NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Morristown National Historical Park New Jersey June 2018 Foundation Document MORRISTOWN 287 Museum 24 Washington Visitor Information202 Washington’s Fort Nonsense Headquarters 24 510 202 Jockey Hollow 287 Visitor Center New Jersey Brigade Area/ North Cross Estate Gardens 0 0.5 1 Kilometer 0 0.5 1 Mile Tour Road Patriots’ Path Hiking trail 287 Washington- Rochambeau National Historic Trail 202 Morristown National Historical Park Contents Mission of the National Park Service 1 Introduction 2 Part 1: Core Components 3 Brief Description of the Park 3 Park Purpose 5 Park Significance 6 Fundamental Resources and Values 7 Other Important Resources and Values 8 Interpretive Themes 9 Part 2: Dynamic Components 10 Special Mandates and Administrative Commitments 10 Special Mandates 10 Administrative Commitments 11 Assessment of Planning and Data Needs 11 Analysis of Fundamental Resources and Values 11 Analysis of Other Important Resources and Values 24 Identification of Key Issues and Associated Planning and Data Needs 29 Planning and Data Needs 30 Part 3: Contributors 34 Morristown National Historical Park 34 NPS Northeast Region 34 Other NPS Staff 34 Partners 34 Appendixes 35 Appendix A: Enabling Legislation and Legislative Acts for Morristown National Historical Park 35 Appendix B: Interpretive Theme Matrix 42 Appendix C: Inventory of Administrative Commitments 51 Appendix D: Past Park Planning and Data Collection Efforts 52 Foundation Document Morristown National Historical Park Mission of the National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The National Park Service cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout this country and the world. The NPS core values are a framework in which the National Park Service accomplishes its mission. They express the manner in which, both individually and collectively, the National Park Service pursues its mission. The NPS core values are: · Shared stewardship: We share a commitment to resource stewardship with the global preservation community. · Excellence: We strive continually to learn and improve so that we may achieve the highest ideals of public service. · Integrity: We deal honestly and fairly with the public and one another. · Tradition: We are proud of it; we learn from it; we are not bound by it. · Respect: We embrace each other’s differences so that we may enrich the well-being of everyone. The National Park Service is a bureau within the Department of the Interior. While numerous national park system units were created prior to 1916, it was not until August 25, 1916, that President Woodrow Wilson signed the National Park Service Organic Act formally establishing the National Park Service. The national park system continues to grow and comprises more than 400 park units covering more than 84 million acres in every state, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. These units include, but are not limited to, national parks, monuments, battlefields, military parks, historical parks, historic sites, lakeshores, seashores, recreation areas, scenic rivers and trails, and the White House. The variety and diversity of park units throughout the nation require a strong commitment to resource stewardship and management to ensure both the protection and enjoyment of these resources for future generations. The arrowhead was authorized as the official National Park Service emblem by the Secretary of the Interior on July 20, 1951. The sequoia tree and bison represent vegetation and wildlife, the mountains and water represent scenic and recreational values, and the arrowhead represents historical and archeological values. 1 Foundation Document Introduction Every unit of the national park system will have a foundational document to provide basic guidance for planning and management decisions—a foundation for planning and management. The core components of a foundation document include a brief description of the park as well as the park’s purpose, significance, fundamental resources and values, other important resources and values, and interpretive themes. The foundation document also includes special mandates and administrative commitments, an assessment of planning and data needs that identifies planning issues, planning products to be developed, and the associated studies and data required for park planning. Along with the core components, the assessment provides a focus for park planning activities and establishes a baseline from which planning documents are developed. A primary benefit of developing a foundation document is the opportunity to integrate and coordinate all kinds and levels of planning from a single, shared understanding of what is most important about the park. The process of developing a foundation document begins with gathering and integrating information about the park. Next, this information is refined and focused to determine what the most important attributes of the park are. The process of preparing a foundation document aids park managers, staff, and the public in identifying and clearly stating in one document the essential information that is necessary for park management to consider when determining future planning efforts, outlining key planning issues, and protecting resources and values that are integral to park purpose and identity. While not included in this document, a park atlas is also part of a foundation project. The atlas is a series of maps compiled from available geographic information system (GIS) data on natural and cultural resources, visitor use patterns, facilities, and other topics. It serves as a GIS-based support tool for planning and park operations. The atlas is published as a (hard copy) paper product and as geospatial data for use in a web mapping environment. The park atlas for Morristown National Historical Park can be accessed online at: http://insideparkatlas.nps.gov/. 2 Morristown National Historical Park Part 1: Core Components The core components of a foundation document include a brief description of the park, park purpose, significance statements, fundamental resources and values, other important resources and values, and interpretive themes. These components are core because they typically do not change over time. Core components are expected to be used in future planning and management efforts. Brief Description of the Park Morristown National Historical Park encompasses the 18th-century village of Morristown in northern New Jersey, approximately 30 miles west of New York City. The park lies on the eastern edge of the Highlands physiographic province and west of the Watchung Mountains. To the east, the land gradually slopes to the coastal plain, which leads to the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean. In 1779, the Revolutionary War was going badly for the patriot cause. Earlier that year, the Continental Army had been ingloriously rousted from New York City and hounded across New Jersey by British forces. Despite successes at Trenton and Princeton in 1776–1777, General George Washington needed to find a safe and secure winter quarters within striking distance of the main British position in New York City. Morristown was selected because it was home to many who supported the patriot cause, was surrounded by rich farmland, and lay along the only communications route between the New England colonies and patriot capital in Philadelphia and the colonies to the south that was not controlled by the British. Additionally, Morristown’s location behind the Watchung Mountains and the Great Swamp protected it from incursions by the British who were based in New York City. Morristown National Historical Park totals 1,705.69 acres and is composed of four separate areas: Washington’s Headquarters, Fort Nonsense, Jockey Hollow, and the New Jersey Brigade Area. These areas are associated with the Continental Army’s Revolutionary War encampments of 1777, 1779–1780, 1780–1781, and 1781–1782. 3 Foundation Document · The Washington’s Headquarters area totals approximately 10 acres and is just outside the center of Morristown. During the 1779–1780 winter encampment, General Washington, along with his “military family” and wife Martha, were housed in the Ford mansion, which stood on a low terrace overlooking the Whippany River. · The Fort Nonsense area totals approximately 35 acres and is on Kinney’s Hill, the tallest hill overlooking the Morristown village green and the critical transportation route. During the 1777 winter encampment, a fortified position was constructed on the crest of Kinney’s Hill because it commanded the strategic position above the town and provided panoramic views to the east that included a line of hilltops between Morristown and the Hudson River where warning fires were lit signaling when British troops moved away from their base in New York City. Fort Nonsense was maintained by the army from 1777 until the end of the war. · The Jockey Hollow area totals approximately 1,339 acres and is about 3 miles southwest of Fort Nonsense. During the 1779–1780 winter encampment, a “log hut city” that housed more than 12,000 soldiers and camp followers was constructed in the small Y-shaped valley along Primrose Creek between Sugar Loaf, Tea Hill, and Mount Kemble. This