Van Horne House

The Van Horne House is a historic building at 941 East Main Street near Bound Brook in Bridgewater Township, Somerset County, New Jersey. The house was built c. 1750 and also known as Phil's Hill, after its owner, Philip Van Horne. It served as the headquarters for American General Benjamin Lincoln in 1777, during the American Revolutionary War, in particular the Battle of Bound Brook. Later, it served as the headquarters for American General William Alexander, Lord Stirling during the second Middlebrook encampment (1778–79).[3] The house, on the early-18th-century Old York Road that connected Philadelphia to New York City, was a New Jersey landmark during the war.[4] Since 2002, the Heritage Trail Association has used the house as its headquarters, including an exhibit space.[5] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 8, 2002, for its locally significant Colonial Revival architecture from 1937 to 1944.[3]

For the house in Montreal, Quebec, see Van Horne Mansion. For the house in New York, see Walrath-Van Horne House.
Van Horne House
Van Horne House, 2013
Van Horne House
Van Horne House
Van Horne House
Location941 East Main Street
Bridgewater, New Jersey
Coordinates40°33′42″N 74°33′5″W
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
Builtc. 1750
Architectural styleColonial Revival
NRHP reference No.02000133[1]
NJRHP No.3719[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPMarch 8, 2002
Designated NJRHPDecember 20, 2001

History

Between 1683 and 1685, Thomas Codrington, a merchant from New York City, purchased 2,754 acres between the Raritan River and the First Watchung Mountain from the East Jersey proprietors. In 1706, he sold the property to Phillip French, who left it to his three daughters. This tract was later split between Cornelius Van Horne, husband of Elizabeth French, and Joseph Reade, husband of Anne French, as recorded in a 1722 deed. Jacob Janeway purchased an 84-acre lot that included the site of the house, c. 1735. Philip Van Horne (1719–1793), son of Cornelius, then purchased the lot from Janeway's estate in 1750.[3][6]

During the French and Indian War, Philip Van Horne was a colonel in the Somerset County militia. In 1759, he was appointed a judge in the Court of Common Pleas for Somerset County.[7] He was known for his great hospitality, to both sides of the war, and his house became known as Convivial Hall or Convivial Hill.[6][8] Andrew D. Mellick, Jr. in his book, The Story of an Old Farm, reports that Van Horne had "five handsome and well-bred daughters who were the much admired toasts of both armies."[9] His eldest daughter, Mary Ricketts, married Irish American Colonel Stephen Moylan on September 12, 1778.[10] American Captain Alexander Graydon (1752–1818) writes that: "His house, used as a hotel, seemed constantly full."[11] and notes that General George Washington was concerned:[12]

I wish you had brought Vanhorne off with you, for from his noted Character, there is no dependance to be placed upon his Parole.

— General George Washington

Mellick writes:[9]

at one time Washington contemplated his removal to New Brunswick. Indeed he was arrested and put on parole, but was permitted to remain at Middlebrook

At the Battle of Bound Brook, on April 13, 1777, Van Horne hosted British General Charles Cornwallis for breakfast and American Generals Benjamin Lincoln and Nathanael Greene for supper.[13]

During the second Middlebrook encampment (winter of 1778–79), Major General William Alexander, Lord Stirling used the house as his headquarters. Stirling took over command of the Middlebrook encampment on December 21, 1778, when Washington left to meet with Congress in Philadelphia, until he returned about February 5, 1779.[14] General Henry Lee, Light-Horse Harry, and other officers were also quartered here.[9]

On October 26, 1779, British Lt. Col. John Graves Simcoe led a group of the Queen's Rangers to search for and capture New Jersey Governor William Livingston or Colonel Moylan. He raided several houses in Bound Brook before arriving here, but did not find his targets. After taking prisoners at the house, he continued on to Van Veghten's Bridge.[15]

In 1934, the house was purchased by the Calco Chemical Company, later American Cyanamid. The company had previously established a large manufacturing facility on the adjoining property, starting in 1916. Starting in 1937, company executive John McMurray had the house restored, "in colonial period", to be used as corporate guest quarters. During World War II, the company noted in its April 1944 newsletter:[3]

Charm notwithstanding in the revolutionary fame of the Van Horne house, Calco workers may be proud that the restored mansion now plays a vital part in the present war by providing the necessary office space for the department responsible for the sale of sulfa-drugs not only to the drug trade but to the armed forces all over the world.

Description

The house is two stories with a gable roof. The stone foundation is from the 18th century. The house was remodeled by the Calco Chemical Company between 1937 and 1944 using a 20th-century Colonial Revival style.[3] It is on a hill north of the Old York Road and west of the Middle Brook.[6]

See also
Other houses used as headquarters during the second Middlebrook encampment (1778–79):

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Somerset County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. February 12, 2018. p. 5.
  3. Bertland, Dennis N. (March 8, 2002). "NRHP Nomination: Van Horne House". National Park Service. Cite journal requires |journal= (help) "Accompanying 36 photos, from 2001". Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. Cawley, James; Cawley, Margaret (1965). Along the Old York Road. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. pp. 5, 96. ISBN 978-0-813-50487-2. OCLC 692143813.
  5. "The Van Horne House". Heritage Trail Association, Bridgewater, NJ.
  6. Williams, Seymour (1939). Philip Van Horn House (PDF). HABS NJ-523. Historic American Buildings Survey. pp. 1–15.
  7. Bergen, James J. (1912). ""Phil's Hill", The Home of Colonel Van Horne". In Honeyman, A. Van Doren (ed.). Somerset County Historical Quarterly. 1. pp. 81–85.
  8. Fischer, David Hackett (2004). Washington's Crossing. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 166–8. ISBN 0-19-518159-X.
  9. Mellick, Andrew D., Jr. (1889). The Story of an Old Farm, or Life in New Jersey in the Eighteenth Century. Somerville, New Jersey: The Unionist-Gazette. p. 480. OCLC 2321010.
  10. Stryker, William Scudder (1903). Documents Relating to the Revolutionary History of the State of New Jersey. p. 452.
  11. Graydon, Alexander (1846). Littell, John Stockton (ed.). Memoirs of His Own Time. With Reminiscences of the Men and Events of the Revolution. Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston. p. 279.
  12. Washington, George (January 12, 1777). "From George Washington to Colonel Joseph Reed, 12 January 1777". Founders Online, National Archives.
  13. "Historical Marker Unveiled at Van Horne House". Somerset County, New Jersey. October 25, 2016.
  14. Washington, George (February 6, 1779). "General Orders, 6 February 1779". Founders Online, National Archives.
  15. Davis, T. E. (1895). "Simcoe's Raid". The Battle of Bound Brook. Washington Campground Association. pp. 18–21. OCLC 66268501.
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