WASHINGTONS CROSSING

 I took an afternoon, a cold one mind you, one day, to head up the river to Washington's Crossing here in Bucks County. It's a cute little village and blink three times and your through the whole town. But the main attraction as you guessed, is what the title implies. I have been before to the main park area and visitors center, but have not walked around other parts of the park and area. Every December it's pretty big business on Christmas Day normally, for there is a huge re-enactment of George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River. A tradition for many to come see every year.  This is the location where Washington crossed the river on the night of December 25-26 in 1776 in the American Revolutionary War. This daring maneuver led to the victory in the Battle of Trenton, and altered the course of the war, against the Hessians. 

The whole of Washington's Crossing encapsulates the crossing on the PA side. It covers about 500 acres, and includes the actual embarkation site for the mail crossing, the 18th century inn, sits on the foundation of the original inn that was present at the time of crossing, a memorial marker that indicates the site of the crossing, the Bowman's Hill Tower, the Thompson-Neely House, the Hibb House, and a grist mill, that all served the army with shelter and also used to bury the dead.

The Thompson Neely House

The Thompson-Neely House was built in 1757 and served as Washington's regimental army hospital during the winter of 1776-77. Future President James Monroe who was wounded during the first battle recuperated here. It was originally built and owned by Robert Thompson, along with his son in law William Neely... and then passed on to Robert's grandson.

The Hibbs House- came later....built circa 1828  and was leased as a tenant house for a craftsmen. The house served as home to a shoemaker, then a cooper, a wheelright and finally a carpenter, Abdon Hibbs.

McConkey's Ferry Inn, the oldest of the structures at Washington's Crossing.

The old grist mill.

In this picture one can see the huge tower in the background. The views on top of it are astounding. I'm not sure why the tower was built ...which was in 1929, but the site on Bowman's Hill was the highest point in the area, giving Washington's army a birds eye view of any ambushes. In addition to all that history, the park is also well known for it's trail system and wildlife habitat. A wide variety of migrating birds use the stream and ravine as a resting place and for nesting, while many others winter in the park. But to my delight, were the many sheep at the Thompson-Neely Farmstead, and I must say, some of the most photogenic sheep I have ever met.

Can you believe these two?

It was a great day to walk about. And since Travel Penguin seems to be a fan of Washington and sheep, I dedicate this post to him.