When researching history, I find that you can start off with a plan, but before long one thing will lead to another, or even several ‘anothers,’ that are completely unexpected. Which makes it challenging to stay on course. That was definitely the case while I was preparing this chapter.
The Stewarts of Flemington
This is technically part four of the County House series, even though it does not directly concern the old tavern/hotel.
Samuel Stewart and Anna Smith had an interesting connection with each other and with Flemington’s courthouse and Alexander’s tavern, as well as other 18th-century residents of the town. If you haven’t yet read PART THREE of my series, The County House, I strongly recommend that you do that first.
The Freeholders’ Surprise
PART 3 of THE COUNTY HOUSE
During the years 1791-1793, a new courthouse for Hunterdon County was constructed in Flemington. Before it was finished, a complication emerged that connected the courthouse lot with Alexander’s tavern on Main Street.
Construction began after June 1, 1791, when a large gathering took place in Flemington to celebrate. The event was reported on June 22, 1791 in The Gazette of United States.1
A Tavern & A Courthouse
PART 2 of THE COUNTY HOUSE
The history of a hotel that once stood on the west side of Flemington’s Main Street has quickly turned into something much more. Part One began with Flemington’s first European property owners and ended with the Revolution. This article goes on from there, but only as far as the 1790s, when Hunterdon County acquired a new courthouse.
The County House
Part One of a series on the origins of the west side of Main Street, Flemington, from the courthouse, north.
This is one of my favorite photographs.1 The building is Mount’s Hotel on Flemington’s Main Street, across from and a little north of the Union Hotel. It was replaced in the 1970s by the group of shops called ‘New Market,’ built by Don Shuman.
Larason’s Tavern
For some time, I have been writing articles about the early taverns in Hunterdon County, knowing how important they were to both travelers on Hunterdon’s earliest roads and the communities that built up around them. One of the taverns on my to-do list was Larason’s Tavern on the Old York Road north of Ringoes. Fortunately, Dave Harding, administrator of the Hunterdon County Historical Society, did the job for me. His history of the tavern appeared in the most recent issue of the Hunterdon Historical Record (vol. 59, no.1), the Historical Society’s regular newsletter.
With Dave’s permission, I am reprinting the article here along with some footnotes and additional information at the end. This has been a real treat for us both.
Pittstown Inn, part 3
Part Two of my history of the Pittstown Inn ended with the death of Moore Furman in 1808. Part three will describe the Inn’s 19th century owners and its innkeepers—quite often not the same people.
Pittstown Inn, part two
I ended part one of the Pittstown Inn when the Revolution came to an end. The Treaty of Paris was finally signed on September 3, 1783, thanks to the efforts of America’s representative at the negotiations, Benjamin Franklin.
The next stage in the history of the Pittstown tavern should cover the years from 1783 to 1800, when the tavern’s owner, Moore Furman, began thinking about replacing the old tavern house with a new one.
The question becomes—what was going on with the tavern between those years? Much to my dismay, I can say next to nothing about what was going on with the tavern. Clearly, there were tavernkeepers at work there while the owner, Furman, had returned to his home in Trenton.
Pittstown Inn, part one
In her excellent book All Roads Lead to Pittstown (2015),1 Stephanie Stevens called attention to the early roads that converged on the village of Pittstown. Roads were certainly important, but just as important were creeks in creating the locations of Hunterdon villages.
In the 18th century, there were very few power sources. It was basically wood (a lot of it) and water. The water powered sawmills for shaping lumber into wood for building, grain mills to turn wheat into flour, and fulling mills to clean and prepare wool for spinning into yarn.2
It was the fulling mill of Edward Rockhill that gave Pittstown its start.
Quakertown’s Taverns
There was a time when the sleepy little village of Quakertown was a lively place, back when it had two taverns. I learned this from Egbert T. Bush, who wrote a couple articles about the village.
Since I am focusing on taverns these days, I will publish parts of Mr. Bush’s first article on the village, the parts concerning its taverns.
Interesting Facts About Quakertown
by Egbert T. Bush, Stockton, N.J.
Hunterdon Co. Democrat, February 27, 1930There are so many interesting points about Quakertown that one does not know where to begin.