Bainbridge House

The Bainbridge House, located on Nassau Street in Princeton, New Jersey, is one of the town’s oldest surviving structures, built in 1766 by Job Stockton, a prosperous tanner and cousin of Declaration of Independence signer Richard Stockton. This Georgian-style brick townhouse originally served as both a residence and place of business and later became known as the birthplace of Commodore William Bainbridge, a U.S. Navy officer famed for his command of the USS Constitution during the War of 1812.

During the American Revolution, Princeton was the site of significant activity, including the 1777 Battle of Princeton, and the Bainbridge House stood witness to the upheaval and military movement surrounding the conflict. In the 20th century, it housed the Princeton Public Library and later the Historical Society of Princeton, which preserved the site and interpreted its layered history. Today, the Bainbridge House remains a vital architectural and historical landmark, representing colonial domestic life, Revolutionary War-era Princeton, and early American naval heritage.