Category: VisitingaMuseum.com

The Museum of Cape May County 504 US. 9 Cape May Court House, NJ 08210

The Museum of Cape May County

504 US 9

Cape May Court House, NJ 08210

(609) 465-3535

https://www.cmcmuseum.org/

https://www.facebook.com/Museumofcmc/

Hours: Seasonal Hours Sunday-Monday-Tuesday/Wednesday 10:00am-2:30pm/Thursday Closed/Friday 10:00am-2:30pm/Saturday Closed. Tours are at 10:00am and 12:00pm.

Admission: Donations Accepted/ (I paid $5.00 for the hour tour)

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46342-d286393-Reviews-The_Museum_of_Cape_May_County-Cape_May_Court_House_Middle_Township_Cape_May_County_.html

The Museum of Cape May County at 504 US 9

The Museum of Cape May County sign welcoming you.

The Museum of Cape May Country museum complex

The Museum grounds in the back.

After three years of trying to visit the museum, I finally got on a last minute walking tour of the Museum of Cape May County and have to say that it was well worth the wait. What an interesting set of buildings that have a fascinating set of artifacts and so nicely displayed in a series of buildings.

The museum campus is broken up in a series of buildings on a two acre site. There is the main office which has an art exhibition, the family homestead of the family, who lived here for several generations, the carriage house which displays several carriages and stage coaches that were used in the area.

The back of the main house where you can see the three additions to the house

The barn where the Military, Native American and Farming displays are showcased

The Carriage House is to the left and the barn is to the right

The Carriage House on the property

The History of the House and of the Cape May County Museum site:

(from the museum website)

Housed in a building that dates back to 1704, the Cresse House, and its 1830 Holmes addition, as well as a historic 1780 barn and carriage house have rooms devoted to a subject or time that will hold you spellbound as you make your way through the past. The 11 room Cresse Holmes house treats you to a glimpse of life as it was in Cape May County from colonial to modern times. From the 1704 colonial kitchen and loft bedroom to the Victorian dining and sitting rooms all are decorated and furnished with period pieces. Special exhibit rooms include a children’s playroom teeming with toys, a doctor’s room with instruments, glassware and vials filled with a colorful array of pharmaceuticals and a Victorian music room with dozens of fascinating players and instruments (Cape May County Museum website).

Our first part of the tour was the family home which had been lived in for generations. The first part of the house was built in 1740 and you could tell by the open hearth and the flooring.

The hearth of the original section of the Cresse home

The kitchen was set up and furnished as the main part of the house. Because of the heat, this was the main part of the house that habituated. Here the family would gather, eat and socialize.

The back bedroom shows the families affluence in the late 1700’s

Having a separate room for sleeping was considered quite extravagant. The heat would circulated through the home and warmed this room next door. The main part of the house was built in 1840 in the Federalist design.

The main dining room showed the affluence of the Holmes family in the early pre-Civil war era

The main part of the house that faced the road was the 1840 Holmes family addition with the Federalist design. This part of the house was the main part house that was used for every day living and entertaining. The house was furnished in a combination of family heirlooms and donated period pieces..

The house well furnished with period pieces

The beautiful side table of the Dining Room

Both the Living Room, Dining Room and the Parlor were all tastefully furnished and what I thought were interesting parts of their collection. It was like someone had just left the room.

The Parlor of a Victorian house held its finest pieces

The furnishings in the Parlor

The painting of Henry Clay stood above the fireplace

Since I joined the tour late, I had seen just the first floor of the home before we continued on to see the rest of the building.

The front entrance room of the house

As we exited the house, we moved on to the most important room of the house, the outhouse which was located behind the main home.

The outhouse in the back of the home

We next moved on to one of the galleries of the Nautical collections.

The collection of nautical artifacts

Mantel’s for navigation

Items from the shipping industry

What beautiful items

Our next part of the tour was of the Carriage House and its collection of buggies and carriages owned by by local residents.

The Barn and Carriage exhibits:

(from the Cape May County Museum website)

Our barn is home to a maritime exhibit including Cape May County’s crown jewel, the original first-order Fresnel lens from Cape May Light House. In addition to our collection of farm implements the barn is also the site of our recently dedicated military room that pays homage to those who served our nation in time of war.

