Where History Happened: Mercer County Prepares to Take Center Stage for America’s
250th
By Marc Sheforgen
Ask Jamie Volkert a casual question about tourism in Mercer County, and you’d better have
a few minutes to spare.
“People will just come up to me and say, ‘You’re the tourism director? What kind of
tourism do they have in Mercer County,’” she said laughing. “And once you get me
talking, I can’t stop.”
It’s hard to blame her. As Director of Tourism for Mercer County, Volkert oversees a region that
sits at what historians call the Crossroads of the American Revolution. And as the United States
approaches its 250th birthday this July 4th, that distinction is carrying more weight than ever.
Washington Crossing the Delaware. The Battle of Trenton. The Battle of Princeton. The Ten Crucial Days
that turned the tide of the Revolution. All of it happened here, in what is now Mercer County, New
Jersey. And if you didn’t fully appreciate that before, county officials and local businesses are
counting on 2026 to change that, for visitors and locals alike.
“People don’t realize what’s right in their backyard,” Volkert said.
“It’s fascinating, once you get into it.”
A New Office With a Big Mission
The Story of Mercer County’s 250th celebration begins, in a sense, with County Executive Dan
Benson. When Benson took office, one of his first acts was creating the Division of Travel and Tourism,
a department that didn’t exist before. The semiquincentennial was front of mind from day one.
Volkert came aboard last year, and the 250th initiative was the first thing on her plate. But
she’s quick to point out that the county isn’t trying to run the show. It’s trying to
connect it.
“We’re responsible for aggregating and elevating what everybody else has done,” she
said.
That means helping local historical organizations become visitor-ready, assisting with grants, building
connections between municipalities that had long operated in isolation and maintaining 250.mercercountynj.gov as a central hub where events,
sites, stories and tourism packages all live in one place.
The History Everyone Should Know, and the History Few Realize
Mercer County’s Revolutionary credentials are extraordinary. George Washington and his troops
crossed the Delaware River on Christmas night 1776, landing in what is now Washington Crossing State
Park. What followed — the surprise attack on Hessian forces at Trenton, the defense at Assunpink
Creek and the counterattack at Princeton — are collectively known as the Ten Crucial Days, a
sequence of events that arguably saved the American Revolution from collapse.
As Benson likes to remind his team: “Mercer was making history before we were Mercer
County.” General Hugh Mercer, for whom the county is named, died from wounds sustained in the
Battle of Princeton. The county carries that legacy in its name.
Physical reminders of those days are everywhere. The Old Barracks Museum in Trenton, one of the most
intact surviving structures from the era, has been undergoing renovations and is set to reopen to the
public by the Fourth of July. Washington Crossing State Park is developing a new visitor center with
dedicated museum space. Historic markers throughout the region trace the routes Washington’s
troops actually marched.
But Benson and Volkert are equally focused on the history that rarely makes the highlight reel. Mercer
County’s 250th initiative has a deliberate mandate to surface the untold stories of Black
soldiers, Indigenous people, women and children who lived through the Revolution but have largely been
left out of the standard narrative.
“We want to make sure we’re telling all the untold stories,” Volkert said.
“That’s been a mission, and we want to make sure it’s in everything we do for the
250th.”
The county’s Revolutionary Tales platform on its website is the primary vehicle for that effort,
featuring commissioned pieces from local historians and an open call for guest authors. An art
initiative is also in development, inviting students to paint or illustrate scenes from perspectives
that no portrait artist ever captured. Essay and art contests tied to the school system are planned as
well.
Not a Moment — A Movement
The county’s 250th website is built to stay live and grow for years to come, anchoring what
Volkert and Benson envision as a long-term heritage tourism platform. The commemorations are officially
framed as running through 2033. Events like lectures, reenactments, museum exhibits, concert series,
poetry readings and heritage days are already filling the calendar, with activity ramping up
significantly as July approaches.
Perhaps the most unexpected element of Mercer County’s 250th story is what’s happening on
the soccer pitch this summer. The 2026 FIFA World Cup is bringing matches to Philadelphia and the
Meadowlands, and an estimated one million international visitors are expected to descend on the
region.
“If you’re coming to America and you really want to experience the American story,
we’re just a train ride away,” Volkert said. “You’ve got to see the birthplace
and the turning point of the American Revolution.”
To learn more about the local semiquincentennial celebration, visit
https://250.mercercountynj.gov.
