Regiment under Edward Hand in Mercer's Brigade. It also shows the 1st PA. Regiment under Edward Hand with Fermoy's Brigade. Very strange. Maybe this reflects a transfer from one brigade to another?

The only PA Rifle unit I see is a militia unit in Cadwalader's Brigade.

American Forces in New Jersey
December 1776
As of 12/1/76

Brigade Brigadier General Lord Stirling
1st Virginia Regiment (Issac Read)(27/35/4/119)1
Delaware Regiment (John Haslet)(7/6/3/92)
3rd Virginia Regiment (George Weedon)(18/26/3/134)
6th Maryland Regiment (Samuel Miles)(18/20/1/160)

Brigade: Brigadier General Stephan
4th Virgina Regiment (Thomas Elliot)(29/31/2/167)
5th Virgina Regiment (Charles Scott)(11/19/396)
6th Virgina Regiment (Mordecai Buckner)(20/25/5/141)

Brigade: Brigadier General Mercer
20th (Connecticut) Continental Regiment
(John Durkee)(28/35/4/248)
1st Maryland Regiment (John Stone)(5/19/0/139)
27th (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(Israel Hutchinson)(15/15/2/83)
Connecticut State Regiment (Philip Bradley)(16/30/2/94)
Maryland & Virginia Regiment (Moses Rawling)(3/9/0/93)
Pennsylvania Regiment (Edward Hand)(strength unknown)

Forces Added 12/1/76 to 12/25/76
Cavalry:
Morris' Troop of Philadelphia Light Horse
(Sam Morris)(26 men)

Brigade: Brigadier General Fermoy
1st (Pennsylvania) Continental Regiment
(Edward Hand) (23/42/5/194)
German Battalion (Nicholas Haussegger)(35/40/5/294)

Brigade: Brigadier General John Cadwalader (¡Ö1,500 men)
Pennsylvania Philadelphia Militia Regiment (Jacob Morgan)
Pennsylvania Philadelphia Militia Regiment (John Bayard)
Pennsylvania Philadelphia Militia Regiment (John Cadwalader)
Pennsylvania Philadelphia Militia Rifle Battalion
(Timothy Matlack)
Pennsylvania Philadelphia Militia (2 artillery cos)
Delaware Kent County Militia Company (Cpt. Thomas Rodney)

Brigade: Brigadier General James Ewing (826 men)
Pennsylvania Cumberland County Militia Regiment
(Frederick Watts)
Pennsylvania Lancaster County Militia Regiment (Jacob Klotz)
Pennsylvania Cumberland County Militia Regiment
(Wm Montgomery)
Pennsylvania York County Militia Regiment
(Richard McAllister)
Pennsylvania Chester County Militia Regiment (James Moore)
1 Numbers are officers, NCOs, staff officers, and rank & file present under arms and date from 12/22/76.
Pennsylvania Bucks County Militia Regiment (Joseph Hart)

Brigade: Colonel Daniel Hitchcock (822 men)
Massachusetts Continental Regiment (John Nixon)
Rhode Island Continental Regiment (James Varnum)
Rhode Island Continental Regiment Daniel Hitchcock)
Massachusetts Continental Regiment (Moses Little)
Rhode Island Militia Regiment (Christopher Lippitt)

Brigade: Brigadier General Glover
3rd (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(William Shepard)(18/26/4/169)
19th (Conneticut) Continental Regiment
(Charles Webb)(18/23/4/171)
14th (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(John Glover)(27/23/3/124)
23rd (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(John Bailey)(15/14/2/115)
26th (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(Loammi Baldwin) (20/22/4/175)

Brigade: Colonel Sargent
16th (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(Paul Sergeant)(14/13/3/122)
Ward's Connecticut Regiment (Andrew Ward)(11/18/2/126)
6th Connecticut State Regiment
(John Chester)(17/20/2/221)
13th (Massachusetts) Continental Regiment
(Joseph Read)(15/1/1/105)
1st New York Regiment (Alexander Mc Dougall)(11/9/0/36)
3rd New York Regiment (Rudolphus Ritzema)(13/3/2/62)

Brigade: Brigadier General St. Clair (strength ¡Ö 600¡À)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (Silas Newcomb)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (David Potter)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (Enos Seeley)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (Joseph Ellis)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (Richard Somers)
New Hampshire Continental Regiment (Samuel Dick)

Brigade: Colonel Samuel Griffin (497 men)
New Jersey Cumberland County Militia Regiment
(Silas Newcomb)
New Jersey Cumberland County Militia Regiment (David Potter)
New Jersey Gloucester County Militia Regiment (Enos Seeley)
New Jersey Gloucester County Militia Regiment (Joseph Ellis)
New Jersey Gloucester County Militia Regiment
(Richard Somers)
New Jersey Salem County Militia Regiment (Samuel Dick)
New Jersey Salem County Militia Regiment (John Holme)
2 Unknown Virginia Batteries (100 men)

