Gen. George Washington recently trotted to Percheron Park on Main Street with his war horse Nelson to kick off Moorestown’s semi-quincentennial celebrations last month.
Resident Stella Hearn, who moved to the township with her family in 1953 and currently lives in the house where she grew up, attended the event simply to see Washington.
“It’s just a cool thing that they’re doing,” she said of the Historical Society of Moorestown and Moorestown250, the organizers behind Washington’s visit. “I always liked history and we (she and her late husband) always took our youngest son all over the country…
“If you look at the history of (my) house, my husband’s family lived in it in the 1940s, his grandmother and his aunts and his uncles and his dad … So, it was meant to be.”
Resident Austin Hoover, who’s lived in town for 20 years, loves how friendly everyone is in the community. He enjoys seeing people at events like Washington’s visit, as well as local places in town. Hoover attended the Percheron Park visit and was excited to meet new neighbors.
“Whatever happens, I’ll always have a good time,” he noted. “This is Moorestown. It’s just so fun to see everyone having a good time and I just enjoy how everything is so close by. You can get pizza right nearby, and you don’t even have to walk too far.
“It’s very beautiful weather all the time and it’s just very nice.”
Historical Society of Moorestown trustee Josh Bernstein attended the Washington event as Col. Israel Shreve, who was a colonel in the Second New Jersey Regiment of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Born of Quaker roots and connected to Moorestown’s Thomas French house, Shreve fought alongside Washington in many of the war’s battles.
His son Henry Shreve, according to the historical society, became a steamboat pioneer who cleared the Red River and opened the American frontier; Shreveport, Louisiana is named in his honor.
Bernstein has been a historian for a long time, and when he joined the historical society, it was a natural fit.
“People think that they need to go to Philadelphia or a big city to celebrate, but we’re having a lot of local events right here in Burlington County, and Moorestown plays such a pivotal role in the Revolutionary War,” he explained. “This is the town that we live in and it’s so important for people to have an identity of where they are …
“It’s just so interesting to be able to uncover things and have people come through the Smith-Cadbury Mansion (site of the historical society) and identify the exhibits,” Bernstein added. ” … To be able to learn about these things, to see what happened and have all these people gather here (at Percheron Park) to see this, it’s really a lot of fun.”
Following the gathering at Percheron Park, Washington, his horse and residents traveled down Main Street to Van Meter Hall for Cocktails and Carrots, a fundraiser for the historical society. John Koopman III has portrayed Washington at national and state parks and other historic sites along the East Coast for more than 20 years, and also appeared as Washington in more than 20 documentaries.
Originally, a friend of Koopman’s suggested that he take the role because of how much he looks like the first president. When he started, he couldn’t afford the uniform, but with an inheritance from his late aunt, Koopman could purchase the uniform and the horse tack (short for tackle, the equipment or accessories used to ride and manage horses).
Portraying Washington is a nice remembrance of his aunt, he opined, and the more he studies Washington, the more the war hero amazes him.
“I think it’s really good and all very exciting, especially for children, because I think in school either they’re reading something out of a book or they’re looking at a computer screen, so it’s not very exciting,” he offered. “But if they can go to an event like this, they can experience the sights, the sounds, the smells and sometimes even the taste of the food from the 18th century,” Koopman added of the upcoming 250th celebrations.
“It’s something that can engage their senses and will stick with them longer than something that they read in a history book.”
When Koopman portrays Washington his horse Bear portrays Nelson. Bear is a battle-hardened, 15 year old chestnut horse who has also participated in cavalry charges with his owner. Nelson, Washington’s favorite horse, was a chestnut charger who carried the general safely throughout the Revolutionary War.
Thomas Nelson gave the horse to Washington after hearing that the general was having trouble replacing his former mount, so Washington honored Nelson by naming the horse after him. Nelson was believed to have been 15 years old when he was given to Washington, but he lived to the age of 27 in Mount Vernon, according to the Horse Network.
Many experts believe that Bear – who traveled six-and-a-half hours from Connecticut – may be a Percheron, Koopman said, just like Diligence at Percheron Park.
“We have what’s called a very strong bond, and so he trusts me and he does things for me,” Koopman observed of Bear. “He’s a gentle giant, and people sometimes are afraid of him because he’s so large, but he’s fascinated by children …
“He’s 17-hands (5 feet, 8 inches tall) and 1,652 pounds, but he’s a good age, because (horses) can live to be 40.”
George Washington portrayer John Koopman III and Bear paid a visit to Percheron Park to see Diligence on May 15.
John Koopman III has portrayed Washington at national and state parks and other historic sites along the East Coast for more than 20 years.
