Chapter XVI
The Township of Centre
Surface and Soil - Early Settlers and Descendants - The Huggs, Brownings, Hillmans, Hinchmans Thornes, Glovers and later Comers - Civil History - Village of Snow Hill - Societies - Churches - Magnolia - Guinea Town - Mount Ephraim.
TOPOGRAPHY. - This township is bounded as follows: On the north, by Haddon township, from which it is separated by the south branch of Newton Creek; on the northeast by Delaware township, separated in part by a branch of Coopers Creek; on the east and south by Gloucester township; on the south and west by Deptford township, in Gloucester County, being separated there from by Great Timber Creek; and on the west by Gloucester City.
The general surface of the township is level, though elevated in some localities to have the appearance of hills, chief among which are Mount Ephraim and Irish Hill. The latter was used before the era of telegraphs for signal purposes, being one of a number of places in a chain of communication from Wilmington to New York. On Irish Hill a tall oak-tree was used as the base of a station, which was supplied with colored lights at night and shutters in daytime to communicate the news of the owners of the line. It is said to have been used chiefly by sporting men, who took this means to apprise their friends of the result of a lottery or a horse-race, often reaping large sums by reason of having the earliest news. At this place is a valuable deposit of clay, which has been only partially developed.
The soil of Centre township, generally, is a sandy loam, and, with careful cultivation, is very productive. The drainage is afforded by the boundary streams and Beaver Branch and Little Timber Creeks, both flowing into Great Timber Creek, which is a tidal stream. Valuable meadows have been made along these streams (where the first settlements were made) by means of dykes and dams, and here are found some of the most desirable farms in Camden County. In some localities are areas of porous sand, making the soil nonproductive for some crops, but the same section has been made to yield rich returns in the hands of the fruit-grower and market-gardener. Much attention has been directed, within late years, to those interests, and the value of the lands has been proportionately increased. The township has good roads, being traversed by the Blackwoodtown and White Horse turnpikes from north to south, and old highways from east to west.
EARLY SETTLEMENT, EARLY SETTLERS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS. - None of the early settlers within the area now embraced in the township of Centre had more landed possessions or enjoyed greater prominence than the Huggs. At one time all the land lying between the Little Timber Creek and the main creek of that name, for a distance of three miles, was owned by members of the Hugg family. The name Hugg is of Irish origin. John Hugg, one of the early settlers, came from the parish of Castle Ellis, in Ireland. He was a Friend, and, though not a partner in the enterprises which brought many Friends to this country at that period, was yet a person of considerable means. His first settlement was on five hundred acres of land (lying at the junction of the two streams) which he purchased of Robert Zane in 1683, and a part of which he then devised to his grandson, William Hugg, who did not come into possession of it until some fifty years later. His first residence stood where the Little Timber Creek flows into Great Timber Creek. From it a view of the Delaware River was afforded, as well as much of the stream before his house. He established a landing, which had the character of a public place for many years, and where considerable shipping is yet done. The place where the house of John Hugg stood is regarded by some antiquaries as the site of old Fort Nassau, which was built by the Dutch in 1623, when they first attempted a settlement on the Delaware. It is said that some pieces of Dutch brick and pottery were here found after the lapse of more than two hundred and forty years, which indicated this spot as the possible site of that historical fortification. Whatever doubts may attach to such a belief; it is well known that John Hugg lived there until his death, in 1706. He had four sons, namely, John and Elias, who both married daughters of Francis Collins, Joseph and Charles being younger. They were also of adult age when John Hugg took up his home here in Centre township, as they soon after settled around him and became prominent citizens.
John Hugg, Jr., was very active in public affairs. "For six years, from 1695, he was one of the judges of the courts of Gloucester County, and, for ten years, was a member of the Governor’s Council, which is evidence of his worth as a just and upright man."
From 1726 to 1730 he was sheriff of the county, which was probably his last service in a public capacity. Between 1696 and 1710 he located several tracts of land between the Great and Little Timber Creeks, extending nearly to the head of the latter and across to the former, including what was lately known as the Crispin Farm. It is believed that he resided in that locality, where he had the advantages of navigation, and a great breadth of meadow lands could be secured by building a bank along the stream to prevent their overflow by the tide. This place was called "Plain Hope," but, in 1811, when Samuel L. Howell was the owner, the name was "Marlboro’ Farm," which title it retained for years.
William Crispin, an Englishman, became the owner of this place in 1846, and added to its improvements. He was also the owner of the adjoining farm, known as the "Parker Place," each having about two hundred acres. The meadows on these lands cause them to be among the most valuable farms in the township.
