Tour book includes driving directions to each site and can be used separately or in conjunction with the audio tour. Want to curate your own tour? Check out the list of sites from this tour below.
Sites
Proprietary House
149 Kearny Ave, Perth Amboy 08861 theproprietaryhouse.org Open Wednesday and Sunday 1 pm-4 pm At the time of the American Revolution, Perth Amboy was a loyalist hotspot and home to the Royal Governor William Franklin, son of famed revolutionary, Benjamin Franklin. On the night of June 25, 1777 after setting up their fake move to Staten Island, Howe ordered the men back to Perth Amboy. From there they would begin their march up to the plains at the base of the Watchung mountains. William Franklin had been placed under house arrest in the Proprietary House in January of 1776 but was removed in June 1776 to a jail in Connecticut. Despite this, as a British occupied city Perth Amboy was still a safe place for his wife, Elizabeth until this fateful day in June 1777 when the British withdrew. |
Strawberry Hill
Intersection of Green Street and Route 1, Woodbridge, NJ 07095 Cornwallis left Perth Amboy with a division of about 5,000 men including other officers such as Major General Grant and Colonel Donop. They set off towards the plains via Smith Street to Amboy Avenue then onto Green Street which becomes Oak Tree Road. The British plan depended almost entirely on the element of surprise. However, that was lost as Cornwallis’s branch approached an area known as Strawberry Hill, which is now where Green Street intersects with Route 1. There a little after sunrise a group of 150 riflemen under the command of Captain James Dark encountered Cornwallis. They would engage the British in a skirmish that went down Oak Tree Road and lasted half an hour. The shots from this skirmish would alert Washington to the British approach and cause him to withdraw the main troops from Quibble Town to the mountains. |
Oak Tree Pond
Edison, NJ 08820 The first massed resistance Cornwallis faced was at the intersection of Oak Tree Road and Plainfield Road where Oak Tree Pond Historic Park now sits. The British were fired upon by a group of men led by Brigadier General Thomas Conway from near the modern site of the Plainfield Country Club where the Americans had set up their artillery. The Americans were joined by French Colonel Armand-Tuffin and this marked the first use of both French arms and command in the Revolution. The two sides then fought through an area known as “Martin’s Woods” up to the Ash Swamp. Oak Tree Pond was also the site of the home of militiaman Reuben Ayers and before leaving the area the British and Hessian troops looted the house and burnt the barn to the ground. |
Ashbrook Reservation
1776 Raritan Road, Scotch Plains, NJ 07076 exploreunioncounty.com The fighting continued up to Ash Swamp, now known as Ashbrook Reservation, in Scotch Plains. There Cornwallis encountered General Lord Stirling who met up with Conway’s men to fight in the swamp. At this point the fighting extended roughly twelve miles to Metuchen. Stirling now joined by Conway’s men, the Morgan riflemen, and some of Armand’s troops made a stand at the base of a hill near the swamp. Although they initially appeared to have the advantage, they were soon overwhelmed by the flanking British forces and had to retreat with many fleeing into the swamp itself. Ashbrook reservation is one of the only areas associated with the battle to remain undeveloped. |
Old Colonial Cemetery
359-363 Main St, Metuchen, NJ 08840 metuchen-edisonhistsoc.org As he left Perth Amboy Howe moved down Old New Brunswick Road which is the path you will be taking to the Old Colonial Cemetery. The Old Colonial Cemetery was also the former site of the Metuchen Meeting house. As Howe marched up Main Street, they encountered General William Alexander or Lord Stirling’s troops at the Meeting House. There the Continental forces took the brunt of the attack and retreated along a fourteen mile stretch towards Ash Swamp in Scotch Plains. Today the cemetery is the final resting place of 66 Revolutionary War veterans. |
Frazee House
1451 Raritan Road, Scotch Plains, NJ 07076 frazeehouse.org Around noon there was a lull in the fighting. At this point, Howe and Cornwallis’s forces had met up in Scotch Plains. Several local legends tell of what happened in between the fighting. One states that General Cornwallis and Major General Howe arrived at the Frazee House and there encountered a woman known as Aunt Betty Frazee who was just finishing up her baking. Cornwallis asked the woman to give him and his men some bread to which she replied “Sir, I give you this bread through fear, not in love.” Cornwallis replied that none of his men would touch a single loaf. |
Terry Well
Intersection of Rahway Road and Cooper Road, Scotch Plains, NJ 07076 Around noon there was a lull in the fighting. At this point, Howe and Cornwallis’s forces had met up in Scotch Plains. Several local legends tell of what happened in between the fighting. One states that due to the summer heat the British drank Terry Well dry. The well was located at the intersection of Rahway Road and Cooper Road. Another tells of how British troops stole three barrels of applejack from Lambert Mill which made many of the men eager to end their offensive. |
Presbyterian Church in Westfield
140 Mountain Ave, Westfield, NJ 07090 westfieldpc.org Washington ordered his men to guard each of the mountain passages, frustrating the British and causing them to give up on their offensive. They then headed back through Westfield . staying the night at Willow Gove Road-Rahway Avenue as well as from Grove Street to Central Avenue. In their frustration they plundered and burned much of the country side. One victim of this was the Presbyterian Church in Westfield. The church had been a rebel hot bed so in retaliation the British brought stolen livestock into the church and slaughtered them there. Some sources say that the church bell rang in warning of the British approach, so the British knocked it from the tower. They then took it to Staten Island only for it to be returned years later when a prisoner there recognized the tones and had it brought back. Some sources however, state that the bell was stolen in a separate incident in June of 1780. |
Samp Town
Modern South Plainfield
Heading towards Ash Swamp and the Frazee House Howe’s troops along with Vaughn’s column marched down to the Samp Town Encampment where Major John Sullivan was stationed. The two armies meet, and Howe was able to penetrate the American lane up to Plainfield Ave. At the end of Plainfield Ave where it meets West Front Street is the Drake House which had served as Washington’s Headquarters before the main army moved up to the mountains. From here Howe would be able to meet up with Cornwallis in Scotch Plains.
Modern South Plainfield
Heading towards Ash Swamp and the Frazee House Howe’s troops along with Vaughn’s column marched down to the Samp Town Encampment where Major John Sullivan was stationed. The two armies meet, and Howe was able to penetrate the American lane up to Plainfield Ave. At the end of Plainfield Ave where it meets West Front Street is the Drake House which had served as Washington’s Headquarters before the main army moved up to the mountains. From here Howe would be able to meet up with Cornwallis in Scotch Plains.