American Revolution expert and historian Joel Farkas will discuss the historic event – a turning point in the war – on Jan. 15.
The township library will host local historian Joel Farkas at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 15, to discuss one of the most iconic moments of the Revolutionary War, George Washington’s Crossing of the Delaware.
The moment took place across the nights of Christmas and Dec. 26, 1776 from a part of eastern Pennsylvania at an area now known as Washington Crossing into Central New Jersey. The goal of the crossing was to take the British-backed Hessian forces by surprise at the Battle of Trenton on the 26th.
The Continental Army successfully captured two-thirds of the enemy with minimal losses, a much-needed morale boost for America after several defeats in New York. The crossing, its aftermath and its importance will be covered in Farkas’ lecture.
The historian is a tour guide and docent of Washington Headquarters Museum in Morristown. Its building was the first president’s military headquarters from Dec. 1779 to the following June, according to the museum’s website.
“My goal is to motivate you to learn more about the founding of our country,” Farkas said of his talk. “The extraordinary people – and the sacrifices they made – that resulted in the country we live in today.”
Farkas has discussed a variety of topics related to the American Revolution, including the role of women, the Declaration of Independence, art depicting the period and the aftermath of both the Americans’ uprising and the war.
“I used to read a lot of fiction,” Farkas acknowledged. “Mostly mysteries. I don’t anymore. The American Revolution is better than any fiction ever written. You’ve got everything that you could ever hope for in a novel: extraordinary people, fabulous accomplishments and devastating failures, murder, deceit, betrayal, love, romance, spies, and best of all, a David and Goliath story that actually happened.
“What could be better than that?”
The library lecture is made possible through the New Jersey State Library’s REV250 grant. Advance registration is required at the GCLS website.
