New Jersey Taverns of the Revolutionary War

A fun community-driven Mr. Local History post where we need history sleuths who’ve read all those old documents and maps
to help build the largest list of New Jersey Revolutionary War-era taverns.

The road was long and worn beneath their feet as Continental soldiers moved steadily through New Jersey. They are not marching unquestioningly. A few miles ahead, at a known crossroads, there is a tavern. Not just a place for food or drink, but a fixed point in the landscape where officers can gather, messages can be exchanged, and a fire might still be burning. For men on the march, it is the difference between pushing forward and stopping. The Mr. Local History research team decided it was time to map where in New Jersey these iconic Revolutionary War tavern stops were located as the Continental Army moved across the State.

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A day’s march was not measured in miles alone, but in where it could end. Ten to fifteen miles often carried troops from one tavern to the next, forming a chain across what we now call the “cockpit of the American Revolution.” Along routes like the roads later used by Washington and Rochambeau, these taverns became the quiet infrastructure of the war. Today, many are gone, but if you follow the roads carefully, you can still trace the march not just by the battles, but by the places in between. And that’s what we’re doing.

Because the movement of troops along what’s now known as the W3R route had both social and military aspects, the taverns and private homes where troops were entertained also serve as tangible reminders of the memorable interactions between Rochambeau’s troops and their American hosts.

“Taverns, used by French and American officers as resting places between campsites, were a staple of the route. The taverns of the 18th century were not typically specialized structures but rather large houses in which part of the interior was used as a taproom and a few rooms were available for lodging. General officers usually lodged in taverns while company-grade officers slept two to a tent near their men. Taverns are found in various conditions of preservation in every state along the route,” Dr. Rober Selig for the W3R.

NJ Rev War Tavern List Continues to Grow with Researchers Help

Based on our map, this chart makes one thing clear: Revolutionary War taverns in New Jersey were not randomly spread out; they followed the action. Somerset County leads by a wide margin, reflecting its central role around the Middlebrook encampments and major crossroads of troop movement.

Strong clusters in Middlesex County, Union County, and Morris County reinforce the pattern these taverns lined the critical route between New York City and Philadelphia. They were more than gathering places; they were essential infrastructure supporting communication, movement, and the daily needs of an army on the move.

Map Legend:
Stars are Taverns with a major event.
Orange Beers: Pending Location Verification.
Red Beers: Rev War Taverns (documented)
Also included are encampment areas and other historic structures.

Even in camp, the pull of the tavern remained. Just beyond the lines, if one could be found, a tavern offered something the Army could not: a warm fire, familiar voices, and a hard-earned pint would help cope with the encampment. Guess how many winter encampments were in New Jersey? Answer, more than any other location during the war effort.

HELP US IDENTIFY MORE NEW JERSEY REVOLUTIONARY WAR ERA TAVERNS

New Jersey, known as the “Crossroads” and the “Cockpit of the American Revolution,” had taverns at the center of it all. These were not just places to eat and drink. They were meeting houses, headquarters, post offices, and hubs of communication where critical decisions were made. Some of these taverns are well known, such as the Indian King Tavern and Arnold’s Tavern, while others have been lost to time or exist only in old maps, deeds, and family stories. Our complete list of taverns is also listed at the end of this post for easy reference.

We are working to build the most complete map and record of Revolutionary War-era taverns across New Jersey, and we love it when our history fans help. The ask is simple: if you know of a worthy Revolutionary War-era tavern, we’d love to hear your comments. Post your tavern suggestion, the location, and any evidence you might have.

