The Forgotten Poet of the Revolution

The life of poet Philip Freneau always fascinated me.

Let’s put it this way. This Freneau thing – the fact that he lived here in the Garden State, traversed the then farmlands of Monmouth County, and I had never ventured to Matawan to educate myself – has been wearing on me for a while.

“Freneau is not mostly forgotten,” said Borough historian Julius Kish “They (area residents) don’t even know his history. It’s very sad. I wouldn’t put him in the top echelon like Jefferson and Madison, but he was important to their cause.”

And that cause was liberty, freedom and honor for the soon to be United States of America.

Philip Morin Freneau was born in 1752 in New York City, studied locally in Manalapan, and entered Princeton University as a sophomore in 1768. His roommate? James Madison.

Freneau eventually entered the Revolutionary War as a scout after seeing the Battle of Monmouth, but he made more of a statement by pen than pistol. He was lovingly called "The Poet of the American Revolution”, and also referred to by General George Washington as “that rascal Freneau,” but his words had an amazing success in firing up the colonies effort against Great Britain.

“His point was to get rid of the yoke of the British, stand up for your rights, and get the freedom you deserve. He was perhaps the first romantic poet of America – the forerunner and most successful to date,” Kish said.

He was also a married man and father of five children. Although not much of a provider, he was, in Kishs’s words, “a dreamer. All artists are dreamers. It was his calling and he was good at it.”

“Philip Freneau is one of those little known yet very important figures in our history, especially his involvement in the birth of our country," said Robert Montfort, the president of the Matawan Historical Society.

"He rubbed elbows with all the well known players of the time like Washington, Jefferson, and Madison. He was an outspoken patriot against tyranny and oppressive governments, and this was reflected in his sometimes difficult to understand poetry.  At the same time he was an avid naturalist that wrote beautiful poetry about the natural flora of the area.  His life as a publisher was intertwined with the events that not only shaped the town of Matawan and the State of NJ, but more importantly the country,” Montfort said.

In May the historical society presented a one-man show, “Philip Freneau: A Poet’s View”, in honor of Matawan’s 325 Anniversary. Joseph Smith, a performing artist of living history, played the role of Freneau.He hopes to return in the fall and do it again for middle and high school students.

“I had contacted The Matawan Historical Society during the summer of 2009, basically as my part of reaching out to historical societies and museums and explaining what I do and how I can serve their organizations. Julius Kish returned my call, and though I had someone else in mind to portray, it was Julius who mentioned Philip Freneau to me. While I was on the phone with him, I had a book in front of me on the Revolutionary War in New Jersey, and whose name is staring up at me...you guessed it, Philip Freneau.  Sometimes, in my line of work, the person chooses you instead.”

“I have a good collection of his works. I had no idea who he was until we bought the house.” Mike Chartier owns the house 12 Poet Drive where Freneau lived from until 1818 until 1824. He and his wife Linda, originally New Jerseyans, were in Arizona for eleven years, and then moved back, finding the house at the right time.

“It was called the ‘Freneau house,’" recalls Chartier. “But no one knew that much about it. When I got in here, I started doing research about the true life story of the house. The Freneau part is fascinating.”

Montfort doesn’t believe Freneau would find favor with present day Matawan. “Today, Matawan is a small community trying not to get swallowed up my overdevelopment, loss of town center, and the vanishing small business world.  During his time and up to the mid 1800’s, Matawan was a center of not only commerce, both maritime and rail, but also banking in the area.”

Freneau died at age 80 in 1832. After visiting an inn, he became disoriented and fell during a bad snowstorm and froze to death.

He is buried in an elevated, tiny plot along Poet Drive called Locust Grove, which is directly across from the Chartier home. The Borough of Matawan, through its Historic Sites Commission, maintains his cemetery.

The area was farmland his family owned, so he was therefore buried on his property. Now, a paved road runs though the area, and newer homes dot the land. Freneau’s obelisk stands silently beneath trees surrounded by some poison ivy and brush. One can come here and quietly contemplate, but few do. His epitaph:

“Philip Freneau - Died  - December 18th, 1832 - Aged 80 years - 11 months - 6 days - He was a native of New York but for many years a resident of Philadelphia and New Jersey. His upright and benevolent character is in the memory of many and will remain when this inscription is no longer legible. Heaven lifts its everlasting portals high and bids the pure in heart behold their God.”

Julius Kish and I stood looking at the weather worn obelisk.

“Prophetic,” he said, of how Freneau is biographically remembered.

However, his true significance is unknown to many. “Unless a person is interested in Philip Freneau, they’re never going to come here,” says Kish of his burial spot. “They don’t have the desire nowadays to come and learn about this.”