John Hugg was noted for the number of slaves he owned, many of the colored people in this township having descended from those who were formerly in his service. From all accounts he must have been a kind master, as his slaves considered it a great honor to be servants in the Hugg family. In 1709 he sold one of his negro boys (Sambo), to John Hinchman, as is elsewhere noted.
The death of John Hugg occurred in 1730 and is thus described by Smith, in his "History of New Jersey," -
"In this year died John Hugg, Esq., of Gloucester City. He was about ten years one of the Council. Riding from home one morning, he was supposed to be taken ill about a mile from his house, when, getting off his horse, he spread his cloak on the ground to lie down on, and having put his gloves under the saddle and hung his whip through one of the rings, he turned his horse loose, which, going home, put the people upon searching, who found him in this circumstance speechless; they carried him to his house and he died that evening."He died respected by all who knew him, leaving to survive him a second wife and the following named children: Mary (married to Thomas Lippincott), Sarah, Priscilla, Hannah, Joseph, Gabriel, John, Elias and Jacob. John died when yet young and Elias without children.
Elias Hugg, the brother of John and son of the emigrant, lived in the house occupied before him by his father and probably kept a store to supply the wants of the people of those days, whiskey and tobacco being staple commodities. As many of his customers were watermen, "his premises, no doubt, furnished the scene of many carousals among them when detained by wind and tide."
The large landed estates of the Huggs in this township, after passing to the second and third generations, eventually ceased to be owned by any of the lineal descendants of the family and for many years no male members by the name have remained in the vicinity.
In the course of years part of the original Hugg tract became the property of Isaac Browning, the youngest son of George Browning, who emigrated to this country from Holland before 1752, and who settled in what is now Stockton township. There Isaac was born, December 1, 1775, and at the time of his death lived at the mouth of Timber Creek. He had three sons and two daughters, namely Joshua P., George Benjamin, Cooper P., Mary and Catherine. The first-named son, lived on the homestead of his father several years, when he moved to Haddonfield. He was married to Amelia, a daughter of John Clement, and was an influential man in the interest of public improvements. In Centre township the Brownings were progressive citizens and the landing on the creek is still known by their name.
In 1697 John Hillman purchased one hundred and seventy acres of land of Francis Collins, adjoining the estate of John Gill, where he settled. His land lay on both sides of the Haddonfield road to Snow Hill, and his house stood near the present Chapman residence. As the old Egg Harbor road passed by his house, he kept a tavern, but his place did not become noted as a resort, in the sense that attached to some of the taverns of that period; since the travel was comparatively light. A short distance below this house two roads diverged, one going to Salem by way of Clements Bridge, and the other towards the shore.
The soil here is light and the place was no doubt selected on account of the ease with which a clearing might be made, as the growth of timber in these sandy places was never very heavy.
In 1720 John Hillman devised this tract of land to his son John, who, however, settled in Gloucester township, near the White Horse Tavern. His son Joseph lived on the homestead some time, but in 1760, sold to Daniel Scull, of Egg Harbor. Thus, for more than a hundred years, this property has been out of the name of Hillman, and, being now the site of the hamlet of Snow Hill, has been disposed of to many owners.
Daniel Hillman, a brother of John, who settled in Gloucester, located on a tract of one hundred acres of land which had been surveyed for William Sharp in 1701. He gradually extended his estate towards the south, while it joined the lands of the Clarks on the west, and those of the Albertsons on the east. His house stood on what became the Howell estate and was a plain log building. In 1754 Daniel Hillman died and gave this tract to his four sons, James, John, Daniel and Joseph, who improved the same, erecting dwellings thereon. In 1734 Joseph sold his interest to Jacob Jennings, who had the same resurveyed the following year. In this purchase the greater part of the hundred acres, located in 1701, was included, and as the older members of the family had died or moved, the lands thus became the property of strangers. Many descendants of the Hillmans still reside in the township, but on lands not of the original estate.
It may have been noted that before the discovery of fertilizers, the farmers in this section soon exhausted the natural richness of their lands, which thereafter afforded them but scanty subsistence, making it impossible to put up good improvements out of their earnings of the soil. The use of marl and other fertilizers has changed all these conditions.
John Hinchman, the oldest son of John Hinchman, of Newton township, located on part of the paternal estates, now mostly owned by the Willitses and Coopers, extending from the old Salem road to the head of Little Timber Creek, and adjoining the Jennings property. This land was part of the tract which had been conveyed to John Hinchman in 1699, by John Hugg and his wife, Priscilla, who had inherited some of the same from her father, Francis Collins.
