Bordentown in Burlington County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Richard Watson Gilder House

circa 1788

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

1. Richard Watson Gilder House Marker

Inscription. About The Gilder Family The Gilder family, which also includes the Nutts and Bunting families, rose to prominence in the publishing world of New York City with Richard Watson Gilder as the Editor of Century Magazine, his sister Jeanette Gilder as a noted author, and his brother William H. Gilder as a renowned newspaper correspondent and arctic adventurer. The original Gilder House which still stands here at the entrance to the park on Crosswicks Street, was the country home of the Gilder family. Of further significance is the findings of research which indicate that the Gilders, prior to the Emancipation Proclamation and the close of the Civil War, hid runaway slaves on the property.

The Gilder House is the cultural centerpiece of Gilder Park. The Gilder family gave the park to Bordentown City in 1935. Rodman de Kay Gilder gave the house, which dates back to the 1700's, and surrounding farm to the City under the condition that the house would serve as a museum or public library to the community. The Gilder House is a key component of the Bordentown Historic District which was placed on the New Jersey Register of Historic

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Places in 1976 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

The Life of Richard Watson Gilder Richard Watson Gilder was the confidant of Presidents Grover Cleveland and Theodore Roosevelt. He was a personal friend of Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, Robert Louis Stevensen and other literary giants of the day. He never lost affection or regard for this childhood refuge, or for the city of Bordentown. In his poem "The Old House" he captures it best.

Home of my forbears, home of my dreaming childhood,
House that I love with a love instinctive, changeless,
Ancestral, mystical, passionate tender, sorrowful;
Old house where I was born and my mother before me.

Gilder's life was one of intellectual curiosity and pursuit, balanced with intense public service. He was instrumental in preserving many historically significant buildings in New York City, pursued civil service reform, international copyright protection, education reform for the underprivileged and many supporting arts based programs.

Funding for the 2008 exterior restoration has been made possible in part by the Garden State Historic Preservation Trust administered

Richard Watson Gilder House Marker and Front of House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

2. Richard Watson Gilder House Marker and Front of House

by the New Jersey Historic Trust/State of New Jersey, The City of Bordentown, The Bordentown Historical Society, and The Gilder Park Revitalization Fund at the Princeton Area Community Foundation. Support for the Gilder Fund was provided by Marlene and David Thompson, Tim Loretangeli, and Marguerite Mount, Bill and Esther Collom and generous member of the Greater Bordentown Community.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Communications • Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #22 and #24 Grover Cleveland, and the Former U.S. Presidents: #26 Theodore Roosevelt series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1935.

Location. 40° 8.756′ N, 74° 42.173′ W. Marker is in Bordentown, New Jersey, in Burlington County. It is at the intersection of Crosswicks Street and Gilder Park Drive, on the right when traveling west on Crosswicks Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Bordentown NJ 08505, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in South Jersey

and in Greater Philadelphia.

Richard Watson Gilder House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

3. Richard Watson Gilder House

It is also in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland

and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Clara Barton (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Clara Barton School (about 700 feet away); Borden's Towne (approx. ¼ mile away); Dedicated to School No. 2 (approx. ¼ mile away); George S. Bowers (approx. 0.3 miles away); Bordentown Veteran's Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); Tower Clock (approx. 0.4 miles away); The Telephone made its Bordentown Debut in 1882 (approx. half a mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bordentown.

Also see . . .
1. Library of Congress - Historic American Buildings Survey. (Submitted on October 8, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey.)
2. Richard Watson Gilder. Wikipedia article and biography of Richard Watson Gilder. Includes

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

4. Richard Watson Gilder House

photos. (Submitted on October 8, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey.)

Richard Watson Gilder House Front Door image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

5. Richard Watson Gilder House Front Door

Rear of Richard Watson Gilder House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

6. Rear of Richard Watson Gilder House

Richard Watson Gilder, As a Cadet, in War Days. image. Click for full size.

Internet Archive

7. Richard Watson Gilder, As a Cadet, in War Days.

From The Photographic History of the Civil War, 1911, Volume 9, Page 37.

Smokehouse Located Behind the Richard Watson Gilder House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Deb Hartshorn, October 7, 2010

8. Smokehouse Located Behind the Richard Watson Gilder House

Credits. This page was last revised on August 31, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 7, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 2,746 times since then and 231 times this year. Last updated on October 16, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on October 8, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey. 7. submitted on August 17, 2023, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. 8. submitted on October 8, 2010, by Deb Hartshorn of Burlington County, New Jersey. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.