Revolutionary Campaign
OUR PLAN IS REVOLUTIONARY
In July 1778, General George Washington’s headquarters was at Ross Hall on River Road in Piscataway, New Jersey. The main army of the United States, 11,000 patriots, was camped on the banks of the Raritan River. Fresh from the success at the Battle of Monmouth, it was here that George Washington ordered the first national expression of July 4th as Independence Day - a Feu de Joie (Fire of Joy).
Washington also held a ball at Ross Hall with military dignitaries Nathanael Greene, Alexander Hamilton, Marquis de Lafayette, Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben and William Alexander, Lord Stirling.
It was at this place and time in Piscataway, that our nation’s “Independence Day” tradition began.
(READ MORE: The Week that Shaped America - From Monmouth Battlefield to Raritan Landing)
While the 1740-built Ross Hall was demolished in 1960, this parlor wall from Washington’s July 4th ball has been preserved by Piscataway Township. After it is refurbished, it will be displayed in a planned annex room at the Museum.
Thank you for contributing to this endeavor to save the Ross Hall Wall, build a permanent and reverent site for its display and at last tell this remarkable story, held secret for far too long.