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March-In of the Continental Army

photograph, outdoors, walking, shoes, mud
Exhausted from a season of campaigning, soldiers and camp followers slog through the mud as they arrive at Valley Forge on December 19, 1777.

NPS Photo

Arriving at Valley Forge

The ill-supplied Continental Army marched into Valley Forge on December 19, 1777 after a tough season of campaigning against the British. The thousands of soldiers and civilians would camp here for the next six months.

One of the first orders of business for the soldiers upon their arrival at Valley Forge was securing adequate shelter to keep them warm and dry in the face of the oncoming winter weather. At first, many soldiers and camp followers slept in wedge tents and brush huts, but eventually orders came down from General Washington to construct log huts.

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Duration:
2 minutes, 32 seconds

The ill-supplied Continental Army marches into Valley Forge on December 19, 1777. This is an excerpt from Determined to Persevere: The Valley Forge Encampment.

View the full 19-minute orientation film!

animation, illustration, a flickering lantern, Virtual March-In

Virtual March-In

Check out the online programming from the commemoration of March-In in 2020!

Valley Forge National Historical Park

Last updated: November 7, 2022