The Battles of Trenton
~ 18th Century Sites ~
1719 William Trent House - In 1714, Trenton was known as Ye Ffalles of Ye De La Warr. That changed when William Trent, a Philadelphia merchant originally from Scotland, bought 800 acres of land and sub-divided. Trent laid out the lanes and streets of today's downtown, and named the newly plotted town for himself, Trent's Town. The classic brick building he erected served first as his summer residence and later his year-round home. Dr. William Bryant, a well-known loyalist, owned the house at the time of the Revolution and probably opened his home to visiting British officers. In 1929, the house was given as a gift to the City of Trenton. Today an exceptionally fine collection of antique furnishings fills Mr. Trent's home. Guided tours are available throughout the year. The Trent House is open 7 days a week from 12:30 to 4 p.m. For more information, call the Trent House at 609-989-3027.
1739 Friends Meeting House - the Quakers settled here, at the falls of the Delaware, in 1679. Until 1739, when the earliest portion of this building was constructed, they traveled to Chester, NJ to attend meetings. The building has since been added to and the original is incorporated in today's simple structure. During the British occupation of Trenton in December, 1776, the Meeting House was occupied by dragoons whose long, curved swords scarred the floors and stairs of the building. Buried in its small graveyard are several Revolutionary War heroes, including General Philemon Dickinson and George Clymer. Clymer, a Philadelphian who helped to finance the Continental Army, is one of the few men to have signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Normally, the Meeting House is closed to visitors.
1747 St. Michael's Church - Originally known as the English Church, St. Michael's is one of the oldest religious houses in Mercer County. Because its members were split 50/50--loyalist and patriot--St. Michael's did not have religious services during the Revolutionary War. It did serve as the town's library in 1776, and, of the 50 books in the library's possession at the time, 14 survive to this day. The others were burned for kindling by the Hessian troops housed there. Buried here is David Brearley, a signer of the Constitution and President Washington's appointee as Chief Justice of New Jersey. Inside, the church has a chestnut altar dedicated to one of the descendants of Declaration of Independence Signer Richard Stockton, and a lovely Tiffany stained glass window. On display at the New Jersey State Museum is the Church's sterling silver communion set, a gift to the parish from England's Queen Anne. St. Michael's Church is not normally open to visitors.
1759 Old Barracks - During the French and Indian Wars, British soldiers were billeted in the homes of ordinary citizens. When townspeople complained that they were being eaten out of house and home, the military built a series of barracks along the East Coast. Today, the Trenton structure is the only one left. While the British occupied Trenton some of the Hessian soldiers lived here with their wives and children. Later in the war, the barracks served as a military hospital. In 1913, several of Trenton's prominent matrons formed the Old Barracks Association and convinced the State of New Jersey to purchase and restore the building. Another restoration completed last year (correcting some of the well meaning, but inaccurate, work done 70 years ago) and the newly restored Barracks opened to the public for the 222nd anniversary of the Battles of Trenton. For more information, contact the Old Barracks Museum at 609-396-1776, or visit their website: www.barracks.org.
1766 Alexander Douglass House - Alexander Douglass served as Quarter Master to the Continental Army.; When Washington's troops fought the British on January 2, 1777, Douglass's small home served as the General's headquarters. That night he faced a most difficult decision--how best to survive the following day? Come the dawn, the Americans would find themselves trapped. They were outnumbered by British troops on the opposite bank of the Assunpink Creek and to their backs was the Delaware River and no boats. His use of a deserted road to slip out of town in the dead of night earned him the nickname, The Sly Fox, by British General Lord Cornwallis. The Douglass House was moved within town four times and is now found in Mill Hill Park. Owned by the City of Trenton, the Douglass House is open for special events only.
Battle Monument - Rising 150 feet, this granite column marks the spot of General Washington's cannon placement on the morning of December 26, 1776. From this vantage point, the patriots had the ability to fire down the two main streets--King and Queen (now Warren and Broad)--and efffectively control the First Battle of Trenton. In 1893 the Monument opened to visitors. Bronze statues of members of the New York and Massachusetts regiments that staffed the cannon flank the entrance, and the plaques on the sides of the base represent scenes from the Battle. (The original bronze plaques, made by Thomas Eakins, are on display at the State Museum.) Above the fray, General Washington surveys all below him. Currently, the Battle Monument is not open to visitors. The shuttle bus will stop at the Monument.
First Presbyterian Church - While the current church building was not on its East State Street site at the time of the Revolution, the burial yards that flank it were. Buried here are some 150 Hessians who died in the First Battle of Trenton, including their leader, Colonel Johann Rall. The men are in an unmarked grave on the west side of the building. On the east side lays the final resting place of Reverend John Rosbrugh. Rev. Rosbrugh has the unfortunate distinction of being the first chaplain to die in the service of his country. Mistaken, it is thought, for the Reverend John Witherspoon (a signer of the Declaration of Independence), Rosbrugh was fallen upon by British soldiers during the Second Battle of Trenton and brutally murdered. The First Presbyterian Church building dates from 1820, and is not usually open to visitors.
18th c. Sites