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Mobile Audio Tour

New Windsor Cantonment

  • 30 miles south of Poughkeepsie/Highland
  • 374 Temple Hill Road, Vails Gate, NY 12584, 845-561-1765 and 1-877-284-6667 www.thepurpleheart.com
  • At the end of 1782, the Continental Army's Northern Department encamped at New Windsor, 60 miles north of British-held New York City
  • The men built a virtual city of hundreds of log huts that stretched over 1,600 acres
  • Here, soldiers and in some cases their families spent the last winter of the war
  • On April 19, 1783, eight years to the day since the war's beginning, General Washington declared a cease fire at the Cantonment, effectively ending the fighting
  • Interpreters in period dress offer demonstrations of camp life and military drills, while exhibits feature original artifacts and artillery pieces
  • Home to the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, the site also pays tribute to the courageous men and women who have earned the Purple Heart while defending our country