Mercer County: Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its county seat is Trenton, also the state capital, prompting the nickname The Capital County. Mercer County alone constitutes the Trenton–Princeton Metropolitan Statistical Area and is considered part of the New York Metropolitan Area by the United States Census Bureau, but also directly borders the Philadelphia metropolitan area and is included within the Federal Communications Commission's Philadelphia Designated (media) Market Area. As of the 2020 census, Mercer County's population was 387,340, making it the state's 12th-most populous county, an increase of 20,827 (5.7%) from the 2010 census when its population was 366,513. History Founded February 22, 1838, from portions of surrounding counties, Mercer County has a historical impact that reaches back to the pivotal battles of the American Revolutionary War. On the night of December 25–26, 1776, General George Washington led American forces across the Delaware River to attack the Hessian forces in the Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26, also known as the First Battle of Trenton. Following the battle, Washington crossed back to Pennsylvania. He crossed a third time in a surprise attack on the forces of General Charles Cornwallis at the Battle of the Assunpink Creek, on January 2, 1777, also known as the Second Battle of Trenton, and at the Battle of Princeton on January 3. The successful attacks built morale among the pro-independence colonists. Ewing Church Cemetery in Ewing is one of the oldest cemeteries in the area, having served the Ewing community for 300 years. It is home to the burial places of hundreds of veterans from The Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War. |