{{distinguish|text=[[Washington Crossing Historic Park]], a Pennsylvania state park near the same location. For other uses, see [[Washington Crossing (disambiguation)|Washington Crossing]]}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox NRHP | name = Washington Crossing State Park | nrhp_type = NHL | image = Washington Crossing NJ State Park Delaware River looking across to Pennsylvania.JPG | caption = Crossing site, from the [[New Jersey]] side, looking west to [[Pennsylvania]] across the [[Delaware River]]. | nearest_city= [[Titusville, New Jersey]] and [[Trenton, New Jersey]] | location = [[Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey|Hopewell Township]], [[Mercer County, New Jersey|Mercer County]], [[New Jersey]] | coordinates = {{Coord|format=dms|display=title,inline}} | locmapin = USA New Jersey Mercer County#USA New Jersey#USA | map_label = Washington Crossing State Park | built = | architect OR builder = | architecture = | designated_nrhp_type= January 20, 1961 | added = October 15, 1966 | area = {{convert|3575|acre}} | refnum = 66000650<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2013a|refnum=66000650}}</ref> | designated_other1_name = New Jersey Register of Historic Places | designated_other1_abbr = NJRHP | designated_other1_link = New Jersey Register of Historic Places | designated_other1_date = May 27, 1971 | designated_other1_number = 1706<ref name=NJRHP>{{cite web | title=New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Mercer County | url=https://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/Mercer.pdf | publisher=[[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]] – Historic Preservation Office | page=7 | date=December 30, 2019 }}</ref> | designated_other1_num_position = bottom | designated_other1_color = #ffc94b }} '''Washington Crossing State Park''' is a {{convert|3575|acre|km2|0|adj=on}} [[New Jersey]] state park that is part of [[Washington's Crossing]], a [[United States|U.S.]] [[National Historic Landmark]] area. It is located in the [[Washington Crossing, New Jersey|Washington Crossing]] and [[Titusville, New Jersey|Titusville]] sections of [[Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey|Hopewell Township]] in [[Mercer County, New Jersey|Mercer County]], north of [[Trenton, New Jersey|Trenton]] along the [[Delaware River]]. The park is operated and maintained by the [[New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry]]. It is supported by the Washington Crossing Park Association, a friends group that works to preserve, enhance, and advocate for the park.<ref>{{cite web |title=Washington Crossing Park Association |url=https://www.wcpa-nj.com/ |publisher=Washington Crossing Park Association}}</ref>
This park area, together with [[Washington Crossing Historic Park]] on the Pennsylvania side, comprise the Washington's Crossing National Historic Landmark, which was listed on January 20, 1961, and added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] on October 15, 1966.<ref name="nrhpnhl">{{Cite web|title=National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Washington Crossing State Park |url={{NHLS url|id=66000650}} |format=pdf|date=August 1, 1960 |author=C. E. Shedd Jr. |publisher=[[National Park Service]]}} and {{NHLS url|id=66000650|title=''Accompanying two photos, from 1960''|photos=y}}</ref><ref name="nrhpdoc">{{cite web |url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/135813634 |title=New Jersey NHL Washington's Crossing |date=August 1, 1960 |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |website=National Archives Catalog for New Jersey}} {{NationalArchivesNote}}</ref>
The park's natural area consists of {{convert|140|acre|km2}} of mixed hardwood forests and fields that offer locations for hiking, picnics, nature walks and cross-country skiing.<ref name=wcsp/> The Nature Center offers exhibits, displays, and educational programs for children, families and school groups. During warmer months, concerts and plays were once held at the [[Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre]], an outdoor theater with seating consisting of wooden benches and a stage, but this facility has been abandoned since 2017.
[[#Goat Hill Overlook|Goat Hill Overlook]], located nearby in [[West Amwell Township, New Jersey|West Amwell Township]] in [[Hunterdon County, New Jersey|Hunterdon County]], is administered by the [[New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry]] as part of Washington Crossing State Park.
