How much time do you need to spend at Valley Forge? (2024)

FAQs

How much time do you need to spend at Valley Forge? ›

It's not a battlefield where you could spend the entire day discussing the strategies and the hows and whys of victory and defeat. You'll stop at the main two sites, and 90 minutes is more than enough time for the guide to tell you everything you could possibly want to know about the Valley Forge Encampment.

Our self-guided Valley Forge park tour should take you between two and three hours, although you're encouraged to set your own pace. However, if you're planning on seeing all the exhibits and really taking your time, you can expect to spend five or six hours really exploring everything.

Driving the route in your own vehicle can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 2-3 hours to complete, depending on how often you stop and how much time you spend at each location. The route features some of the most scenic views of the park as well as many of the historic sites and monuments.

Why Visit. An essential stop for anyone interested in delving into the American Revolution, the monuments, statues and buildings that comprise Valley Forge National Historical Park evoke more than 240 years of American history. The outbuildings — some authentic — bring that pivotal winter to life.

Valley Forge is the location of the 1777-1778 winter encampment of the Continental Army led by General George Washington during the American Revolutionary War.

Lack of food, living conditions, and horrid climate are some reasons of why a soldier would quit Valley Forge. One reason a soldier would quit Valley Forge is the lack of food. The lack of food is a dreadful hardship the soldiers have to deal with. This hardship brings about not just hunger but many other factors.

Valley Forge, 1777-1778

It was here, over the winter of 1777 and 1778, that 11,000 of Washington's Continental Army faced one of its most trying episodes. While rain, snow, and cold temperatures afflicted the army, the situation was made far worse by the lack of shelter, blankets, winter coats, and even shoes.

Most visitors arrive by car or tour bus and drive the 10-mile Encampment Tour route to see the park's nine historical attractions.

One of the main attractions in Montco is Valley Forge National Historical Park , where you can retrace the steps of the nation's first president, George Washington, and the Continental Army.

Valley Forge National Historical Park is open year-round, has no entrance fees, and welcomes around two million visitors each year. Historic buildings, statues and monuments, and 35 miles of trails can be found in this beautiful 3,500-acre landscape.

How many people died in Valley Forge? ›

In total, about 1,700–2,000 troops died during the Valley Forge encampment, mostly at general hospitals located in six different towns. Valley Forge had the highest mortality rate of any Continental Army encampment, and even most military engagements of the war.

There are no entrance fees at Valley Forge!

Valley Forge is also filled with many log cabins. None of the cabins are original cabins constructed by Washington's Army, but rather 20th Century reproductions of those historic log huts (cabins).

The park features 3,500 acres of meadows, woodlands, and monuments commemorating the sacrifices and perseverance of the Revolutionary War generation and honoring the power of people to pull together and overcome adversity during extraordinary times.

Washington chose Valley Forge as the winter encampment for his 11,000 men along with approximately 500 women and children who accompanied them for several reasons. First, the lay of the land made Valley Forge a natural fortress. The army's camp sat high on a plateau at the top of a series of hills that protected it.

The most common killers were influenza, typhus, typhoid and dysentery. Nearly 2,000 American soldiers died of disease during the winter of 1777-1778.

The park features 3,500 acres of meadows, woodlands, and monuments commemorating the sacrifices and perseverance of the Revolutionary War generation and honoring the power of people to pull together and overcome adversity during extraordinary times.

While food and clothing shortages brought hardship to Valley Forge, most soldiers perished from disease, not cold or starvation. Two-thirds of the men who perished during the encampment died during the warmer months of March, April and May when supplies were more abundant but disease was running rampant.

Valley Forge National Historical Park is open year-round, has no entrance fees, and welcomes around two million visitors each year. Historic buildings, statues and monuments, and 35 miles of trails can be found in this beautiful 3,500-acre landscape.

There are no entrance fees at Valley Forge!