The Liberty Trail History Makers

Loyalists ambush a contingent of Patriot militia at a tavern in December of 1780, leading to a massacre

The East Jersey Old Town Village is a collection of historic structures dating the 18th century. Today, living historians walk the grounds, bringing the Revolution and the Colonial Era to life.

This battleground was the site of three British camps, attacked by Patriot troops on August 6, 1780. It was a fight primarily between countrymen.

The site of the 1780 battle of Musgrove’s Mill where a small force of Patriot militia fought and defeated a larger force of Loyalist and Provincial soldiers in a short but pivotal battle.

General Lafayette’s participation in the negotiations that led to the Treaty of Fort Stanwix is central to confirming his public identity as a friend of Native Americans. Lafayette arrived at Fort...

This Revolutionary War landmark withstood fierce fighting during the Battle of Springfield. A British cannonball struck the home — and the scar remains visible today. Inside, the house has been restored and now serves as a museum filled with artifacts, documents, and stories that bring the 1780 battle to life.

The Battle of Sullivan’s Island, fought near the site of today’s Fort Moultrie in June 1776, was the first significant Patriot victory of the Revolutionary War.

Also known as the Battle of Fort Mercer, Hessian forces under Colonel Von Donop unsuccessfully stormed this fort on the 22 of October, 1777. Halted by combined arms of infantry and ships on the Delaware River, the Hessians suffered significant losses.

Major John Buttrick, whose name is now the sake of this homestead, was a fourth generation American whose great-grandfather, William Buttrick, helped establish Concord in 1635. During and after the war, John Buttrick held positions in the military and upheld civic posts during the early days of the American Republic.

At dawn on April 19, 1775, an unknown shot shattered the silence in Lexington. British Redcoats and colonial militia clashed, leaving blood on the field. In Concord, the patriots struck back, and as the British retreated, gunfire hounded them to Boston, thus sparking the American Revolution

Constructed in the early 1740s, this home acted as the headquarters of Baron Von Steuben during the Continental Army's cantonment in 1779. Today, it stands as one of the few remaining Dutch structures in central New Jersey.

Following the Revolutionary War, Lafayette accepted an invitation from George Washington and returned to America. The Marquis de Lafayette departed France in mid-June 1784 and arrived in New York City...