New Jersey is a state filled with a rich history, aided by the fact that it was one of the 13 original colonies and it played a major role in the Revolutionary War. Many people in New Jersey have probably walked the same path as George Washington at one point or another.

So with such a storied history, NJ Advance Media decided to see if we could track down some of the most interesting items made in New Jersey throughout its history.

After consulting with the New Jersey State Museum, we've selected 10 items that are uniquely tied to the Garden State.

The New Jersey State Museum

Friendship Quilt, 1845

This quilt was made by students at the New Brunswick Female Institute for their teacher Hannah Hoyt.

Hoyt founded the Institute in the 1840s in order to teach subjects like arithmetic, geography, Latin and philosophy to young women ages 12 to 18. The school became known throughout the Northeast simply as “Hannah Hoyt’s Seminary.”

The graduating class of 1845 made this quilt as a parting gift for their teacher. The center of the quilt is filled with notes from the students to Holt. Quilts such as these were very popular in the 19th century. Each woman would personalize the gift by adding ink inscriptions to one the quilt squares. A square on this quilt reads:

“We have formed for thee a bouquet

A keepsake near thy heart to lay

Because ‘tis there we know full well

That charity and kindness dwell. We have formed for thee a bouquet

A keepsake near thy heart to lay

Because ‘tis there we know full well

That charity and kindness dwell.“

According to records, the quilt was one of Hoyt’s most cherished possessions, and it appeared in an estate sale at the time of her death in 1871.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Camp Dix Handkerchief, circa 1917

One of New Jersey’s most important contributions to World War I was being the site of Fort Dix.

Camp Dix, as it was known, served as one of the key training grounds for soldiers before they went onto the battlefield, and also received troops that were returning from Europe.

The inscription on this silk handkerchief captures some of the emotions associated with separating from loved ones during wartime. It was one of a number of souvenirs offered to men who trained at the fort to purchase and send back home.

Many New Jerseyans made up the 78th Infantry Division during World War I. The 78th was nicknamed “The Lightning Division” at Camp Dix. Officers selected the name from a list of hundreds of suggestions submitted to the Camp Dix Times by enlisted men.

William Hicks came up with the winning name. He was inspired by the famous applejack whiskey “white lightning,” which was produced in Central Jersey.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Hercules Ferris Wheel Tinplate Toy, circa 1935

The J. Chein and Company was one of the largest U.S.-based manufacturers of tinplate toys during the 1920s and 1930s. The company’s factory was in Harrison.

Julius Chein, a Russian immigrant, founded the company. After his death in 1926, his wife, Elizabeth Hoffman Chein, asked her brother, Sammuel Hoffman, to take over running the company.

Hoffman’s family ties to Coney Island inspired many of the toymaker’s creations, and led to him designing a line of amusement park-themed mechanical toys.

The first toy in this line was the Hercules Ferris Wheel in Hoffman’s favorite colors red and yellow.

The company later moved its factory from Harrison to a 75,000-square-foot plant in Burlington City. Soon after the move, the company began producing its popular merry-go-round toy.

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The New Jersey State Museum

National Color, circa 1861

This flag was raised by the 3rd Infantry Regiment when it first mustered at Camp Olden in Trenton on June 4, 1861. The regiment was made up of volunteers from the Garden State.

The flag was flown as part of the famous First New Jersey Brigade during the Civil War and was made by Horstmann Brothers of Philadelphia.

It has a unique canton design commonly seen on Pennsylvania flags that consists of an abbreviated state seal with 17 stars above and 17 stars below. This flag saw action in all the battles inscribed on its stripes, including the Battle of Gettysburg. It was retired in the summer of 1863.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Kast, circa 1775, made by James Garretson

New Jersey has deep Dutch roots as evidenced by the names of a number of New Jersey municipalities, including Teaneck, Dreahook, Bradevelt, Tenafly and Paulins Kill.

The Dutch were first European residents of New Jersey and established their first settlement in the Bergen County area in the 1600s. From there, they moved around the state by traveling along the Hackensack, Passaic and Raritan rivers.

The settlers also brought with them their distinct piece of furniture known as a kast. Designed for holding linens, the kast is meant to resemble the shape of a double doorway and is flanked by two columns and topped by a cornice. Because of its large size, kasts often stayed in the same family home for generations, and were a symbol of ancestral pride fro the Dutch.

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The New Jersey State Museum

The Trenton Vase, 1904

George Washington sailing across the icy Delaware River on the eve of the Battle of Trenton is one of the most iconic images of the Revolutionary War.

The image was recreated on this vase in 1904 by the Trenton Potteries Company and was displayed as a representation of New Jersey at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in Saint Louis.

The urn’s artist, Lucien Boullemier, used the famous painting of the crossing as his inspiration. A composite work of five skilled craftsmen, the urn required seven kiln firings in order to bring out the brilliant colors.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Ceramic Portrait Tile depicting Grover Cleveland, circa 1890

This ceramic tile depicting Grover Cleveland has two links to New Jersey. First, the C. Pardee Works in Perth Amboy, which created the tile, was known for creating portraits on tile of famous political leaders.

The second link is Cleveland is the only New Jersey native to be elected president. He is also the only president to have served two non-consecutive terms. He was born Stephen Grover Cleveland in Caldwell on March 18, 1837. The home he was born in is now a state-owned historic site.

Art tiles like these were made by many companies both in the vicinity of Perth Amboy and in Trenton. The Garden State was a national leader in the production of American ceramics.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Cranberry scoop, circa 1915

At the turn of the 20th century, New Jersey was the second leading producer of cranberries in the nation. Prosperous cranberry bogs were located throughout Burlington County and other parts of South Jersey.

Scoops such as this one were used by farm workers – many of them immigrants from Italy – to collect cranberries.

One of the state’s largest cranberry-growing operation was started by Joseph J. White, a national leader in the industry. His daughter, Elizabeth Coleman White, worked on the family cranberry bogs and later developed pioneering techniques in the cultivation of the blueberry.

Today, New Jersey is still known for its cranberry and blueberry production, and Whitesbog Village in Browns Mills is a historical site dedicated to preserving this history.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Bisque Doll, circa 1918-1921

When World War I put a halt to shipments of German-made porcelain dolls, Martin Stangl of the Fulper Pottery Company in Flemington oversaw the production of a line of doll heads in order to keep children happy with new toys.

Fulper suppied unglazed cermaic heads known as bisque to the Colonial Doll Company, Amberg Doll Compnay and the Horsman Doll Company, which finished putting the dolls together.

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The New Jersey State Museum

Fairy Skin Baby Doll, circa 1946

This baby doll from the Horsoman Doll Company has latex arms and legs and a soft, molded vinyl head that the company called Vinylite. The material was known as “Fairy Skin” because of its realistic look and texture.

At the time its factory was called the “World’s Largest Dollhouse,” after the Regal Doll of Trenton acquired Horsman Doll Corporation in 1933.

From the 1930s until the 1950s, Regal and Horsman doll lines were manufactured at a 1,200-worker factory in the Chambersburg neighborhood of Trenton. The company employed hundreds of women to handle the delicate job of assembling and finishing the dolls. The Trenton Horsman doll factory closed in 1960 and production moved to the south.

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This article is part of "Unknown New Jersey," an ongoing series that highlights interesting and little-known stories about our past, present, and future -- all the unusual things that make our great state what is it. Got a story to pitch? Email it to local@njadvancemedia.com.

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Olivia Rizzo may be reached at orizzo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @LivRizz. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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