==Johnson's Ferry<span id="Johnson Ferry"></span>== The park includes the site of [[George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River]] at '''Johnson's Ferry'''. This is where [[George Washington]] and a 2,400-man detachment of the [[Continental Army]] crossed the river overnight on December 25, 1776, and into the morning of December 26, 1776, to make a [[Battle of Trenton|surprise attack on Trenton]], a move that would prove to be a turning point in the [[American Revolutionary War]]. The corresponding ferry on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River was known as [[McConkey's Ferry]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rutt |first1=Walter E.|title=McKonkey Ferry House |url=https://cdn.loc.gov/master/pnp/habshaer/nj/nj0500/nj0571/data/nj0571data.pdf |publisher=[[Historic American Buildings Survey]] |date=January 25, 1937 }}</ref>
The '''Johnson Ferry House''', an 18th-century farmhouse and tavern near the Delaware River, was owned by Garret Johnson, who operated a {{convert|490|acre|km2|adj=on}} plantation and a ferry service across the Delaware.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Danilov |first1=Victor J. |title=Famous Americans: A Directory of Museums, Historic Sites, and Memorials |publisher=Scarecrow Press |date=2013 |isbn=9780810891869 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kWsrAQAAQBAJ&dq=johnson+ferry+house+garret&pg=PA206 }}</ref> It was likely used by General Washington and other officers at the time of the crossing.<ref name=wcsp>{{cite web |title=Washington Crossing State Park |url=https://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/washcros.html |publisher=[[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]]}}</ref> Several rooms are furnished with period pieces, and an 18th-century kitchen garden has been planted. On weekends, living-history demonstrations are frequently held.
==Nelson House== Built {{circa|1850}}, the '''Nelson House''', also known as the '''Alexander Nelson Tavern''', is located near the landing site on the Delaware River and is used for park history demonstrations.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Osborne |first1=Peter |title=Where Washington Once Led: A History of New Jersey's Washington Crossing State Park |date=2012 |publisher=Yardley Press |isbn=978-0-9860305-0-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=usWxNAEACAAJ |pages=59–64 |oclc=895194785}}</ref> The house includes period furnishings and old photographs of railroad and canal transportation.
==Washington Crossing Visitor Center Museum== {{Multiple image | header = | align = right | direction = | total_width = 250 | perrow = 1/1 | image1= Washington Crossing State Park visitors center museum.jpg | caption1 = Visitors center museum | image2= Plan of the Operations of General Washington, against the Kings Troops in New Jersey, from the 26th. of December, 1776, to the 3d. January, 1777.jpg | caption2 = Military map by [[William Faden]] with troop movements during the [[Ten Crucial Days]] }} The Washington Crossing Visitor Center Museum focuses on the American Revolution and the military campaign known as the "[[Ten Crucial Days]]" from December 25, 1776, through January 3, 1777.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ten Crucial Days|url=https://revolutionarynj.org/storylines/ten-crucial-days/|publisher=[[Crossroads of the American Revolution Association]]}}</ref> During this time, the George Washington and the Continental Army crossed the Delaware River, and fought at the [[Battle of Trenton]], the [[Battle of the Assunpink Creek]], and the [[Battle of Princeton]]. It features the Harry Kels Swan Collection of Revolutionary War artifacts. Over 700 military items from the American and British Armies are included in the collection.<ref name=wcsp/> The center also includes interpretive history exhibits that cover the Revolutionary War from its prelude in 1758 to the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783.
==Nature Center and Observatory== The '''Washington Crossing State Park Nature Center''' offers nature education programs are for schools, youth groups, community organizations, and visitors to the park. The center is open Wednesday through Sunday, year round.
Nearby is the '''John W. H. Simpson Observatory''', which is operated by the Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton. The observatory houses two telescopes: a 6.25-inch Hastings-Byrne refractor and a 14-inch SCT. The observatory is open for public observing led by association volunteers on Friday nights April through October from 8 to 11 pm, weather permitting.
