Waterford’s Revolutionary Footprints: The Matlack Family, a Colonial Waterford Farm & the Scribe of the Declaration of Independence
October 7 @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
What began as research into Richard Matlack, an early Chosen Freeholder of Waterford Township, led the Waterford Township Historical Society to uncover a fascinating connection between colonial Waterford and one of the most recognizable documents in American history.
Join the Waterford Township Historical Society as we trace the Matlack family from William Matlack’s arrival in West Jersey aboard the Kent in 1677 to the family’s 200-acre tract within the original boundaries of Waterford Township. Learn about Richard Matlack’s life, land, and service in early local government—and the family connection to his nephew, Colonel Timothy Matlack, the master penman credited with engrossing the Declaration of Independence on parchment in 1776.
The presentation will also explore how changing township and county boundaries transformed the landscape over nearly three centuries, taking land once located in Waterford Township, Gloucester County, into present-day Cherry Hill, Camden County.
Presented as part of the Waterford Township Historical Society’s “Waterford’s Revolutionary Footprints” initiative, the program will feature historical records, maps, genealogy, and the Society’s recent research as we explore an overlooked connection between local history and the story of American independence.
