Saving Historic Moorestown and the Historical Society of Moorestown will host the second annual 1-mile Hessian Retreat Fun Run on Saturday, Sept. 19, and it’s just another special way to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary.
“This event recreates and reimagines a real day in Moorestown’s history, where Hessian soldiers and British soldiers were retreating through Moorestown on their way to Perth Amboy, (New Jersey), and they ransacked the town,” said Julie Maravich, president of Saving Historic Moorestown.
The historically themed reverse scavenger hunt will be a run, walk or stroll, and will attempt to right the wrongs that occurred during the Revolutionary War when 7,000 Hessian soldiers ransacked Moorestown. Participants will receive a knapsack containing vegetables, a rubber chicken and other items that must be returned to the Witness Houses that they were stolen from centuries ago. Currently Moorestown has 19 Witness Houses still standing, structures that stood witness to the American Revolution and earlier colonial events. Built before or during the Revolutionary War, these houses represent the earliest architectural heritage of Moorestown and hold stories of the families who lived through pivotal moments in American history.
On June 20, 1778, Hessian soldiers, under the command of Gen. Lt. Wilhelm von Knyphausen, marched up Kings Highway through Moorestown on their way to Monmouth. When they passed through Moorestown, they stole horses, food, firewood and money, according to the historical society. They slept in homes and fields in town. Knyphausen and his officers stayed at the Smith Cadbury Mansion – now the historical society’s headquarters – where they cooked and ate Smith’s chickens in the parlor. For those who may not be familiar with the home’s history, in 1766, the 160-acre property was purchased by Samuel Smith of Burlington, who was a state provincial assemblyman, treasurer of the Province of West Jersey and the author of the first comprehensive history of New Jersey. Although Smith never lived in the house, the farm was inherited in 1775 by his son, Richard, who lived there for all his adult life. On that evening of June 20 when Knyphausen stayed at the Smith farm, a farmer named Joseph Roberts walked from his farm on Old Fellowship Road (now Lenola Road) and demanded his horses back. Knyphausen issued two passes, one in English and one in German.
The 1-mile Hessian Retreat Fun Run will start at 7:30 a.m. at the Perkins Center for the Arts and will end at the rear of Moorestown Friends School off of Prospect Avenue. The last drop location will be at Smith-Cadbury Mansion, where runners will drop their rubber chicken and then head to the finish line. The finish line celebration will include music, snacks and water. Prizes will be awarded for best costume, and token awards will be given for top finishers. Tickets are $35 per person, and registration includes a prefilled knapsack, rubber chicken and a T-shirt while supplies last. Registration closes on Wednesday, Sept. 16. The event will be held rain or shine and costumes are encouraged. For more information or to register, visit the Events tab on www.savinghistoricmoorestown.org.
Saving Historic Moorestown and the Historical Society of Moorestown’s reverse scavenger hunt for residents will attempt to right the wrongs that occurred during the Revolutionary War when 7,000 Hessian soldiers ransacked Moorestown.
