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Note: Susan Godlewski (sg245@hotmail.com): Henry Wick gave Patriotic Service to the Colonial troops camped in Jockey Hollow near Morristown, NJ during the winter of 1779-1780. He furnished food and supplies and rendered aid to the troops.
In the Will of his father, John Wick, (dated 1718) Henry inherited his father's "now dwelling house, and barn, and home lot. Also, my right in lot No. 1 and 14, adjoining to my said home lot, And all my lot of land lying south east of my now dwelling house bounded east by Abraham Howell, Jr., and on the other wides by highways. And all my right in Sagg Swamp, lying with Abraham Howell and Theophilus Howell. And all my right at Montauk, and all my right of meadow in Red Creek neck and 3//4 of a £50 right of Commonage throughout the bounds of Southampton.
Also, after the youngest sibling would be fourteen years of age, and be "bound out to learn some trade," all the personal property that may be found is to be divided between Henry and his mother, and other siblings. The above appears on pgs. 191-93 of "Abstracts of Wills--Liber 9"; source unknown, given to me in the McVea Family Records.
THE WICK FARM IN HISTORY
The Wick farm is located in what is called Jockey Hollow, about four miles southwest of Morristown, New Jersey, near the intersection of Tempe Wick Road and Jockey Hollow Road. The farm became an important historical monument in the famous 1779-80 encampment of General George Washington and his troops there.
The Wicks had hosted prominent officers before. The army had wintered there in 1776-1777 following Washington's Christmas Delaware crossing and victories at Trenton and Princeton. Although far fewer troops accompanied Washington in 1776, their presence among the citizenry was devastating. One fourth of the population died from small pox or dysentery. During that winter, the Wicks hosted Captain Joseph Bloomfield.
Later, in 1779-1780, Mr. Wick opened his house as quarters for Maj. Gen. Arthur St. Clair, then commander of the Pennsylvania Line encamped in Jockey Hollow on his, and a couple of adjacent, farms. Portions of the Continental Army used the Hollow for a total of 24 months during the American Revolution.
Nine hundred acres of Jockey Hollow timber, notched together and chinked with clay, made the army's winter quarters, 12 soldiers in each of 1,000, 14' x 16' huts, where the men made do with a trickle of rations and beds of loose straw. A thousand soldiers deserted; but most remained. There was no great turning point reached here. A battle was waged here, however, to keep the Continental Army intact. If it had been lost, then Yorktown the battle where the Continental Army gained final advantage in the War would have a far different meaning in our lives.
By Spring of 1780, due to the encampment in Jockey Hollow, made Morristown one of the ten largest cities in the Colonies. Even so, it was only one element of the small village's eight year involvement in the conflict. There was a nonending military quest there for munitions and supplies, a constant procession of refugees, and a host of Loyalist trials, jailings, and hangings. This produced a war-weary atmosphere in the area, and it can have been nothing short of depressing.
Henry Wick was Captain of a company of Morris County cavalry that did good service in the war, and engaged in at least one sharp fight, though he was frequently detailed as guard for Gov. Livingston and the Privy Council.
The best explanation to get a sense of what was going on in Jockey Hollow is presented in a website called New Jersey Skylands. The webpage is called The Great Story. Below is an excerpt from that website.
To understand why its a great story, walk to the top of the hill in Jockey Hollow that held 200 soldier huts for the Pennsylvania Brigade. Walk up one day in January and imagine staying there until it gets warm enough sometime in April to take off your down jacket. Imagine standing there without your shoes on, without even one of the huts on top of the hill for retreat from the incessant cold. Try to conceive of something important enough to keep you on that hill for the rest of the winter. When you get home, imagine what it would be like if 13,000 ragged, homeless men with guns marched into your town. How would you feel if someone in your family caught small pox from the men and died? Would you have sympathy for the soldiers as they foraged in your barnyard, or for the General who headquartered on the other side of the village at Ford's Mansion?
Ask most people what happened in Morristown during the American Revolution and they'll undoubtedly mention Washington's Headquarters. But the untold stories of thousands of Continental soldiers and a few hundred townspeople magnify the American legend at Morristown. Perhaps it is because there were no great battles at Morristown that historical texts often gloss over the events here and focus on more catastrophic circumstances such as those at Valley Forge. The Jockey Hollow encampment of 1779-1780 endured a winter more severe, including seven blizzards in December alone, than that at Valley Forge, where thousands died. Yet only about a hundred soldiers at Morristown did not see the spring of 1780.
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