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Gloucester County
Historical Society
GCHS: CENTURY OF PROGRESS
Reprinted from the Bulletin of the
Gloucester County Historical Society, Volume 28, No. 6, December 2002
© 2002 GCHS All
Rights Reserved
In the December 10, 1902 issue of
the Woodbury Constitution, it was reported that plans were discussed to form an
historical society in order to protect the Revolutionary War battlefield and Whitall mansion at Red Bank from impending sale. The Federal government intended
to sell the tract at public auction. Those at the meeting announced that “the
dues will be $1 per year and it is requested that every person interested in the
commendable work, which the Society proposes to take under its care, will not
hesitate to come forward and give what assistance they can.”
One month later, on January 12, 1903, the Gloucester
County Historical Society took life at its first annual meeting. Officers were
elected, the Constitution and By-Laws were unanimously approved and thirty-five
members were proposed and elected to membership. The object of the newly formed
Society was to “discover, procure, preserve and exhibit whatever may relate to
the natural, civil, military, literary, educational and ecclesiastical history
of Gloucester County, the State of New Jersey or the country, and to protect and
preserve the historical landmarks and points of interest within the county.” The
charter Board of Trustees consisted of President John G. Whitall of Woodbury,
Vice Presidents, Jesse Y. Burk of Clarksboro, Samuel H. Richards of Bridgeport
and H.K. Bugbee of Williamstown, Recording Secretary B. W. Pierce of Woodbury,
Corresponding Secretary William E. Speakman of Woodbury, Treasurer Joseph W.
Merritt of Woodbury, Librarian Miss Ellen L. Matlock of Woodbury and Trustees W.
Harrison Livermore, James D. Carpenter, Miss Lillian Durrell, David O. Watkins,
George E. Pierson, Daniel L. Pine and W.H. Albright all of Woodbury, Samuel D.
Lodge of Mantua, John Ro. Downer of Williamstown, Franklin D. Springer of
Bridgeport, Edward L. Stratton of Mullica Hill, William McCullough of
Swedesboro, Mrs. Howard Miller of Paulsboro, Mrs. John P. Whitney of Glassboro
and Stephen Abdill of National Park. These people were from the oldest and most
prominent families in Gloucester County and shared a passion for preserving the
past.
From its very inception, the Society has been the
recipient of many interesting and important gifts. In the early years, these
gifts were often recorded in the local newspapers. One of the first so recorded
was a “handsome picture of Big Cattle” donated by Mrs. Mary Bradway. The cattle
were owned by Edward Tonkin and were carried around in specially made wagons to
be viewed by curious crowds. Named The Earl of Jersey and the Duke of
Gloucester, one weighed 3,750 pounds and the other 3,800 pounds. In a society
that was primarily agricultural, they were a source of pride. On February 9,
1838, Mr. Tonkin sold the cattle to a buyer from Washington, DC for $3500, an
enormous sum of money for that time. The Society purchased and installed a
cabinet in the corridor of the Court House to display such artifacts.
John Gill Whitall, our first president, held that
office until he resigned in 1918. For Mr. Whitall, the Society’s fight to retain
the mansion and battlefield had special meaning. He had been born in the mansion
on the grounds of the Red Bank Battlefield. James and Ann Whitall, who lived
there during the Revolutionary War, had been his grandparents. Both are
historically important in our county’s early history. Following the Battle of
Red Bank on October 21, 1777, the house was used as a hospital for wounded
soldiers. Many of the Hessian casualties were buried on the grounds. The Battle
was one of the most important battles of the Revolutionary War and an important
American victory. The famous Jonas Cattell ran from Haddonfield to Red Bank to
warn the Americans of the approach of the Redcoats.
In January 1904, President Whitall, W. Harrison
Livermore, David O. Watkins and James D. Carpenter visited Washington, DC and
conferred with US Senator John F. Dryden concerning the proposed sale of the Red
Bank property. After listening to the delegation, Senator Dryden escorted them
to the office of Secretary of the Interior Hitchcock who agreed that the old
battlefield should be preserved and ordered the sale preparations to stop
immediately.
