Four National Heritage Area plans being studied Area will highlight New Jersey’s prominence in the Revolutionary War

Staff Writer

By ruth calia stives

Four National Heritage Area plans being studied
Area will highlight New Jersey’s prominence
in the Revolutionary War

ALLENTOWN — Approximately 60 people turned out at a public meeting last week on the "Crossroads of the American Revolution" National Heritage Area study.

Held at Allentown Library and sponsored by the National Park Service, the event drew people from areas in and near Monmouth County, as well as areas to the south, southeast and southwest of Allentown, who were invited to contribute their ideas.

As explained in distributed information about the project, "a National Heritage Area is a part of the country’s landscape that has been recognized by the United States Congress for its unique contributions to the American experience.

"It is a ‘living landscape’ where residents, businesses, and organizations have formed partnerships with local, state and federal governments to celebrate their heritage and conserve and restore irreplaceable natural and cultural resources," the literature continues.

Congress passed legislation in 1999 authorizing a Special Resource Study and National Heritage Area Study to focus on the role that New Jersey played in the American Revolution.

The National Park Service has identified historical and natural heritage resources and themes that tell the New Jersey story.

A National Heritage Area designation could benefit New Jersey by providing federal assistance toward protection of open space and historic landscapes associated with the American Revolution. A total of $1 million per year in matching funds would be available for 10 years, with the understanding that the area would ultimately be able to support itself.

Under the direction of Linda Mead, project director, and Michael Henderson, Morristown National Historical Park superintendent, all the gathered information will be put into a report. A draft is due for release in January 2002.

The meeting in Allentown was one of six that were scheduled throughout the state within two weeks.

The other meeting sites are Elizabeth, Haddonfield, Flemington, Somerset, and Washington’s Headquarters in Morristown National Historical Park.

"The final determination by Congress of a ‘Crossroads’ boundary will depend in part on the interest expressed by local communities and individuals that support this designation," Mead explained.

Since there are many areas of the state where there is a determination of historical significance, there are four boundary concepts being proposed. These range from including the entire state within the designated boundary to limiting the boundary to specific areas of concentration within the state. The other two plans fall in between.

Steven Hardegen, a research historian who teaches American history at Burlington Community College, joined Mead and Henderson to talk to the assembled group about the role of New Jersey in the American Revolution.

"The Revolutionary War story in New Jersey is very different from that of Massachusetts, or of any other area," Hardegen explained.

The topography of the state — its mountains, hills, valleys, rivers and so on — affected greatly the strategy and tactics of the opposing forces.

Because of New Jersey’s strategic location between the ports of Philadelphia and New York, it played a pivotal role in the fight for independence.

General Washington and the Continental Army spent almost half of the war in New Jersey, and the state was the site of more battles and skirmishes than any other state in the union.

One of the most important battles was the Battle of Monmouth, fought on land that is now the border of Freehold Township and Manalapan in June 1778.

Prior to that battle, France entered the war to give assistance to the Patriots. As a result, Philadelphia was recaptured from the British.

Legends abound that the British troops, in the process of retreat, fled through Allentown, down Old York Road.

Mead, Henderson and Hardegen commented in their presentations that New Jersey was a place where the citizens were directly affected by the war. Families and friendships were destroyed through divided loyalties.

In an effort to stay out of conflict, some homes would show the red rag of sympathy to the British when they were in the area, but the rags would be absent from view when the Patriots came through.

In either case, both troops commandeered many homes for use as rest stops or hospitals, and farmlands were regularly foraged.

While the information continues to be assessed for inclusion into the final report to Congress, all interested parties are invited to contact Mead, Henderson and Hardegen with questions, additional comments or any information that may be important to the understanding of the historical events of the Revolutionary War.

Project leader Linda Mead can be reached at (609) 924-4646 or [email protected]; Michael Henderson, superintendent of Morristown National Historical Park, can be reached at (973) 539-2016 ext. 201 or [email protected]; and Steve Hardegen, research historian, can be reached at (609) 777-4473.