About This Place
The reconstructed soldier huts at Jockey Hollow represent the log cabins that housed Continental Army troops during the winter encampment of 1779-1780. Built according to specifications issued by Washington in December 1779, each hut measured approximately 14 by 15 feet and housed twelve soldiers. The huts were constructed of notched logs chinked with clay, with a fireplace at one end and a single door. The reconstructions, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s and maintained by the National Park Service, allow visitors to experience the scale and conditions of the encampment. The cramped, dark interiors convey the reality of winter quarters far more effectively than any written description.
Revolutionary Significance
During the winter of 1779-1780, approximately 10,000 soldiers built over 1,000 log huts across the Jockey Hollow landscape. The huts were organized by brigade, with each regiment occupying its own row of structures. Officers were quartered in local civilian homes or in slightly larger huts at the ends of the rows. The reconstructed huts show the standard enlisted quarters, which were crowded, smoky, and cold. Soldiers slept on straw or bare ground, often sharing blankets and huddling together for warmth during what was the coldest winter recorded in the eighteenth century.
Location
Jockey Hollow Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
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Events at This Location
1777
Continental Army Arrives in MorristownGeorge Washington, Nathanael Greene, Colonel Jacob Ford Jr.
1777
First Winter Encampment at MorristownNathanael Greene, Colonel Jacob Ford Jr., Theodosia Ford
1777
Washington Establishes Headquarters at Ford MansionGeorge Washington, Theodosia Ford, Alexander Hamilton
1777
Morristown Intelligence Network OperationsGeorge Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Martha Washington
1777
Continental Army Smallpox Inoculation ProgramDr. John Cochran, George Washington, Martha Washington
1777
Construction of Fort NonsenseGeorge Washington, Martha Washington
1777
Continental Army Departs Morristown (First Encampment)George Washington, Nathanael Greene, Martha Washington
1779
Continental Army Returns to Morristown for Second EncampmentGeorge Washington, Nathanael Greene, Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben
1779
The Hard Winter: Second Encampment at MorristownNathanael Greene, Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, Temperance "Tempe" Wick
1779
Soldier Hut Construction at Jockey HollowGeorge Washington, Joseph Plumb Martin, Martha Washington
1779
Martha Washington Arrives at MorristownMartha Washington, George Washington, Theodosia Ford
1780
Supply Crisis and Starvation at Jockey HollowGeorge Washington, Nathanael Greene, Joseph Plumb Martin
1780
Great Snowstorms of January 1780Joseph Plumb Martin, Nathanael Greene
1780
Alexander Hamilton Courts Elizabeth SchuylerAlexander Hamilton, Martha Washington, George Washington
1780
Continental Currency CollapseNathanael Greene, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington
1780
Continental Army Departs Morristown (Second Encampment)George Washington, Joseph Plumb Martin, Anthony Wayne
1780
Knyphausen Raids Connecticut FarmsGeorge Washington
1780
Battle of SpringfieldGeorge Washington, Nathanael Greene
1780
Benedict Arnold's Treason DiscoveredAlexander Hamilton, George Washington, Martha Washington
1781
Pennsylvania Line MutinyAnthony Wayne, Temperance "Tempe" Wick, George Washington