Period pieces range from the Revolutionary War to our country’s most recent involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. Of special interest is the American flag that was carried by soldiers who hailed from Cape May County during the Civil War. The flag survived numerous battles, including Gettysburg, Spotsylvania, Bull Run and was at Lee’s surrender at Appomattox. The Carriage Shed houses items related to transportation – a vintage horse-drawn market wagon, a doctor’s sulky and an early stagecoach that ran between Bridgeton and Pennsville (from the museum website).

The collection of carriages and buggies

A local buggy from a member of the community

The history of the Cape May Stagecoach

The Cape May Stagecoach

This stagecoach was used on the route between Bridgeton and Pennsville

The funeral cart used to transport bodies once people die to their last destination

The last building on the museum’s property housed military artifacts, farm equipment and artifacts from what would shape the local community

The Maritime History of Cape May and of the Museum:

(from the museum website)

Since its earliest days the area we now call Cape May County has been linked to the water. With the tumultuous Atlantic Ocean on one side, the Delaware Bay on the other and lush forest and field between it served its residents well. Early Native Americans thrived, whalers found whales in the ocean and refuge in the bay. All worked the shores and tributaries for birds and shellfish. As the population grew, shipbuilding and coastal trade took on greater importance. Come visit us and explore this aspect of our museum (from the museum website).

Many of the artifacts, photographs and manuscripts associated with maritime activities have found their way our museum collection. From the original first-order Fresnel lens that sat atop the Cape May light to whaling implements, marine skeletons, ship parts and Native American exhibits there is something for everyone. Of special interest is our recently acquired Cresse Journal, an original manuscript by Lewis Cresse detailing the life of a whaler in the mid-eighteenth century (from the museum website)

Hunting and military items from around the turn of the last century

Household and farming items

Artifacts from the Shipping industry

Artifacts from the Counties Ship Building past

Items from the Whaling Industry in Cape May

The museum also houses the original Cape May Lighthouse light

The history of burial and old cemeteries in Cape May

Old tombstones from Cape May cemeteries

The family cemetery on what was once the family farm that now sits down the road and across the street

The family plot

The museum’s extensive collection of arrowheads and other Native American artifacts

The Cape May Civil War flag is most of the most interesting pieces in the museum’s military collection

The Cape May Civil War flag

Military artifacts from the war years

The extensive collection of military uniforms from the different wars in the museum collection with ceremonial drums on display on the top of the case

The gun and pistol collection at the museum

The Pistol collection at the museum

The collection of military items in the collection

The early military collection at the museum

The grounds of the museum before I left for the day

The family home that faces the Highway

The museum is not just an extensive collection of City of Cape May but the history of the County as a whole and its rich development from a farming, whaling and shipping town to a major tourist hub and recreation community.

It also shows it has never lost it nautical or farming past as well as this legacy still carries on in Cape May. The development of the community and the progress it has made over the years is showcased in the galleries and buildings on the museum property.

The Development of the Cape May County Museum:

(from the museum website)

The Cape May County Historical & Genealogical Society (CMCHGS), doing business as The Museum of Cape May County, was founded in 1927 as a private, non-profit organization by a number of local families who wanted to ensure the history of Cape May County was preserved and documented. In 1930 the CMCHGS established a museum and genealogical library which were housed in the basement of the County Court House building for 45 years.

In 1976, the current facility, the Cresse-Holmes House containing eleven rooms along with a five-room barn was purchased to accommodate the growing collection. By 1988 the construction and dedication of the genealogical library and administrative offices had taken place. In the last 90 years, thanks to the generosity of many individuals and families with a connection to Cape May County. the collections have grown to contain many thousands of Cape May County artifacts and documents.

Today the museum and library are run by full time, part time and seasonal staff members along with an enthusiastic group of active volunteers to assist with greeting visitors, guiding tours, researching, assisting with programs, and staffing events.

Wetlands Institute 1075 Stone Harbor Boulevard Stone Harbor, NJ 08247

Wetlands Institute

1075 Stone Harbor Boulevard

Stone Harbor, NJ 08247

(609) 368-1211

Home

Open: Sunday-Saturday 9:30am-4:30pm

Admission: Adults $12:00/Children $10.00/Military $10.00/Members and Children under 3 Free

My review on TripAdvisor:

Entering from the highway, I was surprised at this interesting place of nature and how the Institute is not just part of the community but how it integrates itself into the fabric of helping understand how Mother Nature plays a part in benefiting everyone in this shore community from cleaning the water, sustaining wildlife and preventing flooding.

