Friends of Washington Crossing Park Receives $500,000 National Park Service Grant
The National Park Service recently awarded the Friends of Washington Crossing Park a $502,768 grant for the rehabilitation of the McConkey Ferry Inn. This was one of only 20 cultural resource preservation projects to be funded nationally. The grant will allow the park to continue renovations to the Inn, above and beyond last year’s $8.7 million capital project which funded renovations throughout the park. Specifically, this new grant will fund complete interior renovations to museum standards and help the park update the Inn’s National Register of Historic Places documentation. Created by Congress in 2020 and funded through the Historic Preservation Read More
A Few Thoughts About George Washington
By David Price, WCHP Historical Interpreter Not long ago I had the opportunity to read a chapter in a manuscript about the turning points of the war for independence. This particular chapter covered the “Ten Crucial Days” (TCD) from December 25, 1776 to January 3, 1777, when Washington’s army won its first three significant victories and profoundly altered the course of the conflict. The draft cited to a quote by a noted military historian referring to the Continental Army’s Christmas Night 1776 crossing, which asserted that this action was perhaps Washington’s only “really brilliant” stroke of the war. Having spent Read More
A Christmas Eve Visit to the Bank of the Delaware River. December, 1776.
By Denis J. Cooke Captain John Lacey arrived home to Bucks County (Buckingham Township) from Fort Ticonderoga on December 1, 1776. His year- long enlistment in the Continental Service was ending and the experience had left a very bad taste in his mouth. In his memoirs, Lacey describes in detail how he and his commanding officer, Colonel Anthony Wayne, had engaged in a clash of wills, and he came home determined to resign from the Army. Catching up on the latest news on his arrival home, Lacey wrote, (original spelling and grammar maintained) “I was however, greatly alarmed on finding Read More
Celebrating Our Summer 2023 Interns
The Friends of Washington Crossing Park would like to thank all of our wonderful interns who supported the park this summer! JJ Miller (Shippensburg University), Brandon Fey (Gettysburg College), John Paul Corsilli (Ocean County Community College) and Ryan Thiel (Rowan University) assisted in site research, public living history programs and served as 18th century interpreters for thousands of school children for our Colonial Days Friend Trip Programs. The energy and innovation of all of our interns were a great asset to the park this summer and we are honored for the opportunity to steward the next generation of public historians. JJ Miller is a History Major and rising sophomore Read More
Friends of Washington Crossing Park Receives National Park Service Grant
The National Park Service recently awarded $61,995 to the Friends of Washington Crossing Park as part of the Historic Preservation Fund’s African American Civil Rights grant program. This program funds preservation projects and efforts of sites tied to the struggle of African Americans to gain equal rights. The Friends were one of only 37 projects nationally to be funded. The Friends’ grant will support in-depth research by a dedicated research fellow on African Americans who participated in and supported the Continental Army’s crossing of the Delaware River on December 25, 1776. This research will examine the “Ten Crucial Days” campaign, Read More
Constructing History
Washington Crossing Historic Park has seven new, reproduction tavern tables thanks to students in the Fine Woodworking program at the Bucks County Technical High School. The replica tables were delivered in late April and will be used in several of the park’s historic buildings. Scott Ribarchik, Fine Woodworking Instructor at the school, says the Friends of Washington Crossing Park approached him with the proposed project early in the New Year. “The tables we made were based on a replica table the park brought us,” he says. “Close to 50 students in our Fine Woodworking program worked on this project over a Read More
Preserving Two Pieces of American History
Two pieces of American history were recently restored, and both will soon be displayed at the park. One of the objects was unearthed in the 1970s and has never been seen by the public. The other is a treasure that has been hiding in plain sight for decades. The conservation of both objects is important to the park’s ability to tell the story of daily life in Bucks County during the Colonial era. These restorations were made possible thanks to generous grants from the Americana Corner and the sponsorship of the Washington Crossing Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Read More
Shining the Spotlight on Our Volunteers 2023
Volunteers are vital to the day-to-day operations of Washington Crossing Historic Park. From special event support to tours, education and reenactments, volunteers help us provide thousands of visitors each year with a truly special experience. Every April, in honor of National Volunteer Month, we recognize several individuals and organizations who have helped us deliver upon our mission over the past year. Please join us in celebrating our 2023 honorees: Volunteer of the Year – Mary Jane Beck Mary Jane Beck is an integral part of the park’s volunteer program, and her contributions are many. Throughout 2019, she ran the Toys Read More