The dwelling-house of John Hinchman was a small, hipped-roof brick building, which, in its day, had some pretension to style and comfort. Its shape has been entirely changed and it now forms a part of the modern residence of the late Charles L. Willits.
John Hinchman had a sort of a military career, having been appointed an ensign in one of the departments of the county in 1705. He was sheriff of the county after 1722, and in his day was quite prominent. As his second wife he married a granddaughter of John Kay. His son, John, settled in Gloucester.
John Thorne, was a brother-in-law of John Hinchman, having married his sister Ann. He came from Flushing, N.Y., following the Hinchmans in their migration from that State. In 1702 he purchased a tract of land of John Reading, lying between the south branch of Newton and Little Timber Creeks, his tract including the farms known as the "Stokes Brick Farm" and the John D. Glover Farm. By his will, made in 1768, he gave his property to his son-in-law, John Glover, in fee. The latter married his daughter, Mary. In his day he was a man of marked influence. A few years before his death, in 1769, he removed to Haddonfield, where his widow continued to reside. His son Thomas died in 1759, leaving a daughter who was married to William Harrison. The latter owned and lived on a farm south of Mount Ephraim, known in later years as the property of Jesse W. Starr. He was a man of considerable prominence, serving as sheriff in 1716. In this capacity he was instrumental in causing the defeat of John Kay, by ordering the election to be held at a point more favorable to Kay’s opponent, Dr. Daniel Coxe.
He was buried in a small family grave-yard, near the old brick house, which was demolished some years ago.
John Glover, who lived on the John Thorne place, also came from Long Island and was a brother of William and Richard Glover. The former settled in Newton township, the creek dividing his lands from John’s. He was a bachelor and died in 1798, but much of the estate which he owned is still in the Glover name. John Glover, the husband of Mary Thorne, reared a numerous family, some having descendants who still remain in the township. Near the residence of John T. Glover, on Newton Creek, his grandfather, John T., had a fulling-mill which descended thence to James Glower. It was abandoned many years ago.
On Little Timber Creek, in the neighborhood of Mount Ephraim, was another power, in the early history of this section, where William Eldridge put up grist and fulling-mills. In 1805 he sold this property to Hezekiah Shivers, who disposed of it to John T. Glover, whence it passed to John O. Glover. The mills were near his residence. They have been unused for a long time.
A hundred years after the general settlement of the territory now embraced in this township the principal owners were persons bearing the following names: Gill, Wilson, Brown, Chapman, Browning, Atkinson, Glover, Budd, Zane, Willits, Crispin, Starr, Bell, Eastlack, Budd, Mather, Thackara, Clark, Kinsey, Haines, Lippincott, Kay, Davis, Strang, Rudlow, Rowand, Mickle, Webb, Brick, Harrison and Brazington. Many of these have descendants remaining in the township.
CIVIL ORGANIZATION. - By legislative enactment, November 15, 1831, all that part of the township of Gloucester contained within the following described bounds became a new township: "Beginning at the mouth of Beaver branch where it empties into Great Timber Creek; thence up the said creek to Clements Bridge; thence along the middle of the Evesham Road to the bridge over Coopers Creek; thence down said creek to the corner of the township of Newton; thence by the said township of Newton and Gloucester Town to the beginning, together with all that territory known by the corporate name of the Inhabitants of Gloucestertown in the county of Gloucester, hereafter known as the township of Union."
The people in the territory described, sustained that township relation twenty-four years, when another division took place whereby the township of Centre was created March 6, 1855, as follows:
"Beginning in the middle of Great Timber Creek at the mouth of the southerly branch of Little Timber Creek; thence along the middle of Little Timber Creek to a point where the old King’s Highway crossed the same; thence northerly along the highway to the southwest corner of Cedar Grove Cemetery and corner of James H. Brick’s land; thence along said line and by the lands of Aaron H. Hurley, crossing the Mt. Ephraim Road to the corner of the lands of John Brick, deceased; thence along the lands of Brick and John C. Champion and John R. Brick to Newton Creek, on the line of Newton Township; thence eastwardly by Newton Creek, on the line of Union and Newton, until it strikes the line of the townships of Union and Delaware; thence up the same to Burrough’s Bridge; thence on the middle of the highway and on boundary line between the townships of Union and Gloucester to Clements Bridge, on the Great Timber Creek; thence down the middle of the said creek to the place of beginning."The name of Centre was suggested by the intermediate position which the new township would occupy, with reference to Gloucester and the township of Newton, north and south of it.
Under the act authorizing the erection of the township, the first annual town-meeting was held at the public-house at Mount Ephraim, March 14, 1855. Chalkley Glover was chosen moderator and Jehu Budd clerk.
