January 07, 2026
Provided Image/Washington Crossing Historic Park
The Thompson-Neely House and surrounding grounds will undergo renovations and a terrain analysis this year. The space was occupied by George Washington and the Continental Army ahead of the Christmas night crossing of the Delaware River in 1776.
A Bucks County historic building will get a facelift for this year's celebrations of America's 250th birthday.
The Friends of Washington Crossing Park, a group dedicated to preserving sites connected to George Washington's famed crossing of the Delaware River in 1776, received $536,330 from the National Park Service. The funds to support renovations of the Thompson-Neely House were granted ahead of the semiquincentennial to honor the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
The Thompson-Neely House, which was built in 1740, and the surrounding farmstead operated as an encampment site for the Continental Army in December 1776, when Washington was preparing for the Christmas night crossing into New Jersey. The successful journey and subsequent battle victory against the Hessians in Trenton was thought to have turned the tide of the Revolutionary War. President James Monroe and William Washington, a cousin of George Washington, were prominent campers on the grounds.
In 2022, a state grant was used for renovations to the exterior of the building. This year's interior upgrades will include restoring plaster and paint, stabilizing floors and chimneys, updating the electrical system, insulating the building and adding moisture control to protect some of the historic objects inside the house.
The site will also be getting a military terrain analysis, which includes archeological searches, to better understand how the land was utilized 250 years ago.
"It's really just getting a sense of how this property was used, which is really important, because it also lends understanding to ... how the war affected civilians," Martin said. "The army just comes in and they get camping on this property, and the property itself, while it wasn't designated a hospital, was almost used in that sense."
The repairs will begin in the spring and be completed by the fall. Martin said they're spreading the work out in phases so the house can stay open as much as possible. The busy season at the park is typically at the end of the year, when visitors come to see reenactments of the crossing, but Martin said this year the park plans to hold additional events around Washington's birthday on Feb. 22 and the Fourth of July.
The National Park Service is offering semiquincentennial grants to sites on the National Register of Historic Places that were involved in the country's formative years, which NPS said ended in 1815. Gloria Dei Episcopal Church and the Arch Street Meeting House in Philadelphia also received grants.
