Tag Archives: holidays

Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor our dead. It was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,” he proclaimed. The date of Decoration Day, as he called it, was chosen because it wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle.

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The Civil War Monument in Morristown, New Jersey was dedicated in 1871 to the soldiers and sailors of the Civil War.

Inscriptions on the sides of the monument list battles of the Civil War inlcuding Antietam, Vicksburg, Appomattox, Shilo, Wilderness, Malvern Hill, Roanoke, Winchester, Gettysburg, Atlanta, Donelson and Cold Harbor.

 Take a moment to remember the original reason for Memorial Day and the men and women who gave their lives for our country.

Have a great Memorial Day and enjoy the weekend whatever you’re doing.

In honor of Presidents Day I thought I’d write about our first president.

I don’t know if George Washington ever slept on Martha’s Vineyard but he certainly slept his way around New Jersey.

He arrived at Ford Mansion in Morristown, NJ in Dec of 1779 and stayed until June of 1780.  His troops of 10,000 men were encamped at nearby Jockey Hollow during the harshest winter of the war.

Morristown, New Jersey

This description of the mansion is from Wikipedia:

‘The Ford Mansion has a Georgian style exterior, but the interior kitchen and framing shows evidence of Dutch influence. The mansion was made with palladian window above the door and a stylish cornice. The fancy architecture was not created to look appealing, but to showcase the wealth of the family who owned the building.’

Built between 1772 and 1774 it was the home of Jacob and Theodosia Ford.  The following description is from Wikipeida:

‘The headmaster’s section of the house was built with symmetrical rooms on both side of the foyer. The office is across from the library and the parlor is across from the dining room. On the second floor there are symmetrical bedrooms for each side of the hallway. The servant’s section of the house was near the kitchen  and the pantry  on the east side. The grand hall and the parlor are what categorized the house as a mansion. Unlike most mansions at the time, the Ford Mansion did not use bricks for the exterior, but painted flush board and clapboards.’

Front door of main part of house

Door to servant’s quarters

Fireplace and back of house

Across the road is this statue of George Washington by Frederick Roth (1927-28)

Sometimes it’s fun to play tourist in and around where you live.   Morristown in particular is rich in American Revolutionary War history and Morris County is known as  The Military Capital of the American Revolution.

LINKS:

Ford Mansion – Wikipedia

Revolutionary War New Jersey

Washington’s Headquarters – National Park Traveler