Nancy
Brig · United States · Lost 1776 · The New Jersey Coast
A Revolutionary War gunpowder runner blown up by her own crew at Turtle Gut Inlet rather than let the cargo fall to the British.
Become Captain of Record
The Vessel and Her Loss
The brig Nancy was carrying a vital cargo of gunpowder for the Continental Army when she was chased ashore near Cape May by British warships in June 1776. Her crew managed to unload most of the powder onto smaller boats before deliberately blowing up the brig to deny it to the enemy. The explosion, and the running fight that came with it, became one of the earliest documented naval actions of the American Revolution on the New Jersey coast. The site, Turtle Gut Inlet, is remembered in local Cape May history.
Vessel
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- Wood
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- Sail
- Continental Congress (chartered to run gunpowder)
Loss
- June 29, 1776
- Intentional sinking
- Turtle Gut Inlet, near Cape May, New Jersey
- Atlantic Ocean
- St. Croix, West Indies → Philadelphia
- Gunpowder
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- Most of the crew escaped ashore before the explosion; a small number of casualties are noted in some accounts among the pursuing British boarding party.
- Hugh Montgomery
The Wreck Today
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Position
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- Position not established
- Turtle Gut Inlet, Wildwood Crest, New Jersey
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (60/100)
Precise vessel dimensions and build details were not recorded in surviving accounts.
Cape May County Historical Society
Narrative of the Turtle Gut Inlet action and vessel loss.
