I’ve learned a few other things about New Jersey: it’s the 47th state in size, but the 11th state in population. This makes it the most densely-populated state in the union.
It has also been called the “Crossroads of the Revolution,” as it is pivotally located between New York City (the British base at the time) and Philadelphia (then the Continental Army’s base). More battles and other skirmishes during that war were fought in New Jersey than anywhere else.
With that in mind, the girls and I set out today to visit Monmouth Battlefield. It looks serene now, but on June 28, 1778, the meadows and hills were obscured by clouds of gun smoke. At the end, approximately 600 men died in these fields and George Washington was able to claim the Continental Army’s first victory in two years. It’s considered a turning point in the Revolutionary War.
The legend of Molly Pitcher originated during that battle. It is said she braved gunfire to carry water from a spring on the battlefield to the American troops, who were parched in the blistering 96-degree heat. When her husband was killed in the fight, she manned his cannon and took out her vengeance on the Redcoats. The next day, barefoot and still in her powder-stained dress and ripped petticoats (which a private wrote was caused when a cannonball flew right between her legs), the 23-year-old was personally thanked by Washington.
While we were having a history lesson, the girls and I visited a few other sites as well. I’m a sucker for old churches and they loved listening to the beautiful bells at the Old Tennant Church, erected in 1751 and just a stone’s throw from the battlefield.
And finally, they imagined what it would be like to have attended the Georgia Road Schoolhouse, built in 1820 and in continuous use until 1935. The first school on the property began in 1735 under a land grant from the King of England, who decreed the spot could be used for educational and religious purposes only.
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