John Abbott II House
Situated in the shadow of Veterans Park, this elegant historic site still houses a secret involving patriot funds hidden from the British as they were advancing on Trenton in November of 1776. Abbott, a bachelor 87 years old when he died in 1795 lived in the house built in 1730 by his father and located then on the North side of Crosswicks Creek.
During the American Revolution, Samuel Tucker, the state treasurer, fleeing the British advance on Trenton, removed the money in his care to the home of John Abbott II. The location of the funds was betrayed by Mrs. Mary Pointing, who led a 500-strong detachment of British troops to the house. In ransacking the home, the soldiers discovered Tucker’s trunk with his personal effects and £1500 in unsigned paper money. However, the specie money was hidden by the family in the bottom of tubs in the cellar, covered with broken dishes and household utensils. The tubs escaped close inspection and the money was kept from British hands.