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Harrington Park, New Jersey Revolutionary War Sites
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REVOLUTIONARY WAR SITES IN HARRINGTON PARK, NEW JERSEY

Revolutionary War New Jersey
BLANCH-HARING HOUSE
Blanch-Haring House
Harrington Park, New Jersey

Blanch-Haring House
Lafayette Rd. and Hackensack Ave.
Map / Directions to Blanch-Haring House
Map / Directions to all Harrington Park Revolutionary War Sites

This house is a private residence.
Please respect the privacy and property of the owners.

This was the home of Isaac Blanch, who was captured in a British raid in early 1777 and spent months in prison in British-occupied New York City. He was released in January 1778 as part of a prisoner exchange.  (One of the prisoners exchanged by the Americans on their side of the deal was John Paulison, who lived eleven miles away in what is now Ridgefield Park.) [1]

After being released by the British, Blanch remained committed to the cause of Independence, and he served as a representative of Bergen County in the New Jersey State Assembly from 1779 - 1783. [2]

The historic sign in front of the house explains that this was the "Homestead of Isaac Blanch from about 1758 and site of his grist mill, both inherited in 1767 from his father, Richard Blanch, a native of England." [3] The frame wing (the part of the house on the right in the above photo) was built in 1967 to replace an earlier wing which was built in the 1800's.


Revolutionary War New Jersey
WORTENDYKE HOMESITE
Wortendyke Homesite

Wortendyke Homesite
Schraalenburgh Rd. and Harriot Ave.
Map / Directions to the Wortendyke Homesite
Map / Directions to all Harrington Park Revolutionary War Sites

This house is a private residence.
Please respect the privacy and property of the owners.

The historic sign in front of the house reads:
"Frederick Wortendyke owned this land in 1723. It was once part of a large grant called Tappan Patent. His son Jacob, who owned the homestead during the Revolutionary War, was taken captive in one of many British raids made in the area. Later owners included members of the Blauvelt, Demarest and Herring families. The house, rebuilt over the years, is now a combination of eighteenth and nineteenth century architecture." [4]

Jacob Wortendyke was captured in the same 1777 raid as David Blanch, and released as part of the same prisoner exchange. His property was later plundered and damaged in another British raid in September 1779. [5]


Revolutionary War New Jersey
OLD BURYING GROUND
Old Burying Ground
Old Burying Ground

Revolutionary War Sites in Harrington Park
Revolutionary War Sites in Harrington Park

Old Burying Ground
Tappan Rd. and Arcadia Ct.
Map / Directions to the Old Burying Grounds
Map / Directions to all Harrington Park Revolutionary War Sites

The Old Burying Ground contains the graves of four known Revolutionary War veterans: [6]

Abraham Blauvelt
April 24, 1726 - Sep. 5, 1812


Frederick (Fredericus) Blauvelt
Sept. 16, 1764 - Nov. 22. 1828

Harmen Blauvelt
May 9, 1761 - Dec. 16, 1852

John (Jan) Blauvelt
May 20, 1759 - Nov. 21, 1812

Revolutionary War New Jersey

Source Notes:

1. ^ Adrian C. Leiby, Revolutionary War in the Hackensack Valley, The Jersey Dutch and the Neutral Ground, 1775 - 1783 (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press) Pages 121 and 124

Minutes of the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Jersey City: John H. Lyon, 1872) Pages 147, 159, 161, 168 and 203
Available to be read at the Internet Archive here
▸ Note that Blanch's name is sometimes spelled "Blank" in these documents. Inconsistent spellings of surnames are not uncommon when reading documents from the time period.

▸▸▸To learn about the terrible conditions in the prisons used by the British in New York City during the war, see the book:
Edwin G. Burrows, Forgotten Patriots, The Untold Story of American Prisoners During the Revolutionary War (New York: Basic Books, 2008)

2. ^ Thomas F. Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald's Legislative Manual, State of New Jersey, Volume 142 (Trenton: Thomas F. Fitzgerald, by Authority of the Legislature, 1918) Page 171         Available to be read at Google Books here

3. ^ Quote from the Bergen County Historical Society sign in front of the house.
Information about the 1967 wing was drawn from the Bergen County Stone House Survey - Individual Structure Survey Form for the Blanch-Haring House
Available as a PDF here.

4. ^ Bergen County Historical Society sign

5. ^ Adrian C. Leiby, Revolutionary War in the Hackensack Valley, The Jersey Dutch and the Neutral Ground, 1775 - 1783 (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press) Pages 121, 124, and 166

• Minutes of the Council of Safety of the State of New Jersey (Jersey City: John H. Lyon, 1872) Pages 147, 159, 161, 168 and 203
Available to be read at the Internet Archive here
▸ Note that Wortendyke's name is spelled "Wortendyck," "Warthandicke," and "Vertondyck" in these documents. Inconsistent spellings of surnames are not uncommon when reading documents from the time period.

6. ^ Harrington Park Historical Society Brochure, available at the Old Burying Ground,
and from gravestones in the cemetery