Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is the site of the winter encampment of the Continental Army under General George Washington. On December 19, 1777, about 12,000 soldiers and 400 women and children started to build 1,500 log huts where they would live for the next six months. At the time, the British were occupying the patriot capital of Philadelphia, just a day"s march away. Already two and a half years into the war, troops knew the harsh winter would stop the fighting, allowing them to organize and avoid mobilizing for several months. Life, however, was still challenging as they lacked funds for fresh food and clothing. There were no battles at Valley Forge, but nearly 2,000 people died from disease during the encampment.
Winter at Valley Forge
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
-
Hemingway’s Keys
-
Thomas Edison s bright idea
-
Autumn’s swan song
-
Wahclella Falls, Oregon
-
Beware the Ides of March
-
National Fossil Day
-
Salmon return to the Copper River
-
A meerkat stands alone
-
Art in the high desert
-
Fall for Chile
-
A cutting-edge art gallery opens in Paris
-
Ravens
-
Happy Star Wars Day!
-
Earth seen from the International Space Station
-
Bringing the moon to Earth
-
Take me to the river
-
Climb a tree for wild animals and plants
-
Traffic jam on the caribou highway
-
Exploring the Pearl of the Atlantic
-
Life in a North African town
-
Celebrate Mandela Day
-
Once upon a time there was a bridge…
-
Castle ruins on the island of Halki, Greece
-
Clouds over the River of Grass
-
Four little birds sitting in a tree…
-
The largest living organism on Earth
-
Venture into a prehistoric gallery of art
-
Dreaming of the Tyrrhenian Sea
-
Amelia Earhart