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Rev War Taverns in New Jersey Identified So Far on the Mr. Local History Map

Town	Area	Tavern Name	Approx Date	Rev War Reference
Burlington	Burlington	Blue Anchor Tavern	1750	Gabriel Daveis Tavern Museum House
Haddonfield	Camden	Indian King Tavern	1750	Political meeting place in Revolutionary era
Glendora	Camden	Probable Washington headquarters, Nov 1776	1756	Tavern museum house
Newark	Essex	Eagle Tavern	1776	Hudson Crossing Tavern
West Orange	Essex	Hick’s Tavern	1777 era	Washington and Martha tradition
Jersey City	Hudson	Stuyvestant Tavern	1732	Bergen area colonial tavern
Jersey City	Hudson	Pawles Hook Tavern	1700s	Colonial Inn on inland route
Pittstown	Hunterdon	Pittstown Inn	1760	Delaware River Corridor Tavern
Lebanon Township	Hunterdon	Jacksonville Tavern	1700s	Late 1700s stone tavern site
Stockton	Hunterdon	Stockton Inn	1710	Early 19th-century inn
Lambertville	Hunterdon	Lambertville House	1812	Built in the 1760s later Van Syckel’s Tavern
Union Township	Hunterdon	Union Township		Stray map row in source file
Union Township	Hunterdon	Hickory Tavern – Van Syckel’s Tavern	1760s	Delaware Crossing Tavern
Ringoes	Hunterdon	Ringo’s Tavern	1720	Established by John Ringo
Princeton	Mercer	Nassau Inn	1756	Princeton wartime hub
Trenton	Mercer	French Arms Tavern	1750s	Revolutionary era Trenton tavern
Washington Crossing	Mercer	Johnson Ferry Tavern	1776 era	Delaware crossing tavern
Princeton	Mercer	Sign of the Hudibras’s Tavern	1768	Jacob Hyer tavern / militia officer
Princeton	Mercer	Sign of the College Tavern	1770s	Princeton college tavern reference
Mercerville	Mercer	Bill’s Olde Tavern (TBC)	TBC	Sand Town reference not fully verified
Trenton	Mercer	Royal Oak Tavern	1776	Owned by Rensselaer Williams
Perth Amboy	Middlesex	Proprietary House	1764	Royal governor residence used in wartime era
Woodbridge	Middlesex	Cross Keys Tavern	1740	Washington stopped here Apr 1789
New Brunswick	Middlesex	White Hall Tavern	1776	Provincial Congress met here in 1776
Cranbury	Middlesex	Three Tuns Tavern- Mill Street Inn	1723	Long running tavern / inn in Cranbury
Cranbury	Middlesex	The Cranbury Inn	1780	Operating by late 18th century on main corridor
Perth Amboy	Middlesex	Long Ferry Tavern	1684	First public house in Perth Amboy
Perth Amboy	Middlesex	Kings Arms Tavern	1700s	Colonial tavern later Parker House area
New Brunswick	Middlesex	Indian Queen Tavern	1700s	Important stop on New York Philadelphia route
New Brunswick	Middlesex	Red Lion Tavern	1700s	Colonial tavern reference
Edison	Middlesex	Bonhamtown Tavern	1779 map	Shown as Bonum Tavern on 1779 Erskine map
South Plainfield	Middlesex	Rubble T. (Verification Needed)	1779 map	Possible Kerbell’s tavern on Erskine map
Englishtown	Monmouth	The Village Inn	1726	Lee headquarters / court martial papers after Monmouth
Allentown	Monmouth	Allen House Tavern	1750s	Colonial tavern site
Colts Neck	Monmouth	Colts Neck Inn	1717	Stagecoach and messenger stop
Morristown	Morris	Arnolds Tavern	1764	Washington headquarters winter 1777
Mendham	Morris	Black Horse Tavern	1740	Stagecoach and military travel corridor
Mendham	Morris	Dodd’s Tavern	1777 era	Mendham tavern reference
Morris Township	Morris	Larzelear’s Tavern – Route 32	1777 era	Soldiers left parade ground for tavern
Long Valley	Morris	Neitzer’s Tavern (Location TBC)	TBC	Estimated Long Valley location
Montville	Morris	Stewart’s Tavern (Estimate)	1779 map	Shown on Erskine map as A Stewart’s Tn
