Quinton’s Bridge

Quinton’s Bridge spans Alloway Creek just east of Salem and marks the center of one of Salem County’s most dramatic Revolutionary War episodes. In March 1778, British Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mawhood marched about 1,500 British and Loyalist troops into Salem County to seize cattle and forage for occupied Philadelphia. Local farmers had already moved livestock south of Alloway Creek, and Salem and Cumberland County militia dismantled Quinton’s Bridge and threw up earthworks on the north bank to block any crossing. On March 18, Mawhood’s men approached the creek, then staged a false retreat; when roughly 200–300 militia rushed back across the replanked bridge in pursuit, hidden British troops sprang an ambush that left dozens of Americans killed, wounded, or captured. Even so, the battered defenders held the position, and the British never forced a crossing at Quinton’s Bridge, keeping the Alloway Creek line intact. Today a modern bridge and roadside markers invite visitors to pause above the quiet creek where this costly stand unfolded.