"It was voted that the township borrow $100 to pay the current expenses; that a tax of $2.00 be levied for school purposes, for every child returned between the ages of five and eighteen years; that the township be divided into two districts for the overseers of the highways."
Since 1863 the township meetings have been held at the public hall at Mount Ephraim, and the following have been the principal officers selected each year: Zebedee W. Nicholson, Chas. L. Willitts and David A. Shreve, school superintendents until the county superintendency was established.
Township Clerks.
1855.
Jehu Budd.
1867 -68.
Isaac G. Eastlack.
1858.
Isaac Kay.
1869.
George F. Howell.
1857-60.
Jehu Budd.
1870 -75.
George T. Haines.
1861 -63.
Benj. A. Starr.
1873 -78.
John D. Glover, Jr.
1864-65.
David A. Shreve.
1879 -81.
John Hutchinson.
1866.
Jehu Budd.
1882 -84.
Wm. H. Turley.
1885-86.
Jared B. Chapman.
Assessors
1855 -58.
Joseph Budd.
1869.
George Broadwater.
1859.
John North, Jr.
1870.
Joseph G. Davis.
1860.
Benjamin Shivers.
1871 -75.
John Hutchinson.
1861 -62.
Jehu Budd.
1876 -80.
George T. Haines.
1863.
Isaac Brasington.
1881 -82.
Hiram E. Budd.
1864 -65.
Jehu Budd.
1883 -84.
Nathaniel Barton.
1866-68.
Joseph Budd Webb.
1885 -86.
W.H. Turley.
Collectors
1855.
Champion Goldy.
1866 -68.
George F. Howell.
1856-57.
Joseph M. Atkinson.
1870.
Joseph B. Webb.
1859 -60.
Simon W. Mitten.
1871 -73.
Henry Charman.
1861-62.
John P. Curtis.
1874 -81.
Nathaniel Barton.
1863.
Joseph M. Atkinson.
1882 -84.
David A. Shreve.
1864 -65.
Champion Goldy.
1885.
Samuel Bacon.
1886.
Henry Charman.
Justices of the Peace
1855.
John W. Chester.
1856.
John P. Curtis.
Joseph Fish.
John W. Hay.
1856.
Joseph Budd.
T. Oliver Goldsmith.
Joseph C. Zane.
Henry Charman.
Frederick Lister.
Hiram E. Budd.
Abraham Rowand.
John P. Curtis.
THE VILLAGE OF SNOW HILL is two miles from Haddonfield, on the elevated lands along the road to that town. Its population is composed almost exclusively of colored people. It contains several small stores, two good society buildings, three churches and within a radius of a mile are six hundred colored inhabitants. Although a number of colored people had settled in this locality at a much earlier period, the village was not regularly laid out until about 1840. At that period Ralph Smith, an Abolitionist, living in Haddonfield, who had advanced ideas of the future condition of the negro, purchased a tract of land and had William Watson survey the same into lots for him. In accordance with his purpose, to give the negro a village of his own, the place was appropriately called Free Haven. The lots being offered cheap, and as much effort was made in Philadelphia and other cities to induce settlement, a large number were soon sold, only a few of which were improved. Among those who first settled here were Stephen Thomas, James Arthur, Isaac Arthur, Samuel Sharp, Perry Gibson, Thomas Brown and Thomas Banks. The last-named was a man of superior attainments, which caused him to be looked upon with deference, but at the same time made him an object of suspicion among his fellows, who accused him of self-aggrandizement. In the main, the settlers were harmonious and the community law-abiding and orderly. Many of the settlers came from the vicinity of Snow Hill, Md., from which circumstance came the name. Free Haven, as applied by Ralph Smith, never obtained any hold upon the people, and the original name still remains good. The village plot was enlarged by Jacob C. White, a colored dentist, of Philadelphia, who was warmly interested in the development of the place.
Within the last few years small stores have been kept at Snow Hill by Joseph E. Gray, John Williams and P.S. Smiley. A few shops are also maintained, but most of the inhabitants find occupation in agricultural pursuits.
