Washington Crossing, on either the Pennsylvania or New Jersey sides is one of those historical places that could be pretty boring. I mean, it’s a river. A park. A bridge. But if you take some time to learn about the significance of George Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River in 1776 it becomes a pivotal place in American history.
On December 25, 1776, Washington and his troops crossed from Pennsylvania into New Jersey in order to get a sneak attack on Hessian soldiers (hired guns for the British) at Trenton. The icy river was challenging and it took 10 hours to get all the troops, horses and cannons across the river. Washington, hoping for a night attack, could’ve turned back, but fearing his men would revolt if forced to go back over the river they just crossed, they pressed on, starting the march to Trenton at 3am.
The bridge is in the spot where Washington crossed the river in 1776.
The troops surprised the Hessian troops and had a victory – the first American victory in some time. Several other victories followed and turned the tide for American forces. Some historians say that Washington’s crossing of the Delaware that Christmas night and the resulting victory at Trenton is the event that kept the Revolution from being lost.
Replicas of the boats that were used by Washington & his men.
If the Revolution had been lost, we might still be citizens of Great Britain, without the rights and freedoms we enjoy as the United States of America.
That history makes the river, the parks and the bridge seem so much more significant. George Washington was right there. George Washington! There are some things to keep in mind to get the most out of your visit to Washington Crossing though.
- The New Jersey Washington Crossing State Park has one of those museums – old stuff crammed into glass cases with tiny cards telling you what it is. Somewhat cool to see actual Revolutionary War stuff, but, only for a few minutes. The New Jersey side has a new movie depicting Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River and events surrounding it though, which I found very interesting.
- The Pennsylvania Washington Crossing Park has a better feel to it – a small bit of the town is recreated as it would’ve looking during Revolutionary War times. You can see the replica boats that the town uses to cross the Delaware on Christmas night each year. And if you collect postcards, patches T-shirts or whatever from the places you visit, the PA side actually has a gift shop.
- Both sides are worth visiting, but if you can only do one, read up on some of the history first, and then go to the PA side – especially if you have kids. You can easily see both sides in one or two hours though.
- There is a bridge that spans the river between the two parks. If you are driving an RV, do not, under any circumstances, try and drive across that bridge. I took our pickup truck across and when I met another pickup in the middle there was not even 5 inches between our trucks. A pickup can do it (if it doesn’t have dual wheels) but when they say 6 foot wide lanes, they mean it. Fold the mirrors in and hope you only meet up with compact cars coming from the other direction! There are other, much wider, easier bridges you can cross within 10 or 15 miles in either direction.
A view of the crossing site from the New Jersey side. Again, with the very narrow bridge.
