Saddlehill Winery Showcases Its Ties to Declaration of Independence

Just 13 miles from Independence Hall, a South Jersey winery has uncovered one of the region's most remarkable untold connections to America's founding document — and to the man who physically wrote it.

Historical research conducted in early 2026 and reviewed by the Camden County Historical Society has documented a direct genealogical and land-ownership connection between Saddlehill Cellars — a 70-acre estate winery and farm at 1407 White Horse Road in Voorhees — and the family of Timothy Matlack Jr., the patriot scribe who engrossed the official parchment copy of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

The Matlack family owned approximately 1,500 acres across what is now Camden County beginning in 1701, including the elevated ridge tract then known as Sand Hills in present-day Voorhees. That land passed through the Wilkins family — who bear the Matlack name in their own genealogical records — and ultimately to John Stafford, a member of Washington's personal Life Guard, who settled the Sand Hills tract and established what is now Saddlehill.

"When I bought this property, the local legend was that George Washington gifted the land to one of his soldiers," said Bill Green, owner of Saddlehill Cellars. "It turns out that story was wrong — but what we actually found was bigger. The real history connects three Revolutionary families on one piece of ground: the Scribe who wrote the Declaration, the Sword who guarded Washington, and the Shield that watched over the region from the Ridge."

The Scribe: Timothy Matlack Jr. — the "Fighting Quaker" born in Haddonfield, N.J., who handwrote the official parchment of the Declaration of Independence — was the nephew of John Matlack, whose family owned the Camden County tract from 1701.

The Sword: John Stafford, a member of Washington's elite personal Life Guard, came to hold the Sand Hills tract through marriage into the Wilkins family — not, as local legend has long held, as a gift from Washington himself.

The Shield: Known as "The Ridge," the property's 150-foot elevation — the highest point in the immediate region — provided a direct sightline toward Philadelphia, making it a natural strategic vantage point during the British occupation of 1777–1778.

To bring this 250-year-old story to life, Saddlehill produced a 15-minute cinematic documentary using cutting-edge AI generation — recreating Revolutionary-era scenes with a realism that has never before been possible for a local history project. "The Scribe, The Sword & The Shield: Three Revolutionary Lives. One Piece of Ground. A Story 250 Years in the Making" places viewers inside the room where Matlack wrote the Declaration, on the battlefield at Germantown, and on the Ridge itself as British troops moved through South Jersey. The result is a film that looks and feels like a major production — built by a winery, on a piece of ground where the history actually happened.

The official premiere will be on July 4, every 30 minutes from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Saddlehill Cellars, 1407 White Horse Road, Voorhees, NJ 08043. Admission is free, no tickets are required.