History of Union and Middlesex Counties, New Jersey with Biographical Sketches of many of their Pioneers and Prominent Men, Part 201

Author: W. Woodford Clayton, Ed.
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia: Everts
Number of Pages: 1224

USA > New Jersey > Middlesex County > History of Union and Middlesex Counties, New Jersey with Biographical Sketches of many of their Pioneers and Prominent Men > Part 201
USA > New Jersey > Union County > History of Union and Middlesex Counties, New Jersey with Biographical Sketches of many of their Pioneers and Prominent Men > Part 201

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The Providence Pottery, near the Swan Hill Pot- tery, was established in 1876 by Joseph Wooton, its present proprietor, who manufactures Rockingham and yellow-ware, white majolica-ware, white and col- ored vases and plaques, employing thirty hands. This business occupies several buildings. The largest of these is twenty by forty feet and three stories high. The ground-floor is used as a press-room, and there the clay is prepared for manufacturing purposes. In the second story a portion of the ware is made. When finished and awaiting shipment it is stored in the third story, which is occupied as a wareroom. Another building is three stories high, with a basement. The

basement is used as a store-room for prepared clay. The first floor is a store-room for ware in process of manufacture. The second and third floors are de- voted to the manufacture of Rockingham and yellow- ware. A low building, sixteen by twenty feet, is known as the packing-room. There are two kilu- sheds. One of these is thirty-six by forty feet; the other eighteen by twenty feet. An average of one hundred tons of clay is used annually.

THE BERGEN IRON-WORKS .- The Bergen Iron- Works were established in 1832 by Joseph W. Brick, in Ocean (then Monmouth) County. Mr. Brick man- ufactured water- and gas-pipe until his death, in 1847. The business was afterwards managed by the executors of his will until 1859, when his son, R. A. Brick, who had attained to his majority, assumed the control of the business, which he removed to South Amboy in 1880, beginning the manufacture there of gas- and water-pipe in 1881. The works are located on the line of the Pennsylvania Railroad, half a mile from the centre of the village, and have a capacity of thirty-five tons per day. They consist of a foundry, one hundred and twenty-five by two hundred feet, and a machine-shop about thirty by eighty feet. Other buildings are in course of erection. The num- ber of men required to run the works up to their full capacity is one hundred and twenty-five.

LESSER ENTERPRISES .- The township and vil- lage are well supplied with mechanics of various kinds. Prominent among these, in different branches of mechanical industry, may be mentioned Edwin Applegate, carriage-maker; William Brown, wheel- wright; D. B. Bunting and John Thorp, shoemakers ; August Ehrlich, harness-maker; J. A. Sexton, car- penter; Joseph Capner, house-mover; and J. W. Wallace, painter.

Burial-Places .- The people of South Amboy have only two burial-places in their vicinity. These are the cemetery of Christ Church and that of St. Mary's Catholic Church. Christ Church Cemetery is located at the outskirts of South Amboy village, and the first interment there was that of a German child, in Au- gust, 1868. The land embraced in this cemetery, about twelve and a half acres, was deeded to the wardens and vestrymen of Christ Church in 1868 by R. S. Conover and wife in consideration of one dollar. The cemetery is situated on an elevation one hundred and fifty feet above high-water mark, on the road to Matawan, and is laid out in lots fifteen by fifteen feet, which range in price from twenty dollars to one hun- dred dollars, according to location. Up to January, 1882, the total number of interments was one thousand and forty-three. A portion of the area is reserved for a chapel, school, and parsonage, it being intended to remove the Doane Memorial Chapel within this in- closure. The cemetery is under the management of a committee of three, appointed by the vestrymen of Christ Church. In 1868 this committee was cousti- tuted as follows: R. S. Conover, chairman; John

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Sexton, treasurer, and Richard McGuire. The pres- ent committee is composed of R. S. Conover, chair- man; John Sexton, treasurer, and R. H. Rathburn. The fund received from the sale of the lots is de- voted to the improvement of the cemetery. St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery is located on the road to Wash- ington, about half a mile from the village of South Amboy, and has an area of five acres. It is laid out in lots twelve by eighteen feet, selling at forty dollars each, and is under the control of Rev. John Kelly, pastor of St. Mary's Church. The first burial therein was that of a Mrs. Byrnes in 1849. Her grave is unmarked, and her Christian name is not known to the writer.

