The education staff at Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site have created an original board game, “Crossing the Neutral Zone!” about the challenges of living in Westchester County during the American Revolutionary War.
Stretching from the Croton River in the north to Upper Manhattan in the south, players trace a circuitous route through Westchester County and Philipse Manor. Along the way they encounter people and places straight from the real history of the American Revolution.
Players can work in teams to go around battles, avoid being captured as spies, and make their way safely across the so-called Westchester “Neutral Zone.” Participants can play as a Loyalist escaping to the safety of British lines in Manhattan, or as a Patriot escaping the city of New York to the safety of American lines.
The game is designed for ages eight and up, but younger children can partner with adults to play.
Anyone interested in trying the game can meet on Saturday, February 28, 2026, from 10:30 am until 1:30 pm, at 29 Warburton Avenue in Yonkers, NY. Multiple games will be available to play in teams of up to six participants.
Registration is not necessary for this program, which is included with general museum admission. All children must be accompanied by an adult.
After this program the Yonkers Brewing Company (94 Main Street, Yonkers) will host Toast250! Tavern Night, in partnership with Revolutionary Westchester 250.
Philipse Manor Hall staff will bring classic pub games, and participants can enjoy live music, costumed reenactors, and Revolutionary War trivia. Tavern Night runs from 2 pm until 6 pm.
Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site is open for tours Wednesdays through Sundays, 10 am to 5 pm. Dating back to the 1680s, Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site sits near the confluence of the Saw Mill and Hudson Rivers on the former site of a Lenape village.
Used by four generations of the Philipse family and worked by the people they enslaved as well as European tenant farmers, the Philipse Manor was once over 200,000 acres and helped make the Philipse family the richest in New York.
Loyalists during the American Revolution, they fled to England and the Hall was owned by several individuals before becoming the Yonkers Village Hall, later Yonkers City Hall, and was then donated to New York State to serve as a historic site.
Learn more at Philipse Manor Hall’s website at www.philipsemanorhall.com.
Learn more about the American Revolution in New York.
Photo provided.
Source link
