, Christmas night, 1776 Hunt was a member of and participated in the four sessions of the
Provincial Congress, which were held in
Trenton, New Jersey, in May, August and October 1775, and in the seventh session held in Trenton beginning July 5, 1776. Hunt was also among the men from Hunterdon County and Trenton who played an active role in the preliminary agitation and also served on the first General Committee of Correspondence appointed by the Provincial Assembly, July 21, 1774. A meeting of Hunterdon county residents was held on July 8, 1774, at the house of John Ringo in Amwell, with Samuel Tucker as chairman. Tucker expressed his loyalty to
King George III, but nevertheless protested against infringement on colonial rights, and appointed Hunt and several others to a committee for the purpose of uniting with the other counties in choosing delegates to Congress. By the time Hunt had joined the
American Revolutionary War, he had already established himself with the rebels, serving on the local Committee of Correspondence. Additionally, at the time he held the commission of Lieutenant Colonel in Colonel
Isaac Smith's First Regiment, Hunterdon County Militia. None of the records indicate that Hunt was anything but an exemplary officer when he was serving on active duty. Hunt, along with Samuel Tucker, Joseph Ellis and Alexander Chambers, were appointed commissioners of the County of Hunterdon, when the
Declaration of Independence was declared in 1776. His duties included the disbursement of funds for the purchase of supplies and firearms and pay the militia. Hunt also acted in this capacity in July 1777,. Historian Hamilton Schuyler maintains that being entrusted with such a responsibility would be consistent with Hunt's loyalty to the Patriots and not consistent with the idea that he was under suspicion. In mid December 1776, Hessian commander
Johann Rall and his brigade of Hessian soldiers marched on Trenton and took control of the town. On Christmas evening Rall attended a celebration at Hunt's residence in Trenton. In an apparent effort to render the commander less than capable for military duty Hunt supplied Rall and his officers with plenty of food and drink into the late hours of the night. Hunt, considered a friendly and accommodating man, was known to freely and openly fraternize with both the Patriots and the British. Historian
David Hackett Fischer maintains that it is uncertain whether Hunt initially swore allegiance to either the Patriots or the British, and speculates that his noncommittal and all around friendly attitude was all in a precarious effort to protect his property from seizure by the Hessians, while not alienating himself from the American Patriots. His property was never seized by either of the belligerent forces. There is either no record of any papers granting Hunt protection of any kind. The Patriots were especially suspicious because the Colonel Rall of the Hessians had made use of his lavish and abundant provisions during the war, especially just before the
Battle of Trenton. On Christmas night a heavy snowfall led Hessian commander Colonel
Johann Rall to further assume that no Patriot attack of any consequence would occur. Rall, along with some of his top officers, retired to the home of Abraham Hunt and settled in for a Christmas celebration with food and plenty of drink generously supplied by Hunt, which by some accounts ultimately compromised their ability to up and engage in battle at a moment's notice. Late in the evening, a Loyalist farmer came calling at Hunt's house for Colonel Rall who was still celebrating and preoccupied with drink and playing cards. One of Hunt's servants answered the call and told the farmer that Rall was too busy with friends to be bothered at that hour, possibly at Hunt's instructions. The farmer then scribbled a note on a scrap of paper, informing Rall that Patriot troops were preparing to cross the
Delaware River, and asked that it be given to Rall directly. The farmer retreated feeling he had done his duty and all he could have at that time. Upon receiving the note, Rall slipped it into his vest pocket without reading it and continued with his drinking and card game. Early in the morning the next day, under cover of darkness and heavy snowfall, General
George Washington, along with General
Henry Knox had
crossed the icy Delaware River with troops, horses and cannon, organized their forces and began marching toward Trenton, where commander Rall and his Hessians mercenaries were still held up at Hunt's residence. During the evening, as Rall and others were still drinking and playing cards, by morning Washington and his troops launched a two-pronged surprise attack. After a touch and go battle the Hessians finally scattered, were outmaneuvered, and were defeated by Washington's forces, where many of them were captured and taken prisoner. During the battle, Rall was shot twice in his side and was mortally wounded. Before he died that evening, Rall requested a formal surrender to Washington. After the battle was over, Washington and the Patriot forces never confiscated Hunt's house and property as they would have if Hunt was deemed a Loyalist. Hunt continued to be of service to the revolutionary cause. ==Post war==