Fort Mercer, National Park

Fort Mercer was a earthen fort on the Delaware River on its New Jersey shore constructed by the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Built by Polish engineer Thaddeus Kosciuszko under the command of George Washington, Fort Mercer was built in 1777 to block the approach to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in concert with Fort Mifflin on the Pennsylvania side. Fort Mercer was located in an area called Red Bank, in what is now the borough of National Park, Gloucester County, New Jersey. The fort was named in honor of Brigadier General Hugh Mercer who had died earlier that year at the Battle of Princeton. The fort's site is now part of Red Bank Battlefield Historical Park, which includes a monument and museum. Several cannons attributed to British warships lost supporting the attack on the fort, and others found buried at the fort itself, are in the park. ()