Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site 84 Liberty Street Newburgh, NY 12551

Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site 84 Liberty Street Newburgh, NY 12551

Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site

84 Liberty Street

Newburgh, NY 12551

(845) 562-1195

https://parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/17/details.aspx

https://www.hudsonrivervalley.com/sites/Washington-s-Headquarters-State-Historic-Site-/details

Open: Sunday 1:00pm-4:00pm/Monday-Tuesday Closed/Wednesday-Saturday 11:00am-4:00pm

Admission: Adults $7.00/Senior/Student $5.00/Children 12 and Under Free

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g48254-d1798458-Reviews-Washington_s_Headquarters_State_Historic_Site-Newburgh_New_York.html

The Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site in Newburgh, NY

I spent an afternoon exploring the Beacon/Newburgh area with all its historical sites and homes and my last stop was the Washington’s Headquarters State Historical Site in Newburgh, NY. Surrounded by a quickly gentrifying neighborhood it really showed me the progress this area has made and how the site keeps reinventing itself. It shows this site’s resilience.

The Hasbrouck family farmhouse was General George and his wife, Martha’s home for over sixteen months.

For sixteen and a half months, the site was used by General George Washington, along with his wife Martha, his aides, guards and free and enslaved servants. They used the Hasbrouck family’s Dutch-style farmhouse as their home and headquarters. It was the longest time they spend at any military headquarters beginning in April of 1782 and ending in August of 1783 as the Revolutionary War was drawing to a close (Palisade Interstate Park Commission).

I was able to take the last tour of the day at 4:00pm and our tour guide was excellent. She really knew the history of the site and gave us a comprehensive tour of the home and the time before and after the war. We went room by room in the Hasbrouck family farmhouse and she described how the family had utilized the house and then how General Washington and his wife and staff used the home during the war years.

I started the tour in the Museum Building, which is a Federal style building that was erected in 1910 to house the collection of artifacts from that period. The collection includes the only surviving section of the boom that stretched across the Hudson River at West Point (Palisade Interstate Park Commission).

The main gallery housing equipment and the surviving piece of the boom.

The Boom that protected the Hudson River

The piece of the boom that survived and was dredged from the river in the late 1800’s.

The second gallery had the video history of the site and how Washington’s troops advanced in the area. It also went over the last years of the war and the progress American troops made.

The Video Gallery at the Washington Headquarters site.

The sign of the historic site.

After the tour of the museum on my own, we started the tour of the Hasbrouck family homestead. When we approached the house, you could see where the house was added onto from the original footprint. At the top of the doorway, we could see the cornerstone where the family name and year of the building of the house was built.

The cornerstone to the home with the family name and date.

Jonathan and Tryntje Hasbrouck built this Dutch style farmhouse between 1750 and 1770. They raised their family and ran their business here. The property stretched from the banks of the Hudson River to about two miles inland for a total of almost 200 acres. After his passing in 1780, his wife ran the home and the business successfully for the rest of her life (Palisades Interstate Park Commission).

The outside of the Hasbrouck family home. Notice the addition to the home.

The house itself has none of the original family furnishings but many period pieces including General George Washington’s desk from another location.

George Washington’s desk from another location that was brought here.

We started off the tour in the family kitchen and dining room which was one big room with a walk-in fireplace. The room was broken into sections as the food would be cooked in the giant fireplace and served at the family table off to the side. As more people visited the home, an area off to the side was used for plating and serving.

The Hasbrouck’s and Washington’s Dining Room

The walk-in fireplace for cooking and the dining space.

The plating area of the dining room that would be used by the Washington’s.

We next entered the battle room, where all the enlisted men would be doing all the General’s office work, correspondence and paying bills. Everything was done by hand and if multiple copies needed to be made, it was more work for the men working there.

The War Room where the enlisted men did all their work and corresponded with the troops and other officers.

General Washington’s office was off to the back. This is where all the strategic work of the war was performed and where General Washington worked with his staff.

General Washington’s office during the end of the war.

Once you passed through the front foyer again is where the enlisted men slept, two per bed which the tour guide said was uncomfortable for the men. Only in the summer months when half the staff was on leave could they sleep one per bed.

The enlisted officers sleeping chambers during the war years.

The three rooms on the other side of the house were used as the Parlor, where the Washington’s would entertain visiting dignitaries and guests. This was right off the main kitchen area.

The Parlor where the Washington’s entertained visitors and dignitaries.

The next two rooms were used as the Washington’s bedroom where we all noticed that the bed was so short. The guide informed us that even though George Washington was over six feet, people slept sitting up at that time as they considered it healthier.

The Washington’s bedroom

The next room over was the servant’s room where the free and enslaved servants would sleep and attend to the needs of the Washington’s. It looked to me that Martha contributed more than just entertaining the troops. She must have been the ear that her husband needed at wartime.

The Servant’s room

What I thought was interesting is the stairs going up did not lead to a second floor. The tour guide said that this was in the Dutch tradition of not having a second floor considering the Hasbrouck’s had ten children. She said only later on did families finish the house and construct the upstairs. Once the house tour was over and the tour guide answered all our questions, we were able to tour the grounds for the last hour before the park closed.

The property looking down the Hudson River to Bannerman Castle.

On the property was the Tower of Victory, which President Lincoln’s son built in honor of the Hundredth anniversary of the war. It was closed for touring. The details of the tower were really beautiful with the eagles adorning the sides of the building and the beautiful stonework.

The Tower of Victory sign

The “Tower of Victory”

The views of the Hudson River were breathtaking. On this beautiful sunny afternoon, you can see all the way into Beacon across the river and look as far down river as Bannerman Castle. Everything was so clear and beautiful from this site and you could see all the surrounding area. You could see why they picked this spot as the strategic headquarters for this part of the war.

The Minuteman statue on the property.

Artist Henry Hudson Kitson sculpted this statue and the Minute Man statue on the town green in Lexington, MA. These monuments commemorate the citizen-soldiers whose selfless bravery and sacrifice made this country possible (Palisades Interstate Park Commission).

Artist Henry Hudson Kitson was a British born artist who was educated at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He was known for his military statues (Wiki).

Artist Henry Hudson Kitson

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Hudson_Kitson

It was so interesting to spend the afternoon at the and realize it’s importance in American history. It is almost a humbling experience.

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