Both of these cemeteries contain fine monuments, which were erected at considerable expense ; both are well cared for and are being constantly improved, and bid fair to rank with some of the finest in the county at no distant day.

Educational .- PUBLIC SCHOOLS .- The public schools of South Amboy compare favorably with those of any other similar township in the State. The first school within its present limits was a select school which was opened about 1841 in the old Union Chapel. The name of the teacher cannot be recalled. Sept. 11, 1843, John F. Hunter, now living in the village of South Amboy, began teaching in that building, and continued until May 27, 1848. Later a man named Jackson taught a few months. C. H. Knickerbocker taught between two and three years, and Oliver Cox for about the same length of time.

About 1850 a school-house was built and presented to the district by Mrs. John C. Stevens. It was en- larged about two years later at the expense of the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company. It stood at the intersection of Broadway and Main Street, and did service until two districts were established within the present township limits and new buildings were erected. These two districts are known as " Pack" District, No. 38, and "Raritan" District, No. 39. The school-houses in both are of recent erection, and are well ventilated and supplied with necessary school apparatus. The existence in South Amboy of two independent and leading public schools is a phenom- enon of rare occurrence in any of the other towns or villages of the State. A single educational edifice of sufficient size to accommodate all the children erected in some central locality would in the first place have heen more economical and effective, but as the schools are at the present constituted consolidation could not easily be effected.

raised in District No. 38 was $530 ; in District No. 39, $725. The total amount received from all sources in District No. 38 was $2518.71, and in District No. 39 $2167.35.

The present value of school property is $13,000 in District No. 38, and $12,000 in District No. 39. The number of children of the school age in District No. 38 was 695 in 1880, and 480 in District No. 39. Schools were kept open ten months during the year. The average attendance in District No. 38 was 245, and in District No. 39, 172. It is estimated that 70 children in District No. 38, and 75 in District No. 39 attended private schools, and that 150 in the former and 90 in the latter did not attend schools of any kind.

Both school-houses are in very good condition. That in District No. 38 has a seating capacity of 400; that in District No. 39, 250. In District No. 38 one male and four female teachers were employed; four fe- male teachers in District No. 39. The male teacher re- ceived a salary of $90 per month. The average salary of the female teachers in District No. 38 was $40, and in District No. 39, $55. District No. 38 has a school library of 176 volumes ; District No. 39 has $20 toward a library fund.

Of Pack public school the educational staff is as follows: Prof. James Corkery, principal; Miss Kate L. McCoy, vice-principal; Miss Agnes H. Scudder, first assistant ; Miss Sarah McAdams, second assistant. The instructors in Raritan public school are Miss Mary L. Thomas, principal ; Miss M. E. Gunning, vice-principal; Miss M. B. Dayton, first assistant ; Miss E. Albertson, second assistant; Miss Kate Bogert, third assistant.

The trustees in District No. 38 were R. H. Rath- burn and William Birmingham in 1881, and in Dis- trict No. 39, Thomas Keer and F. E. De Graw. The clerks of the two districts were C. H. Thompson and Josiah D. Stults respectively.

A comparison of the statistics above given with those of the schools of the township as it was bounded thirty years ago may not be uninteresting. In 1852 there were twelve school districts in the township ; the number of children of the school age within its borders was 835; the whole number taught was 467; the amount of money raised for the support of schools by tax was $500; $442.18 was received from the State, and the total amount appropriated for educational purposes was $942.18.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS .- In the township there are four private schools, all more or less rudimentary in character. Of these, one is a parochial school and three are " pay" schools.

In 1880 the amount of apportionment from the State appropriation to the school districts of South The parochial school is under the patronage of Rev. R. B. Post, rector of the Episcopal Church, and is taught by Mrs. D. Colver. The "pay" schools are respectively conducted by Miss Elizabeth A. Sexton, Miss Mary Sullivan, and Mr. Thomas Kirby. Amboy was as follows: No. 38, $1988.71; No. 39, $1442.35. In District No. 38, $530 was voted for building, purchasing, hiring, repairing, or furnishing public school houses; in District No. 39, $125. In District No. 39, $600 was voted to pay salaries of There is no provision in the township for classical teachers. The amount of district tax ordered to be | or collegiate education. It is the belief of many that

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HISTORY OF UNION AND MIDDLESEX COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

there are materials in South Amboy for the organiza- tion and maintenance of a good boarding-school.

