On January 1, 1776, the Maryland Convention, meeting in Frederick Town order the creation of seven "independent" companies of infantry, one of these was Second Independent Maryland. In the early part of the war, the Second Independent Maryland Company spent much of their time patrolling southern Maryland and breaking up Tory camps which were to be found on the lower part of the peninsula as Somerset County was a leading Tory stronghold. On August 16, the Maryland Council of Safety dispatched the Second Independent Maryland Company to reinforce Washington's forces deployed around New York. Although they did not arrive in time for the Battle of Long Island, the Second Independent Maryland Company participated in the Battle of White Plains, the Battle of Trenton, the Second Battle of Trenton, Battle of Brandywine and the Battle of Monmouth as part of the Maryland Line, before being absorbed into the 2nd Maryland Regiment in 1781.