SOCIETIES. - In few places of its size are more secret societies successfully maintained than by the colored people of Snow Hill. A sketch of the various lodges of the village that existed in January, 1886, is here given. The Daughters of Ebenezer, organized 1842, a local beneficial society for women, having twenty-two members; Mt. Zion Beneficial Society, also local, instituted in 1850 and having thirty members; St. Matthew Union Lodge, No. 10, Independent Order of Good Samaritans, instituted October 7, 1852, and incorporated March 18, 1872, had one hundred and twenty-five members. In 1870 a spacious two-story hall was erected by this order, the upper room being used for lodge purposes, the lower room for general meetings. In this building also meet the Daughters of Samaria, whose membership is composed of women only. Hiram Lodge, No. 5, A.F.A.M., was instituted in September, 1874, and has thirty members. The meetings of this Masonic lodge are held in the Samaria Hall. Star of Liberty Lodge, No. 1062, G.O. of O.F., was instituted March 9, 1863, with nine members, which number has been increased to eighty-six. In 1882 a very fine hall was built by the lodge, in the upper story of which meetings are regularly held. In this hall, also, meets the Household of Ruth, a Ladies’ Odd-Fellow Auxiliary Society, which was organized in 1878, and which had thirty-six members in June, 1886. The Union Republican Association of Snow Hill, incorporated February 19, 1886, is one of the youngest benevolent organizations at this place.
SCHOOLS. - Separate schools for the education of colored children were established about 1848, Samuel Sharp being the teacher. The present school-house was built in 1872, and is a large two-story frame structure. There are one hundred and twenty-seven children of school age, many of whom have a keen interest in educational matters. Among the later teachers have been Edward Miller, John Jackson and John Goodwin.
THE MT. PISGAH AFRICAN METHODIST CHURCH was originated soon after 1800, and became a permanent organization in 1813. Until that time Methodists of both the white and colored race of the vicinity held religious services together in a small frame building which stood upon the present church lot; but, following the advice of a colored minister, Richard Allen, who subsequently became a bishop, the colored element declared themselves independent of the Methodist Episcopate, whereupon some of the colored members and the whites withdrew to form the Methodist Church at Greenland. Bishop Allen then became the pastor of the independent church, and for many years served it, in connection with the Bethel Church (colored), in Philadelphia. From this fact the members of Mt. Pisgah Church are sometimes called the "Allenites." The present bishop is R.H. Kane, and the preacher in charge is T.A.V. Henry, who also supplies the mission at Haddonfield. The members number sixty-three.
In 1867 the old meeting-house was replaced by the present large frame building which was neatly repaired in 1884. Its seating capacity is increased by the use of galleries on two sides and one end. The property appears neatly kept and is in charge of Trustees Isaac Jackson, Charles Arthur, Richard Tilman, Alfred Arthur, Joshua Arthur, Peter S. Smiley and Warner Gibbs. Ebenezer Mann and Peter Mott were former local preachers, and the latter organized the first Sunday-school about 1854. The present superintendent is John H. Jackson, and the membership of the Sunday-school is about seventy. In connection with the church is a grave-yard, where are buried some of the first colored settlers of this part of the township.
THE MT. ZION AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH. - Not long after Allen’s congregation declared itself an independent church, the colored members adhering to the Methodist Episcopacy organized themselves into a church body and, in 1828, secured their own house of worship. In this meetings were regularly held until it was burned down in 1835. A new church was then built, which became too small to accommodate the growing membership, and, in 1868, it was taken down and the present church built in its place. It is a frame of neat proportions and has a large seating capacity. A part of the old church building was converted into a parsonage, this appointment forming a charge in connection with Jordantown. The membership of the church is large, numbering nearly one hundred and seventy-five, and the Sunday-school has one hundred and sixty scholars, having as its superintendent Henry D. Wilson. Upon the church lot is a grave-yard, and the property has, in 1886, the following trustees Robert Cooper, Franklin Fossett, William Henry, Anthony Baynard, Albert A. Calles, Cupid Moore and Joseph E. Tray.
SNOW HILL ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. - The building in which the members of the Catholic Church of this vicinity worshipped was built in 1859, on a lot of ground donated for this purpose by James Diamond. It was here located on account of its central position, in a large scope of country, which was taken up as a mission, many of the members living beyond Kirkwood, Blackwood, Chews Landing and Haddonfield, and all being whites. The communicants number nearly a hundred, and semi-monthly services are held by clergymen from Camden and Gloucester. At the latter place interments are made. The church is a small frame building of very humble appearance.
MAGNOLIA is southeast from Snow Hill and extending beyond the Evesham road, on and in the neighborhood of the White Horse turnpike. It is the old hamlet of Greenland, properly called Magnolia, since the Philadelphia and Atlantic City Railroad located a station with that name near the place where a post-office is now established. The term Greenland was applied on account of the prevalence of a greenish soil in this locality very closely resembling marl. For many years the upper part of the settlement was called Frederickville, after Frederick Hines, one of the first settlers there, and by occupation a weaver. Joseph Webb, another early settler, followed the same trade, while John Albertson and Samuel Barrett were farmers.
