Long-delayed battle marker sought

Monument near Borough Hall would be dedicated to New Jersey veterans of the American Revolution

By: Courtney Gross
   In 2002, the Princeton Borough Council approved the installation of a granite marker in Monument Park next to Borough Hall dedicated to New Jersey residents who fought in the American Revolution — and specifically to Capt. Daniel Neil, who died in the Battle of Princeton.
   That marker could finally be installed by early next year, possibly in time for the 230th anniversary of the Battle of Princeton, which occurred on Jan. 3, 1777.
   A.C. Reeves Hicks, the past chairman of the New Jersey Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, appeared before the council Tuesday, again requesting the marker’s approval. The plaque’s original wording stalled its approval by the state — a delay of four years.
   "That is what the Sons of the Revolution are asking," Mr. Hicks said of the council’s approval, "so we can get it up after four long years."
   Mr. Hicks said the granite marker will take up approximately 15 feet of space, and its design resembles the adjacent plaque in memory of Col. John Haslet of Delaware.
   In a letter to the borough, Mr. Hicks said the proposed marker would be the only one in the immediate area commemorating the Battle of Princeton.
   The Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Parks and Forestry delayed the installation as a matter of semantics. The state deemed a reference to the firing of Capt. Neil’s cannon as the first shot fired in the American Revolution inappropriate, Mr. Hicks explained Tuesday.
   That shot’s reference, fired in Perth Amboy, Mr. Hicks said, was removed from the proposed language, and it had to be approved once more by the Borough Council — which the governing body did unanimously. The Sons of the American Revolution had originally cited the Perth Amboy event because the artillery piece was used in the Princeton battle, Mr. Hicks noted.
   "Our original wording has been revised and finally been approved," he told the council.
   In other business Tuesday’s, the council reviewed and accepting the Police Department’s report for August.
   Council members questioned if there had been any significant leads into the allegedly racially biased robberies and beatings of Hispanic men by blacks that occurred in early September. Currently, three individuals have been charged with the crimes, and four juveniles have been charged with complicity to robbery.
   Police said although the investigation is ongoing, there was nothing significant to report.
   Councilwoman Wendy Benchley also commended police for keeping overweight trucks off the borough’s streets.