FRIENDS OF MONMOUTH BATTLEFIELD
NEWSLETTER MARCH 2014
ROOF LEAKS AT NEW VISITOR CENTER
DAMAGE FRIENDS’ GIFT SHOP
We much regret to inform you that our brand new Visitor Center
that is less than a year old developed roof leaks in February because of
all the ice and snow storms. Worse yet, the most damaged area in the
Visitor Center was our own gift shop area.
The leaks developed on Wednesday, February 5, after one of the
first rounds of snowstorms during this awful winter. It seems that water
backed up on the building’s flat roof during one of the thaws. The water
backed up even worse because it was unable to drain off the roof due to
the novel drainage system that requires runoff water to flow through a
channel at the edge of the roof and then run down hanging chains at
each end of the building. Because the drainage channels were filled with
ice, the water was unable to run off and reach the chains (which serve as
downspouts) and backed up on the roof. This excess water on the roof
found cracks in the roofing material where major areas joined together
and then leaked through the roof into the building.
This leakage resulted in water pooling on the floor of the northeast
corner of the building, and also just inside the doorway at the building’s
main entry. This “ponds” were readily mopped up, though a couple
exhibits near our cannon display were covered with plastic for a week or
more in order to protect them from possible additional roof leakage,
which fortunately did not occur.
By far the worst damage occurred in our gift shop area. Water from
the roof found a weak spot in the roofing and came down through the
roof and through the ceiling of the gift shop. It then landed on the display
counter, flowed into and through the counter, and pooled on the floor.
Heavy damage was done to materials stored and on display in the
counter top display and adjacent counter areas.
Most everything that was on exhibit in the display case was
damaged or destroyed by water or water stains. All together about 40
items were ruined with a value of close to $400. This included about 20
envelopes with first day cancellations and cachets from the 1970s,
several engraved prints, an original invitation to the 1878 dedication of
the Battle of Monmouth monument in Freehold, and several paper items
relating to Molly Pitcher.
(continued on next page)
GIFT SHOP DAMAGED BY ROOF LEAK continued
We are very lucky the damage was not worse. The water did not
enter our storage closet at the rear of the gift shop, where all our shirts
are kept, and did not damage the cabinets or displays where our books
and pamphlets are kept. We are also lucky that we did not yet have on
display our original antique copy of the August 25, 1778 London
newspaper containing the first official British report of the Battle of
Monmouth. We were exceptionally lucky that just three days before the
leak occurred about 20 boxes containing around 250 books destined for
our new James T. Raleigh Memorial Library and Research Center were
moved to another part of the Visitor Center complex, which was
unaffected by the leaks.
As soon as the leak was discovered, Park staff removed most of
what was in the gift shop into the adjacent museum and spread the
material out on tables to air out. We are most thankful for this help.
FOMB President David Martin was notified of the problem the day it
happened and was at the Park the next four days sorting through
damaged items.
The Visitor Center was closed the day after the problem happened
and reopened two days later. Damaged FOMB property was either
discarded or inventoried. Much of our sale merchandise was moved out
of the gift shop as a precaution for fear the leak would reappear. All
together the gift shop was closed for two weeks. Now, a month after the
incident, it is being put back together. In the meanwhile material
remaining in the gift shop has been covered with plastic sheeting.
Workers put new caulking on the roof and broke up the ice dams
there the day after the leak occurred. Fortunately, the problem has not
recurred, but we remain alert and anxious. Besides lost display items
and stock, the gift shop suffered water stains in the ceiling and display
case. In addition, some of the drawers and doors under the display area
were swollen by water and do not work properly.
It is regretful that this problem occurred, but we are indeed
fortunate that there was not additional major damage to the merchandise
in the gift shop and to the Visitor Center and its brand new exhibits.
The roof leaks are not the only problems with the new Visitor
Center, which was dedicated last June. Specially designed ceiling tiles
were supposed to be installed both inside the building and under the roof
overhang outside the building. The ceiling tiles, about 3 by 6 feet each,
were installed inside the building in early June but were too heavy and
incorrectly designed and had to be removed. They have yet to be
replaced. The tiles (or panels) under the overhang outside the building
are in the process of being replaced in mid March.
