Thomas Clarke House

In 1772, Thomas Clarke, a Quaker farmer, purchased 200 acres of land from his brother William on land then part of West Windsor that had been in the Clarke family since 1696, and he replaced an existing structure with the main house that stands today. He lived there with at least two of his sisters, Hannah and Sarah, until his death in 1802. Sarah inherited the house and remained there until her death in 1840, after which her nephew, John H. Clarke, enlarged the east wing to include a new kitchen. The house was sold in 1863 to Henry E. Hale and again in 1944 to Blackwell Smith. The State of New Jersey purchased the property in 1946 and established the Clarke House Museum in 1976. Following the Battle of Princeton, the house served as a field hospital for wounded soldiers from both armies. Among those taken there was Brigadier General Hugh Mercer, suffering from seven bayonet wounds. American and british doctors, including Dr. Benjamin Rush, cared for the wounded, and Mercer died in the house nine days later while tended by Major George Lewis, General Washington’s nephew.

Princeton, New Jersey · United States