For the greater part of half a century John P. Curtis, a local Methodist preacher, has lived in this place. Barrett varied his occupation of a farmer by keeping a small store at the corner of the turnpike and the public road, where James Lee was afterwards engaged in trade. Within the past few years James Barrett, Jr., has opened a store in a new building, not far from the old stand, and in the same neighborhood a good smithy has been established.
At the crossing of the Haddonfield road, opposite the toll-house on the pike, Frederick Besser had a store and was succeeded by Joel G. Clark. The latter sold out to A.H. Wolohon, who built the present store about 1851, and converted the old stand into a residence. Nearer Snow Hill, Joseph Fish opened another store about 1855, where, for a number of years, Henry Charman has been in trade. The village has several hundred inhabitants, most of whom are whites.
THE GREENLAND METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH. - Methodism was preached in this locality as early as the beginning of this century by the preachers named in the account of the Blackwood Church, and later by others, whose names have not been preserved. The appointments were numerous and separated many miles, two preachers serving the circuit in 1826. It is said that David Daly, one of the preachers, was of the opinion that the members were heavily burdened to raise the pay of the preachers, about six hundred dollars per year, and that the pioneer, Jacob Gruber, thought that one man should be able to serve the circuit, which embraced the most of old Gloucester and Burlington Counties. It is an interesting historical fact that the same territory now supports about forty preachers, and that nearly one hundred thousand dollars is raised annually for the promotion of the church work, where a little more than sixty years ago a hundredth part was raised with difficulty. It is evidence not only of the increase of population, but also of the hold that Methodism has upon the people.
The first meetings were held at Snow Hill in a building which was the joint property of the whites and the blacks, but which was relinquished in favor of the colored people about 1813. Soon after Samuel Barrett set aside an acre of land, on the Evesham road, for church and cemetery purposes, where a small frame meeting-house was built in 1815, which was thenceforth the spiritual home Of the white Methodists in this section of the country. Among the early members, and those who participated in building this house, were Samuel Barrett, Christopher Sickler, Joseph Webb, William Heppin and Frederick Hines. The church was used until 1867, when the present building was erected in its place by a building committee composed of J.P. Curtis, John W. Chester and Samuel Barrett. It is a frame house, thirty-five by forty-five feet, of very modest appearance. The membership of the church is small, numbering but forty in 1886. The church has no regular pastor, but was last connected with Glendale to form a circuit. A flourishing Sunday-school has John Harley as its superintendent.
In the fall of 1885 a Ladies’ Aid Society of the neighborhood built a hall near the church, in which social gatherings may be held for the purpose of securing funds to encourage church work. The efforts of the ladies in this direction have already been attended with gratifying success.
GUINEA TOWN is another hamlet wholly inhabited by colored people. It is located on the Blackwood turnpike, on the sand-hills near Beaver Branch, and was formerly more populous than at present. The village site was a part of the Hugg estate, and the first houses built belonged to the former slaves of that family, who were settlers here under the provisions of an act, which required owners of negroes to provide homes for them and to prevent them from becoming a public charge. Some of the inhabitants of Guinea Town were Cubit Waterford, Archibald Farmer, Daniel Williamson, Daniel Stevens, Edward Jackson, Thomas Quann and the Still family, who had been slaves of persons living near. The last-named claimed royal descent, their ancestor being a prince in the direct line, when he was captured in Guinea and brought to America as a slave. The Stills were superior, both in stature and mental endowments, and after their removal some of them became prominent in the learned professions.
The soil at Guinea Town being unproductive, many of the inhabitants removed, after living there a few years, and the hamlet decreased in size until but a few houses remained of what was quite a large settlement about 1805.
INCIDENTS OF THE REVOLUTION. - Along Great Timber Creek, landings were established at convenient points, where considerable business was transacted before railways afforded more expeditious transportation. The landing at Clements Bridge has a Revolutionary interest attaching to it. On the 24th of October, 1777, the Hessian troops, twelve hundred strong, crossed here on their retreat from the battle-field of Red Bank. They had marched through the township, by the King’s Highway, two days previously, crossing Little Timber Creek; but the Americans destroyed the bridge at that point, which prevented them from going back to Haddonfield by that thoroughfare. Worn out and disheartened, it is said that they threw two brass field-pieces into the creek near where now is Clements Bridge, where they have since remained. The King’s Highway had a course to the north, near the lower part of the township, crossing Little Timber Creek half a mile below its present bridge. In that locality was a tavern, called the "Two Tuns," which was kept during the Revolution by an old lady known as "Aunty High-cap," from the head-gear she wore. Here the British officers were wont to assemble and regale themselves with the rum the old lady dispensed, having little fear of attack or disturbance by the Americans. This over-confidence led to the death of one of their number, who was shot by a patriot more than a third of a mile from the house, and whose presence was never discovered by the British.
