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.
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.
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.