December 1779. Morristown, New Jersey. Thirteen thousand soldiers of the Continental Army, under command of Gen. Washington, wintered in Jockey Hollow, south of town. In the Hollow lay the farm of the family of Temperance Wick. Tempe Wick had gained fame earlier in the year for hiding her horse in her bedroom, to keep it from marauding British soldiers. The hills were clear cut of the native chestnut trees. One thousand huts were built. Each of the 14 x 16 foot huts housed 12 soldiers. Some officers' huts had windows made of mica dug from a nearby pit mine. This was the worst winter of the American Revolution. Far worse, even, than that at the winter encampment at Valley Forge. There were seven blizzards during the month of December alone. A few thousand soldiers deserted during the winter. Remarkably, only a hundred soldiers died during the winter. Gen. Washington spent the winter, in relative comfort, at the mansion of Jacob Ford in Morristown. Jacob Ford was the iron master at the forge at Mount Hope. The iron produced there was vital to the Revolution. Thirteen thousand soldiers, fighting the tyranny of the King, were unable to spend Christmas with their families during this, the worst winter of the Revolution. © By Paul (AHikingDude@aol.com) Photographs by Paul (AHikingDude@aol.com) December 2003 If you enjoyed this page, check these out: Needles Of Ice Other Side Of The Barberry Cat Grins And.......for many others, click the link for HOME. Home: Writers' Winter 2004 Index