Washington’s Headquarters, Raritan Township, 1777
by Jonathan M. Hoppock
Democrat-Advertiser, 26 September 1901
The above view of this old mansion now standing on the farm of Manning Dilts in Raritan Township, at the top of what is known as Buchanan’s or Dilley’s Hill, built in 1725, making it one hundred and seventy-six years old, was recently photographed by Mr. J. C. Sunderlin of Flemington.1 From this elevation the eye has a view of the Raritan valley as far east as Bound Brook. Also from this point a view can be had of the Sourland Mountain range from the Delaware on the west, extending through the counties of Hunterdon and Somerset, presenting to the view a greater scope of country than can probably be seen from any other point in the county.
White Hall Recruiting Station, 1775-1781
by Jonathan M. Hoppock
Democrat-Advertiser, 24 October 1901
This old building, erected in 1758 at Head Quarters, now Grover, standing on the corner of the road on the farm at present owned by Smith Skinner, was, between the dates given above, used as a recruiting station.1 As shown by papers in possession of the writer, Captain David Jones, of the Continental line, was the recruiting officer, and at this point, when the alarm was given that the then hated minions of King George had made a landing at Paulus Hook (Jersey City) or Amboy, would assemble the patriotic old citizen-soldiery, armed with the flint-locks, home-made bullets and powder horns, and from thence hasten to the front to assist the great Washington in beating back the invaders.2
Civil War Taxes, part 5
John Kuhl, a Hunterdon historian of the Civil War, pointed out to me in an email that
“Bonds and loans initially financed the war, the 5-20s, 7-30s, and 10-40s as advertised in the local newspapers. And the increased taxes took it from there. Besides your income tax, there were hefty boosts in real estate taxes to especially cover the local soldier bounties paid by the municipalities.”
Washington’s Headquarters, July 1777
by Jonathan M. Hoppock
Democrat-Advertiser, 11 October 1901
Obituary of Jonathan M. Hoppock
I intend to publish the articles written by J. M. Hoppock, with commentary in footnotes, but thought it wise to begin with his obituary, so that readers can get an idea of who he was. The obituary itself is a marvel, redolent of the turn of the 20th century in its phrasing and perspective.
The Magic of Myths
In my last post I wrote about the durable story that George Washington visited with John Opdycke and that, as a result, the village where Opdycke lived took on the name of Headquarters. Some people will read that sentence and conclude that it happened and is not a myth. They will ignore that phrase “durable story.”
Washington Didn’t Sleep in Delaware Twp.
And he probably didn’t visit either. But the notion that he spent a leisurely afternoon drinking fresh water under a shady tree in the company of John Opdycke just won’t go away. It probably never will.
Interpreting Lenape
I am no expert on the Lenape language. In fact, like most people, I am clueless. Recently someone asked me if I knew the meaning of a Lenape creek name, Octoraro. This is the answer I sent him:
In Days When The Great Fire Up The Chimney Roared
Fireplace Was the Center of Family Life and Activity;
Chimney Sweeps Common
by Egbert T. Bush, Stockton, NJ, March 20, 1930
Mr. Bush has good advice for those of us who enjoy a warm fire in winter. Note that the illustrations were not included with the original article.
“The great fire up the chimney roared.” Indeed it did, and how could it be otherwise? There was so much of greatness around that fire that it could not help either being great or roaring with its own greatness and that of its surroundings. That fire was not built on the economic Indian plan: “Injun make little fire—go close by;” but rather according to the Indian’s description of the uneconomic way of the paleface: “White man make big fire—go ‘way off.”