The front of the Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor, NJ

The back of the Institute from the salt marshes

The sign that welcomes you inside

You would almost miss the Institute without the sign

The beautiful gardens in the front during the summer months

The Institute’s gardens in the front of the building during the summer months

The History of the Wetlands Institute:

(From the Institute’s website)

The Wetlands Institute was founded by Herbert Mills in the late 1960s, thereby fulfilling his life-long vision of creating a world-class research, education and conservation center at the Jersey Shore that would educate people of all ages about the beauty and wonders of the coastal environment, and the importance of that environment to their daily lives. His dream was to inspire everyone to want to conserve and sustain that environment forever.

Herb loved birds and nature all his life. In fact, he joined the National Audubon Society at the age of seven. Many of his maturing years were spent as an executive in the glass and canning industries of South Jersey. During those years he further developed his abiding interest in conservation issues, so much so that he left the business world in 1967 to became the Executive Director of the World Wildlife Fund. In 1969, under his leadership, the World Wildlife Fund purchased 6,000 acres of salt marsh in Middle Township. 34 of those acres became the site of the Wetlands Institute’s facility. The rest were held by the World Wildlife Fund until being transferred to New Jersey’s Green Acres Program. Herb also raised the funds for the design and construction of our main building which was designed by Malcolm Wells, a world-renowned and environmentally-oriented architect.

Our building was officially dedicated on September 16, 1972. Herb Mills’ friend and the international president of the World Wildlife Fund, Prince Bernhard of The Netherlands was the keynote speaker (the Institute website).

The bird exhibition at the entrance of the Institute

The other bird exhibition in the hallway

Later History:

(from the Institute Website)

In its earliest years the Institute was run by Lehigh University under a dollar-a-year lease. That relationship continued beyond Herb Mills’ untimely death at the age of 62 on October 21, 1972 while addressing an ornithology meeting at Cornell University, barely a month after the Institute’s dedication ceremony.

After a few years, however, the Institute and Lehigh parted company amicably. The late Marion Glaspey, a shy but very determined woman, succeeded Herb Mills as Chairman of the Board and guided the Institute for several difficult years as the Institute struggled to become a self-sustaining, independent entity, and garner and maintain the kind of financial support that is vital to any nonprofit organization. In addition to being totally dedicated to the Institute, Marion was a talented artist and photographer, teaching classes in both subjects, and–most significantly–she was a passionate gardener (she’s the “Marion” for whom our Marion’s Garden is named). She remained on our Board of Trustees until her death in 2000.

Through Marion’s leadership and that of her successors, the Institute has evolved to become a leader in coastal environmental education, research, and conservation. At present the Institute is supported almost entirely by funds from private sources, receiving only an occasional government grant for a special project.

My visit to the Institute in the Summer of 2024:

The first stop on the tour of the facility was walking up to the observation deck at the top of the building to view the salt marshes below. It gave an overview of the area that the Institute is trying to protect. The top floor observation gives a clear view of the marshes that surround the town of Stone Harbor and how these acres of area help both the natural population as well as the human population both residing in this beach community.

The view of the Wetlands between the barrier islands and the mainland

The Wetlands closer to the main road

The view of the front of the building and its colorful gardens

The Wetlands that line the highway out of Stone Harbor

When you leave the deck area and head back downstairs, there is wonderful little aquarium that houses the background of the local fish, crabs and wildlife that are part of the ecosystem that make the salt marshes such an important part of this shore community. One side of the aquarium is dedicated to the local Terrapin turtle whose habitat has long been affected by human encroachment. This conservation effort is ongoing.

The first room in the complex of rooms is the Terrapin Turtle exhibit showing the habitat of this local creature and its importance in the ecosystem.