THE ORPHAN SCHOOL .- There is an orphan school in South Amboy which is known as the Episcopal Infant School. It is located on Main Street, adjacent to the property of Christ Church. It was organized at the desire of Mrs. T. A. Conover and a few other persons of South Amboy, with a view to caring for and teaching the young children of women who went out to work by the day and who had no means of providing for their care while absent from home. In the spring of 1857 a lot was given by the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company to Miss Sophia C. Stevens, with the understanding that a building for the above- mentioned purpose should be erected upou it. The deed for this property was issued Jan. 15, 1858, and recorded in the office of the county clerk of Middle- sex County, Feb. 12, 1859. In the mean time a sub- stantial brick building was erected upon the lot by Miss Sophia C. Stevens, and completed in September, 1857. Mr. John C. Stevens, of South Amboy, died June 8, 1857, leaving a bequest in the hands of his sisters, Mrs. T. A. Conover, wife of Commodore T. A. Conover, of the United States navy, Miss Esther B. Stevens, and Miss Sophia C. Stevens, as trustees for the purpose of building, if necessary, an Episcopal Church and parsonage, or either, and establishing, endowing, and maintaining a school for children at South Amboy. The building for the school having been erected as stated, it was unnecessary to use any of the fund left by Mr. Stevens for that purpose. Neither was it nsed to erect a church or parsonage. The school was opened Oct. 1, 1857, with eleven chil- dren, ten of whom were named as follows: Susie Thomas, Lucy Letts, Phebe Letts, Mary Goble, Lu- cinda Buckelew, Edward Letts, James Goble, Chaun- cey Buckelew, John Roberts, and Manuel Roberts. The superintendent and instructor was Miss Caroline Craig, a lady of much ability, especially fitted to take charge of such an institution.

Experience soon proved that in a small village like the South Amboy of that time there were too few women going ont to work by the day who had chil- dren to be taken care of to make it worth while to maintain a house exclusively for that purpose, and also that the plan of receiving both boys and girls would not be satisfactory. The charter of the school was consequently amended, and the trustees decided to receive only small girls, either orphans or half- orphans, and to so rear and instruct them as to render them eligible for situations as servants in first-class families. Dec. 27, 1858, the school building, with the lot on which it stands, was made over to the trustees by Miss Sophia C. Stevens, and Jan. 25, 1864, an ad- ditional lot was deeded to the trustees by the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company, that the children might have a larger play-ground. In 1864, Miss Grace Harkness succeeded Miss Craig in the man- agement of the school, aud was in time succeeded

by Miss Ellen Packard, of Princeton, N. J. Miss Train was appointed matron in 1859, and was suc- ceeded Oct. 1, 1867, by Miss E. C. Mish, who has been in charge continuously since that date, and is assisted by Miss Mary E. Tice. In 1870 the school building was much enlarged and improved by a gift from Miss Caroline Conover.

Children ranging from three to seventeen years of age are received, and control of them is retained un- til they attain to the age of eighteen ; and at the age of seventeen good homes are provided for them, the number of scholars being limited to twenty, who must be at the time of admission residents either of New Jersey or Pennsylvania.

Christ Church (Episcopal) .- Episcopal services were first held in South Amboy in 1850, in a small building erected by persons connected with the Cam- den and Amboy Railroad Company, on Main Street, near the present house of worship of this parish, and which did service for a time as a meeting-house for the various Protestant denominations represented in the vicinity, and until the erection of the first public school-house also for the accommodation of the dis- trict school.

