Health & Fitness
Treat Thanksgiving Weekend Guests to a Colonial Christmas
11th Annual Colonial Christmas Kicks Off With a Bang November 30
Bedminster’s Historic Jacobus Vanderveer House Invites Visitors to Celebrate Christmas Past and Present
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The Somerset Hills will be alive with the sound of cannon blasts and musket fire Saturday, November 30, when members of John Lamb’s Artillery encamp at the Jacobus Vanderveer House for the first day of the Friends of the Jacobus Vanderveer House Colonial Christmas fundraiser.
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At least a dozen men, women and children will participate in the Revolutionary War-era encampment, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., which will feature cannon firing, musket drilling, open fire cooking and colonial crafts amidst tents set up for the re-enactment.
According to Al Florio, Lamb’s Artillery Unit Commander, the visit to the Jacobus Vanderveer House is a homecoming of sorts for the artillery company, which was founded in 1959 after the original John Lamb’s Artillery, established by John Lamb in May 1775.
John Lamb’s Artillery was based at the Pluckemin Cantonment during the winter of 1778-1779 under the command of General Henry Knox, who resided at the Jacobus Vanderveer House during that time. John Lamb, a merchant and leader of the Sons of Liberty, served as the principal advisor to General Knox.
“This will be the artillery company’s first visit to the Jacobus Vanderveer House, and certainly a fitting one,” said Mr. Florio. “We haven’t been in the area since the 1970s, when our group held weekend drills in the Hills.”
All clothing and equipment used by Lambs Artillery members are authentic to the period. Lamb’s artillerymen wear uniforms of buff-faced blue wool regimental coats, buff waistcoats and breeches, and carry swords, bayonets and reproductions of the British Brown Bess or French Charleville flintlock muskets. Their cannon is modeled on the British three-pounder field piece, the bronze barrel cast from an original captured at the Battle of Saratoga.
The women portray camp followers, wives who followed their men and tended to their support in camp. They are equipped in the use of camp equipment, such as tents and cooking utensils. Some are adept with a rifle or musket and shoot along with the men.
For more information about John Lamb’s Artillery Company, visit: http://www.lambsartillery.org/
More About The Jacobus Vanderveer House 11th Annual Colonial Christmas
Bedminster’s historic Jacobus Vanderveer House & Museum opens its wreath-clad doors for the 11th annual Colonial Christmas show house and tour Saturday and Sunday, November 30 and December 1 and Thursday through Sunday, December 5-8 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily.
The fundraiser features: house tours, holiday shopping with boutique vendors and artisans, Colonial holiday decorations by The Rose and Radish Floral Design, Colonial musicians and re-enactors, Santa visits, and permanent exhibits -- The Kitchen Hearth, The Vanderveer Parlor, The Knox Bedroom, The Lumber Room, and the recently opened Prich Matthews History Center
House vendors and artisans include: Chelsea Market Designs, Rimi Studio Pottery, Secret Garden Soap, Nola Rose Jewelry, Flower Basket Ladybug and Stanton Sweets.
Admission at the door is $10 (children 12 and under, free).
A champagne tour of the home, followed by a gala reception sponsored by Investors Bank at Trump National Golf Club, will be held Friday, December 6. The gala will feature the premier of “In Quarters Comfortable and Clever: The Continental Artillery, Pluckemin, New Jersey 1778-1779,” a historically accurate animation of the Pluckemin Artillery Cantonment, the nation’s first military training academy, produced by scholars and students at Washington College.
The Jacobus Vanderveer House is located at 3055 River Road (in Bedminster’s River Road Park), Bedminster, NJ 07921. For tickets and information about Colonial Christmas and Friday’s gala, as well as a schedule of events, phone (908) 396-6053 or visit www.jvanderveerhouse.org.
Proceeds from Colonial Christmas benefit exhibit development, historical interpretations, and educational programs at the Jacobus Vanderveer House.
Schedule of Events
Saturday, November 30
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Lambs Artillery Encampment featuring presentations and canon
firing at 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The Enslows perform Colonial American Christmas Music
• 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Santa Visit
Sunday, December 1
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Santa Visit
• 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Harmonium Choral Group
Thursday, December 5
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Group Tours with “Benjamin Franklin”
Friday, December 6
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Champagne Tour for Gala Attendees
• 7:00 p.m.
Gala at Trump National Golf Club Sponsored by Investors Bank
Performance by Bernards High School Madrigals at Trump National
Golf Club
Premier of “In Quarters Comfortable and Clever: The Continental
Artillery, Pluckemin, New Jersey 1778-1779, a historically accurate
animation of the Pluckemin Cantonment, created and narrated by
students and scholars at Washington College, Chestertown, MD
Saturday, December 7
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The Enslows perform Colonial American Christmas Music
• 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m
Santa Visit
Sunday, December 8 House Tour – 10 am to 4 pm
• 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
House Tours
Holiday Shopping
Colonial Re-Enactors
• 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Santa Visit
• 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Purnell Show Choir
• 4:00 p.m.
50/50 Raffle Drawing, House Raffle Drawing
The Friends of the Jacobus Vanderveer House received an operating support grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State.
