73. The Smallpox Epidemic & Chaplain Horton Traditional Cache

This cache will take you to the Revolutionary-era Hillside and Bottle Hill Cemetery, located on Main Street, Madison. This is the resting place of many of Madison’s founding fathers, Revolutionary war and Civil war soldiers. Including the 1777 table-top marker of Presbyterian Pastor and Patriot Chaplain Azariah Horton.

10/2021: Moved the cache to be guarded by American Revolution Colonial John Blanchard, and Captain of the Light Horse Service. The Rev's Table Top Grave is 90 feet away at these coordinates: N 40° 45.277' W 74° 24.691'

As 2020 deals with a Covid pandemic another time in our American history in 1777 General George Washington kept his head to deal with another pandemic and insisted that his army be inoculated against the smallpox epidemic, thus saving the lives of thousands of soldiers.>

The commander of the Continental Army realized that if he did not inoculate his army against smallpox, he might not have an army. Saving his men, he probably saved his country and in the process indirectly safeguarding the young nation he was charged with defending.

The Commander-in-Chief conferred with the pastors of Morristown, Hanover, and Bottle Hill, including Reverend Azariah Horton, and they assisted him in securing houses, and inducing the civilian people to be inoculated. The Reverend Azariah Horton ministered to the suffering soldiers until he contracted the disease and himself died in March 1777.

This cache will take you to the Revolutionary-era Hillside and Bottle Hill Cemetery, located on Main Street, Madison. This is the resting place of many of Madison’s founding fathers, Revolutionary war and Civil war soldiers. Including the 1777 table-top marker of Presbyterian Pastor and Patriot Chaplain Azariah Horton

In early January 1777, General George Washington decided to take an action that would later be deemed his most important strategic decision of the war, even though it had nothing to do with the positioning of his troops, and to take it on the basis of his scientific understanding of the situation: he was going to order the inoculation of all Continental troops and recruits against smallpox. For an agonizing 18 months he had been wrestling with the decision, knowing it would mean having to counter the express orders of the Continental Congress and the decrees of the legislatures of half the rebelling colonies.

While the Continental Army was in Morristown encampment during the winter of 1777, smallpox appeared, and many soldiers as well as civilians fell victims and died. To stop the disease from spreading General Washington ordered all the troops in his army to be inoculated.

There arose a roadblock in the path toward troop immunization, Washington’s request on mass variolation as the doctors in Philadelphia that led the command of the medical services. Dr. John Morgan, perhaps the best-trained physician in the colonies objected to it on the grounds that provision for post-inoculation isolation was inadequate, which might spread rather than limit the disease.

During the remainder of January, Washington deferred to Shippen’s caution, but as February began and renewed outbreaks of the disease confronted the army, he overruled Shippen’s caution. Washington had to inform Congress of proceeding, but he decided to do so by burying the smallpox-prevention decision in the middle of a long letter to Hancock about other matters.

Washington’s February 5, 1777 letter to Hancock read: “The small pox has made such Head in every Quarter that I find it impossible to keep it from spreading thro’ the whole Army in the natural way. I have therefore determined, not only to innoculate all the Troops now here, that have not had it, but shall order Docr Shippen to innoculate the Recruits as fast as they come in to Philadelphia. They will lose no time, because they will go thro’ the disorder while their cloathing Arms and accoutrements are getting ready.”

Not waiting for a reply from Congress, the next day Washington issued unequivocal instructions to Shippen to begin mass variolation for smallpox.

The entire inoculation campaign was carried out in secret to prevent the British—and American Tories—from finding out about it and taking advantage. Small groups of Continental officers at a time were permitted to leave the Continental Army’s main camp to go to Philadelphia for the inoculation process; and physicians were dispatched to Kingston, New York and to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to set up facilities for inoculation, isolation, and recuperation. The isolation sites were mostly in private homes and churches.

Inoculating the American troops against smallpox effectively shielded Washington’s army from being decimated by disease until the arrival of foreign arms made it possible for them to turn the tide of battle in America’s favor. Nothing that Washington did had a greater impact on the outcome of the war than his actions to protect his troops from death by smallpox.

This Main Street site actually contains two neighboring cemeteries in one. The older section on the hill, called Bottle Hill Cemetery, surrounded the original Presbyterian Meeting House which opened in 1748.

This cache is one of "The American Revolution Geo~Trail" caches throughout New Jersey. These special geocaches are hidden at many historic locations which have a connection to important New Jersey's American Revolutionary War history. To participate in the optional Geo-Trail, after you find the geocache, locate the secret code and record it into your passport which you will print from this website. Information at njpatriots.org

The Northern New Jersey Cachers, NNJC is about promoting a quality caching experience in Northern New Jersey. For information on The Northern New Jersey Cachers group you can visit: www.nnjc.org.