Civil War Monument in Cranbury New Jersey

Cranbury, New Jersey is a small township of 3,842 people in the Raritan Valley. It looks almost rural, but it is less than an hour from Times Square in New York City. It is about the same distance from Philadelphia. European settlement began in 1698. By the time of the Revolution, Alexander Hamilton and the Marquis de Lafyette were quartered there and George Washington visited the township. In the 18th Century the township was usually spelled “Cranberry” but in the 19th Century the spelling was changed to “Cranbury.”

The Cranbury Historic District preserves over 175 buildings from the 19th Century. 177 buildings are contributing structures in the Historic District.  The First Presbyterian Church, built in 1839, is a centerpiece of the 19th Century structures. It’s cemetery has a notable Civil War monument.

There are two major Civil War monuments in Cranbury. In this article we will cover the First Presbyterian monument. The church is located at 22 S Main St, Cranbury, NJ 08512. The graveyard is right behind the church. There is no fence or gates. You can visit without fee during daylight hours.

In touring around Cranbury I found a number of attractive historical markers. The area was a camping ground for the Continental Army during the Revolution. Both the Revolution and the Civil War are marked by signage. Right off of Main Street, there is a little plaza where a monument and a modern historical plaque are located. You can see the graveyard from here, as well as the church.

The effort to build the monument was started on June 3, 1865 as a joint project of the two Presbyterian churches in the community and the nearby Methodist congregation. The monument was designed to commemorate the deaths of those who died for the Union from Cranbury, Monroe, and South Brunswick. Remarkably, the monument was dedicated on August 1, 1866. Governor Marcus Ward presided over the unveiling ceremony.

Governor Ward had been active in anti-slavery causes in the late 1850s and in 1858 he travelled to Kansas in support of the Free Staters. He came home and joined the Republican Party, which was a minority party in New Jersey. During the Civil War, Ward organized philanthropic efforts to aid the soldiers in the field and those who had been wounded. He also organized a home for disabled veterans. He ran for governor in 1865 and he won by a large margin with the backing of Union veterans. During his term divisions arose within his party and the Republicans would not elect another governor of New Jersey for two decades.

From the little plaza with the historical marker I saw what I took to be the Civil War monument. It was not.

I saw it was a monumental gravestone erected to honor Major General William Cook who died in 1865. I assumed that he was killed outside of Petersburg or Appomattox, but, again, I was wrong. Cook was born in 1801 and seems to have died naturally in 1865. He was in the Jersey militia, but his rank was just for New Jersey. He had attended West Point and served in the Federal army until 1832. He became a well-respected engineer working for several railroads.

Cook was on the Board of Visitors at West Point. When the Civil War broke out, he offered to serve in the Union army, but his advanced age meant his offer was turned down.

Instead, Cook examined and trained Jersey volunteer officers.

On April 27 of 1865 the New York Times published the announcement of the death of Cook. According to the Times, he held a high position within the Democratic Party in New Jersey.

His position as an engineer and a soldier is highlighted.

The monument dwarfs all the other tombstones.

You can see Cook’s surveying tool on the monument.

Again, while this is only an hour from New York City, the site looks rural on this cloudy day in November, 2024.

Not far from Cook is the Civil War monument. This was one of the first Civil War monuments put up in New Jersey.

The monument has the names of local men who died during the war. Each is listed with his regiment and the date he died. Here is a transcription from Find a Grave:

While the men of the three townships were enlisted in a variety of regiments, the largest number were in the 9th and 14th New Jersey Infantry Regiments.

Reproduction cannon balls grace the top of the monument.

The 9th New Jersey was called the Jersey Muskrats because of their sloshing through water at the Battle of Roanoke Island in February of 1862. After this, the regiment saw action along the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina. In 1864 it returned to Virginia at Drewry’s Bluff, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg.

The 14th New Jersey was called the Monocacy Regiment because of its heroism at that 1864 battle.

Below are the deaths in the 14th New Jersey Volunteers.

Below is a modern monumental plaque containing the names of the dead from the three townships. As erosion wore away the 1866 monument, locals feared that the names would be unreadable. While I could make out most of the names on the old monument, in a couple of decades that may no longer be the case.

The pre-Civil War Presbyterian Church from the monument.

The steeple is 137 feet high. In 1898 a storm blew in the steeple, so the steeple there now is only 127 years old!

The sign above the entrance to the church.

The entry way. The church is 84 feet in length and 56 feet wide.

A close-up view of the steeple.