Updated status of these and other building issues at the Visitor
Center will be discussed at out March 19 general meeting.
NEXT GENERAL MEETING TO BE HELD WEDNESDAY,
MARCH 19; PROGRAM ON “WOMEN OF THE ARMY”
Our next general meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 19, at
7 P.M. at the main branch of the Monmouth County Library, located on
Symmes Drive, near Route 9, in Manalapan. The meeting’s program will
consist of a presentation by our own President, Dr. David Martin, on the
topic, “Women of the Army: The Role of Women Folk in the Continental
Army.” He will discuss recent research on the role of women in the army,
showing that they did more than just cooking, washing and nursing.
Women with the army played a crucial part in helping win the war. A few
helped with the actual fighting, including Deborah Sampson, Margaret
Corbin and our own Mary Hayes (“Molly Pitcher”), who will of course be
mentioned. Recommended reading is the book Belonging to the Army:
Camp Followers and Community During the American Revolution,” by
Holly Mayer. This program is being given in honor of Women’s History
month.
2014 WALKING TOUR PROGRAM OFF
TO MIXED START BECAUSE OF WEATHER
Our tour of sites associated with Molly Pitcher on January 1
attracted 35 hikers, which was a good turnout but not as strong as the
50 who came out for the January 1, 2013 event. It was part of the
“America’s State Parks First Day Hikes" program sponsored by the state’s
Division of Parks & Forestry. After the tour hot chocolate and
refreshments were available at the Visitor Center, furnished by the
Friends and served by Park staff. The walking tours offered on February
2 (which visited the Point of Woods area) and March 2 (which went to the
Hedge row area) had minimal turn out because of bad weather and field
conditions. Hopefully conditions will be improved for our next two tours,
on March 23 to Perrine Hill and on April 6 (tour route not set yet). Tours
start at 1:30 PM at the Visitor Center.
CRAIG HOUSE TO OPEN FOR THE SEASON APRIL 6
The historic Craig House will open for the 2014 season on Sunday,
April 6. It was open and staffed by us all last season, from April to early
December and was closed for four months over the winter. It will now be
open regularly on Sundays from 1-4 PM, and for other special events. We
are extremely thankful to Kathy and Eric Doherty for their help as
docents and tour guides. Anyone who wishes to help out and “learn the
ropes” at Craig House, let us know.
WALKING TOUR TO BE OFFERED MARCH 23
TO SITES ASSOCIATED WITH MOLLY PITCHER
On Sunday, March 23, FOMB President David Martin will lead a
tour to visit sites in the Park associated with Molly Pitcher. We will start
with an overview at the Visitor Center at 1:30 PM, after which we will
drive to the northern side of the battlefield to visit the American army’s
position on Perrine Hill. The tour will end at the new Molly Pitcher
overlook on the western side of Perrine Hill, which is sometimes hard to
find without a guide.
In case you were wondering, the following sites have been
suggested over the years as possible sites for Molly’s well (list taken from
pages 270-280 of David Martin’s study, A Molly Pitcher Source Book.)
1. Spring in north meadow on the Jasko farm, marked with a stone
lettered “Molly Pitcher’s Spring.”
2. Spring on the property of Charles Willoughby in Freehold
Township.
3. The “Railroad Well” on the south side of Route 522.
4. Spring in the barnyard of the Thompson-Taylor farm.
5. Herbert’s Spring, located north of Route 522 and west of the
West Morass.
6. Well on the Sutphin farm.
7. Spotswood South brook.
8. Spring on the big ravine on the Perrine Farm,
9. Spotswood North Brook.
10. Well near the Ker house.
11. Well used by Joseph Plum Martin late in the battle.
Sites numbers 1, 5 and 8 all currently have markers claiming to be
Molly’s well. The marker at site number 3 disappeared a number of years
ago. Come and find out which site most current historians prefer!
“SOLDIER ENCAMPMENTS” PROGRAM
CONTINUES TO BE OFFERED BY THE PARK
A new program of “soldier encampments” started last year will
continue to be offered this year by Park personnel and living history
historians. During these encampments, a small number of “soldiers” set
up camp at the park and demonstrate their weapons and equipment.