Brigade: Brigadier General Philemon dickinson (500¡À)
New Jersey Burlington County Militia Regiment
(Joseph Borden)
New Jersey Burlington County Militia Regiment
(Thomas Reynolds)
New Jersey Hunterdon County Militia Regiment (Issac Smith)
New Jersey Hunterdon County Militia Regiment
(David Chambers)
New Jersey Hunterdon County Militia Regiment
3
(John Mehelm)
Misc Small New Jersey Detachments
Regiment Artillery Colonel Henry Knox
9 Companies (497 men)
Other Forces:
Dragoons (Lt. Col. Elisha Sheldon) (50¡À men)

Brigade: Brigadier General William Maxwell (in Morristown,NJ)
3 Massachussetts Regiment (Lt. Col. Joseph Vose)(550¡À)
Massachusetts Continental Regiment (John Greaton)
Massachusetts Continental Regiment (William Bond)
Massachusetts Continental Regiment (Elisha Porter)
New Jersey Militia from northern counties (200)
Lesser,C.H., The Sinews of Independence, Monthly Strength

Reports of the Continental Army, 1976, Chicago, IL, University of Chicago Press
Smith, S.S., The Battle of Trenton, 1965, Monmouth Beach, NJ, Philip Freneau Press.

I they are the same unit then why does the BG Scenarios 2, Trenton Scenario book and Osprey list them as two different regiments? It lists the 1st PA. Cont. and 1st PA. rifles, one in Sterling's Brigade and the other in Mercer's Brigade

Those pesky Pennsylvanians -- totally unpredictable.

Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment was formed in 1775, and was later converted into the 1st Continental Regiment of 1776. Later in that year, it became the nucleus of the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment of 1777. (Note that the 1st Pennsylvania BATTALION of 1776, became the nucleus of the 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment of 1777.)

The COs were:-
- William Thompson, 25th June 1775 – 1st March 1776
- Edward Hand, 7th March 1776 – 1st April 1777
- James Chambers, 12th April 1777 – 17th January 1781
- Daniel Brodhead, 17th January 1781 – 3rd November 1783

After 1780, the regiment ceased to be more than an administrative entity and the six remaining regiments were reformed into the three active field battalions of 1781. The 1st Battalion probably included what remained of the 1st Regiment, under Walter Stewart, and served through to the end of 1783.

[Source: F Anderson Berg's "Encyclopedia of Continental Army Units" (Stackpole Books, 1972).]

Novak has them as "1st Continental(Rifle)" brigaded with the German Battalion under Fermoy,for both Trenton and Princeton. Not with Sterling or Mercer.
He does list a "Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment" under Miles,in Mercer's Brigade for Princeton. Of course,this may also be erroneous.

This Fermoy was a Frenchman from Martinique,General Matthias de Roche-Fermoy,who showed up claiming the title of chevalier. Commissioned in November as a brigader,on January 2,he,in the words of David Hackett Fischer,did this:

"As the British and German troops approached from Maidenhead,General Roche-Fermoy mounted his horse and rode off at a gallop to Trenton. He abandoned his command and did not return until the battle was over. Major Wilkinson, who knew him a little, wrote that Roche-Fermoy was a 'worthless drunkard'. Later in the war at Ticonderoga he managed to set fire to his quarters and revealed the entire American position just as the British approached. He was cashiered from the army."

If you're gaming this,I suppose he would have to be rated as "Poltroon".

Well according to John B. B. Trussell in his book "The Pennsylvania Line" which is subtitled "Regimental Orginazation and Operations, 1775-1783" the Pennsylvania Rifle Battalion became the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment effective July 1, 1776 while still on Long Island where they were re-enlisted to eventually designated the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment. And these are from the book so I take no credit for it.
The book has it broken down by the company's and commanding officers along operational history.
Hopefully this will help somewhat.
The book is published by the Pennsylvania Histoical and Museum Commossion.

@Rallynow: Perhaps the author is wrong. It wouldn't be the first time an author has made or transcribed an error copied from someone else.

Just a WAG, but could one of these units be the 1st Continental/1st Pennsylvania Continental regiment and the other be the remnants of the Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment of the Pennsylvania State forces?

Thank you Disco Joe, that maybe as close to a primary source as one can get. The link below also shows them as the same unit. Then there is the matter of what ragged uniform to put them in. Then figure out if they are all rifle armed or not.

link

It is very difficult to get these AWI OBs straight and you can hardly blame anyone for a small mistake. Doing any kind of research in this area is frustrating to say the least. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to respond!

Fred Berg's "Encyclopedia of Continental Army Units" lists the succession of names as the Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment, followed by 1st Continental Regiment, followed by 1st Pennsylvania Regiment.

Oops, I see SM has already been to Berg.

Another source showing that they are all the same unit.

link

They are reposting what Wiki says.

@Bill – You may well be right; there was a "flying camp" set up in 1776 that featured a number of PA militia battalions, including one of riflemen and another of musketeers. One of the Philadelphia Associator units was also composed of riflemen.

Bill N: Please post more often!