On July 11, 1904, the Society held a meeting in the old
Whitall mansion with a celebration following on the battlefield grounds. Every
citizen of Gloucester County was invited. Trolley cars carried the guests
directly to the battlefield. Music was provided by Jennings’ Third Regiment
Band. Luncheon was served by the Ladies’ Committee. Tours of the rifle pits,
battle monument and house were given.
Initially, it was assumed that the Society would take
charge of the property from the federal government. It was finally decided,
however, that it would be deeded to the Gloucester County Board of Chosen
Freeholders. In January 1905, with all of the legal obstacles out of the way,
about twenty acres of the battlefield deeded to the Board of Chosen Freeholders.
The Society was presented with the gold pen and ebony holder used by President
Theodore Roosevelt and others in signing the bill ensuring preservation of this
important part of our country’s early history.
By mid-1905, the Society was using the Whitall mansion
to display its growing collection of artifacts. In June, representatives of the
Society and the Board of Chosen Freeholders visited the battlefield to select a
site for the placement of a new monument in memory of the soldiers who fought in
the Battle of Red Bank. They decided on a plot of ground about two hundred feet
from the original monument.
In a speech later that year when the Society held a
meeting at the battlefield, Judge John Boyd Avis said, “All honor to the
Gloucester County Historical Society which has made these things possible; which
by its example example has inspired all those who have so gladly and willingly
taken upon themselves the work of making this historic field a public park,
where all may come and enjoy the prospect, the scenery and God’s free air and be
filled with the spirit of those who fought on this ground, guaranteeing the
perpetuation of those ideals for which the Colonists fought as declared in the
Declaration of Independence…”
In October 1905, as workmen filled in a retaining wall,
many relics of the Battle of Red Bank were unearthed. Grape shot, two furnaces
used for making shot and cannon balls, bars, chains, and arrowheads, some of
which were placed in the Whitall mansion under the care of the Society.
In the May 3, 1906 edition of the Woodbury Daily Times,
it was reported that the Battlefield Park Committee of the Board of Freeholders,
was reserving two rooms in the Whitall house, to be used by the Gloucester
County Historical Society.
June 21, 1906 promised to be “the biggest day ever seen
in South Jersey” according to the Woodbury Constitution of June 6. The new
monument at Red Bank was to be unveiled to the public. Harry Lewis, the official
decorator for the White House, was engaged to decorate the battlefield. Eighty
trolley cars on the Camden, Gloucester and Woodbury trolley road and twenty
motor cars on the branch line from Washington park to National Park were in
service. The Committee arranged for William J. Thompson to provide a fleet of
eight steamers from the South and Arch Street wharves in Philadelphia to the
Sanitarium at Red Bank, about an eight minute walk to the battlefield. The
grounds of the National Park Amusement Company were leased and numerous caterers
were secured to feed the crowds. Water barrels containing several tons of ice
were placed about the battlefield. Hitching grounds and feed for horses was
arranged along the Hessian Road leading to the battlefield. In Woodbury and
along the parade route on the Hessian Road, businesses and residents were asked
to decorate. Businesses were closed. A re-enactment of the battle was performed.
Miss Matilda Whitall unfurled the United States flag donated by the Society,
with hundreds of smaller flags dropping from its folds as it was raised. Mr.
William Snowden of Alexandria, Virginia, presented the Society with a portrait
of Ann Cooper Whitall, the heroine of Red Bank.
Before the year was over, the officers and members of
the Society embarked on another preservation effort. The Wood Burying Ground, on
the south side of Woodbury Creek in Thorofare, was in deplorable condition due
to a combination of neglect and vandalism. The cemetery was thought to be the
first and earliest burial plot in Gloucester County. Names of our earliest and
most prominent families were inscribed on the stones: Thackara, Cooper, Ladd,
Hugg, Matlock, Whitall, Howell, Packer, Hillman, Shivers and of course, Wood.
Other causes were also undertaken. In early 1908, the
Board of Trustees appointed a committee to cooperate with the State Forestry
Commission in the preservation of the great Tatem Oak on Mantua Creek. In July,
the quarterly meeting was held there. The tree was about forty in circumference
and estimated to be over five hundred years old. At the annual meeting in
January 1917, it was reported that the State Forestry Commission was willing to
establish a park of about four or five acres around the oak, if some local
organization would assume its care.
