February 8, 1840: Cornelia Hancock, the Civil War nurse from Salem County known as the “Florence Nightingale of America” for her work, was born at Hancock’s Bridge. After the Civil War, Hancock became an educator and pioneering social worker. She lived a long, fruitful and socially useful life before dying in Atlantic City in 1927.
February 8, 1862: The 9th New Jersey Infantry became the first New Jersey unit engaged in a battle, as opposed to a skirmish, in the Civil War. At the battle of Roanoke Island, North Carolina, the regiment charged through a swamp, gaining the 9th’s men the nickname “Jersey Muskrats.” The Muskrats lost 9 men killed and 25 wounded in the fight. Among the dead was Captain Joseph Henry, the first New Jersey officer killed in action in the Civil War.
February 8,1991: The USS New Jersey was de-commissioned for the final time.