Conservation Programs at The Wetlands Institute

(from the Institute website)

Concerns about the local terrapin population led Dr. Roger Wood, former Director of Research at The Wetlands Institute, to establish the Terrapin Conservation Project in 1989. The project has grown and broadened in scope to become the Coastal Conservation Research Program (CCRP), where undergraduate interns work closely with research scientists at The Wetlands Institute on a wide variety of research and conservation projects, including terrapin conservation. Since 1989, over 200 college and university students from more than 100 academic institutions have participated in the program.

The turtles will just stare at you as walk their display

The turtles swimming around

The turtles in a recreation of their habitat

The turtles in captivity interacting with one another in the tanks

These playful turtles are just part of the chain of ocean animals under study and conservation at the Institute and it is interesting to see to their interaction with each other and then watch us from the other side of the tank to see the human observation.

The next exhibition was the Horseshoe Crab conservation tank. The Horseshoe Crab holds a very important role in the ecology of the shore.

The Efforts with Horseshoe Crab Conservation:

(from the Institute website)

In an effort to address the Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab situation, The Wetlands Institute has embarked on a statewide partnership project to support the stewardship and conservation of Horseshoe Crab populations in New Jersey. As part of this partnership, The Wetlands Institute collects fertilized Horseshoe Crab eggs with the proper permits from spawning beaches along the Delaware Bay and rears the eggs under controlled conditions in our aquarium. After about a month, eggs hatch and newly born Horseshoe Crabs are maintained in their culture tanks. Enclosed in this cultured environment and free of predation, aquaculture dramatically increases Horseshoe Crab survival both before and after the first molts. These small crabs are kept in culture tanks until they are ready to begin feeding, and then are released at their respective egg collection locations.

The Horseshoe Crab exhibit

The Nesting exhibition

The Salt Marsh exhibition

The exhibit on how shore development is affecting wildlife and the ecosystem

The aquarium was very interesting as the exhibits were not there for amusement but to show the wildlife that lives in our oceans and how they interact with one another.

The Whale bone exhibition

The exhibit on Shore birds and their home at the shore

The Aquatic tanks are the interaction we have to the aquatic population. I am sure many of the fish in the exhibition are not native to New Jersey or the Atlantic still it was fun observing them.

The tanks showed the importance of marine life in our beaches and oceans

Some of the types of fish in our oceans: the Striped Burrfish, Permit, and Pigfish

The Striped Burrfish

The Stripped Burrfish

The Permit fish

The Pigfish

The next tank over held the very active Spider Crab, who seemed to follow my every move.

The sign at the tank of this very playful crab

This guy was following me around the tank

The aquarium was interesting because the fish seemed to be very jaded of being around humans. They seemed so used to seeing us it does not faze them.

I then toured the salt marshes outside. The Institute has a series of paths and walkways where you can view the marshes and see the cause and effects these natural areas. It was a beautiful warm sunny day when I visited and it was relaxing to just walk along the paths and just take it all in.

The view of the salt marshes from the back of the Institute

A closer view of the marshes from the paths

Coastal Sustainability and Wetland Health

(from the Institute Website)

The Coastal Sustainability and Wetland Health program began with efforts to document the impact of sea level rise on marshes and marsh-dependent species. The health of coastal bird and diamondback terrapin populations is intricately linked to the condition of coastal marsh systems; as a result, monitoring changes in the local population size, behavior, and breeding success of these animals can help us perceive changes within the salt marsh itself. Our work is also increasingly focused on the monitoring of marsh restoration and habitat creation projects. Through beneficial reuse of dredged sediments, we aim to protect the marsh platform from conversion or drowning, and to create elevated coastal bird and terrapin nesting habitat. In order to understand the response of wildlife to these projects, and to document how sea-level rise and coastal flooding are impacting local populations, we are carrying out surveys of marsh-dependent species on The Wetlands Institute property and other restoration sites (Institute website).

The Marsh Field sign

The Salt Marshes

The back of the Institute from the Salt Marshes

The Institute has a complete elevated walkway where you can walk through the marshes and observe the area.

The sign explaining your walk through the marshes

The possible animals and fish you will see on the walk

Plan to take the time to walk through the pathways on a nice day and observe the salt marshes. You will not see many animals or fish but you know they are there. It is interesting to see the town of Stone Harbor in the distance and realize how much these marshes help the human population without them knowing it. Not just are they beautiful to look at but how what an important role in the environment they play.