Morristown	Morris	Norris Tavern	1776	Court martial sessions Dec 1776
Barnegat	Ocean	Cedar Bridge Tavern	1740	Associated with Pine Barrens and wartime movement
Warwick	Orange	Bairds Tavern	1766	Regional Revolutionary era tavern
Paterson	Passaic	Passaic Tavern & Hotel	1800s	Historic tavern and hotel in early Paterson
Paterson	Passaic	Godwin Tavern	1777	Operated by Phebe Godwin near camp
Wanaque corridor	Passaic	Yellow Tavern	1781	Guard position for supply movement Feb 1781
Liberty Corner	Somerset	Bullion’s Tavern	1777 era	Referenced as Bullion’s or Boylan’s Tavern on military route
Basking Ridge	Somerset	Widow White’s Tavern	1700	Basking Ridge tavern site
Bernardsville	Somerset	John Parker Tavern	1700s	Colonial tavern on Basking Ridge Bernardsville road
Franklin Township	Somerset	Franklin Inn	1734	Colonial inn in Somerset
Somerville	Somerset	Van Veghten Tavern	1725	Near Van Veghten House / camp region
Basking Ridge	Somerset	Coffee House	1806	Post Revolutionary era building on historic village map
Bridgewater	Somerset	Castner Tavern	1768	Near Middlebrook / Watchung corridor
Somerville	Somerset	Tunison’s Tavern (Somerset Hotel)	1800s	Historic Somerset Hotel / tavern site
Pluckemin	Somerset	Pluckemin Inn	1700s	Near Pluckemin encampment and academy area
Gladstone	Somerset	Willie´s Taverne	1780	Bedminster hotel / tavern history
South Bound Brook	Somerset	Christoffel Vought Farmstead	1770s	Associated with Captain Thomas Janes tavern tradition
Bound Brook	Somerset	Frelinghuysen Tavern	1729	Declaration read here July 1776
Rocky Hill	Somerset	Rocky Hill Inn & Tavern	1745	Near Rockingham / 1783 context
Montgomery Township	Somerset	Woods Tavern	1738	Colonial tavern later campaign speech site
Bridgewater	Somerset	Steele’s Tavern (Location TBC)	1777	Referenced near Middlebrook and Steele’s Gap
Rocky Hill vicinity	Somerset	Gerritson’s Tavern	1700s	Probable tavern near Sourland Mountain
Scotch Plains	Union	Short Hills Tavern	1700	Lord Stirling command post at Battle of Short Hills
Springfield	Union	Bryants Tavern	1700s	Referenced in Springfield battle accounts
Rahway	Union	Merchants & Drovers Tavern	1700s	Colonial tavern and travel stop
Scotch Plains	Union	Stage House Tavern	1737	Historic inn on post road
Elizabeth	Union	Sign of the Unicorn	1760	Large popular tavern used by officers
Elizabeth	Union	Red Lion Inn	1779	Washington held court martial here in 1779
Elizabeth	Union	Hull’s Tavern- Elizabeth	1774 ref	Referenced by John Adams and Gage farewell
Springfield	Union	Bryants tavern	1780	Barber battle account / pass in rear
Mansfield Township	Warren	Thomas Wolverton’s Tavern	1735	Pequest valley tavern
Knowlton Township	Warren	Ramsaysburg Tavern	1795	Late 18th century tavern
New York	z- New York	Fraunces Tavern	1719	Washington farewell to officers 1783
New York	z- New York	Montagnie’s Tavern	1700s	Colonial New York tavern
Bensalem Township	z-Bucks	The Red Lion Tavern	1700s	Referenced in Pennsylvania correspondence
Chadds Ford vicinity	z-Delaware	Howels Tavern	1777	Referenced in Washington to Howe Sept 1777
Philadelphia	z-Philadelphia	City Tavern	1772	Continental era political tavern
Philadelphia	z-Philadelphia	Wheat Sheaf Tavern – PA	1767 ref	Referenced in letters concerning Jacob Hall
Philadelphia	z-Philadelphia	Boars Head Tavern (TBC)	1700s	Appears in Library Company notice
Tappan	z-Rockland	Old 76 House	1668	André imprisonment tradition / Continental use