The Jacob Morrell House, located in downtown Chatham, played a key role in the War of Independence, as American and French troops made their way south toward Yorktown, Virginia. From 27-29 August 1781, around 2,500 American soldiers set up camp in the nearby area. While Washington’s soldiers set up camp in Chatham, French general Comte de Rochambeau’s nearly 4,500 man army set up camp six miles northwest of Chatham, in Whippany.
George Washington arrived on August 27, and set up his headquarters in the home of Jacob Morrell where he stayed for three days. Washington wrote as many as seventeen letters from the Morrell House, revealing his plans to trick the British Army into believing he was preparing for an attack on New York City. Many of Washington’s own soldiers were ignorant of their true objective, whether they would launch an attack on New York City from Chatham or continue their march south toward Princeton and Trenton.
Washington’s attention was still focused on Yorktown, and in the early morning hours of 29 August, he quietly marched his army out of Chatham and south toward Philadelphia and Virginia.
Today, the Jacob Morrell House is a popular Italian restaurant, Scalini Fedeli.