In 1909, the Society began a custom of the “Loan
Exhibition” which continued for a number of years. Members and other interested
persons brought their family heirlooms and historical relics to display. Some
very important pieces were shown at this exhibit in the Gloucester County
Courthouse. A dagger presented to Capt. John Wilkins Mickle by Napoleon
Bonaparte was given special mention in the newspapers.
In those early years, there was much interest in the
British frigate Augusta that sank during the Battle of Red Bank. Trustee Dr.
Wallace McGeorge wrote a paper concerning the August in 1905. In 1907, the
Society proposed to the Board of Freeholders that they could mount the cannon
found during the excavation of the battlefield in a carriage made from timbers
from the Augusta and display it on the Court House Lawn. (In 1911, this cannon
was placed near the monument at Red Bank.) In 1907, there was again discussion
among the members of the Board of Trustees concerning preservation of the
remnants of the Augusta. It was decided not to pursue the matter. In July 1909,
it was reported in the Woodbury Constitution that Society Librarian Miss Ellen
L. Matlock had managed to have the New Jersey in the DAR building at Washington
furnished with “beautifully wrought wood” from the Augusta. This was one way of
preserving the history of the Battle of Red Bank and Gloucester County.
The Society did not yet have a permanent home and met in a variety of places.
Some of those early meeting places were the Gloucester County Court House, the
Woodbury Real Estate Mutual Loan Association, the Whitall House, the Indian King
Tavern at Haddonfield, Woodbury Country Club and the Friends Meeting House at
Mickleton, to name a few. Pilgrimages were made to historical landmarks such as
Princeton, Brandywine Gettysburg and Valley Forge, often attracting two hundred
or more guests. Carriges or special railroad cars were sometimes engaged to
accommodate the large number of guests. Other historical societies or patriotic
organizations such as the DAR or SAR would sometimes host or join the Society
for a meeting. Members were invited to read papers of historical interest.
Sometimes several, each covering a different topic, would be read during one
meeting. By 1907, these early speeches were being preserved for the Society’s
archives.
By 1910, we had long ago outgrown our display case in
the courthouse hallway. Serious discussion began about finding a permanent home
and a Committee on Permanent Home was formed. Society members and friends were
beginning to gather a file of old newspapers and inscriptions from old
cemeteries but there was no place for researchers to access these items.
In the July 8, 1911 edition of the Woodbury Daily
Times, it was proudly announced that “the Gloucester County Historical Society
will soon have a home of its own…” The Committee had taken an option on the
Lydia C. Paul property (today occupied by the Gloucester County Chapter of the
American Red Cross) next to the Friends Meeting House. The front part of the
house was believed to be the second house built in Woodbury.
On March 6, 1912, a special meeting was held in the
courthouse where it was decided to purchase the Lydia Paul house. There was $900
subscribed toward its purchase price by interested members.
At the annual meeting of 1911, President Whitall
announced that $100 has been subscribed to care for the old burial ground. Later
that year, Dr. J.G. Halsey of Swedesboro, collected donations for the purpose of
placing a monument made of Barre granite on a solid concrete base inscribed,
“Wood Burying Ground, Henry Wood who first settled Woodbury was buried here in
1806. It was used as a burial place by the Indians before that time. Gloucester
County Historical Society.” On Saturday, June 27, 1912, over one hundred members
of the Society met at the old burying ground to participate in the unveiling of
the monument. President Whitall urged those present to consider further
donations to install a wall to keep the tide from washing away the ground and
for some type of protection from squatters.
At the annual meeting in January 1914, it was reported
that Secretary Dr. T.E. Parker had passed away. Before his death, he had
prepared a report to be read at the meeting. In part, it read, “…the trustees
have discussed the matter of ways and means of providing more funds, but have
taken no action, hoping that promptness on the part of the members in the
payment of annual dues, and the addition of new members or donations from those
especially interested may be sufficient to meet our necessary expenses…there
seemed to be all through the year a sort of lethargy hanging over (the Society),
just as if everybody was weary from over exertion; perhaps that was it – the
strenuous year previous had sapped the vitality and respite was needed…something
or somebody must awaken fresh enthusiasm. Will it be you? Pass the word down the
line and gather new recruits.”
