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Secondary sourceArtifactc. 1740

Staats House

c. 1740

A colonial farmhouse in South Bound Brook, New Jersey, used by Steuben as his headquarters during the 1778–79 Middlebrook encampment.

Steuben used this house as his headquarters during the 1778–79 encampment, finishing his training manual and hosting the review dinner there.

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A white clapboard two-story colonial-style house with a wood shingle roof, multiple brick chimneys, dormer windows, and green shutters, set on a lawn with a stone walkway in front.
Staats House (General Baron von Steuben Headquarters), South Bound Brook, New Jersey.

About this source

What it is

Built around 1740, the Staats House — also known as the General Baron von Steuben Headquarters — stands in South Bound Brook, New Jersey. It is named for its second owner, Abraham Staats. In 1779, during the second Middlebrook encampment of the Revolutionary War, it served as headquarters for Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben.

Why it matters

At this house, Steuben finished drafting his regulations for training the Continental Army, work he had begun at Valley Forge and which Congress approved in March 1779. On May 2, 1779, a grand review of the army demonstrated his training methods to French and Spanish diplomats, and Steuben hosted the celebratory dinner afterward in a tent near the house. The site reflects both the Dutch colonial history of the Raritan Valley and Steuben's role in professionalizing the American army.

Look closer

  • Why would Steuben choose to finish his training manual at this particular headquarters?
  • What does hosting foreign diplomats at a military review suggest about the diplomatic side of the war?
  • What might the house's survival and recognition today tell us about how this history is remembered?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Friedrich von Steuben on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Book

Primary source

Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben · 1779

Oil portrait of an 18th-century man with powdered gray hair, wearing a dark blue coat with gold epaulettes and gold-yellow waistcoat, a red sash and star-shaped order badge, against a dark background.Painting

Primary source

Baron Frederick William von Steuben

Charles Willson Peale · 1780

Large painting of a battlefield scene with a grey, stormy sky. On the left, British redcoat troops stand in lines beside a white flag. On the right, American troops in blue and buff stand beside a striped flag. In the center, a mounted commander on a white horse, with a figure in red uniform walking in front, faces the lines.Painting

Secondary source

Surrender of Lord Cornwallis

John Trumbull · 1819

Oil portrait of an older man with white powdered hair in a dark navy coat with gold epaulettes and tan high-collared lapels and waistcoat. He wears orange-and-red decorations and a star-shaped order on his chest and holds a sword hilt. Behind him are trees and a distant river with sailboats.Painting

Primary source

Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben

Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl · 1786

Handwritten letter in brown ink on aged paper, dated Montpellier 12 March 1773 at top right, addressed 'Monsieur' and written in French in cursive script. It is signed at the bottom right with a closing phrase and the name 'de Steuben'.Letter

Primary source

Letter from Montpellier

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben · 12 March 1773

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