This pair of cuff links that contain a stamp anchor design were found at the White Hill Mansion site in Fieldsboro, Burlington County, NJ. They were recovered in 2014 during Monmouth University's archaeological survey of the 18th-century property, which contains a large patterned brick mansion, typical of those erected in the Delaware Valley. The cuff links have been owned by Robert Field, a merchant, who was likely responsible for erecting the mansion in the mid-18th century. Robert died on the eve of the American Revolution, leaving his wife, Mary a widow. Alternatively, the cuff links may have been owned by Mary's second husband, Captain Thomas Read, the first Commodore of the Continental Navy. Read resided at White Hill until his death in 1788, again leaving Mary a widow, responsible for ensuring her son, Robert, and daughter, Mary, married into a wealthy family. That year, younger Mary wed Richard Stockton, son of the Richard Stockton who signed the Declaration of Independence. Young Robert Field wed Abigail Stockton. The Stockton family owned a large estate, known as Morven, in Princeton, which stands to present day. The marriages solidified the Field family's economic survival and political relevance.
📸: Michael Gall