31
Dec
1779
Martha Washington Arrives at Morristown
Morristown, NJ· month date
The Story
Martha Washington traveled from Virginia to join her husband at Morristown during the second winter encampment, as she did during most winter quarters throughout the war. Her presence at the Ford Mansion served both personal and political purposes: she provided companionship and domestic stability for Washington, and she organized social events that maintained morale among the officer corps. Martha Washington also visited sick soldiers and coordinated sewing circles among officers' wives that produced shirts and other clothing for the troops.
People Involved
Martha Washington
Arrived to join her husband at winter quarters
Joined Washington at Morristown during both winter encampments, managing the headquarters household, organizing sewing circles to produce clothing for soldiers, and hosting events to maintain officer morale.
George Washington
Commander-in-chief who received his wife at headquarters
Virginia planter and Continental Army commander-in-chief who owned and managed Mount Vernon's enslaved workforce. Absent from his estate for most of the war, he directed Lund Washington's management by correspondence and returned to find the plantation's human community shaped by eight years of wartime disruption.
Theodosia Ford
Hostess sharing the Ford Mansion with the Washingtons
Morristown widow (1741-1824) who shared her family mansion with Washington's military household during the first winter encampment while managing the Ford estate after her husband's death.
Sources for Morristown