Obverse: Monument, above, TRENTON BATTLE MONUMENT. Below, CORNER STONE LAID DEC. 26, 1891 DEDICATED OCT. 19. 1893.
Reverse: Bust of Washington LEFT, TO COMMEMORATE THE BATTLE OF TRENTON, N. J. / DECEMBER 26. 1776. Below the bust, BECHTEL TRENTON.
I've always been intrigued and peeved by early medals with holes. I know the holes were made to make watch fobs, attach to ribbons and pins, and many pieces were made with the hole and are rarely available without a hole. I couldn't resist acquiring this piece with the ribbon intact. To my mind, it makes the hole acceptable!
The medal commemorates the corner stone laying and dedication of the Battle of Trenton Monument. General Washington managed to get his troops across the icy Delaware River on Christmas night, 1776. Two other divisions failed in their attempts to cross the river the same night. Although his forces were only a third of that planned, he engaged the British at Trenton and prevailed after an hour long battle with no American casualties. The battle helped turn the tide against the British. Three years after the battle, colonial secretary of state for King George III, Lord Germain, told Parliament “… all our hopes were blasted by that unhappy affair at Trenton.”
