HISTORICAL ARTICLES, LISTS, AND OTHER TID BITS
Following is a potpourri of Historical Articles, Lists, Tid Bits, etc. related to Bass River Township and the surrounding area that you may find of interest. Click on the underlined links to view the information. Use your browsers BACK ARROW to return to this page.
LEAH BLACKMAN'S WRITINGS
Leah Blackman wrote the definitive history of our local area with the publishing of her "History of Little Egg Harbor Township" in 1880. The Great John Mathis Foundation republished Blackman's work in 1963 in an unsuccessful attempt to raise funds for the restoration of the Great John Mathis house located on the bank of the Bass River. Thanks to their efforts, Leah's book is still available today. The Tuckerton Historical Society published additional Blackman writings, in 2000, in a work called "Leah Blackman's Old Times and Other Writings". Following are exerpts from both books pertaining to Bass River Township. [HLEH = "History of Little Egg Harbor" & LBOT = "Leah Blackman's Old Times and Other Writings"] The books are available for reference and check out at the Bass River Township Community Library.
Brief history of the Bass River area of Little Egg Harbor. BASS RIVER HISTORY (HLEH)
Indians in our area: INDIANS - PART 1 INDIANS - PART 2 (HLEH)
Names Recorded in the Little Egg Harbor Friends Meeting. Many of the names are from the Bass River area. NAMES- INTRODUCTION MARRIAGES- PART 1 MARRIAGES- PART 2 FRIENDS GRAVEYARD LIST (HLEH)
List of Houses in Little Egg Harbor, circa 1820. Those listed on the West and East side of the Bass River would have been in present day Bass River Township. 1820 LITTLE EGG HARBOR HOUSES. (LBOT)
Leah Blackman's Geneologies related to Bass River can be viewed at: BASS RIVER FAMILY GENEALOGIES (HLEH)
Leah writes about Great John Mathis and Charles Loveland's role regarding slavery in Bass River . . . SLAVERY IN BASS RIVER. (LBOT)
Ever wanted to read Leah Blackman's will? You can do it here . . . LEAH BLACKMAN'S WILL.
BOOK RELATED
"E.M. Woodward wrote a "History of Burlington County, New Jersey" in 1883. Much of his Chapter XXI on Bass River Township was taken from Leah Blackman's writings; however, Woodward includes some interesting information that does not appear in Blackman's writings. Woodward's "History of Burlington County, New Jersey" is available for reference at the Bass River Townhip Community Library. CLICK HERE TO VIEW WOODWARD'S 1883 BASS RIVER TOWNSHIP HISTORY.
"Eric Mullica And His Descendants" by Charles J. Werner, New Gretna, N.J., 1930 - Chapter III; "Bridges, Dams, Etc., on the Mullica River and Its Tributaries" provides great information on major bridges in Bass River Township and the surrounding area. CLICK HERE TO VIEW "ERIC MULLICA AND HIS DESCENDANTS, CHAPTER III"
An informative chapter on the 1943 Bass River Township School District, written by Dr. Louis J. Kaser, County Superintent of Schools, appeared in "A Story of the Public Schools of Burlington County, New Jersey" which is available for reference at the Bass River Township Community Library. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE 1943 BASS RIVER SCHOOL CHAPTER.
Harvey Moore's "AN OLD JERSEY FURNACE", published in 1943, gives an excellent overview of the iron town of Martha and is an good companion reading to the "Martha Furnace Diary". A "must read" in understanding how the old South Jersey iron furnaces functioned. CLICK HERE TO READ "AN OLD JERSEY FURNACE".
"OF BATSTO AND BOG IRON" by Jack E. Boucher, 36 pages, published by the Batsto Citizens Committee in 1964, presents a brief history and overview of Batsto. GO TO "OF BATSTO AND BOG IRON".
Pleasant Mills, New Jersey. Lake Nescochague. A Place Of Olden Days.An Historical Sketch, a 34 page history, by Charles F. Green. GO TO "PLEASANT MILLS".