The beautiful view of the marshes

The elevated walkway goes through the marshes and offers excellent views

The marshes from the walkway

The effects of a healthy marsh

The breathtaking views of the marshes

When you finish the walk of the pathways and the elevated walkway, this leads you back to the Institute.

Don’t miss a trip to their terrific gift shop with all sorts of fun items and nautical gifts. I bought a delicious jar of the local beach plum jelly. That was a treat. There are all sorts of interesting gift items in the store from gifts from local farms to items dealing with conservation and nature to children’s items. This benefits the Institute and its mission.

Don’t miss one last stroll through their gardens on the way out the door.

What I liked about the Wetlands Institute was that it was engaging, entertaining and educational all at the same time. You walk out with a lesson learned of the positive efforts being made to save the environment in a way that does preach but first shows the cause and the effect and with simple efforts made can benefit everyone.

Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society Museum-Swedesboro City Hall 1500 Kings Highway Swedesboro, NJ 08085

Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society Museum

Swedesboro City Hall

1500 Kings Highway/ Second Floor

Swedesboro, NJ 08085

(856) 467-0202

https://www.historicswedesboro.com/boards-commissions-departments/swedesboro-woolwich-historical-society/

Open: Sunday: third Sunday of the month 1:00pm-4:00pm Monday- Saturday By Appointment only-please call ahead

Admission: Free but donations are accepted

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46860-d28393747-Reviews-Swedesboro_Woolwich_Historical_Society_And_Museum-Swedesboro_New_Jersey.html

Swedesboro City Hall at 1500 Kings Highway in Swedesboro, NJ

Mission Statement of the Museum:

(from the Museum website)

The mission of the Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society shall be to collect and preserve the architectural, cultural, commercial and farming history of the Borough of Swedesboro and the Township of Woolwich through records, documents, photographs, artifacts, and other means with the purpose to promote and provide access to this history for current and future generations, encourage preservation and restoration of historic landmarks located both in the borough and township and provide educational programs, guided historical tours and exhibitions to a diverse population.

The historic marker in front of City Hall

The front gallery of town artifacts

I recently visited the Swedesboro Historical Society located in a gallery on the second floor of City Hall in Downtown Swedesboro. It is an interesting little museum with several small galleries each dedicated to a different theme of the history of the town.

The gallery of Swedesboro High School memorabilia

The large gallery to the back of the museum houses an extensive collection of artifact on the school system especially to Swedesboro High School. This includes yearbooks, pictures, trophies and other spirit related items that show the rich history of the town’s school system.

Class picture over the last 90 years

Composites from trips to Washington DC from the high school. Some were taken in front of the Capital and some from Mount Vernon. It depended on the year.

The Cantoria Friezes from the old high school

The Cantoria Friezes from the old Swedesboro High School (now the elementary school)

These paster friezes once lined the Swedesboro High School and were taken down during the school’s renovation. The theme was Education and you can see this with each characters look in the pursuit of a higher education. These are the highlight of the High School gallery.

These were original reproductions by artist Pietro Caproni of the ‘Cantoria Friezes’ and are based on masterpieces from museums all over Europe. These friezes were purchased by the school system as part of the furnishings for its opening in 1923. These were cast and housed in his Boston studio (Historical Society website).

The former police department lockers make perfect props for high school artifacts

The museum is housed in what was once the old Swedesboro Police headquarters and the old lockers are the perfect backdrop for the museum’s extensive collection of school artifacts displayed in a classroom setting.

The Swedesboro High School China from the dining room

The Sports Department display

Trophies from the high school spanning 70 years

The next gallery is dedicated to town history and the business district. Many of the businesses have been long closed their memory lives on.

Memories and artifacts on businesses from the past

The museum has a large collection of items from the past from the business district showing how the town has changed and progressed from a farming community to a bedroom community of Philadelphia and New York City.

Pictures of businesses from the past and artifacts from a glass manufacturer whose business was in Swedesboro

Artifacts of businesses from the past

Commemorative plates from churches historic pieces of the town’s past

The back gallery hallway leading to the Swedish Room and the Everything room

Family China from one of the member’s of the Society’s family and era dress

The Indian arrowheads found in town

The town being so close to the water and hunting grounds was a place many local tribes settled in the summer months this there was a large collection of arrowheads and other Native American artifacts. This shows the area influence of the Lenape tribes before the Revolutionary War in this area as a hunting and fishing ground.

