What the Princeton Battlefield Society tour taught me was that the magnitude of the sacrifice and valor of the colonial soldiers fighting for an America still in its infancy is something I will never to be able to imagine, even now that the rest of my body has thawed out. Watch video
PRINCETON - The Princeton Battlefield Society held a real-time, sunrise tour on Sunday highlighting events of the pivotal skirmish Jan. 3, 1777.
NJ Advance Media's Michael Mancuso attended and photographed the event. This is his account:
It was so cold that in addition to my fingers, nose and toes, my imagination was numb.
Spending the early-morning hours on the frost-covered Princeton Battlefield listening to historian William P. Tatum III describe the events from that very spot 239 years ago offered more insights into the hardships endured by the colonial soldiers than one can get by reading about a battle often called a "turning point" of the American Revolution.
I had come from the comfort of a warm bed to which I could return. The soldiers had no such option.
The battlefield society's tour drove home the magnitude of the sacrifice, valor and pure perseverance of the colonial soldiers fighting for an America still in its infancy. It's something I will never to be able to imagine, even now that the rest of my body has thawed out.
The Battle of Princeton marked the first time Washington defeated British regulars and the first time U.S. Marines fought and died in battle.
RELATED: Marine who fell at Battle of Princeton honored on Veterans Day
About 250 people attended this year's real time tour, which began at 6:45 a.m. and concluded at around 9 a.m. Sunday.
The Princeton Battlefield Society's next event will be a Washington's Birthday lecture by local historian and author Larry Kidder on Feb. 22.
Michael Mancuso may be reached at mmancuso@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @michaelmancuso Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.