Source: South Brunswick Township A 1745 John Dalley map of the road from Trenton to Amboy, in the possession of the New York Historical Society (above), indicates the location of Longbridge Farm (circled). The map on the adjacent page shows the major Revolutionary War troop movements in South Brunswick.
slept in Monmouth Jct.
Council wants to know
if Long Bridge, a lost encampment, is in town
By CHARLES W. KIM
CHARLES W. KIM A sign in front of a Georges Road home in South Brunswick marks the route of the Colonial army as it marched to the Battle of Monmouth in June 1778.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK — A lost Revolutionary War encampment in Monmouth Junction may turn out to be a lost treasure for South Brunswick.
The Township Council unanimously approved a resolution Wednesday to see if the township can be included as a "Heritage Area."
Council members said that if the site can be officially recognized as the lost Long Bridge camp used by the Colonial Army during the Revolutionary War, it may help with their ongoing fight against the New Jersey Highway Authority’s proposed Route 92 connector toll road between the New Jersey Turnpike and Route 1 through South Brunswick and the proposed commuter rail link between Lakehurst in Ocean County and Monmouth Junction.
Councilman Ted Van Hessen said that if the location of the site is just east of the junction between the Jamesburg line and the Northeast Corridor Line, it could be a very important designation.
"For a host of reasons, this is a very sensitive piece of property," Van Hessen said.
The exact whereabouts of the camp remains unknown, but it is believed to be somewhere in Monmouth Junction, according to a preliminary report by Hunter Research, a Trenton historical resource consulting firm which is also doing a township historic site inventory.
According to the preliminary report, titled "South Brunswick Township and The Crossroads of the American Revolution," Revolutionary-era maps and soldiers’ journals indicate the Colonial army spent one night at the farm before heading south to Cranbury in the sweltering summer of June 1778.
The report indicates that the 10,000 members of the army crossed the state to try and cut off British forces which were heading for New York.
On June 25, Gen.l George Washington set up his headquarters in Kingston, then sent his army down an older alignment of Ridge Road to a vast farm where they briefly camped in a "flax field" before moving to Monroe, Englishtown, and Freehold where they fought the Battle of Monmouth on June 28.
Historic Preservation Ordinance Advisory Task Force Chairman Glenn Davis said that references to the site in letters and on old maps only give a vague description of the area.
"There are some landmarks that are still there," Davis said.
"It is a treasure hunt and jigsaw puzzle at the same time," he said.
Davis said that if archeological evidence of the site could be located, the area may be able to be designated as a heritage area" through a national program sponsored by the National Park Service.
Because the stay at the camp was so brief, however, the chances of finding significant artifacts are remote, Davis said.
"There may be the usual trash and other artifacts," he said.
Davis said that such a designation would be important to preserving the township’s history.
Davis said that Rep. Rush Holt (D-District 12) is supportive of including the township in a Crossroads of the American Revolution area which currently cuts a path through the state from Morristown to Trenton. The area is a still-evolving heritage tourism and preservation initiative spearheaded by the Northeast Region of the National Park Service and the state Green Acres program, according to the Hunter Research report.
The basic concept is to create a National Heritage Area within central New Jersey, including key locations and events of the American Revolution, according to the report.
According to the National Park Service Internet site, a heritage area is a "settled landscape" which tells the story of its residents.
Although the areas remain in private hands and do not require federal regulation, tours, festivals and museums can be held through voluntary efforts coordinated by the owners.