Presidential Comments

There is little that is more important for an American citizen to know than the history and traditions of his country. Without such knowledge, he stands uncertain and defenseless before the world, knowing neither where he has come from nor where he is going. With such knowledge, he is no longer alone but draws a strength far greater than his own from the cumulative experience of the past and accumulative vision of the future. Excerpt from John Kennedy's (1962) essay "On History"



I cannot but remember the place that New Jersey holds in our early history. In the early Revolutionary struggle, few of the States among the old Thirteen had more of the battlefields of the country within their limits than old New Jersey.… Away back in my childhood, the earliest days of my being able to read, I got hold of a small book…Weem’s "Life of Washington". I remember all the accounts there given on the battle fields and struggles for the liberties of the country, and none fixed themselves upon my imagination so deeply as the struggle here at Trenton, New Jersey. The crossing of the river, the contest with the Hessians, the great hardhips endured at that time, all fixed themselves on my memory more than any single revolutionary event; and you all know, for you all have been boys, how these early impressions last longer than any others. I recollect thinking then, boy even though I was, that there must have been something more than common that those men struggled for; that something even more than National Independence; that something that held out a great promise to all people of the world to all time to come.... Excerpt from Abraham Lincoln's speech to the NJ State Senate, February 21, 1861

Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage Association Membership Information

Please visit our new website, www.wallacehouseassociation.com to learn more about our organization. Events and news about the sites will be posted there as well as on the blog. Thank you to all our local friends and supporters for your contributions and loyal support over the years!






Friday, October 25, 2013

2013 Annual Meeting of WHODPA



The Queens Rangers”
Saturday, November 23rd, 4pm-6pm 

At the Old Dutch Parsonage, Somerville, New Jersey
 
The Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage Association will host:

Joseph Wroblewski, Ed. D. 
Member of the N.J. Historical Commission's Committee planning for the observance of the 350th Anniversary of the founding of New Jersey.

During the American War of Independence 1775-83 the British Army authorized the raising of a number of regiments from the colonial population who remained loyal to the Crown. Colonel Robert Rogers, a celebrated officer in the earlier French-Indian War, formed the Queen’s Rangers in New York in August 1776. It was named in honor of Queen Charlotte the wife of King George III. Rogers, due to personal problems, resigned and eventually the Regiment came under the command of an Englishman, Major John Simcoe. The Queen’s Rangers fought in the pitched battles of Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth and continued to be engaged in patrols, skirmishes and raids throughout the Delaware Valley from Philadelphia and Bucks County to across the river from Salem in Southern New Jersey; on to Perth Amboy and Springfield in North Jersey.
In 1780 the Rangers were transferred to the Southern Theater of Operations and were present at the British surrender at Yorktown. Following the surrender at Yorktown, the Regiment eventually took up land grants in New Brunswick (Canada) and were later reconstituted to help build what is now Toronto. The Regiment survives today as part of the Canadian military as the Queen’s York Rangers, and is still practicing their original function as a reconnaissance unit. Learning about this unique group of Americans, who remained loyal to the King during the War of Independence, should prove to be both thoughtful and interesting.

A brief business meeting will precede Dr. Wroblewski’s talk.
Members and guests welcome.  Site parking at 71 Somerset Street
New members welcome at this time.
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