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Dilts Farm

May 24, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Twp, Dilts, Dilts Corner, Families, Rittenhouse Tags: architecture, early settlers, Going, houses, land titles, roads

This article (here somewhat updated) was originally written in 1995 for the Township Committee, back when it was trying to decide what to do with the old farmhouse. Sarah Dilts had left the farm she inherited to the township and it had been turned into a true community park. But the house was a dilemma. How to use it and maintain it? At one point the township committee considered moving the police department there. But that was not feasible, and eventually the house and other structures were taken down. Here is how it looked before that happened.

Nattie Saxton Addendums

May 19, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Twp, Raven Rock Tags: Bull's Island, ferries, mills, Nath'l Saxton

I have just gotten some information that I must add to previously published posts on Nathaniel Saxton of Raven Rock.

The first will be added to Saxton in Raven Rock, as it concerns a business endeavor of his that I was previously unaware of: wool-carding.

The second addendum will be made to Saxton’s Saxtonville, in which an earlier date is found for the use of the village name of Saxtonville–1811, and we learn that Saxton also ran the ferry just south of Saxtonville.

Both of these interesting items were provided by Betty Davis, daughter of Anton and Bertha Schuck, formerly of Raven Rock. Betty, like her mother, is a life-long student of the history of this area.

The Saxtonville Mill Changes Hands

May 9, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Twp, Families, Holcombe, Raven Rock Tags: Bull's Island, mills, Nath'l Saxton

The mill once owned by Mahlon Cooper and Robert Curry in Saxtonville became a hot potato during the War of 1812 and thereafter. It changed hands several times before Nicholas Baird acquired it in 1823.

Note: It has been awhile since I last wrote about life in Raven Rock. Here are the previous posts: Saxton in Raven Rock, Reading Howell’s Map, The Bull’s Island Bridge, and Saxton’s Saxtonville.

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Delaware Township Post Offices

May 5, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Bowne Station, Croton, Delaware Twp, Dilts Corner, Headquarters, Locktown, Prallsville, Raven Rock, Rosemont, Sandbrook, Sergeantsville, Stockton Tags: Bull's Island, post offices

Imagine Delaware Township being served by eleven different post offices, nearly all of them located within the township boundaries. This was necessary in the days before “Rural Free Delivery.” Getting one’s mail involved traveling to the nearest village, and in the process getting up to date on local news from others who were also collecting their mail, and visiting stores and taverns while they were at it. It sounds rather appealing, as long as the weather is nice.

In this article, I have listed the post offices first in chronological order and then alphabetically with their postmasters. I am tempted to add more biographical details, but that would turn this post into a book. Stockton has been included only for the time that it was a part of Delaware Township. It did not become an independent borough until 1898.

Postal Service in Delaware Township

May 3, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Twp, Hunterdon Tags: "The Bridge", post offices

With the future of the American postal system in doubt, I thought I’d take a look at how it all began in New Jersey and here in Delaware Township.

The Bray Inheritance

April 16, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Bray, Delaware Twp, Families, Locktown, Rittenhouse Tags: churches, crime, houses, land titles, portraits, roads

This post is a follow-up to the previous one about the Bray family of Delaware Township, Andrew Bray and Sarah Rittenhouse. That post includes copies of the portraits of Andrew and Sarah Bray by William Bonnell.

Andrew Bray and Sarah Rittenhouse

April 9, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Bray, Delaware Twp, Families, Locktown, Rittenhouse Tags: churches, portraits, roads, schools, The Revolution

I am not ready to write at length about Gen. Daniel Bray. But in order to write about his son Andrew, something must be said of the father.

Hunterdon’s Oldest School House

April 9, 2012 By Marfy Goodspeed in Amwell Twp, Bray, Delaware Twp, Families, Gordon, Heath, Historians, Hoppock, Hunterdon, J. M. Hoppock, Lair, Opdycke, Rittenhouse, Sergeant, Williamson Tags: early settlers, schools

by Jonathan M. Hoppock
published in The Democrat Advertiser, January 25, 1906

This article was written by J. M. Hoppock. I have added corrections and additions in footnotes. Mr. Hoppock’s very specific description of this building, which was demolished long ago, is invaluable to students of the township’s history and early architecture.

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