Full – 3 Column – Page 31 – GOODSPEED HISTORIES

A Pirate in Old Amwell

September 12, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Township, Families, Gordon, Heath, Historians Revisited, J. M. Hoppock, Lair, Reading, Sergeantsville, Wolverton Tags: crime and punishment, early settlers, land titles

When writing about Pine Hill Cemetery recently, the name of John Lewis came up. This reminded me of a wonderful article written by Jonathan M. Hoppock back in 1905 about a mysterious character named Ticnor Lewis who lived not far from Pine Hill. It is one of Mr. Hoppock’s most colorful yarns, and one of his many stories of the early settlers in Amwell Township. This one is based entirely on folklore or family tradition. A bowl-full of salt is highly recommended.

Ellicott’s Diary, April 1863

September 11, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Warford Tags: Civil War, Ellicott's Diary

April 1863 was another very difficult month for the country. The biggest news was “affairs at or around Vicksburg.”

Ellicott’s Diary, March 1863

September 5, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Warford Tags: Civil War, Ellicott's Diary

Benjamin H. Ellicott’s diary, continued.¹ See Ellicott’s Diary, January 1863 and Ellicott’s Diary, February 1863. The diary ends in August 1863. For the next five weeks, I will publish a month from the diary.

Pine Hill Cemetery, Revisited

August 30, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Township, Gordon, Sergeant, Sergeantsville, Williamson Tags: cemeteries

Pine Hill Cemetery is one of the most interesting of the old family burial grounds in Hunterdon County. I have written about it before, in an article that listed the known graves with some biographical information. But I had just scratched the surface; there is so much more to be said.

Ellicott’s Diary, February 1863

August 29, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Families, Warford Tags: Civil War, Ellicott's Diary

A difficult month in a difficult year. Benjamin H. Ellicott’s diary, continued, brings us close to the trials and tribulations of Americans in the middle of their Civil War.¹ Previously, I omitted Ellicott’s comments on the weather, but this time I’ve decided to keep them; they seem to enhance the immediacy of time. It’s February, after all, not August.

Fisher-Reading Mansion

August 16, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Fisher, Flemington, Hunterdon, Larison, Reading Tags: architecture, Downtown Flemington, Going, houses, portraits

The Reading Mansion — The Fisher-Reading Mansion at 119 Main Street, Flemington, NJ,  photograph by the Historic American Buildings Survey, 1936

Beautiful, isn’t it? One of the most extraordinary buildings to be found in Flemington, a town with more than its share of great old buildings. It is an outstanding example of Greek Revival architecture.¹

Rittenhouse Road

August 8, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in Delaware Township, Rittenhouse, Sergeantsville Tags: early settlers, maps, roads

Map of Rittenhouse and Buchanan Roads, from Google Maps

There is an odd sort of road in Delaware Township, running south from Sergeantsville, that I have often wondered about. It is called Rittenhouse Road, and for much of its length, it runs straight as an arrow, then suddenly does a zigzag before ending at Sandy Ridge Road.

Quite often the very straight roads in Hunterdon County were created as a result of the early, large proprietary tracts that forced roads to run along their borders. But that is not the case here. This road ran through the middle of Daniel Robins’ 700+ acres, surveyed in 1722.

A Barn Raising Was A Big Event

August 1, 2015 By Marfy Goodspeed in E. T. Bush, Fulper, Green, Historians Revisited, Rittenhouse, Sergeantsville Tags: architecture, old ways

Feeding Fifty Men Was Not Uncommon on Such an Occasion
Eatables in Great Abundance

by Egbert T. Bush, Stockton, N.J.
originally published by the Hunterdon Co. Democrat, July 24, 1930

Note: I have included the punctuation as it appeared in the original article, even though I disagree with the editor’s use of commas, and wonder if that was how Mr. Bush wrote it. Also, when Mr. Bush refers to “the young generation,” he means people born in the late-19th and early 20th-century. Mr. Bush was born in 1848.