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Ringwood Manor and its surrounding 479 acres, including the historic cemetery, became a national historic landmark district in 1966. The Ringwood Manor district and the nearby Skylands Manor comprise Ringwood State Park.

The history of Ringwood is rooted in its colonial era ironworks. Robert Erskine took over as ironmaster just as the Revolutionary War broke out. George Washington named Erskine ‘Geographer and Surveyor General of the Continental Army.’ Erskine kept the forges running to supply the Continental Army.

Erskine died while on a map making expedition. He lies in a large brick and stone tomb in the historic cemetery at Ringwood. His clerk, Robert Monteath, lies beside him in a similar tomb.

Another grouping of three large tombs lies closer to Sally’s pond for John and Ann Hewitt and their son John Jr. The Hewitts built the manor into the grand estate it became. The last Hewitt heir, Erskine, donated it to the state in 1936.

Smaller markers surround the tombs, though many have not survived over time. Experts put the estimate at 75-300 people buried in the historic cemetery. The earliest markers date to the mid 1700s. Aside from the Erskine-Hewitt section there is a Morris & Banigan section and a third section for Revolutionary War Soldiers.

Location: 1304 Sloatsburg Rd, Ringwood, NJ 07456
Designation: National Historic Landmark District, State Park
Date designated/established: November 13, 1966
Date of my visit: August 8, 2020