PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
Adding nationally significant resources to the national park system is one alternative to ensure their preservation for public use and enjoyment. The purpose of this study is to provide the United States Congress with an analysis to determine if the resources in the study area of the Crossroads of the American Revolution in New Jersey are nationally significant, and suitable and feasible for inclusion in the national park system. The study also tests the potential of establishing the Crossroads of the American Revolution as a congressionally designated national heritage area by applying the National Park Service's interim criteria for national heritage area designation. At the conclusion of a Special Resource and National Heritage Area Feasibility Study, the Secretary of the Interior makes recommendations to Congress based on the study's findings and suggested strategies. The major components of this report include a Special Resource Study, a National Heritage Area Feasibility Study, and the associated Environmental Assessment.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Congress directed the Secretary of the Interior to undertake a Special Resource Study of the Crossroads of the American Revolution in central New Jersey in the fiscal year 2000 appropriations bill (P.L.106-113). The goal of the study was to determine if the region met the criteria for designation as a new unit of the national park system and, if not, whether other management alternatives including designation as a national heritage area were feasible.
CROSSROADS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION STUDY AREA AND RELATED HISTORY
The study area included fifteen (15) New Jersey counties spanning the state from Bergen and Passaic counties in the north to Camden and Gloucester counties in the south. It is within this region that most of the Revolutionary War actions occurred and it contains a preponderance of New Jersey's extant American Revolution related resources. Situated between British headquarters in New York City and the rebel capital of Philadelphia, the New Jersey landscape through which the Continental and British armies marched and battled was truly the crossroads of the American Revolution. According to The American Battlefield Protection Program Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Historical Preservation Study Database, New Jersey was the scene of more engagements than any other colony. As a result, her citizens suffered through some of the worst of the war. Within its borders a civil war was continuously waged between those loyal to the British Crown and those choosing independence for the American colonies.
New Jersey representatives to the Continental Congress voted for the Declaration of Independence on July 2,1776.The New Jersey Provincial Congress had removed William Franklin from office as Royal Governor and voted 53-3 for independence from Great Britain in June. War came to New Jersey in November 1776 when General George Washington ordered abandonment of Fort Lee on the Hudson and retreated to the Delaware River, crossing into Pennsylvania from just north of Trenton. These were "the times that tried men's souls" wrote Thomas Paine and defeat appeared imminent for the American cause. Washington re-crossed the river on Christmas night, however, and during the next ten days won two battles at Trenton and, personally rallying his retreating troops in the field, forced the British from Princeton. He then marched to Morristown for the first of two winter encampments there.
In 1777,Washington and his army left New Jersey to undertake the unsuccessful defense against British occupation of Philadelphia and wintered at Valley Forge. Across the river in New Jersey, the action continued at Red Bank with the defense of the Delaware and the interruption of ships attempting to supply the British. After the British abandoned Philadelphia in 1778,Washington marched to New Jersey and fought the retreating British regulars at Monmouth Court House in the largest land artillery battle of the war. He spent a second winter encamped at Morristown. After Monmouth, the main British forces embarked from New York City for South Carolina, but action continued in New Jersey at the Battle of Springfield and in lesser engagements, raids and skirmishes throughout the state. In 1781,Washington merged his army with French forces under General Rochambeau to complete the long march to final victory at Yorktown, Virginia. In total, Washington and many elements of the Continental Army spent close to half of the American Revolution within New Jersey's borders. General Washington executed a strategy in New Jersey that prolonged the war by capitalizing on the attributes of the state's topography, transportation routes and cultural geography. Collectively, the events that occurred within the Crossroads of the American Revolution study area had a major impact on the ultimate British defeat and the subsequent history of the United States.
THEMES
Three themes that can be interpreted through related natural and cultural resources have been identified for the Crossroads of the American Revolution. They are:
A Revolutionary LandscapeThe themes and the multitude of remaining American Revolution resources related to them provide outstanding opportunities for promoting public understanding and appreciation of the critical role that New Jersey played in the American Revolution. THE AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT
The physical and economic geography of New Jersey greatly influenced how the war was carried out. Its location between New York City and Philadelphia made it a center of conflict during most of the American Revolution. Terrain influenced strategy on both sides. Both the natural and built environments determined troop movements, methods of communications and locations of battles and encampments. The state's iron deposits provided war materiel and its farms fed soldiers of both sides. A key to understanding how the war was fought in New Jersey is knowledge of the state's 18th century landscapeRendezvous for Rebellion
The campaigns and military engagements that occurred in New Jersey greatly influenced the outcome of the American Revolution. The battles of Trenton and Princeton were morale boosters for the new nation in the darkest hours of the conflict. Monmouth demonstrated that the training conducted during the long winter at Valley Forge enabled the Continental Army to directly face British Regulars in the field. British and American Generals pursued differing strategies to accomplish military objectives. Washington personally took to the field and rallied his troops reversing initial retreats at Princeton and Monmouth. Many who served with Washington in New Jersey, including Alexander Hamilton and James Monroe, subsequently became leaders of the new nation.Soldiers of both sides endured the hardships of war on a daily basis. The Americans, poorly clothed and fed, spent most of the time in the countryside and experienced winters encamped at Morristown and Middlebrook. British patrols venturing from encampment sites in the cities faced the continuous threat of ambush from local militia.
