The Old Barracks Museum has acquired the Donald Londahl-Smidt Research Collection. The collection, focused on the Hessian and English forces fighting in America during the American Revolution, is the legacy of the late Donald M. Londahl-Smidt of Montvale, New Jersey.
Londahl-Smidt was a Revolutionary War military and naval historian, specializing in the Hessian and other German soldiers who served with the British forces in North America. He authored “German Troops in the American Revolution(1): Hessen-Cassel” and a number of articles focused on the Hessians. He presented lectures at historical societies and museums, Revolutionary War roundtables, libraries and other venues.
All of this work was based on the impressive personal research collection he assembled, including images of original manuscripts in both English and German, period artwork, rare published histories of German and English regiments, and close to one thousands reels of microfilm of manuscripts from the British War Office, British Colonial Office, Cornwallis Papers, and newspapers from America, England, and Germany among many others. Fluent in German and able to translate the old German script, he also had in his collection his transcriptions and translations of numerous Hessian documents, many of which have never been published.
Born in 1933 in Mount Vernon, New York, and raised in Queens, Londahl-Smidt graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, with a bachelor of science in political science and the University of Delaware with a master of arts degree in history. He served for 28 years as an officer in the United States Air Force, 12 years on active duty and 16 in the Reserves, retiring in 1983 as a lieutenant colonel.
In civilian life, he was a vice president at Chemical Bank and a first vice president of National Community Bank of New Jersey. Most importantly, he was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. Londahl-Smidt’s children selected the Old Barracks Museum to be the new home for their father’s collection.
Michelle Doherty, the Old Barracks Museum’s executive director, noted the importance of the gift to the museum. “As we approach the 250th anniversary of both the Declaration of Independence and the Battles of Trenton which inspired faith in our independence, the Old Barracks Museum is reexamining our understanding of the battles and expanding our view of the participants on all sides. The Londahl-Smidt Collection will transform our ability to study and share the stories of the German and English forces who fought at Trenton and throughout the Revolution.”
The collection has been returned to the Old Barracks after conservation work was completed, but it is not yet ready for researchers. Mark A. Turdo, assistant director of interpretation and curation said “We are honored to be the new stewards of Don’s collection. We need to ensure that it is organized and accessible. We are taking time to get the collection inventoried and rehoused before we make it available for research. We plan to roll out portions of the collection as they are ready” In the meantime, the Old Barracks is assembling staff and resources for the project.
The Old Barracks is located at 101 Barrack Street, Trenton. More information: www.barracks.org.
