The opportunity to tour Trinity Church’s cemetery in Swedesboro is among events by the library that focus on the Revolutionary War.
The township library will team with local historian and author Bennett Carlton for a free tour of the cemetery at Trinity Episcopal “Old Swedes” Church in Swedesboro on Wednesday, Aug. 20.
The cemetery is the final resting place for soldiers who served in the Revolutionary War and prominent area citizens of that era. Carlton specializes in historical and historical fiction novels. One of his books, “King of the Tories: John Hatton and the American Revolution in Swedesboro and Woolwich Township, New Jersey,” focuses on how the Colonists were divided between those who sought independence from Great Britain and loyalists who felt America should remain a colony.
Bennett is a member of the Swedesboro-Woolwich Historical Society who has also focused on American history during the Civil War. According to his profile on Amazon, he is a former history guide with Centipede Tours in Philadelphia.
The libary event is one of several that will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the start of the Revolutionary war and the role Gloucester County played in the conflict. They were made possible through a $9,500 grant from the New Jersey State Library.
“Through a year-long celebration of the American Revolution,” said Adult Service Librarian Beth DeGeorge, “the Gloucester County Library in Mullica Hill will feature a full calendar of entertaining, informative and engaging programs for all age groups in order to bring Colonial history alive and install a stronger sense of heritage and community to all Gloucester County residents.”
Tour participants will meet at the library at 6:30 p.m. While the event is free, advance registration is required on the GCLS website beginning on Monday, July 21, at 6:30 p.m. The tour has a maximum capacity of 20 people.