The tavern was abandoned after the course of the road was changed, and the tavern nearer what is now Brownings Landing was also discontinued. At this landing and at Crispins Landing large quantities of moulders’ sand were formerly shipped, and manure and coal received in return. Small scows yet occasionally land at these places, but they are not important in a business point of view.
MOUNT EPHRAIM has a beautiful location, midway between Gloucester and Haddonfield, five miles from Camden, on the Blackwood turnpike. It is also the terminus of a branch of the Reading Railroad, which was completed to this place as a narrow-gauge road June 10, 1876, and changed to a standard gauge, in 1885, by the present company. Six trains per day afford communication with Camden, at Kaighn’s Point, five miles distant, while half that distance only separates it from Gloucester. Its situation and healthful surroundings are favorable to its becoming a thriving suburban town.
Though an old business point, its growth has been slow and was uneventful until the completion of the railroad. That year the first regular plat of lots was made by James Davis, the original village not being laid out, except a few lots by Hezekiah Shivers, about 1820. In 1876 Joseph Warrington also laid out an addition, and Mary K. Howell one the following year. John D. Glover made an addition in 1886, as also did the Mount Ephraim Land and Improvement Company, which was incorporated March 8, 1886. These additions aggregate more than two thousand lots. In the fall of 1876 the Iowa State Exposition Building was removed to this place from Philadelphia, and was converted into a residence for Joseph H. Bower, and since that time a number of fine residences have been erected. In June, 1886, the village had a public hall, store, tavern and twenty-five dwellings.
The town hall was built in 1862 for both school and public purposes, and is a neat, two story frame building. In it the Baptists have maintained a Sabbath-school for several years, but in the summer of 1886 that denomination built the first house of worship in the village. The chapel was erected for mission purposes, under the direction of the Baptist Church of Haddonfield.
A public-house has been kept in this locality from a period so remote that the memory of the oldest citizen does not reach it. The first keeper is not remembered, but it is believed to have been Ephraim Albertson, from whom the village obtained its name and who owned the land. He was a farmer, and it is quite probable that he added to his other duties those of a tavern-keeper. William Batt was the proprietor of the old hostelry in 1825, and James Jennett came after him, achieving considerable reputation as a landlord and horse-trainer. He often had a large number of thoroughbreds in his stables, some coming from States as far distant as Kentucky. Among other horses he prepared for the race-course were those of General Irwin, of Pennsylvania, and Dr. McClellan, of Philadelphia, father of the late General McClellan, of New Jersey. Jennett had a track near his tavern and also used the course near Camden, where famous trials of speed took place. The old tavern has had many owners, among them being Charles Buckingham, who is still the proprietor, though not the keeper of the place.
Opposite the tavern was, the first store, a small farm building, which was removed in 1877, after Charles C. Clark had put up the present stand on an adjoining lot. Clark has since been in trade, and is also postmaster of the Mt. Ephraim office, which is the only one in the township. In the old building a number of persons traded, among those best remembered being Jonathan Johnson, James M. Glover, Joseph Tomlinson, Samuel Eastlack, Peleg Brown, William Garrett, John I. Brick and Charles Brown.
On the corner beyond the turnpike Wm. Hugg formerly had an undertaker’s shop which was changed to a store by Daniel Lamb, where Simon W. Mitton and James Cordery afterwards traded. William K. Cook was the last there engaged in merchandising, and converted it into a residence which is now occupied by him. On this corner several mechanics’ shops are carried on, but the proximity of Mt. Ephraim to older and larger towns has limited its interests and occupations to what has been above rioted.
THE HEDDEN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH. - This house of worship is in the old Budd neighborhood, on the Blackwood turnpike, a little less than a mile from Mount Ephraim. It is a large, plain frame building, standing on a spacious lot, connected with which is a cemetery of about an acre of ground. As it now stands it was erected in 1868, at a cost of $2500, but prior to that time a smaller house, built about 1840, had been occupied. The church has been connected with other appointments in this and Gloucester County to form a circuit, belonging at present to Chews Landing Circuit. Its membership in 1886 was sixty, and the board of trustees was composed of Hiram J. Budd, J.C. Curtis, John Webb, John Williams, John Peters and James McManus. A Sunday-school of eighty-five members has George W. Barnes as its superintendent.
