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CROSSROADS GAZETTE
Your resource for all things Revolutionary New Jersey!
June 2016
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| Summer is finally here! Discover your own Revolutionary New Jersey on the battlefield and in the ballpark at events and commemorations taking place in June. Salute the flag, hike the place where America endured, even celebrate the birthday of King George III... there's so much to explore throughout the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area. Huzzah! |
They created a new nation, and with it, a new flag was needed. On June 14, 1777, Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes as the official flag of the United States, replacing the British symbols of the Grand Union flag with a new design featuring 13 alternating red and white stripes and 13 stars on a field of blue, one for each state. Designed by statesman (and Revolutionary Neighbor) Francis Hopkinson, many believe this flag was first flown at the Middlebrook Encampment in the Watchung Mountains in 1777.
This year, you can honor the flag with events taking place across the Heritage Area, including two not far from that storied introduction of the Stars and Stripes.
Put on the red, white and blue for the Somerville Elks Flag Day Festival on June 11, featuring Heard's Brigade, historic military vehicles and fun for the kids on the grounds of the Somerset County Courthouse. Food and toiletry donations will be collected for Operation Jersey Cares' delivery to deployed troops, and worn American flags will also be collected for proper retirement.
More information.
And on Flag Day, June 14, join Crossroads and the Somerset Patriots minor league baseball team for Revolutionary Spirit Night at TD Ballpark in Bridgewater. As the Patriots take on the York Revolution, you'll have the chance to meet George Washington and Molly Pitcher, sign the Declaration of Independence with a real quill pen, enjoy fife and drum music, conduct experiments with Ben Franklin, play Colonial-era games, and more! Plus, the first 500 kids through the turnstiles will receive a Crossroads flag. Check our Revolutionary Spirit
webpage for a full list of participating Heritage Partners, plus our promotional video.
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Celebrate the King's Birthday with Loyalist flair
on June 4
New Jersey was a conflicted place during the American Revolution, with many residents signing loyalty oaths to the British Crown as others adopted the Patriot cause. On June 4, you can find out more about the less-often told pro-British part of our history at celebrations of the King's Birthday at two sites with historic Loyalist ties.
Loyalist soldiers take over
Marlpit Hall in Middletown for the King George III Birthday Celebration. Kids can join in the fun and learn to march with simulation muskets, compete in sack races, and enjoy other 18th century games at the home of Colonial New Jersey Assemblyman and Tory sympathizer Edward Taylor.
More information.
The 4th Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers and the Bergen County Historical Society mark the
King's Birthday at
Historic New Bridge Landing in River Edge with musket demonstrations, military camp kitchen and other activities. Author and Loyalist scholar Todd Braisted will tell the story of New Bridge schoolmaster and Loyalist military officer Major Robert Timpany.
More information.
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Battle of Monmouth roars on June 18-19
The roar of cannons and the smell of musket fire return to the site of the Revolution's biggest artillery battle on June 18 and 19 for the commemoration of the 238th anniversary of the Battle of Monmouth in Manalapan.
Hundreds of living historians representing Continental and British armies will populate Monmouth Battlefield State Park, along with camp followers presenting an authentic version of military life during the American Revolution.
Both days of the reenactment will feature battle reenactments, formations and marches. Kids are invited to participate in wooden musket drills and meet Molly Pitcher, the woman whom legend says took her husband's place at the cannon.
More information.
We thank the New Jersey Turnpike Authority for helping us get the word out with Battle of Monmouth signage at toll plazas and interchanges on the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway.
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Huzzah! Crossroads media win awards
Our work to help connect people to New Jersey's Revolutionary story doesn't just strengthen communities, it wins awards, too. We're delighted and humbled to have been recognized recently for our print and electronic media.
Meet Your Revolutionary Neighbors, a published selection of profiles from our ongoing series of the same name, is one of seven projects to have recently received the coveted
2016 New Jersey Historic Preservation Award. With contributions from 16 respected New Jersey historians, this rich collaboration connects readers to the state's significant Revolutionary heritage on a personal level. It's also the companion to a larger collection of
Revolutionary Neighbors on our website. We're thrilled to have been selected, and congratulate our fellow awardees and contributors on the honor and shared recognition.