Township and County boundaries have changed over the years. "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries, 1606-1968" by J.P. Snyder (New Jersey Bureau of Geology and Topography, 1969) outline these changes, by date. Click here to see the boundary changes for Bass River Township, the surrounding communities, and Burlington and Ocean Counties. GO TO SNYDER'S "NEW JERSEY CIVIL BOUNDARIES".
Thomas F. Gordon's 1834 New Jersey Gazetteer provides very early descriptions of places in New Jersey. Click here to view the Gazetteer's Place Names in and around the Bass River area. GO TO 1834 GORDON'S GAZETTEER.
"The Origin of New Jersey Place Names" was written in 1938 as part of the Federal Writers' Program of the Work Project Administration in the State of New Jersey. This is a reprint issued by the New Jersey State Library Commission in 1945. See what they say about "New Gretna". CLICK HERE TO GO TO "THE ORIGIN OF NEW JERSEY PLACE NAMES"
Joseph Wharton owned the Crab Island Fish Factory at the turn of the 19th century. During it's history, the Crab Island Fish Factory was managed by Bass River residents and offered employment to men from Bass River and the surrounding communities.
CLICK HERE TO READ JOSEPH WHARTON AND THE CRAB ISLAND FISH FACTORY
CLICK HERE TO SEE SATELLITE MAPS OF THE CRAB ISLAND FISH FACTORY
NEWSPAPER AND MAGAZINE RELATED
Many of the "Batsto Citizens Gazette" articles are related to Bass River and the surrounding area. Back issues are available for reference at the Bass River Township Community Library. CLICK HERE TO VIEW "BATSTO CITIZENS GAZETTE" ARTICLES RELATING TO BASS RIVER AND THE SURROUNDING AREA.
W.J. Hawthore wrote a three part article on the History of Harrisville, entitled "Early Life on the Wading River" for "South Jersey Magazine" in the Fall of 1975 through the Spring of 1976. Click on the links below to read this excellent article.
EARLY LIFE ON THE WADING RIVER - PART 1.
EARLY LIFE ON THE WADING RIVER - PART 2.
EARLY LIFE ON THE WADING RIVER - PART 3.
Fish Factories in the area provided employment for the men of Bass River and the surrounding communities for many years. Transcriptions of 1874-1915 newspaper articles provide a unique insight into the importance of the fish fact9ories to the local economy. CLICK HERE TO VIEW OLD NEWSPAPER ARTICLE TRANSCRIPTIONS REGARDING THE AREA FISH FACTORIES.
THE "TUCKERTON" METEOR OF 1859. An interesting 1860 article about a meteor sighting in parts of New Jersey and neigboring states. An eyewitness account is given by Theophilus Price from Tuckerton. CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT THE "TUCKERTON" METEOR
LIST RELATED
Partial Little Egg Harbor Twp Burlington Co, NJ Oct 1796 Tax List. The Bass River area of Little Egg Harbor is included in this list. VIEW TAX 1796 LIST
Ever read about Bass River and say to yourself, "I wonder where that place is?" Well, now you can find out in this handy list of "Place Names In and Near Bass River Township". CLICK HERE TO VIEW BASS RIVER PLACE NAMES.
Alphabetical List of Merchant Vessels of The United States-1888 built in Bass River, New Gretna, and Tuckerton from the Twentieth Annual List of Merchant Vessels of the United States for the Year Ending June 30, 1888. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE SHIP LIST.
LIST OF PRIVATEERS COMMISSIONED IN PHILADELPHIA BETWEEN THE YEARS 1776 and 1782. Many of them were frequent visitors at Chestnut Neck. CLICK HERE TO VIEW PRIVATEER LIST.
Want to look up a 1956 New Gretna telephone number? Just click here . . . 1956 PHONE DIRECTORY.
Wonder who paid taxes in Bass River in the early 1900's? Click here to take a look . . . 1910 BASS RIVER TAX LIST- FARMS AND HOUSES.
Want to see who had a farm in Bass River Township in 1913? Just click here . . . BASS RIVER 1913 FARMS.
