The area which came to be known as Jockey Hollow was transformed from a mix of farmland and deep forest to small city in a matter of a couple months. Take a look at some of the features of the landscape there.

Hilltop – The army preferred a terrain that allowed for a suitable setup for laying out orderly rows of huts and creating a large parade ground for gathering and drilling. Water was needed for sanitation as well as drinking, since a clean camp would help prevent epidemics of contagious diseases. By building on downhill slopes, huts were more likely to stay dry, especially during the spring thaw.

Wick Farm – The Wick family owned one of the largest farms in the Morristown area. Based on recorded “Property Inventories,” they owned: horses, cattle, oxen, hogs, sheep, geese, turkey, dung-hill fowl and bee hives. The Wicks also had corn, buckwheat, hay, oats, flax, potatoes, rye, Indian corn, wheat, cider, whiskey and metheglin (honey wine).
The Wick family had officers live in or visit their home during at least three winters during the war. Three brigades, and part of a fourth, camped on the Wick property during the Hard Winter. The farmhouse became the headquarters of Major General Arthur St. Clair, commander of the Pennsylvania brigades.

Stumps – The surrounding area had to include, as General Nathanael Greene said, a “good tract of woodland.” The size of the Main Army (those with the Commander in Chief, about 13,000 in November 1779) required the construction of over a thousand log huts for shelter. And additional wood was needed for fires, for warmth and for cooking.

Mountains – It was largely its location that brought the Continental military forces to Morristown. Washington quickly appreciated Morristown’s strategic importance. It is protected to the east and south by the Watchung Mountains and the Great Swamp. The hills of the Watchungs provided good observation of points south, and the main inland highway from the Hudson Highlands to Philadelphia ran through Morristown. So did the main highway from Newark and Elizabethtown to the hills of Morris County. From the relative protection of the village, Washington could strike at the British whether they moved north or south.

Retention – It is worth noting that winter encampments served a purpose of keeping soldiers in the army. Letting soldiers go home during the winter sometimes wasn’t practical, given the difficult travel conditions. Another concern was that the soldiers would not come back after a visit home. Even those who didn’t want to desert the cause wanted to flee the harsh winter weather and lack of supplies during the harder winter encampments.