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Mark your calendar: A.J. Meerwald to sail from Elizabeth in July
Plan to set sail this summer with the crew of the A.J. Meerwald as New Jersey's official tall ship visits the Elizabeth waterfront July 15-17. Details are being finalized, but you can be sure that the Meerwald's first visit to one of New Jersey's oldest Colonial cities will have Revolutionary flair!
This portion of the Meerwald's summer schedule is sponsored by GoElizabethNJ, the Elizabeth Destination Marketing Organization.
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Heritage Partners join, renew with Crossroads
Heritage Area Partners are at the core of the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area. While each location and organization tells its own story, together they form a tapestry of experiences that make an indelible mark on our communities and neighbors.
We're here to help! Whether your site is open seven days a week or not ready to receive visitors, Crossroads can help enhance your visibility and build community engagement. Scores of sites and historic associations across the state already benefit from their alliance with us, and we're happy to welcome our newest Heritage Area Partners:
We're also happy to announce our renewed Partners:
For more information on Heritage Partner membership and benefits, contact our Program Manager Kate Knowles-Brindle by
e-mail
or call her at 609-341-3246.
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Get Revolutionary at this month's Heritage Partner events
Celebrate New Jersey history at these events at our partners in the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area. Watch our
website
and
Facebook page
for even more activities through the month, and watch for our mid-month events email.
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National Trails Day History Hike at Jockey Hollow/Morristown National Historical Park
June 4 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Hike part of the Grand Loop Trail with a ranger to learn about the Morristown encampment and the terrain the soldiers dealt with during the toughest winter of the Revolutionary War.
More information
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Skirmish on Kings Highway at Indian King Tavern in Haddonfield
June 4 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Join members of the Continental and British units to learn more about the life of a Revolutionary War soldier. Participate in a musket drill. Decode an intercepted spy report.
More information
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Hannah Caldwell Day at Caldwell Parsonage in Union
June 5 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Find out how the death of Fighting Parson James Caldwell's wife became a rallying cause for New Jersey Patriots as we mark the anniversary of the Battle of Connecticut Farms.
More information
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Washington's Crossings and Battles in Hunterdon with Richard Patterson at the Hunterdon County Library in Flemington
June 7 at 7:00 p.m.
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1776 at Playhouse 22 in East Brunswick
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from June 10-26
The Broadway and movie musical hit dramatizes the weeks leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
More information and tickets
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New Jersey's Colonial Architecture at the Burlington County Lyceum in Mount Holly
June 11 at 1:00 p.m.
Author David Veasey focuses on Burlington County in this talk on the diverse influences on New Jersey's Colonial architecture. Pre-registration requested.
More information and registration
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Royal Governor's Arrest at The Proprietary House in Perth Amboy
June 12 at 1:00 p.m.
Why was Governor William Franklin taken into custody, and why didn't he support independence? Find out at his former home during this dramatization of his 1776 arrest.
More information
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Revolutionary Spirit Night at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater
June 14 at 7:05 p.m.
As the Somerset Patriots minor league baseball team takes on the York Revolution, meet 18th century celebrities, sign the Declaration of Independence, visit an encampment and more with our Heritage Partners.
More information and tickets..
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Board of Trustees
Thomas H. Kean, Honorary Chair ● Patrick Murray, President ● Laura Szwak, Vice President ● David Siegfried, Treasurer ● Sally Lane, Secretary ● Leslie Bensley
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Richard Bousquet ● Kathleen Ellis
● Dale Florio ●
John Hardiman ● Ira Jersey
● Martha Lieblich ●John S. O'Donnell ● Chris Paladino ● Milly Silva
Crossroads Staff
Noreen Bodman, Executive Director ● Tanika Jones, Office Administrator ● Kate Knowles-Brindle, Program Manager ● Sue Kaufmann, Communications and Social Media Coordinator ● Cody Knowles, Program Assistant ● Bill Lawton, Development/Fundraising Assistant
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