Joseph Murray (died 8 June 1780) was a New Jersey patriot militiaman from Middletown who was murdered by American loyalists during the American Revolutionary War.
Biography[]
Joseph Murray was born in Ireland to a family of Ulster Scots, and, sometime before 1767, Murray was brought to the Thirteen Colonies by his mother. He purchased 40 acres of land in Middletown, Monmouth County, New Jersey, and he married Rebecca Morris, with their first child being born in 1771. Murray worked as a stonemason, and he soon had three sons and one daughter. In 1776, he joined the Monmouth County militia at the start of the American Revolutionary War, and he staunchly defied British rule. In 1779, his home was raided and looted by American loyalists, while his belongings were burnt; Murray was then sent to prison in New York City. He was released in January 1780 and returned to the militia in Middletown. It was then that his militia was ordered to commandeer horses for the patriots, so he travelled to his loyalist neighbor Edward Taylor's home, Marlpit Hall, and Taylor threw his fine hat at his horse to scare it and prevent Murray from stealing it. However, Murray took Taylor's hat and rode off with his new hat and horse. On 7 June 1780, Murray and his neighbor Thomas Hill were granted leave to tend to their fields. The two agreed to stand guard for each other as they farmed, as the area was dangerous. As Hill returned home, three men came out of the woods near Poricy Brook and shot Murray in the back. Murray was not yet dead, so the loyalists finished him off with bayonets. Hill killed one of the fleeing loyalists, while the others fled to Sandy Hook. In 1973, Middletown Township purchased the Murray farmhouse, restored it from 1978 to 1981, and turned it into "Poricy Park".