I never really gave much thought to the place where I was born. I’ve only been there twice. The first time is when I was born, before I went home to the family home in nearby Livingston.
The second time was in 1997, when the entire family went to Jersey for our cousin’s wedding. During that trip, my brother and I took the rental car for a brief day-trip to check the place out. I was a little curious about my birthplace: Morristown, New Jersey.
While we were there, we walked around the downtown area a little bit, walked by the hospital where I was born, and also walked through a park in the center of the town. Unbeknownst to me, the Morristown National Historical Park is the site of General George Washington’s encampment from December 1779 to June 1780, and there’s a Washington museum on site.
The picture to the right is of Jonathan standing in front of the equestrian statue of General Washington. This was the first moment that I had any inkling that my birthplace is interesting on its own, and since then I’ve found out a few other neat facts about the town.
- During Washington’s encampment in Morristown, Alexander Hamilton was present. It was during this stretch of time that Hamilton met and courted his future wife, Elizabeth Schuyler.
- The Morristown Green is also the site of a statue commemorating the meeting of George Washington, the young Marquis de Lafayette, and young Alexander Hamilton. (I’m gonna have to go back some time to see this one, probably.)
- The 1780 court martial of Benedict Arnold also happened in Morristown.
- There’s an additional encampment from the revolutionary war situated on a hill which gives clear views to the North, East, and South, while being backed by mountains on the West. This encampment, created by order of General Washington in 1777, has the hilarious and awesome name of Fort Nonsense. (Note to self: I’m totally gonna steal that for my next apartment. “Hey, let’s go back to Fort Nonsense and watch movies!”)
- Peter Dinklage was born there, four years before me. He’s no Alexander Hamilton, but he’s really good at drinking and knowing things.
Does your birthplace have any interesting history?
Filed under: The U.S. Tagged: alexander hamilton, benedict arnold, birthplaces, down the wikihole, fort nonsense, george washington, hamilton, history, marquis de lafayette, morristown, new jersey, old stuff, peter dinklage, statues, the revolutionary war