The ‘Everything Room’ where everything gets stored which does not have a home or display yet

The next display room was the ‘Swedish Room’ dedicated to the Swedish citizens who settled in the Delaware Bay along with Dutch. Swedish immigrants populated this area along with the Dutch in the late 1600’s and were an influence in the Delaware Bay area. “New Sweden” was established and thrived through the Revolutionary War.

The Swedish Gallery with the theme of “New Sweden” colony

Some of the cultural items from the Swedish population that used to live here including a photo of the Swedish royal family

A recreation of a home of a Swedish family in that time period

Books, maps and artifacts from the Swedish cultural the once dominated this community.

The last small gallery at the museum displayed the town’s Military contributions during the wars and artifacts on the town’s governing body.

The history of the different fraternal orders that were once and still are part of the town of Swedesboro.

More of the awards and accolades of the organizations in town.

The map of the town around the turn of the last century

Members of the Swedesboro community

The Military Gallery with uniforms, pictures and artifacts including medals from the town’s citizens that fought in the wars

What was nice about this gallery is that it shows the contribution of a small town and what they did for the war effort. The collection of uniforms is quite extensive.

The uniform and picture of a soldier from WWI

In the entrance to the museum, there are more displays on the town’s farming past and the people who helped shape this community to what is today.

Artifacts that are part of the town’s agricultural past in farming strawberries

Pictures of the architect and first Mayor of the town that helped shape the town

For such a small museum, the galleries are packed with interesting information of the Town of Swedesboro, its past, its present and its future. The museum tells the story of where the community has been and how it will shape its future.

Take your time to stroll the three galleries and look at the fascinating past of this small New Jersey town. Then head outside and walk its downtown to stroll the present. There are a lot of wonderful stores and restaurant to visit there as well. This is what makes the town of Swedesboro so special.

The History of the Swedesboro Museum:

(from the Museum website)

The Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society provides cultural and educational events throughout the year for area residents. Its goal is to obtain and preserve the history of the Borough and surrounding Woolwich Township. To meet this end, the society collects and archives artifacts, documents, books, photos, family histories and items which help to keep Swedesboro’s rich history alive. To add to our collection, volunteer with exhibits, or to give an oral history, click here to contact the Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society. To become a member, click here to download a membership application.

Visit our booth on Swedesboro-Woolwich Day in September. Learn about local history, purchase books and other items to support the historical society. Civil War re-enactors also attend town events to educate people about Swedesboro’s rich history and memorialize fallen Swedesboro & Woolwich Township soldiers.

In addition to our presence at local events, the Historical Society participates in programs to excite the community about Swedesboro’s rich history. Twice a year, we visit Fourth Grade classrooms within the Swedesboro-Woolwich School District to encourage interest in the history and culture of our community among students and teachers alike. Our meetings, held on the third Wednesday of every month (except July & August) at 7:00 PM and open to the public, also feature special interest speakers, authors, re-enactors, traveling exhibits from the Gloucester County Historical Society, and special programs throughout the year.

To learn more about our organization and local history, please stop by our booth at town events, strike up a conversation with a re-enactor you meet on the street, or join us at our new location (on the second floor of Borough Hall at 1500 Kings Highway in Swedesboro) for a meeting. To support the Historical Society, click here to purchase Historic Swedesboro Merchandise. New publications are researched, written and printed each year!

Video at the Swedesboro Historical Society-A Special Visit

This visit showcases the pictures that I took all over the museum. This gives a more detailed description of all the artifacts in the museum.

Tour of Historic Swedesboro, NJ-A Video tour

Knox Headquarters State Historic Site 289 Old Forge Hill Road Vails Gate, NY 12584

Knox Headquarters State Historic Site

289 Old Forge Hill Road

Vails Gate, NY 12584

(845) 561-5498

https://parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/5/details.aspx

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knox%27s_Headquarters_State_Historic_Site

Open: Sunday-Saturday (Seasonal-Please see the website)

Admission: Free but donations are accepted

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g48760-d1174661-Reviews-Knox_s_Headquarters_State_Historic_Site-Vails_Gate_New_York.html

The Georgian side of the Elliott home

The Dutch style side of the home

The sign welcoming you

The estate from the road

The historic sign outside the home

The Welcome Center tells the story of both the Ellison family and their war visitors, the Knox family.

