Bringing American Revolution stories to life
Bringing American Revolution stories to life
June 25, 2026
Historian Jennifer Janofsky and graduate student Cameron Wilburn examine material during the department's Field School, hosted at Red Bank Battlefield Park.
Jennifer Janofsky, Ph.D.
Historian
Areas of expertise:
American Revolution, public history, historic research
Jennifer Janofsky, Megan Giordano Fellow and professor of public history in the Ric Edelman College of Communication, Humanities & Social Sciences, painstakingly pieces together the stories of diverse participants caught in the crossfire of the American Revolution.
A stunning clue emerged in 2022, when volunteers unearthed a human bone during a public archeological dig at Gloucester County’s Red Bank Battlefield Park. This led to the discovery of a mass burial of 15 Hessian soldiers killed during the 1777 Battle of Red Bank, capturing international attention.
Since then, a national team of forensic anthropologists, bioarcheologists, historians and other experts have drawn on historical research, archeological evidence and scientific studies to flesh out the soldiers’ stories, “literally recovering history from the ground,” said Janofsky, who is park director.
The team hopes to complete ancient DNA analysis soon and pair it with stable isotope studies of the teeth. “Teeth have a unique chemical signature that can tell a lot about your lived experience, your background and place of origin,” Janofsky said.
The New Jersey State Police created facial reconstructions of two soldiers. “We don’t want people to see them as a pile of bones,” Janofsky said. “We want people to see them as human beings who never planned on being unceremoniously dumped in a ditch in New Jersey in the American Revolution.”
The findings have ignited the public’s curiosity. “People are so fascinated by the intersection of science and history. It’s like a real-world CSI project,” said Janofsky, whose team is preparing a book proposal on the project.
Public engagement differentiates the project and has shaped its trajectory.
“When we saw how excited people were to tell the story of America’s enemy in a way that’s empathetic and sympathetic, it set us on the course to where we are today,” Janofsky said.
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