Brand New Illustrated Booklet

The early days of Mercer County, NJ, and its various communities -- Bernardsville, Columbia, East Windsor, Ewing, Hamilton, Hightstown, Hopewell (Pennington), Lamberton, Lawrence (Maidenhead), Nottingham, Princeton, Titusville, Trenton, West Windsor, and Woodsville  -- are recalled through a mixture of colorful tales and factual data in this NEW 91 Page Booklet reprinted from two hard to find books: the 1847 edition of John Warner Barber and Henry Howe's Historical Collections of the State of New Jersey and New Jersey, a Guide to Its Present and Past, a WPA project published in 1939. The spiral-bound booklet is printed on 60# paper, with the fine print enlarged for easier reading. Clear vinyl has been added to protect the front cover.

The Howe/Barber history covers the development of this area until about 1844, while excerpts from the WPA book, give a nostalgic glympse from a 1939 vantage point, including interesting historical notes, especially as they relate to sightseeing possibilities.

Among the many and varied topics in the booklet are:
Early settlers; a physical description of the county; History of Hightstown Baptist Church and other Churches; Early Magistrates and Court History; the Jonathan Stout family of Hopewell, descendants of Penelope Vanprincis Stout, who survived a brutal attack by Indians and lived to be 110; Schools, including the College of New Jersey at Princeton,  with an extract from the 1765 code of conduct; John Hart and Richard Stockton, signers of the Declaration of Independence; Bios of Col. Joab Houghton, Wilson P. Hunt, hero of Washington Irving's "Astoria" and Aaron Burr; Elias Phillips and Mrs. Jacob Keen's Revolutionary War adventures; Havoc Committed by British Troups;  "King George II" shot and replaced by George Washington; Death of General Mercer while Surrendering; Bravery of Washington in Rallying his Troops at the Battle of Princeton; Commodore William Bainbridge, commander of the USS Constitution; Graveyard Inscriptions; the Flood at Trinton that created the Island at Morrisville; Description of the State Prison; Various Accounts of the Battle of Trenton, including Washington's; the Battle of Assunpink; Washington's Welcome at Trenton en route to his Inauguration; Special Sections on Princeton and Trenton with Maps of each; a Map of the area;  and many other interesting bits of history and trivia.  

The booklet contains delightful hand-drawn sketches by Barber and Howe depicting Hightstown, Pennington Seminary, the College of New Jersey, Princeton; Plan of the Battle of Princeton; Plan of the Battle of Trenton; the city of Trenton (full page); the Bridge across the Delaware at Trenton; County Buildings in South Trenton; the State Prison; and "The Cottages," a residential area of Trenton.

Wouldn't this make a unique gift?

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