The Ellison family history sign

The Knox family history sign

The family history in the Visitor’s Center

The tour of the house was very interesting. The house was built in three stages as the family grew and prospered over the generations. There was the original Dutch house which is the side of the house that faces the current road, the Georgian addition which faces the back of the house, where the original Kings Highway was located and the addition, where the Visitors Center was located.

My tour guide, Tiffany, explained there had been other additions to the home over the years but they had been removed for the historical integrity of the house.

The Georgian addition of the home featured more rooms for socializing

The Georgian addition to the back of the home was built with the family fortunes. This included a spacious formal Parlor, Dining Room both with large window to let in natural light and high ceilings for circulation and to show the families affluence.

The large windows let in the natural light in the warmer months

Much of the furniture in the house was not original to it but was of the period. Here and there though there were pieces donated back to the house and gave it its historical dignity.

The formal dining room was used to impressi visitors with the large fireplace

The Dining Room used for meals and formal entertaining was spacious yet cozy. There was room to move around but it was still intimate for conversation.

The room had built in China cabinets

The wood work contained china cabinets, storage for silver and family serving pieces. The large metal tombstone looking item in the fireplace was a metal slab meant for retaining heat for the room once the fire went down. This is how the room was kept warm in the colder months.

The natural light was perfect for late afternoon supper

Once you left these rooms for the front hallway, this led to the Dutch front portion of the house, once the living quarters and now was were the business office and storage for the family business was attended to during working hours.

The office of Mr. Ellison was in the front part of the original Dutch portion of the house

The rooms in the front section of the original house were separated from the formal part of the current back of the house. This is where Mr. Ellison and his son attended to business calls and stored their goods for shipping.

The storage room was probably a family bedroom for the original house

The trip upstairs was part of the addition of the house and contained two spacious bedrooms with high ceilings and large windows. When the Knox family joined the Ellison family during the encampment, each family had one bedroom for use. The Ellison’s did not have any children and the Knox’s had two small children, a small girl and an infant boy. From what the tour guide explained the Ellison’s welcomed them in the home and relations were very good with both couples, who welcomed the children into their home. It brought extra life to the house.

The formal bedroom of the Ellison’s would be the bigger room and more formal

The Knox family bedroom would have been not less elaborate with a small bed and crib for the children

The Knox’s bedroom for the family during the war years

Mrs. Ellison kept her own office at the top of the stairs and this was reflective in the desk and table in the nook at the top of the stairs. The tour guide explained there had been a wall to provide privacy to Mrs. Ellison which had been removed over the years.

The office of Mrs. Ellison to run the household

The office contained the family heirloom desk and a portrait of Mr. Ellison’s brother who was a General in the war.

The portrait of General Ellison, Mr. Ellison’s brother

Part of the cannon

When I finished the tour of the house, my tour guide and walked around the Visitor Center room and she showed me some of the artifacts in the room including a small cannon the had been found. My tour guide suggested after we were done in the house a tour of the grounds. The King’s Highway had originally run in a different location that passed the front door of the Georgian side of the house. Also down by the stream were the ruins of the old grist mill.

The map of the original King’s Highway when it passed in front of the home

The original front door of the Ellison home where the street was once located

The stone wall is the marker of the original part of the road that passed by the home

The highway path as it passed over the stone bridge

There was not much left of the family mill by the stream but the site did a nice job preserving the path of the highway and up keeping the stone bridge and grounds.

The woods area by the stream where the ruins of the old mill were located

The stream area

The stream area by the old mill

A better view of the old stone bridge

When I returned from the stream area (unfortunately leads to someone’s property on the other side of the stream), I walked the grounds of the home. There was a small smokehouse on the property to the side of the house.

The old smokehouse on the property

What was originally the back side of the house is now the front side of the house on the Dutch side of the home with the addition to the left

The view of the homestead from what is now the front of the street

The view of the house from the entrance when I was leaving

The front of the homestead as you enter an exit from the new direction of the home

I found the tour to be very informative and an interesting look on how two families shaped our history during the Revolutionary War.

