Ahead of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 2026, New Jersey is beginning work on a new visitor center for Washington Crossing State Park.

According to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the hub will be built into the landscape overlooking the Delaware River. It will feature a green roof, multipurpose theater and immersive exhibits.

The development will replace the existing visitor center and museum. That building opened in 1976 in commemoration of the nation’s Bicentennial celebration. The current facility is considered “outdated and inadequate” for its collection, according to project documents.

Washington Crossing Park spans 3,500-acres in Mercer and Hunterdon counties. It’s where Gen. George Washington and a 2,400-man detachment of Continental Army troops crossed the icy Delaware River Dec. 25, 1776, into the morning of Dec. 26, 1776. The move enabled a surprise attack on Trenton, which proved to be a turning point in the American Revolutionary War.

As a matter of fact, thousands of spectators gather each year at the park for a reenactment of the historic crossing.

Upgrades

Site preparation for construction begins this month. While the first stage of work includes tree removal, the NJDEP said none included were witness to Washington’s crossing in 1776.

New trees will replaces all cut ones, either near the new visitor center or in other areas throughout the park, the agency added.

The project’s reported $14 million cost is mainly funded through the state’s constitutionally dedicated Corporate Business Tax revenue. Additional money, directed under the administration of Gov. Phil Murphy, came from a $25 million allocation of federal American Rescue Plan funds in support of the Semiquincentennial.

The funds earmarked by Murphy in November 2022 also aid revitalization projects at nine other state-owned sites from the Revolutionary period:

• Trenton’s Old Barracks
• Battle Monument in Trenton
• Princeton Battlefield State Park
• Monmouth Battlefield State Park
• Proprietary House in Perth Amboy
• The Indian King Tavern in Haddonfield
• Wallace House in Somerville
• Boxwood Hall in Elizabeth
• Rockingham in Kingston

Helping heritage tourism

The Garden State was the most conflict-ridden colony during the War. The state hosted nearly 300 significant military engagements and hundreds of lesser-known skirmishes. However, its contributions to the nation’s founding aren’t as widely recognized as places like Boston or Philadelphia.

Beyond helping New Jersey claim its role in the birth of America, the state believes the Semiquincentennial could boost the heritage tourism economy.

Though the historic milestone is still two years away, planning efforts have been underway for quite some time to ensure the Garden State can handle the expected influx of interest leading up to July 4, 2026, and beyond.

As part of the many preparations, the state Historical Commission hopes to open a visitor center in Trenton. The facility would serve as hub for those looking to visit New Jersey’s Revolutionary War sites.

The commission, an agency within the Department of State, is also developing a hospitality program to train employees throughout the tourism industry in historic site awareness and customer service fundamentals. Additionally, the work will help locations with Revolutionary War connections get visitor-ready by assisting with better signage, interpretation and programming coordination.

According to officials, events related to the 250th anniversary will begin as early as 2024 and continue through 2033.