History Hidden in Valley Forge

Ten miles of roads lead visitors on a trip through history, back to the time when America was fighting for independence. The six months Washington's troops spent here are synonymous with sacrifice, suffering and ultimate triumph.

by Laurie Williams Sowby

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. -- The serenity of rolling hills, thick woods and small rock walls greets visitors to Valley Forge, whose idyllic appearance belies the harsh winter that history remembers.

Ten miles of roads lead through this National Historical Park less than a half-hour's drive from Philadelphia, another key player in America's fight for independence. And while park literature and museum exhibits acknowledge that the story of the six months General Washington's troops spent here has taken on mythic proportions, Valley Forge is justifiably synonymous with sacrifice, suffering and ultimate triumph.

1. Winter quarters: Gen. Washington had his headquarters in the stone-faced home of Isaac Potts during the six months his troops wintered at Valley Forge. The home is open to visitors to the National Historic Park. (Photo by Laurie Williams Sowby)

It remains an important stop on the historical highway, though its picnic areas and bicycle and running trails also make it a popular recreation spot.

It's especially eye-pleasing when the trees are decked in autumn colors and a light mist makes the scenes surreal, as we found it. But a few restored log huts or a row of cannons jolted us back into reality.

Washington camped here with his 12,000 beleaguered, ill-equipped troops from December 1777 until June 1778. The already meager supplies of food and clothing were never replaced, and disease ran rampant that winter.

2. Meeting room: Washington and other leaders met in this room on the main floor of his headquarters to plan military strategy. (Photo by Laurie Williams Sowby)

The British were occupying Philadelphia at the time Washington's troops marched into the area where the Schuylkill River to the north and the high ground of Mount Misery and Mount Joy made it easy to defend.

Critical shortages could not be offset by the huts the men built for shelter -- huts where typhus, typhoid, dysentery and pneumonia reigned. As many as 2,000 men died that winter.

With the coming of Baron Friedrich von Steuben in the spring came more coordinated military training along with renewed confidence that enabled the men to march out of Valley Forge in June as a well-trained, disciplined unit, ready to carry on the War for Independence.

 First stop on a visitor's itinerary should be the visitors center, where some of the soldiers' weapons, everyday living paraphernalia and clothing are on display, along with the tent that served as General Washington's field headquarters. Behind the center, in a separate building, see the audio-visual presentation that puts the place in historical context.

Then start the drive. (From May to September, bus tours with taped narration are available for a fee.) Stop to inspect the wooden bunks in the huts, the cannons at Artillery Park, the huge Memorial Arch, and the defense lines that overlook small valleys. Markers point out where various brigades were stationed.

In the summertime, costumed volunteers present a "living history" museum as they demonstrate skills and tasks on the green around the huts.

3. Home: 12,000 soldiers in the Continental Army built wooden huts in which to wait out the harsh winter of 1777-78 at Valley Forge, Pa. Visitors today may go inside some of the restored huts. In summertime, costumed soldiers provide information and demonstrations in a "living history" exhibit. (Photo by Laurie Williams Sowby)

Washington's Headquarters -- at the stone-faced home of Isaac Potts -- is the only place in the park that requires admission. The $3 fee admits visitors inside the home, where Washington and his men mapped out strategies in the first room and he slept upstairs.  The house is on Valley Creek. The huts of the Commander in Chief's guards stand nearby.

The Washington Memorial Chapel, an Episcopal church located on private property within the park, has beautiful stained-glass windows depicting events in the founding of the United States. Its tall carillon's cast bronze bells can be heard throughout the valley on Sunday mornings.

4. Monumental: The National Memorial Arch on a hilltop at Valley Forge commemorates the "patience and fidelity" of the soldiers who wintered here 224 years ago. (Photo by Laurie Williams Sowby)

Next door is the interesting Museum of the Valley Forge Historical Society, filled with memorabilia and art -- at a mere $1.50 admission for adults and 50 cents for kids.

For more information, write to: Superintendent, Valley Forge National Historical Park, Valley Forge, PA 19481, or log onto www.nps.gov/vafo.

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