In the cemetery the following interments have been noted, most of these persons named having been connected with the church:
Jehu Budd, died 1882, aged fifty-two years.
Jacob Wagner, died 1884, aged eighty-five years.
Amy Wagner, died 1850, aged fifty-seven years.
William W. Webb, died 1879, aged seventy years.
Elizabeth Curtis, died 1853, aged sixty-four years.
Joseph Webb, died 1854, aged eighty years.
Rebecca Webb, died 1855, aged seventy-one years.
Hugh H. Garrettson, died 1853, aged fifty-eight years.
Elizabeth Johnson, died 1849, aged sixty-six years.
Martha Cook, died 1885, aged sixty-seven years.
Patience Gladden, died 1885, seventy-four years.
Joseph D. Fox, died 1876, aged seventy-one years.
Sarah Curtis, died 1879, aged seventy-seven years.
Eli Brasington, died 1843, aged forty-two years.
John Peters, died 1852, aged sixty-four years.
Mary Peters, died 1880, aged seventy-eight years.
Mary Ogg, died 1866, aged seventy-six years.
Elizabeth Sayers, died 1869, aged forty-five years.
Elizabeth Budd, died 1879, aged seventy-one years.
Sarah Hendry, died 1842, aged eighty-three years.
David Galaway, died 1842, aged thirty-two years.
Philip Peters, died 1851, aged fifty-eight years.
Mary A. Peters, died 1876, aged eighty-five years.
Micajah Beakley, died 1875, aged sixty-three years.
Joseph Budd, died 1862, aged sixty-three years.
John Stewart, died 1867, aged seventy-eight years.
Martha Stewart, died 1864, aged seventy-five years.
Frederick Lister, died 1871, aged forty-nine years.
Jane E. Zane, died 1874, aged sixty-six years.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
JOSEPH M. HAINES. - The family from which Joseph M. Haines is descended came from England shortly after the arrival of the "Commissioners in Burlington, in 1678." They settled in Evesham township, Burlington County, and among the names are William, Thomas, Daniel, Nathan, Samuel, Sarah, Deborah and Amos.
In the reign of one of the English Kings, one of their ancestors offered the King a bowl of punch as he rode along the highway, and he was knighted on the spot for his hospitality. This characteristic has been transmitted with their good name to the present generation. As early as 1711 Jonathan Haines married Mary Matlack. He died in 1729, leaving in his will the old homestead farm. In 1738 Nehemiah and John Haines conveyed land to John Peacock, and the old "Haines Saw-Mills," on Rancocas Creek, was their property. In the earlier periods of our country’s history they were stirring and energetic men. Jacob Haines was born in Burlington County; he was married twice, and his children were as follows: Samuel, Abel (father of Joseph M.), Jacob, Beulah, Stokes and Hannah.
Abel Haines married Nancy Moore, daughter of Joseph and Nancy Moore, whose maiden-name was Heulings, by whom he had the following-named children: Jacob, Mary Ann, Rachel M., Eliza, Samuel, Ann Eliza, Abel and Joseph M. and William, all deceased but Samuel and Joseph M. Abel, after his marriage, settled upon the farm situated on Beaver Branch and now owned by Joseph M., and he was considered the "pioneer farmer of the neighborhood." He was the first to bring fertilizers of any kind up Great Timber Creek in vessels, and of his skill and knowledge in husbandry John Gill used to say, "I borrowed from his book."
Joseph M. Haines has always been a farmer and lived on the old homestead until quite recently, when he retired to Mount Ephraim, near which place he was born on August 15, 1826.
On the 22d day of April, 1869, he was married to Martha D. Calm, daughter of Davis W. and Hannah (Lacy) Calm, daughter of Thomas and Phoebe Lacy. Their children are Joseph E, Ann Eliza, Emily M., Abel, Martha R. and Henry C. Ann Eliza is deceased.
Joseph M. Haines is a Friend, as were his ancestors. In politics, a Republican. He has been township collector, member of township committees, commissioner of appeal, member of Board of Chosen Freeholders, and for eight years on the standing committees continuously. While freeholder he has always been noted for strict justice and integrity, and at the age of sixty enjoys good health. The Haineses are well-known in Burlington and Camden Counties, and are connected by marriage with the oldest families.
Joseph M. holds the deed given in 1689 by John Hugg to his son John, the Huggs at that time owning vast properties, while now none is held in their name, while in the name of Haines it descends from father to son through the different generations.
SOURCE: Page(s) 704-712, History of Camden County, New Jersey, by George R. Prowell, L.J. Richards & Co. 1886
Published 2010 by the Camden County Genealogy Project