*A special note that the house is seasonal and is closed from Labor Day until Memorial Day the next year and is only open for special events at Halloween and Christmas.

The Halloween Event:

I attended the Halloween events at the Knox Headquarters when in the spirit of the 18th Century Gothic Literature, an author took us on a tour of treason and tides turning during New Windsor Cantonment and inside the Knox Headquarters. The ghosts of the past tried to find a traitor in the midst of the war.

Meeting the ghosts of the author and her characters on the site of the Knox family estate

The Knox House lit for the Halloween holidays had a eerie look to it that night

The Ghosts trying to find a traitor in the ranks

The Ghosts of the past trying to find a traitor during the war

Leaving the Continental Army camp after the performance was over that evening

We walked the estate and followed the storyline with the actors. There were people on both sides of the war who thought they were right. It was an interesting Halloween event.

The History of the Ellison/Knox Site:

(from the New York State Parks, Recreation and Historical site)

On several occasions during the Revolutionary War, Major General Henry Knox, Commander of the America artillery, established his military headquarters at John Ellison’s 1754 Georgian-style house in Vails Gate. From October 1782 until the spring of 1783, as 7,000 soldiers and 500 “camp followers” were establishing winter quarters at the New Windsor Cantonment, and General Washington was lodged at Jonathan Hasbrouck’s house in Newburgh, New York, Major General Horatio Gates occupied the elegant home from which he commanded the cantonment. Here the army awaited the end of the Revolutionary War that became effective when Washington issued the cease fire orders on April 19, 1783.

For most of the 18th and into the 19th century, the Ellison family had important commercial dealings in milling and trade. From their mill, flour was shipped down the Hudson River to New York City and the West Indies. At present, remains of the mill, with traces of the underground raceway may be visited. Explore how the Ellison’s and other families of the mid-Hudson Valley lived 200 years ago.

The Christmas Open House event:

I returned to the Knox Headquarters again for their Colonial Christmas Open House in early December and that was a festive event. The snow had just fallen giving the house a very picturesque look to it.

The Knox/Ellison Home the day of the event

The estate looked so picturesque with the snow

When I first arrived to the estate, it was still light out and they had just lit all the torches in front of the house. It really lit the pathways to the house. By the outside fire, a lone soldier stood guard, and he looked like he was freezing.

The torches that lit the paths

The snow gave the woods a festive early Christmas look

The house was decorated for a Colonial Christmas during the war years

The Officers used the Living Room as an office and for entertainment

The hearth was beautifully decorated with garland and dried fruits

The mistress of the house talked and entertained me on my visit

The house had an eerie but festive feel about it that evening

The festive garland decorations in the Living Room

The decorations in both windows

I passed the foyer where garland and misotle decorated the stairs

We were then entertained by visiting officers of the home in Mr. Ellison’s office who told us their stories of General Washington’s visit.

The Officers visit to visit the Generals

The office lit for a late night visit

The holiday decorations in the Office space

Then I took a trip upstairs where we were met by another officer who described the sleeping arrangements of both the Knox and Ellison families of this time of occupation.

The officers conversation with us

The decorations as we walked up the stairs

The bedroom decorated for the visit

The opposite bedroom used by the family

The staircase decorated for the holidays

My last stop on the visit was to the Dining Room, where the last officer on the visit talked of Christmas dinner in the house during the war.

The officer explaining entertainment during the war

The Dining Room decorated for the Christmas holidays

The elaborate decorations in the room in the war years

The creativity of the Dining Room table with the creative table decor

The elaborate holiday desserts

The officer explained entertainments during the war, the use of the elaborate decorations on the table and the foods that would have been eaten at the holidays. Plus, entertainment of a major officer would have been during the war years.

The garland and fruit decorations in the Fining room

The officer finished his talk on the holidays and then I left for the evening

The outside of the house with the torches lit to full extent

The fire outside to warm up

The officer outside looked so cold. Thank God he kept going inside to warm up

The house as I left for the evening

The torches as I left the property

The house from a distance

The glow of the house at the end of the evening

The event was wonderful and the enactment was fun but it got really cold outside at the end of the evening and by 6:00pm it got to be freezing. I left the estate and headed home . The Knox/ Ellison House closed for the season after this night.

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