They also offer drills for younger visitors. Encampments will be
conducted by both Revolutionary War and Civil War soldiers at different
dates. The first encampment of the new season will be offered by Civil
War living history historians on Saturday, April 26.
FOMB RECEIVES GRANT FROM
MONMOUTH COUNTY HISTORICAL COMMISSION
FOR CRAIG HOUSE RESTORATION WORK
We were delighted to be notified in January that we have been
given a grant of $2915 from the Monmouth County Historical
Commission for the replacement of windows at the Craig House. One of
the windows is to be replaced is on the landing to the second floor. It
blew out in a storm almost two years ago and has been boarded up since
then. Since it provided the only light for the stairs to the second floor, we
have been unable to allow visitors to go up to the second floor and see
the three rooms of exhibits there. The other two windows to be replaced
are in bad shape and need to be repaired to prevent water and rain from
damaging the fabric of the building. Since the State and the Park have no
program or money to repair the Craig House, it is up to us to do the best
we can with the aid of grants like this. This is a matching grant that
requires us to match the funds received from the Commission.
FOMB President David Martin, Vice President/Treasurer George
Dawson, and Trustees Kathy Doherty and Eric Doherty attended award
ceremonies in Freehold on February 24.
We are thankful to the Commission for awarding us this grant.
Other organizations receiving awards from the Commission at the same
time include: Battleground Historical Society; Borough of Fair Haven;
Monmouth County Historical Association; White Pond Brook Watershed
Association in Long Branch; Long Branch Historical Museum
Association; Old Tennent Church; Borough of Matawan; Friends of
Millstone Historic properties; Shrewsbury Meeting House; Christ Church
in Shrewsbury; Borough of Tinton Falls; and Old Wall Historical Society.
FOMB RECEIVES GRANT FROM NEW JERSEY
HISTORICAL COMMISSION FOR ADDITIONAL
MOLLY PITCHER PROGRAMS
As announced in the last newsletter, we are delighted to have been
awarded a grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission to give ten
additional presentations at the park of Stacy Roth’s entertaining, popular
and informative program “Over Here Molly Pitcher.” These presentations
will be given on the following Sundays at 1:3O PM at the Visitor Center:
April 26, April 27, May 3, May 4, May 31, June 1, June 15, July 5, July
6, and July 20. These are in additional to her previously scheduled
presentations on June 21 and 22 at the reenactment and June 28 and
29 at the Battle Anniversary weekend. If you haven’t seen her
performance yet, come out and do so this spring and summer!
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR THIS SPRING
March 19, 2014 (Wed). General Meeting. Program on “Women of the Army: The
Role of Women Folk in the Continental Army”. Meeting held at 7 PM at the main branch
of the Monmouth County Library, Symmes Drive, Manalapan.
March 23, 2014 (Sun). Visit the several sites claiming to be Molly Pitcher’s
Well. Drive to the heart of the battlefield to visit the different spots that have been
claimed to be the location of Molly’s well. Tour will end at the new Molly Pitcher
Overlook on Perrine Hill. Meet at Visitor Center at 1:30 PM.
April 6, 2014 (Sun). Walking tour of the battlefield.
Meet at Visitor Center at 1:30 PM. Craig House opens for the season.
April 13, 2014 (Sun). Driving tour of the battle area east of Freehold.
Visit seldom seen scenes of the morning portions of the battle (East Morass,
Briar Hill, and the line of Lee’s retreat). Meet at 1:30 PM at Visitor Center.
April 26, 2014 (Sat). Civil War Encampment at the Visitor Center
Molly Pitcher Program by Stacy Roth** 1:30 PM at Visitor Center
April 27, 2014 (Sun). Molly Pitcher Program by Stacy Roth** 1:30 PM at Visitor
Center
May 3, 2014 (Sat). “Weekend in Old Monmouth County”. Open House at
Monmouth Battlefield State Park. Visitor Center and Craig House, 10 AM to 4 PM
Molly Pitcher Program by Stacy Roth** 1:30 PM at Visitor Center
Walking tour of the battlefield. Meet at Visitor Center at 3:00 PM.
