Built in 1758 to house British troops during the French and Indian Wars, the U-shaped Barracks and its attached Officers House were occupied by Hessian soldiers and local Loyalists on the morning of December 26, 1776. It served as a Continental Army hospital in 1777 and was part of the first successful mass inoculation against smallpox. Visitors to the restored Barracks encounter historical interpreters enacting the lives of 18th century soldiers, officers, surgeons, matrons of hospital and Loyalists. Both common Barrack rooms and the more refined Officers' Quarters are part of the tour, as are surgical and medical recovery rooms, an exhibit gallery, a large reproduction outdoor bake oven and the parade ground. The role of African-Americans in both Patriot and Loyalist forces is part of the interpretation.

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