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Day 2, Dec. 14 — Hardship plagues the Continental Army at “the Gulph”
c Orderly Book, Brigadier Gen. John Glover; 12/14/1777 from “the Gulph”; Library of Congress, Manuscript Room On December 14, 1777, the condition of the 11,000 members of the Continental Army at Gulph Mills and Rebel Hill was one of extreme hardship. The soldier’s tents were not to arrive for two more days. There was little, Continue reading
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Day 1, Dec. 13, 1777 — Washington’s Army at Rebel Hill
Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills This blog post is in honor of the Gulph Mills Encampment–the six days in December that General George Washington and the Continental Army spent in my home, Rebel Hill in Gulph Mills, Pa., starting on this day in 1777. I am commemorating that by posting a blog for each of Continue reading
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Dec. 12 — A tired Continental Army begins its delayed march in to Gulph Mills
After being interrruped on the 11th by some 3000 foraging British soldiers, General Washington and a tired, cold, and hungry Continental Army readied for another try to march into Gulph Mills. They started their day at the Swede’s Ford, at present day Norristown on the east side of the Schuylkill River and Bridgeport on the Continue reading
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The Battle of Matson’s Ford — December 11, 1777
Yes, the Battle of Matson’s Ford, December 11, 1777! I don’t recall ever being taught this while I was a student in Upper Merion School District, nor heard about this battle while I grew up in Gulph Mills, on Rebel Hill, which intersects Matson’s Ford Road, which starts where the old Matson’s Ford was located. Continue reading
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The Continental Army plans its March into Gulph Mills, 12/10/1777
We are just about to start my annual blogging about the Gulph Mills Encampment (GME) during the Revolutionary War, which occurred from December 13 to 19, 1777. I’ve been writing about the Gulph Mills Encampment since 2011, when I really discovered and started studying it, because it is a very much overlooked, yet very important Continue reading
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Threshold to Valley Forge: The Six Days of the Gulph Mills Encampment by Sheilah D. Vance
This is the first book to focus on the six crucial days of General George Washington’s Gulph Mills Encampment, the Threshold to Valley Forge, a pivotal yet often overlooked microcosm of Revolutionary War. Coming in February 2025, the book is available for pre-order now at all booksellers. Read more about the book below or Continue reading
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Day 7, Dec. 19, 1777 — Washington’s Army marches out of Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills and on to Valley Forge
On December 19, 1777, at 10 a.m., George Washington and his Continental Army marched out of Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills, past the Hanging Rock, and on to Valley Forge. As one historian wrote, “These grounds were the threshold to Valley Forge, and the story of that winter–a story of endurance, forbearance, and patriotism which Continue reading
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Day 6, Dec. 18, 1777 — George Washington’s Army celebrates the new nation’s first Thanksgiving at Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills and prepares to set up camp at Valley Forge; the French King officially recognizes the new United States
Historical marker in Gulph Mills recognizing it as the site of the nation’s First Thanksgiving. On December 18, 1777, General George Washington’s army celebrated the first national Thanksgiving in Gulph Mills and on Rebel Hill. The celebration caused a one day delay in the army’s march to Valley Forge, which General Washington had decided a Continue reading
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Day 5, Dec. 17, 1777 — Gen. Washington issues inspirational orders announcing the move to Valley Forge and prepares for nation’s first Thanksgiving celebration on Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills
Generals George Washington, Marquis de Lafayette, and Nathaniel Green (Gilder Lehrman collection) December 17, 1777 was a momentous day on Rebel Hill and Gulph Mills. After weeks of debate, General Washington decided on Valley Forge as the site of the Continental Army’s winter quarters. As hard as it is for us to believe today, armies at Continue reading
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Day 4, Gulph Mills Encampment: 12/16/1777–Tents arrive, British Soldiers captured, and Washington’s aides-de-camp indicate winter quarters decided.
Letter from George Washington’s aide-de-camp, John Fitzgerald, to Major John Clark, Jr., 12/16/1777, on the location of winter quarters for the Continental Army. [Library of Congress, George Washington Papers] On this Day 4 of the Gulph Mills Encampment, tents finally arrived to shield the soldiers from the weather. Up to this point, they made lean-to’s Continue reading
Sheilah Vance
Musings from and events for Sheilah Vance, author of the award-winning books: Threshold to Valley Forge: The Six Days of the Gulph Mills Encampment, Becoming Valley Forge, Land Mines, Chasing the 400, and Creativity for Christians