==Goat Hill Overlook== '''Goat Hill Overlook''' is a {{convert|213|acre|km2|adj=on}} scenic preserve administered as part of nearby Washington Crossing State Park. The [[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]]'s Green Acres program purchased the Goat Hill Overlook property in 2009 for $4.5 million from Constructural Dynamics Inc. of [[Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania]]. The company acquired Goat Hill Overlook from the [[Boy Scouts of America|Boy Scouts]] in 1983 and originally intended to use the land for mining operations. That plan was later changed in favor of constructing a residential development complex at the site. In addition to views of the Delaware River, the property features a prominent rock, known as Washington Rock. According to local legend, General Washington used the views from Goat Hill Overlook to assess battle conditions during the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]]. The site also offers miles of hiking trails and contains a variety of wildlife and plant species.<ref>{{cite press release |title=DEP Preserves Scenic Acres Along the Delaware River |date=2009-10-14 |publisher=[[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection]] |url=http://www.nj.gov/dep/newsrel/2009/09_0024.htm |quote=Department of Environmental Protection Acting Commissioner Mark N. Mauriello today announced the preservation of a {{convert|213|acre|km2}} scenic property in West Amwell Township, Hunterdon County.}}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery heights=200px widths=270px mode="nolines"> File:Washington Crossing State Park, NJ Johnson Ferry House.jpg|Johnson Ferry House File:Washington Crossing State Park, NJ - Stone Barn by Johnson Ferry House.jpg|Stone barn by the Johnson Ferry House<ref>{{cite web |title=Stone Barn |url=https://www.wcpa-nj.com/stonebarn |publisher=Washington Crossing Park Association}}</ref> File:Washington Crossing State Park, NJ Nelson House.jpg|Nelson House File:Washington Crossing State Park, NJ - ferry boat by Nelson House.jpg|Ferry boat reproduction<ref>{{cite web |title=Ferry Boat Reproduction |url=https://www.wcpa-nj.com/ferry |publisher=Washington Crossing Park Association}}</ref> File:2024-10-29 15 47 52 Sign at the southwest end of the Continental Lane Trail within Washington Crossing State Park in Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey.jpg|Sign marking Continental Army route. File:Washington Crossing State Park, NJ history plaque.jpg|Monument near the crossing site </gallery>
==See also== {{Portal|National Register of Historic Places|New Jersey}} *[[List of New Jersey state parks]] *[[National Register of Historic Places listings in Mercer County, New Jersey]]
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} {{Commons category|Johnson Ferry House}} {{Commons category|Nelson House (Washington Crossing, New Jersey)|Nelson House}}
* {{Official website}} * {{HABS |survey=HABS NJ-19 |id=nj0571 |title=Johnson-McKonkey Ferry House, Washington Crossing, Mercer County, NJ |photos=3 |dwgs=8 |data=7 |cap= |supp= }} * {{cite web|title=Ferry Site |url=https://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=7327 |publisher=[[The Historical Marker Database]]}} * [http://www.buckscountyplayhouse.com/OAT/default.html Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518011337/http://www.buckscountyplayhouse.com/OAT/default.html |date=May 18, 2007 }} * [http://www.nynjtc.org/park/washington-crossing-state-park NY-NJTC: Washington Crossing State Park Trail Details and Info]
{{New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War}} {{New Jersey Historic Sites}} {{New Jersey Parks}} {{Nature centers in New Jersey}} {{NRHP in Mercer County, New Jersey}}
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[[Category:American Revolutionary War sites]] [[Category:State parks of New Jersey]] [[Category:Nature centers in New Jersey]] [[Category:New Jersey Register of Historic Places]] [[Category:American Revolutionary War museums in New Jersey]] [[Category:Museums in Mercer County, New Jersey]] [[Category:Historic house museums in New Jersey]] [[Category:Ferries of New Jersey]] [[Category:Parks in Mercer County, New Jersey]] [[Category:Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey]] [[Category:American Revolution on the National Register of Historic Places]] [[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Mercer County, New Jersey]] [[Category:Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey]] [[Category:Historic American Buildings Survey in New Jersey]] [[Category:George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River]] [[Category:National Historic Landmarks in New Jersey]]