When you see odd occupations listed on an old census or other record, ever scratch your head wondering "What in the devil is that?" Well, now you can find out by clicking here . . . OLD TIME OCCUPATIONS.
Confused when reading illnesses reported on old death certificates? Look them up by clicking here . . . OLD ILLNESSES
Find out when the Bass River Hotel, Bass River Lower Bridge, Harrisville, and Batsto Post Offices closed down by clicking here . . . DEAD BURLINGTON COUNTY POST OFFICES
Know your New Gretna Postmasters? Click here and take a look . . . NEW GRETNA POSTMASTERS (1850 TO 2007)
There is a long tradition of hunting in Bass River Township. Howard Ware, who knows the "ins and outs" of hunting in this area better than most, has compiled a list of Area Hunting Clubs. Click here to see the list . . . BASS RIVER AREA HUNTING CLUBS- 2000
DOCUMENT RELATED
Martha Furnace is not only geographically connected with Bass River Township, but many Bass River residents found employment there. Henry H. Bisbee's Martha- The Complete Furnace Diary & Journal: 1808 1815 has many notations regarding Bass River and Bass River residents who worked at the Furnace town. At the time of the furnace's operation, Martha was in Little Egg Harbor Township and the "Bass River" referred to in the diary was a neighborhood in Little Egg Harbor Township centered around the present day Pilgrim Lake Campground area. Martha Furnace became a part of Bass River Township, in 1864, when the township was formed from Little Egg Harbor and part of Washington Township. CLICK HERE TO VIEW BASS RIVER NOTATIONS IN THE "MARTHA DIARY".
Bass River Township Quaker Meeting Houses were built at Bass River Neck and, later, at Bridgeport in the early 1800's. We are thankful that the Quakers took and maintained Meeting Minutes related to these Meeting Houses. CLICK HERE TO VIEW BASS RIVER NECK AND BRIDGEPORT FRIENDS MEETING MINUTES.
The "Lizzie Bell" Papers. The "Lizzie Bell", a 42 ton two masted schooner, captained by Wallace French from Bass River, was built in a Bass River ship yard in 1884. Take a look at her documentation papers. Such a complete collection regarding a single ship is rare. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE LIZZIE BELL's OFFICIAL PAPERS.
FAMILY BIBLES
The Mariam Louisa Cramer bible notations have birth, marriage, and death notations for the Cramer family and a related branch of the Cale family. The bible was given to Mariam in 1848 by her grandmother, Lucy Cale Cramer. The earliest Cramer notation is the birth of George Cramer in 1784. The earliest Cale notation is the birth of Abigail Cale in 1771. The bible was found in the attic of the St. Paul's United Methodist parsonage by it's current tenant, Jeff Blake. Click here to go to the bible notations . . . MARIAM LOUISA CRAMER BIBLE NOTATIONS.
HISTORIC BASS RIVER AREA PHOTOS
The Library of Congress has posted some Bass River Area Photos. Click on the links below to browse these photos. Use your Browser's BACK ARROW to return to this page.
BASS RIVER BRIDGE PHOTOS. (17 photos)
WADING RIVER TAVERN PHOTOS. (9 photos)
WADING RIVER TAVERN DRAWINGS. (19 drawings)
LITTLE EGG HARBOR FRIENDS MEETING HOUSE. (3 photos)
OTHER TID BITS
Lucy Evans, who was a minister in the Little Egg Harbor Friends Meeting and later the Bridgeport Friends Meeting, is discussed in Henry H. Bisbee's introduction to "Martha- The Complete Furnace Diary & Journal: 1808-1815". Lucy's husband, Jesse, was the Iron Master at Martha at the time the diary was written. There's an interesting twist, as Jesse Evan's second wife was also named Lucy Ann. The "Martha Diary" is available for reference and check out at the Bass River Townhip Community Library. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE MARTHA DIARY INTRODUCTION REFERENCING LUCY AND JESSE EVANS.
FORMS
Need a form to fill out your Family Group Sheet information? Just click here to view and print the two page form . . . VIEW THE FAMILY GROUP SHEET FORM.