May 4, 2014 (Sun). “Weekend in Old Monmouth County”. Open House at
Monmouth Battlefield State Park. Visitor Center and Craig House, 11 AM to 4 PM
Molly Pitcher Program by Stacy Roth** 1:30 PM at Visitor Center
Walking tour of the battlefield. Meet at Visitor Center at 3:00 PM.
May 10, 2014 (Sat) “Spirit of New Jersey” History Fair at Washington Crossing
May 17, 2014 (Sat). Tenth anniversary rededication of statue of general Von
Steuben. 11 AM at the statue site near the Visitor Center.
May 25, 2014 (Sun). Memorial Day observance at the Park, 3 PM.
June 21-22 (Sat-Sun) Annual reenactment of the battle of Monmouth.
Entries in bold occur in the Park. ** Event presented with the aid of a
grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission.
MEMBERSHIP DRIVE CONTINUES
This will be our last appeal for membership renewals for 2014.
Your membership status is given on the bottom of the first page of this
newsletter. Thanks to everyone who has renewed already. If you have
renewed in the past few weeks, your membership card is included with
this mailing. If you haven’t renewed yet, please consider doing so. The
membership application is on the back of this page. Help us continued
all our expanded programs!
DRIVING TOUR TO BRIAR HILL ON APRIL 13
We are pleased to be able to offer occasional tours to parts of the
battlefield that are outside the Park. As you know, the Park includes only
about one-quarter of the battlefield, the areas where the heavy fighting
occurred during the midday and afternoon portions of the battle. During
the mid morning there was much maneuvering and fighting east of
Freehold between the American advance wing under Charles Lee and the
British forces. This tour will visit significant locales associated with
morning fighting at the East Morass, Briar Hill, and Lee’s line of
withdrawal. We will meet at the Visitor Center at 1:30 and drive by
convoy to the sites mentioned, which are about 4-6 miles from the Park.
“WEEKEND IN OLD MONMOUTH COUNTY”
OPEN HOUSES MAY 3 AND 4
HELP NEEDED FOR SPRING EVENTS
FOMB has expanded our service to the Park and its visitors by
staffing the Craig House, the gift shop, and giving walking tours of the
battlefield. Sometimes it is difficult to offer all these programs at the
same time due to vacations and work schedules. One such “crunch time”
will be the first weekend in May. We will be staffing the Craig House and
the gift shop both days, besides sponsoring a Molly Pitcher program by
Stacy Roth each day at 1:30 and a walking tour at 4:00. If you are
available and can help us staff the Craig House and gift shop even for a
couple hours (Saturday 10 to 4 and Sunday 11 to 4), let us know, we
would appreciate the help in order to keep all our programs running.
We could also use help manning our table at the “Spirit of New
Jersey” History Fair being held at Washington’s Crossing State Park from
11 to 5 PM on Saturday, May,10. To offer help or get information on our
programs, contact FOMB President David Martin at dmartin@peddie.org.
Phone 609-4486355.
2014 Membership Application
The Revolution in New Jersey had profound meaning. To help keep the
past alive, we ask for your commitment in Protecting, Preserving and
Historically Interpreting Monmouth Battlefield State Park, a Registered
National Historic landmark, and the sites associated with the
Monmouth Campaign of 1778.
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CHECK ONE
New membership
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CIRCLE LEVEL OF MEMBERSHIP
Individual $20
Family $30
Senior Individual $5
Senior Family $10
Patron $100
Lifetime $250
Membership benefits include free entry at all Friends’ events and a 10%
discount at the Gift Shop.
The Friends rely on membership and donations for much of our general
operating budget. If you would like to make a donation above the
membership dues, we would deeply appreciate your thoughtfulness. The
Friends is a 501(c)(3) not-for profit organization and your donation is fully
tax-deductible. Thank you.
Donation included in the amount of ______________________
SEND TO:
Friends of Monmouth Battlefield, PO Box 122, Tennent, NJ 07763
Our website address is: www.friendsofmonmouth.org