eorge Washington used the Ford Mansion as his military headquarters during the bitter winter of 1779-1780. A century later preservation-minded citizens saved the mansion from an uncertain fate. In 1873 the group bid $25,000 at an auction and saved the old landmark. They expected to hold the property in trust until the state of New Jersey could acquire it as a historical site. However, the legislature opted not to take over the house.

eft to their own resources, the group founded the Washington Association. Their intent was to make the mansion a place where visitors could contemplate the Revolutionary past, and in time of danger, find inspiration.

n opening the mansion to the public in the late 1800s, the Washington Association became one of the first American organizations devoted to the maintenance of a historic site. By the early 1930s, staffing and maintaining the museum became problematic. The Association then pursued the creation a historical park under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government.