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Manalapan, NJ -- Today, Rep. Rush Holt (NJ-12) and Rep. Frank Pallone (NJ-6) held a press conference at Monmouth Battlefield State Park to celebrate the park’s inclusion in the newly created federal “Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area,” which President Bush signed into law on October 12. The legislation creating the heritage area was sponsored by Reps. Rodney Frelinghuysen (NJ-11), Holt, and other members of the New Jersey delegation.
“This site marks the place where America’s young army met the British forces in the last major engagement in the northern theater and saw their retreat from New Jersey,” said Holt. “I’m gratified that this site now has federal recognition as a significant historic landmark within the new heritage area.”
"This is a site where schoolchildren can come and learn about how our country gained its independence from England," Pallone said. "By designating this site as a National Heritage Area, I'm hopeful it will be preserved so history buffs can visit and learn more about the Revolutionary War for years to come."
According to the National Park Service, heritage area designation provides communities with financial, programmatic, and educational benefits, such as the preservation of valuable historic sites and related open space, economic growth through increased tourism, and the promotion of educational programs for young and old that build pride in the special place that is the heritage area.
The Heritage Area, a unit of the National Park Service, will be based at Morristown National Historical Park and in Trenton, and will span the following counties: Bergen, Morris, Essex, Hudson, Union, Somerset, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth, Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester. The plan will link New Jersey's Revolutionary War national, state, and municipal historic sites and parks from Bergen and Passaic in the north, through Morris and Somerset, to Camden and Gloucester counties in the south.
"New Jersey is proud to be known as the Crossroads of the American Revolution," New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa P. Jackson said. "Heritage areas play a key role in open space preservation, and we look forward to working with the public and private partners in the Heritage Area to better preserve and interpret our Revolutionary past for our residents and visitors."
Kevin Tremble, President of the Crossroads of the American Revolution Association pointed out that, “Along with the battles of Trenton and Princeton, the Battle of Monmouth was another pivotal Revolutionary War event in New Jersey that led to the ultimate victory of the Continental Army over the superpower of that era, England.” He added, “The road to Monmouth is inexorably linked to the previous winter at Valley Forge, where Washington’s troops were trained by Baron Von Steuben and forged into a disciplined army.”
“The members of the Battlefield Restoration and Archaeological Volunteer Organization (BRAVO) have spent many years locating and identifying Revolutionary War sites throughout the state of New Jersey,” said BRAVO President Daniel M. Sivilich. “Many sites are being lost to lack of knowledge and urban expansion. We take pride in that through battlefield archaeology we identified the location of part of the Battle of Monmouth that lay outside of the boundary of Monmouth Battlefield State Park. This facilitated the State of New Jersey's acquisition and preservation of an additional 285 acres that have been added to the park.
“We congratulate Representatives Holt, Frelinghuysen, and the other members of our Congressional delegation for their work in securing passage of the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area,” Sivilich continued. “Today, we are here at Monmouth to dedicate two wayside exhibits that identify the actual location of the cannon tended by Mary Hays (Molly Pitcher), the heroine of the Battle of Monmouth. The members of BRAVO enthusiastically support the Crossroads of the American Revolution initiative. We look forward to sharing in the effort to further preserve historic sites and educate the public about the significant events that took place on New Jersey soil in gaining our independence.”
In 2000, Reps. Frelinghuysen and Holt directed the National Park Service to conduct a feasibility study on the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area. A previous bill, the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Act, was first introduced in the House by Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ) and Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) in the 107th Congress.
Holt said additional events will be held over the next several weeks, with the next one taking place at Indian King Tavern in Haddonfield on November 3.
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