Letter from the president

Dear Donors, Friends and Supporters,

The Board and I are sending our newsletter to you to share our pride in the programs and services we are providing you and thousands of other families, visitors, friends, neighbors and donors. It is our pledge to you, to the Princeton Battlefield State Park, and to the history and heritage of the American Revolutionary that we will stay true to our mission of preservation, protection, and promotion - - and most importantly, that we do so with your continuing involvement, participation and support. I personally appreciate this opportunity to highlight our progress in this newsletter.

► I especially want to acknowledge and wholeheartedly welcome the support of the Civil War Trust, on behalf of its Campaign 1776, to our efforts to secure the D’Ambrisi property and to save Maxwell Field.

► We spearheaded a major cooperative effort to bring the state and community together to purchase the 4.6-acre D’Ambrisi property, which is immediately behind the Colonnade. This acquisition, which was formally acknowledged at a September 16^th ceremony, extends the Park’s boundaries to Route 206.

Special appreciation goes to the New Jersey Park Service, Princeton and Mercer County officials, State Senator Kip Bateman, the Friends of Princeton Open Space, and the Civil War Trust’s Campaign 1776. The Society took a leadership role and confirmed that by working together cooperatively we can accomplish much.

► I am happy to report that Phase I of our campaign to “Save the Clarke House” has been completed. We are now awaiting the State and a new architectural firm to move on to Phase II. We’re almost half way there in raising funds for Phase II, so please consider helping us get to the next level.

► The history and heritage of the Battle of Princeton continues to be our primary goal through education and community outreach. This increased in 2015 with three day-long programs of reenactments, presentations, and demonstrations of colonial and military life, attracting well over 1,000 families and others to the Park. (One of my most enjoyable roles is being the “drill master” for kids at our events.)

We also had a presence at Princeton’s Commun-iversity Day, NJ History Fair, and the Park’s July 4^th event. Our final program of 2015 was on September 26 - - “Revolution at Princeton” and “Shakespeare in the Park” with a performance of CYMBELINE.

► I was recently asked by a friend why we are against the Institute. A good question, which I answered by saying that we aren’t AGAINST

the IAS but we are FOR the integrity and protection of critical, historic land at the Battlefield. We are challenged, however, when bulldozers appear overnight - - prior to receiving final approvals by the Planning Board and DRCC.

The PBS, as you know, is strongly committed to our American history and a part of this history is the protection and preservation of land on which our United States began. Maxwell Field, the property in question, is very much a piece of land we consider hallowed ground; it was where George Washington launched his counterattack that swept the British from the field and gave his army their very first major field victory over British regulars. We sincerely hope more people will join our cause of preserving the legacy and sacrifice of American patriots on Maxwell Field by preventing the building of houses on the site.

► Our commitment to redevelop informative signage throughout the Park, more clean-up days, expanded historic educational programs, the repair of the Colonnade, heavily damaged during Sandy, and around the Gravesite Marker remains strong.

► And I would be terribly remiss if I did not publicly acknowledge, on behalf of the Board, the generous, ongoing donations and involvement of members, donors, and friends who have given to the protection of the Princeton Battlefield State Park and to its preservation and promotion. You make our efforts and annual successes possible!

Please enjoy our newsletter and learn more about the Princeton Battlefield Society. (And don’t forget to fill out and complete the form we are providing.) I encourage you to write to us and ask you to consider ways you might be able to help. Thank you from all of us.

Jerry Hurwitz, President

On November 11, 2014, with the Princeton Battlefield Monument as background, James Lighthizer, President of the Civil War Trust (CWT), announced his organization’s commit-ment to saving American Revolutionary War and War of 1812 battlefields from development and loss. Through its Campaign 1776 the CWT began its national efforts to raise funds and public support for re-claiming threatened American Revolution sites. The first preserva-tion project, in cooperation with governmental and public groups, both nationally and locally, was to secure and preserve the 4.6 historic acres known as the “D’Ambrisi Property.” Informa-tion is at www.campaign1776.org.

To strengthen its announcement and commit-ment, the CWT donated $20,000 to Princeton for on-site improvements of the D’Ambrisi property and an additional $5,000 to the PBS to undertake ground penetrating radar on the 4.6 acres.

The CWT is the largest and most effective non-profit battlefield preservation organization in the United States. It has an impressive record of saving over 40 thousand acres of Civil War battlefields since 1989. The CWT’s new commitment is warmly applauded and most welcomed. This commitment, coupled by Congress’ enactment of a law expanding financial preservation support on a matching

basis, is critical for the preservation of sites like

the Princeton Battlefield. It will provide a tremendous incentive for states and local communities to fund the acquisition of battlefields with a match from the federal government.

Phase I of the Clarke House’s rehabilitation was completed earlier this year with the stabilization of the structure, siding repair, and replacement of rotted sills. In the course of repairs the western porch (to the left in photo) was determined to be in worse shape than appeared and was removed. This was an unanticipated additional expense, but a very necessary one.

The Princeton Battlefield Society met the costs of architects’ fees for the rehabilitation in Phase I and New Jersey paid for labor and materials’ costs. Our expense was approximately $17,700.

