The Trent House Association will host a talk by Larry Kidder based on  his book, “The Revolutionary World of a Free Black Man – Jacob Francis, 1784-1836.” This free talk will be held during Patriots Week on Thursday, December 26,, 2024, at 2:30 pm in the Trent House Museum Visitor Center. The Museum is located at 15 Market Street, Trenton, with free parking behind the museum property off William Trent Place.

Jacob Francis from Amwell Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey was a free Black man who enlisted in a Massachusetts Continental regiment in October 1775 and served through the siege of Boston, the New York campaign, and the Battle of Trenton. In 2021 Mr. Kidder published The Revolutionary World of a Free Black Man: Jacob Francis, 1754-1836, a biography of Francis’ life and legacy.  In his talk Mr. Kidder will describe the details of Francis’ service and how his service in the Revolutionary War continued to influence the fight for freedom in the new nation. Mr. Kidder will also sign copies of his book.

William (Larry) Kidder is author of many books and articles on the Revolutionary War, particularly in New Jersey, including A People Harassed and Exhausted: The Story of a New Jersey Militia Regiment in the American Revolution; Crossroads of the Revolution: Trenton, 1774-1783; Ten Crucial Days: Washington’s Vision for Victory Unfolds; Revolutionary Princeton 1774-1783: The Biography of an American Town in the Heart of a Civil War. His newest book is Defending Fort Stanwix: A Story of the New York Frontier in the American Revolution, published in November 2024.

The William Trent House Museum is a National Historic Landmark in the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area and on the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route National Historic Trail. The Museum is dedicated to sharing the authentic history of the house, property, and people with our communities, connecting the past with today and tomorrow. Owned by the City of Trenton, it is operated by the Trent House Association, which is supported by the generosity of its donors; by grants from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, the New Jersey Cultural Trust, the New Jersey Historic Trust, the Mercer County Cultural and Heritage Commission with funding from the New Jersey Historical Commission, and the Bunbury Fund and the New Jersey Arts & Culture Renewal Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation; and by contributions from NJM Insurance Group and Orion General Contractors. For more information, visit www.williamtrenthouse.org.