PA, USA
Construction of Soldier Huts
December 20, 1777
Washington issued detailed specifications for the log huts that would house the army through the winter: fourteen feet by sixteen feet, six and a half feet high at the eaves, with a fireplace at one end and a door at the other. Twelve men would share each hut. The army built roughly one thousand of these structures over the following weeks.
The construction effort was itself a test of the army's cohesion. Men who lacked adequate clothing and food had to fell trees, haul logs, and build in freezing conditions. Washington offered a twelve-dollar prize for the best-built hut in each regiment, incentivizing quality. The resulting camp, though crude, provided shelter that tents could not and became the physical framework for the community that would emerge over the winter.
People Involved
Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army who kept the army together through the Valley Forge winter. His decision to encamp at Valley Forge was strategic — it positioned the army to protect the countryside while monitoring British-held Philadelphia.
Joined her husband at Valley Forge in February 1778 and organized sewing circles among officers' wives to mend clothing and bandages. Her presence in camp through the worst of the winter demonstrated solidarity with the suffering troops.