However, oqwHScotch poet Robert Burns aptly warned, “The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men, …” Our Phase II plans went awry when we were informed that the architectural firm we employed, JMA, was moving out of the architecture business. So we are back searching for another preservation architecture company, thereby delaying the full start of Phase II. Bottomline we still need to raise the money for our Phase II commitment beyond. The cost to the PBS for this phase will be $23,000, with less than half raised to date.

Another great day and evening at the Princeton Battlefield occurred on September 26. Families and friends enjoyed a free day of colonial and Revolutionary War activities and a performance of Shakespeare’s CYMBELINE in the evening.

Activities during the day (from 10 am to 5 pm) included:
► Attendees learned about the Battle of Princeton, toured the Clarke House, talked with
authors and collectors of Revolutionary War memorabilia, and learned about the creating pens and bookmarks from historic trees.
► Artillery (43^rd Royal Artillery) and encamp-ment life demonstrations


► Colonial music, ice cream making (and tasting), musket drilling for kids, book, souvenir and toy soldier sales, and displays of historic artwork.
► There were also opportunities to meet and talk to General George Washington!

And for Shakespeare fans, the PBS sponsored an outdoor performance of CYMBELINE by the Cradle Theater Company of Manhattan. This group was founded in 2014 by Sam Kessler and other students from Princeton University.

At a formal ceremony on September 16, the 4.6-acre D’Ambrisi property was officially turned over to New Jersey to be incorporated into the Princeton Battlefield State Park. This was the first addition to the Park since 1976. The long process of negotiations involving Princeton and Mercer County officials, the State Park Service, the D’Ambrisi Family, and the Friends of Princeton Open Space was guided by PBS’s 1^st Vice President, Kip Cherry. Also involved in the sale and transfer were the Board of Freeholders, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the US Department of Interior’s American Battlefield Protection Program, and the Civil War Trust’s Campaign 1776.

It is also to be noted that the PBS received numerous donations in memory of Chris Wren, a PBS Board member. In honor of Chris’ service to the Princeton Battlefield State Park and as a fitting memorial to him and for his family, we are eager to use these donations to meet the costs of the new map in Chris’ memory.

► Behind the Colonnade is a Gravesite Marker commemorating twenty-one British and sixteen American officers and soldiers who fought and died here. A poem written by Alfred Noyes in 1916, then a visiting professor and Poet Laureate of England, is inlayed in bronze over the site. The words represent a meaningful message to honor their courage, bravery and ultimate sacrifice. (Ground penetrating radar is being used to determine if actual graves are on the new addition to the Park.) We have a restricted fund that will help us repair the memorial plate and you are asked to consider a donation.

The PBS wants to be very clear about its commitment to preserve Maxwell Field. We never wanted a fight with the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS). There is far too much that we wish and must do to preserve and enhance the Princeton Battlefield and to tell the important story of what happened here. To tell that story we are dedicated to protect and preserve what we believe is land crucial to our American history and heritage, all core areas of the battlefield not yet lost to development. Today, that is clearly Maxwell Field, the site identified in the ABPP Mapping Study of the Battle of Princeton, the very heart of George Washington’s decisive counterattack that broke the British line and won for Washington his first major victory over British regulars. To those questioning our intent we ask: “Is there some-thing wrong with this?”

In recent stages in this legal fight we succeeded in stopping the first development plan presented by the IAS by defeating its request to the Delaware & Raritan Canal Commission (DRCC) for a stream setback waiver. The IAS responded by redoing its plan and applying to the Princeton Planning Board for approval. We claimed the new plan required a full hearing, but the Planning Board rejected our claim, restricted our ability to provide witnesses, and allowed new board members to read the transcript of the first hearing rather than hearing our case. In essence our entire case was denied a full hearing by the Planning Board. Our only recourse was to appeal to the Mercer County Superior Court.

We were shocked and surprised because we knew they still did not have all necessary approvals and because they had told us they were not building until the appeals had been resolved. We went to Superior Court to get a temporary restraining order (TRO) and we won! We were successful in obtaining a TRO pending a ruling on the appeal. That appeal was heard on September 3. A strong audience of PBS and Civil War Trust supporters attended the hearing. The CWT had submitted an Amicus on our behalf, but this was not accepted by the judge. In the denial, counsel for the IAS commented that the Amicus was simply “a re-hash of history.” That’s our point: We are very much concerned that American history is being ignored in the face of plans to build faculty housing.

preservationists committed to the protection of the Princeton Battlefield. Many have provided major funds and challenged us to raise matching donations. We did on six occasions, and warmly thank the challenge donors and those who responded. One generous donation in particular had the following note attached from an employee and board member of Whole Earth Center in Princeton: “To our dedicated friends at the Princeton Battlefield Society. Please find the enclosed donation. Keep up the good and noble fight, and may you feel the strength of all that stand behind you!” Thank you, Whole Earth Center. Yes, we definitely feel the strength you mention.

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approved by the IRS as a 501(c)(3).

EIN 23-7087307

Clip and Mail

Please accept the enclosed donation of $_____ to support the Princeton Battlefield Society’s programs, projects and services as indicated:

□ Clarke House Fund

□ Colonnade & Gravesite Restoration

□ Park Signage

□ Legal Defense Fund

□ Educational/Community Programs