Today in History - January 6, 1777 - George Washington Sets up Quarters in Morristown, NJ
OK, I know these two events have something in common and they are both close to my heart because they happened in Morristown, NJ, which was a town close to where I lived as a child. Lots of activity happened in Morristown and that was the place to go to get things (We got a swing set and a car there).
I'm sure there were many other events that happened in Morristown, but both of these happened on this day in History. So here are excerpts from www.history.com:
On this day in 1838, Samuel Morse's telegraph system is demonstrated for the first time at the Speedwell Iron Works in Morristown, New Jersey. The telegraph, a device which used electric impulses to transmit encoded messages over a wire, would eventually revolutionize long-distance communication, reaching the height of its popularity in the1920s and 1930s.
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After two significant victories over the British in Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey, General George Washington marches north to Morristown, New Jersey, where he set up winter headquarters for himself and the men of the Continental Army on this day in 1777. The hills surrounding the camp offered Washington a perfect vantage point from which to keep an eye on the British army, which was headquartered across the Hudson River inNew York City. Morristown's position also allowed Washington to protect the roads leading from the British strongholds in New Jersey to New England and the roads leading to Philadelphia, where the leaders of the American Revolution were headquartered.
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Here is a little map of Morristown, NJ. I would like to see how much different it looks now than in the 1960's. (Map from www.googlemaps.com)
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