New Jersey Revolutionary War Sites: Morristown, New Jersey

Jockey Hollow was used as a campsite by 10-12,000 soldiers during the winter of 1779-80, while Washington was headquartered at Ford Mansion. It was a brutal winter and the soldiers experienced great hardship, hunger, and cold.

28 separate snow storms fell during the winter, and it was so continuously cold that, for the only time in recorded history, the waters around New York City froze over, and were closed to shipping for weeks at a time. In the midst of these extreme weather conditions, the soldiers had to build their own huts, and endure a serious shortage of food.

Morristown has a number of historic sites related to the Revolutionary War.

"The Green" has been and still is the center of Morristown and when General Washington took his headquarters at the Jacob Arnold tavern during the 1777 winter encampment, the Green became a hub of military activities.

Various buildings around it were used as officers' headquarters, army hospitals, and a military storehouse. There are historic plaques which describe buildings and churches that stood around the Green at the time of the Revolutionary War. Opposite the Arnold Tavern site on the North Park Place side of the park, is a monument to mark the site of the courthouse and jail that stood here at the time of the Revolutionary War.

There are a group of life-size statues of George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and the Marquis de Lafayette there. Another sculpture is called Patriots Farewell that sits atop a fountain on the West Park Place side of the park and shows a militiaman saying farewell to his wife and son, accompanied by their horse and dog. The plaque reads: "A monument to the New Jersey militia and their families whose sacrifices created a strong and enduring nation."

The Green is a great place to visit during a day of local sightseeing.

There is also a location known as Fort Nonsense. The name applied to the Upper Redoubt but may not have a basis in actual Revolutionary War era history. Apparently a story arose circa the early 1800's that Washington only had these fortifications built as a way of keeping his troops busy, and therefore the fort was a work of "nonsense." The name stuck and it is now used as the official name for this part of the Morristown National Park.

Cannon at Fort Nonsense - Wikimedia

During the winter 1777 Morristown encampment, this was the site of the Upper Redoubt, on top of what was then called Kinney's Hill. (A redoubt is an enclosed defensive fort, usually constructed from earthworks.) On May 28, Washington's last full day in Morristown in 1777, he wrote several letters and orders, including one to Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah Olney. In it, he refers to the Upper Redoubt, the Guard House, and the "The Hill" on which they sat. These orders make clear that Washington had a serious reason for the structures.

While none of the original structure survives, an outline of the original fortifications (based on archeological evidence) is marked out in stones. There are a number of historical plaques here to explain the events connected to the area.

More information at revolutionarywarnewjersey.com