King Hutch aka John H.

     When I was a young boy (long ago in a land far away) I didn’t like to read. Oh comics were ok. I even read some sports articles at times, but I never would read anything else. That was until the 7^th grade when I discovered American military history books in our school library. I had always loved the “thrills” of playing army. Little plastic soldiers fighting in the sand always kept me entertained. How about those plastic models as well as war movies! How come nobody had ever happened to mention to me that reading can stimulate your mind and at the same time inject you into adventure that really is superior to movies? Well American history & specifically America military history became that for me & has been a passion of mine ever since.

     Now every school child should have heard about Washington’s crossing of the Delaware and I was no exception! **So this day has been marked out, circled in bright yellow, & bookmarked on my calendar ever since I received the itinerary for our trip! With great planning I made sure to get to bed early (12:30 am) in anticipation of a great time. And I could not have been happier with today unless time travel was a true possibility so that I could actually participate in the real thing. But since Brian tells me that time travel is not yet possible, I settled for the next best thing. We started our day off at the Washington Crossing State Park. The first thing on the agenda was to watch a very well presented video about this battle. This is the site of General Washington’s famous crossing of the Delaware River which succeeded in routing of over 1400 Hessian soldiers. During this battle, the Americans under General Washington took over 900 prisoners while losing only 3 men. This American victory revitalized the cause for independence. It also helped as a recruiting tool (propaganda) for new American Continental soldiers (Hessians were paraded up and down the streets of Philadelphia to show that an American victory was possible) because enlistments were running out at the beginning of 1777.

     This American victory, the Battle of Trenton, was followed up by additional American victories in the Second Battle of Trenton on January 2, 1777 & the Battle of Princeton on January 3^rd (the next day.) Our guide was extremely knowledgeable in every phase of this battle from how the long oar boats or Durham boats were used. These large open boats usually transported items such as pig iron along the Delaware River. These boats, along with others, were used to transport soldiers, horses, and equipment across the river on the night of December 25 1776. She also talked about the tactics & strategy of both the British and Americans, impacts of both famous and common soldiers during the battle, and the political/military reasons for Washington’s bold and risky attack! 

     This battle was so decisive that only three Americans were killed and six wounded. The British/Hessians suffered 22 killed, and over 600 were taken prisoners. The Americans were also able to seize large quantities of muskets, powder, and artillery. This clearly was a great victory for American moral and a boost to the retention campaign for Continental soldiers.  

     Our next stop was at the Monmouth Battlefield. Now to be honest with you, the only thing I really ever knew about Monmouth was the “legend of Molly Pitcher”. How my eyes were opened up today when I realized that Monmouth was the site of one of the largest battles of the Revolutionary War! Our guide did a splendid job of recreating the battle both inside the center as well as during our tour of the battlefield. He showed us the site of General Sterling’s defensive position and Lafayette’s quick action to stop a British flanking move. We were taken to the spot that American cannons devastated a British advance. Just standing on the field helped bring this formerly obscure battle to life for me. We stood on the point where the British where the British were torn apart as they charged into a line of Americans entrenched behind picket fences! At the end of the day, the British withdrew leaving the Americans with a “major” victory. Why was it so decisive a victory? The Americans came into the fight wanting to engage the enemy and at least hold their own. The British came into the fight wanting to destroy the American force and end the war. The only side that can therefore met its objective & claim victory is without a doubt the Americans.  

     This has been a long and hot day. It is now time to kick back & relax. Do you realize that our time in Philadelphia in now ½ over! My how time flies when you are having fun as a “history geek” in one of the most important and historically exciting cities in our nation’’s history!