Morristown National Historical Park
Washington’s headquarters and Jockey Hollow reveal two different scales of the Continental Army’s winter endurance.
Artwork inspired by Ben Shahn
Morristown was not a single campsite. Washington used the Ford Mansion as headquarters while soldiers endured the hard winter of 1779–80 at Jockey Hollow, miles away. Start at the Washington’s Headquarters Museum for the strategic story, then decide whether to drive to Jockey Hollow for the soldiers’ huts, roads, and terrain.
Ford Mansion is reached by a ranger-led tour that begins at the museum, with free same-day passes rather than advance reservations. At Jockey Hollow, the visitor center and reconstructed huts help turn a broad wooded landscape into a legible encampment. Choose one area for a short stop or allow a half day to connect both; their opening schedules and addresses are not interchangeable.
- Winter
- 1779–80
- Two areas
- Headquarters and Jockey Hollow
- Mansion entry
- Ranger-led
Quick guide
- Start at headquarters
- Collect a same-day Ford Mansion pass before exploring the museum.
- Drive the story outward
- Compare the mansion with a soldier-hut landscape at Jockey Hollow.
Know before you go
- See the command space
- Ask what decisions happened inside the Ford Mansion.
- Compare shelter
- A reconstructed hut changes the scale of the winter narrative.
- Use both addresses
- The two principal areas are a drive apart.
- Check the desk
- Mansion tours depend on available ranger staffing.
Good to know
The marker and address point to the headquarters museum, not Jockey Hollow. Do not arrive expecting to walk between them; the park is spread across separate areas.
Notice these
- Ford Mansion
- Soldiers’ huts
- Jockey Hollow