The citizens of New Jersey, caught between two warring armies, not only lost their property, but many lost their lives. Foraging and marauding soldiers of both sides confiscated crops and animals, burned houses, and hung or shot citizens suspected of giving comfort to the other side.
This theme provides the basis for understanding the events that occurred in New Jersey during the American Revolution, related sites, the leaders and common soldiers of both sides, and the impact of the conflict on New Jersey's citizens. It celebrates New Jersey's role in the successful conclusion of the American Revolution.
Divided Loyalties
There was a "civil war" within the war in New Jersey that was based on differing political loyalties and religious and cultural diversity of its citizens. While some professed loyalty to one side or the other depending upon which army happened to be occupying their community on a given day, strong differences existed between the many who remained loyal to the Crown and those who favored independence. The split affected families, communities, churches and social institutions. William Franklin, the deposed Royal Governor of New Jersey and son of the patriot Benjamin Franklin of Philadelphia, remained loyal to the Crown. After the war, he fled to England, never to return. His father never forgave him for failing to embrace the cause of liberty.Raids between local Tory and patriot factions were frequent and bloody. Espousing one's preference for liberty or loyalty to the wrong people was often an invitation for a late evening visit, destruction of property, and even death. In the end, many Tories left or were exiled to England and Canada; their properties confiscated and fortunes lost.
This theme provides an insight into the extensive civil war that existed in New Jersey during the American Revolution, reasons it occurred, people who participated and the impact of differing loyalties during and after the war.
The National Park Service conferred national recognition to New Jersey's pivotal role in the Revolution with the establishment of the first national historical park at Morristown in 1933. This came after decades of private initiatives. In addition to Morristown, the Crossroads of the American Revolution study area contains thirteen (13) National Historic Landmarks (Nulls) linked to the Revolutionary War. Noted NHLs include Washington's Crossing; the Old Trenton Barracks; Red Bank, Princeton, and Monmouth battlefields, Nassau Hall and Morven.
The State of New Jersey has recognized the importance of the American Revolution on the state and its inhabitants. Washington's Crossing State Park, the Old Barracks at Trenton, Princeton Battlefield State Park and Monmouth Battlefield State Park are among the most visited state-owned sites of the American Revolution. Numerous other sites and resources have been recognized through public, private or institutional ownership. Despite these and other recent preservation success stories, there are many resources and historic landscapes that have not been fully recognized and remain vulnerable to development or destruction.
The State of New Jersey Green Acre Program is in the process of acquiring additional properties related to the American Revolution to further enhance and protect the network of historic resources. Local governments and private organizations in New Jersey protect many of the important cultural resources that if linked in a coordinated manner would contribute to the public's understanding of the larger story of Crossroads of the American Revolution.
State and local jurisdictions and non-profit organizations in New Jersey have also preserved significant amounts of acreage for open space and recreation within the study area and continue to do so through the state financed Garden State Trust, local tax dedications and private efforts. Combined, these initiatives provide outstanding opportunities for conservation and recreation in the region.
RESULTS OF THE SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDYThe Special Resource Study investigated whether the Crossroads of the American Revolution study area, or portions thereof,are appropriate for inclusion in the national park system. To be eligible for consideration as a unit of the system, an area must
- possess nationally significant natural, cultural, or recreational resources,
- be a suitable and feasible addition to the system and
- require direct management by the NPS. This study concludes that while nationally significant individual resources exist within the region, as a whole it does not meet NPS criteria for a broad cultural landscape of historical importance.
As an alternative to managing Crossroads of the American Revolution as a unit of the national park system, the project team evaluated other management approaches to the preservation and interpretation of the resources including (1) use of existing NPS authorities and, (2) national heritage area designation. The first was found to be unacceptable primarily because it would not result in a cohesive linkage of resources through an integrated interpretive program and would likely lead to further loss of American Revolution resources. RESULTS OF THE NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA FEASIBILITY STUDY
The National Park Service uses ten interim criteria for the evaluation of regions that may be eligible for designation as a National Heritage Area. The criteria were applied to the Crossroads of the American Revolution resources, themes, potential management arrangements, governmental commitment, level of public support and other relevant factors as required.
Two national heritage area boundary alternatives are presented in this report. They differ in size and in the number of resources contained within the respective boundaries. National Heritage Area Blue Boundary includes the smallest number of resources capable of providing a representative visitor experience for all the themes and for protecting the most essential resources related to the themes. National Heritage Area Red Boundary is the preferred alternative and provides the most complete visitor experience by recognizing and protecting a greater number of theme-related resources. It offers increased opportunities to preserve natural and cultural resources and to provide for superior prospects for interpretation and recreation. The red boundary alternative also requires the engagement of a larger contingent of public and private partners and is likely to result in significant leveraging of funds provided by the federal government.
Public support for a potential heritage area was evaluated by analyzing public comments collected at workshops and received by mail and from meetings with interested parties. Additional opportunities for comment and further indications of commitments will be provided during the public comment period for this report.
Based on the information developed and analyzed during this study, Crossroads of the American Revolution meets all ten criteria to be eligible for designation as a National Heritage Area. A local management entity, Crossroads of the American Revolution Association, Inc., has been identified to undertake the purposes and activities of the recommended national heritage area.