Public Can Experience "Washington's Landing In New Jersey"

Titusville, NJ — Can you imagine rowing through ice floes and then trudging through a blizzard in the middle of the night, with miles to go before your destination is reached — especially when that destination is a battle to decide the fate of your country?

The paintings that depict General Washington crossing the Delaware on that snowy Christmas night in 1776 have forever caught the imagination of the public — so much so that annual December reenactments at Washington Crossing Historic Park in Pennsylvania attract thousands of visitors each year.

But what happened once the troops landed in New Jersey?

This year the public can get a glimpse of that experience during a brand new event - "Washington's Landing in New Jersey" - to be held on Sunday, Dec. 11 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Washington Crossing State Park in Titusville, New Jersey.

The public is invited to hear from representatives who will offer an opportunity to experience both the Crossing and the March to Trenton through the eyes of the men and women who lived it.

Sharing the story on the New Jersey side of the Delaware will be state park historians, members of the Washington Crossing Park Association, the First Rhode Island Regiment (a group of African-American reenactors who tell the stories of the historically-underrepresented men and women who fought in the Revolutionary War), and other New Jersey-based reenactor groups

“Washington’s Landing in New Jersey” will coincide with the rehearsal of the Crossing of the Delaware on the Pennsylvania side of the river.

An encampment will take place at the New Jersey park’s “Overlook” located next to the historic Johnson Ferry House with a wonderful view of the river below.

Reenactors will patrol the lower park, encouraging visitors to undertake a brief “march” over the park’s pedestrian bridge and up to the Overlook, where cozy fires, hot cider, and skilled reenactors will regale them with tales of the rich history that took place in Mercer County, New Jersey.

Special efforts will be made to engage the youngest visitors in the hope of sparking their interest in New Jersey history.

The event will feature programming throughout the day, including a presentation by noted historian Larry Kidder entitled, “The Crossing Was Just the Beginning: The little-known story of local New Jersey militiamen who guided Washington's army to Trenton.”

Event partners include the Washington Crossing State Park (a division of the New Jersey DEP), the Washington Crossing Park Association, and the First Rhode Island Regiment.

The program is made possible, in part, by the Mercer County Division of Culture & Heritage through funding from the New Jersey Historical Commission. It is also supported by generous donations by the Swan Historical Foundation, the NJM Insurance Group, and Revolutionary NJ, with the New Jersey Historical Commission.