The Society’s library now held 308 volumes. Librarian
Miss Nellie Thackara started using the Dewey decimal classification. The
trustees decided that the books could be read in the reading room, but were not
to be taken out unless the borrower gave a receipt denoting time loaned and a
limit for return.
At the annual meeting in January 1916, Frank H. Stewart
was elected to fill a vacancy on the Board of Trustees. This was the beginning
of a new era for the Gloucester County Historical Society. During that year,
Stewart had three pamphlets he had written, printed at his own expense, and then
sold for fifty cents each with the proceeds going to the Society. He advocated
the inauguration of a publications fund. A Publications Committee was formed.
In January 1918, John G. Whitall stepped down as
president after serving in that capacity for fifteen years. Frank H. Stewart was
elected to that office. Mr. Stewart immediately a plan to liquidate the mortgage
on the Society building and formed a committee to proceed with his plan.
President Stewart explained that the plan was to sell ten memorial memberships
at $100 each and life memberships at $25 each. The membership drive was a huge
success. In the Gloucester County Democrat of March 14, 1918, it was reported,
“The two thousand dollars for the Gloucester County Historical Society has been
raised and on Monday evening, March 25 at 8pm at the Courthouse, an open meeting
of the Society will be held to which all are invited with their friends to see
the mortgage burned.”
In December 1918, for the first time, the Society began
opening the building to members and guests at least one afternoon each week.
In early 1919, following the end of the first World
War, the Society formed a Scrapbook Committee. This committee solicited
information from veterans of the Civil War, Spanish American War and first World
War.
By 1920, the Society was bursting at the seams. Two
rooms of its home were used for its own purposes. The remainder of the house was
let to a resident caretaker. At the January 1921 annual meeting, it was decided,
“… that the Society was in need of larger and fireproof quarters for the proper
care of its valuable collections.” At that same meeting, President Stewart made
the challenge that “anyone who will spend $10,000 in a fireproof building for
the Society will be met by him with a like amount either in cash or in valuable
historical documents now in his possession to the value of $10,000.”
In the Woodbury Constitution of November 12, 1924, it
was reported that the Society had purchased the John S. Jessup property. The
article read in part, “when the houses across the street are removed from in
front of the new Central school and the new post office completed, the outlook
from the new Historical Society home will be greatly improved.” Rooms in the new
home were dedicated to the contributors and a tablet was placed on the outside
of the building with the names of those who donated $13,000 towards the purchase
of the new building.
Finally, on August 6, 1925, after renovations were
completed, the Society moved into its new headquarters. The first book to go
into the house was the Holy Bible. One of the acquisitions received that year
was a desk from the old courthouse. (This desk holds the guest book in our
library today.) There were two curators, the Misses Nellie Thackara and Sibyl
Tatum Jones. There was also a live-in caretaker.
In 1930, Sibyl Tatum Jones was appointed as permanent
resident curator of the Society building. Miss Jones left her lifelong home,
“Wisteria House,” located on the corner of West and Broad Streets in Woodbury.
She brought with her many of her belongings and most of her household
furnishings along with a box hedge, a tree, bushes, her colonial doorway, a
staircase, a fence and two mantels dating back to pre-revolutionary times. (Many
of these things are still in our Museum today.) According to the Society’s
minutes, Sibyl “at her own expense renovated and furnished the rear wing and is
to occupy the same as long as she so desires at no rental or charge of any
nature.”
During the 1930’s, the Works Progress Administration
provided workers in the Watkins-Stewart Library located in the front two rooms
of the Society’s home as well as in Room 202 of the courthouse. In all, over
15,000 articles were found, indexed and filed. The indexes they compiled for
county documents, cemeteries and war records are still in use today in our
library.
In 1940, the Society reluctantly accepted the
resignation of their twenty-two year president, Frank H. Stewart. Stewart was
named President Emeritus for life. Hugh L. Mehorter was elected to replace him.
