A meticulously restored Rockingham moves toward spring reopening.
By: Jill Matthews
On Nov. 10, 1783, General George Washington bid adieu to Rockingham, his residence of three months while the Continental Congress met at Nassau Hall in Princeton.
It was there the General learned that the Treaty of Paris had been signed, effectively ending the Revolutionary War. It was also where he wrote his Farewell Orders to the Armies and entertained the likes of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson.
Now, 221 years later, Rockingham is just about ready to welcome the General’s long-awaited return.
Though Washington may be surprised to find Rockingham has changed physical location three times since his departure (it’s now in Kingston) and that modern fire safety systems, as required by today’s law, have been place throughout the home, chances are that the residence, after all these years, might not be too different from what he remembered.
This should not come as much of a surprise since more than a decade of research has been done to make Rockingham as historically accurate as possible.
"It’s not as if someone woke up the other day and said, ‘Why don’t we move Rockingham and redo it?’" said Peggi Carlsen, senior historian for Rockingham.
No, that is certainly not the case here.
With years of information gathered by researchers in various fields, the restoration of Rockingham has been anything but an arbitrary project.
Nearly every aspect of Rockingham has been analyzed from the wood chips to the paint chips to the documents written about it.
In one of the first steps in the renovation process, dendrochronology a method used to determine the age of wood and several paint analyses were done to help determine how to restore the site.
A first paint analysis of the exterior of Rockingham determined the outside was originally painted a medium green, while a second paint analysis determined the exterior was painted an apple green.
But for Ms. Carlsen and members of the Rockingham Association, a green exterior just did not seem quite right. So they raised money through the association and hired Matthew Mosca, a renowned 18th century paint analysis expert, to determine a more accurate color.
Mr. Mosca’s analysis confirmed their suspicions: Green was not the original color. Instead, Mr. Mosca, using advanced technology, determined that lead had caused the green color previous analysts had cited. The house, he said, was originally painted gray.
"You have to be constantly thinking outside the box," said Anne Woolley, press spokesperson for Rockingham, adding that just as medicine has advanced through the years, so has technology.
But the exterior of the residence was only one small part of the puzzle.
Paint color was also carefully considered for the interior of the house. In the 18th century, according to Ms. Carlsen, paint color reflected a homeowner’s social status. Blue and greens, for instance, were more expensive to purchase and reflected a higher social status than the use of muted colors, such as brown.
After scraping sections of wood, they were able to determine the more formal parts of the interior of the home had bright blue and green trim, while backrooms were painted with muted colors.
"What we are presenting is not just by whim," said Ms. Carlsen. "We have different teams of people in different disciplines working to show life in the 18th century."
With most of the construction and paint part of the restoration process complete, the placement of furniture and other objects still needs to be carefully considered.
In mid-January, more than 1,500 pieces of antique furniture, textiles, art, ceramic, metal work and glass were returned to Rockingham from a climate-controlled storage warehouse in New York.
But even with all of these donated items, Ms. Carlsen said she has not been able to definitively determine which rooms were used for what and where furniture and other items may have been placed.
Where did General Washington sleep? Where did he eat? Where did his guards and servants stay? With all these questions up in the air, there is still a lot of work to be done.
Particularly challenging is that the house was used both as a private residence and then rented to Washington for use as his military headquarters.
"How much did she take with her? How much did she leave? We know certain things and other things we don’t know," said Ms. Carlsen, regarding the furniture which Margaret Berrien, who rented Rockingham to the General during his stay, may have left for Washington to use and what she likely took with her to her other house.
Ms. Carlsen also said because Rockingham will have tourists finding their way through the building, it is important to consider how the flow of people will affect how and where furniture can be placed. For example, a hallway or sitting area which might normally have three chairs lined against a wall will instead have no chairs because visitors might bump into them.
"In determining how we show Rockingham, we have to see what we have and how we should bring people through," said Ms. Carlsen.
Researchers have also spent four years designing a garden that would accurately reflect those used in the 18th century.
At previous Rockingham sites, flower and herb gardens were built. But recent research indicates a working garden kitchen would be more appropriate at the site.
And one of the most intricate aspects of the site is the design and construction of a replica of a general’s uniform worn by Washington.
Rockingham Association Vice President Dawn Fairchild spent several years researching and hand-sewing the uniform. Every detaildown the to the number of epaulets on the uniform, which is still being debatedhas been meticulously researched by examining portraits of Washington and by speaking with experts in various fields. The research is documented in a 6-inch thick binder.
"The uniform is arguably the finest, most accurate replica of Washington’s uniform," said Ms. Woolley.
The uniform sits on a life-size statue of Washington, donned with reddish-auburn hair and aged appropriately to the time period in which he resided at Rockingham.
But perhaps one of the most important questions left for visitors is, when will we be allowed back in?
"The $64,000 is always when are you going to reopen," said Ms. Woolley.
The site was scheduled to open in June but it appears unlikely that will happen. Neither woman would commit to a new date and instead said the public will be informed of the opening date once it is determined.
Rockingham is a state historic site owned and operated by the State of New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection through its Division of Parks and Forestry.
For more information about Rockingham, visit www.rockingham.net.