The building was closed in the colder months during the
World War II years due to heating oil rationing. Resident Curator Sibyl T. Jones
was relocated to the Newton Hotel with the Society paying the weekly rent of $8
plus the cost of two meals daily. From June to October during the war years,
weather permitting, the Society’s home was open on Wednesdays and Fridays with
Miss Jones in attendance. The Society lacked publicity during this time since
the newspapers had both a shortage of linotype operators and paper. The
Society’s yearly publications were also suspended during these years. Room 202
in the county building was closed to visitors. In 1944, the Society’s income was
reduced when savings interest rates dropped as low as ½ of 1%.
With the hard times of war over, the Jessup house
reopened on June 1, 1945. Interest in the Society had waned and a $1 membership
drive was begun. Mrs. Henry H. Clark was appointed as Resident Curator in April
1946.
The year 1947 was one of many “firsts” for the Society.
Marion (Mrs. Robert T.) Weatherill was elected its first female president on May
28, 1947. In September of that year, Hazel (Mrs. Walter A.) Simpson, chairperson
of the publications committee, edited and published the first quarterly
Bulletin which was mailed to all members and many schools and libraries. The
Bulletin has been published quarterly ever since with never an issue
missed!
The first exhibit ever held in the Jessup house
concentrating on just one aspect of the Society’s collections (in this case hats
and bonnets) was held for one week during March 1948 with a turnout of 269
guests. At the annual meeting in May 1948, it was announced that the Board of
Chosen Freeholders had restored the Society’s sole use of Room 202 and the vault
in the county building.
At the same meeting, it was also recorded that the
Society had finally acquired the deed to the Moravian Church property in
Woolwich Township. The Society had met and attended services since its beginning
in the church, the oldest Moravian building in New Jersey.
Our next president was long-time Bulletin
editor, Mrs. Hazel Simpson, who served a one year term from 1953 to 1954. In
1954, Daniel W. Beckley assumed the office, a position he held until his death
in 1965. During his tenure, the Society acquired the doorsill from the first
Philadelphia mint. (This doorsill today is at the entrance of our library.) In
1960, the Board, in cooperation with the County, participated in designing the
first flag of Gloucester County. Following Mr. Beckley’s death, Miss Ada Wilkins
was named interim president.
Clarke A. Murphy became President in 1966. During that
year, the Society opened the third floor to the public featuring a Wenonah
Academy Room and a Coach Room.
In 1969, L. Kepner Gottshalk was elected President. The
library rooms of the Society were filled to overflowing. It was decided by the
Board to make their dream of a library a reality. A library building fund was
started. During the years that followed, the Society hosted many book fairs,
bazaars, house tours and sales of commemorative bottles.
After four years of hard work, on October 13, 1973, the
new library building was dedicated with Rev. Parker F. Auten officiating as the
Society’s new president at the library dedication ceremony.
In 1976, Edith (Mrs. Kurt F.) Hoelle became the first
paid Librarian in Society history after serving in that position without salary
for eight years. Since her retirement on June 30, 2001, she has continued to
serve faithfully as a library volunteer.
Once again, the library needed additional space and in
1983, an addition to the reading room was added. In 1986, the early 18th century
Schorn (or Mortonson) log cabin was donated by the Schorn family to the Society
and was moved to the grouonds of Trinity Episcopal Church in Swedesboro. This
cabin was probably used by early Swedes as a granary. After moving the cabin
piece by piece to the grounds of Trinity Episcopal Church in Swedesboro and much
restoration work, the cabin was dedicated on September 30, 1989.
In 1996, due to continuing growth, the Society was
facing a storage problem. In that same year, our Annex building on the corner of
Hunter and Broad Streets was purchased to be used for much needed storage and
office space.
In 2001, through the generous support of our
membership, the Museum was equipped with a climate control system to ensure
proper preservation of our irreplacable artifacts. For the first time, the
building was open to the public year round.
Today, the Society has a membership of over 1,300
members. We are proud of the ever-growing collections of the
Hunter-Lawrence-Jessup House Museum. Our library is nationally known for its
wealth of genealogical and historical materials.
As we begin our second century, the Gloucester County
Historical Society is still committed to its original purpose: to preserve,
promote and protect the history of Gloucester County.
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