Services were held monthly by Rev. Joseph F. Phillips, rector at that time of St. Peter's Church at Spottswood, there being no parochial organization. Nov. 17, 1852, a meeting was called by notice given to the inhabitants of South Amboy to take into con- sideration the propriety of establishing Episcopal services in their midst, at which a parish was organ- ized, the following-named persons and perhaps others becoming the constituent members of St. Stephen's Church of South Amboy :

Edwrad R. Hanks, Mrs. Edwin R. Hanks, John C. Stevens, Mrs. John C. Stevens, John Sexton, Dr. L. D. Morse, Oliver Cox, Mrs. E. J. Conover, Mrs. Cad- mus, Charles Fish, Peter P. Voorhees, Mrs. Charles Fish, and Mrs. Charles Morgan.

Charles Fish and Dr. L. D. Morse were elected wardens; Edward R. Hanks, John C. Stephens, Abra- ham Everett, John Sexton, and Peter P. Voorhees were chosen vestrymen ; Dr. L. D. Moore was elected parish clerk, and Peter P. Voorhees clerk of the vestry.

The membership of the church increased until in 1858 the little chapel was inadequate to the needs of the congregation. During that year Mrs. Esther B. Stevens erected the present large stone church and offered it to the wardens and vestrymen of St. Ste- phen's parish for use as a house of worship. It was consecrated in 1860 by Bishop William H. Oden- heimer, D.D.

In 1862 a bill was passed by the Legislature of the State of New Jersey changing the name of the parish from St. Stephens's parish to Christ Church parish, as it has since been known.

In 1857 Rev. Charles L. Little became rector, and was succeeded Nov. 4, 1858, by Rev. Gideon J. Burton.

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The present rector, Rev. R. B. Post, succeeded Mr. Burton Feb. 16, 1869.

It has been seen that this parish owes its existence to the benefactions of wealthy and zealous adherents of the church. These benefactions were such as to permanently establish it, and its perpetuity is in a measure assured by a continuance of the same. At his death Mr. John C. Stevens endowed this parish with six hundred dollars per annum, to be devoted to the payment of the salary of the rector. The large organ, so familiar to attendants at the church, was presented to the parish by Mrs. R. S. Conover. Mrs. E. J. Conover, Frank S. and R. S. Conover donated to the church the parsonage property, and offered to contribute one hundred dollars yearly for its main- tenance. The old union church building was replaced in 1862 by a chapel erected by Miss C. Conover, and donated to the vestrymen for use as a chapel and parish school. A school is kept in it for the accom- modation of the children of members of the congre- gation, and is in charge of Mrs. D. Culver. Mrs. J. C. Conover endowed this school with five thousand dollars, which was by her directed to be placed at interest for its benefit. There are twenty-five scholars, ranging from five to twelve years of age.

The Episcopal Sunday-school was organized with twenty-five scholars, Mrs. T. A. Conover being the first superintendent. The present wardens of Christ Church are R. S. Conover and John Sexton. The vestrymen are H. C. Perrine, P. S. Bogart, Frank E. De Graw, Richard McGuire, R. H. Rathburn, L. F. Meinzer, John L. Parker, William P. Rathburn, and Hugh Hutchinson. William P. Rathburn is treasurer, and Richard McGuire secretary.

Doane Memorial Chapel .- The Doane Memorial Chapel was erected in 1866 by Mrs. R. S. Conover, in memory of Rev. George Washington Doane, late bishop of the diocese of New Jersey. It stands on the road leading from South Amboy to Matawan, about a mile from South Amboy village, and was designed for use as a chapel and day-school for the accommodation of the poor in its neighborhood. Pre- vious to 1877 no regular services were held there, but occasional services were held by the rectors of Christ Church, South Amboy, of which Doane Chapel is a station. During that year Rev. Frederick W. Wey began to officiate there, holding services twice each Sunday, preaching once in German and once in Eng- lish. The first communicants there were Nelson Barkelew, Richard B. Hillman, Ambrose Gordon, John Weismann, Emma Barkelew, Mary Covert, Mary Weismann, Sophia Scheinbein, Louisa Click, and Rose Rodell. The communicants numbered forty-one in January, 1882.

This chapel is a wooden building, about seventy by twenty-five feet in size. It is the intention of Mr. R. S. Conover to remove it to a new location in Christ Church Cemetery, and to enlarge it and add greatly to its convenience by judicious alterations.

St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church is the oldest in South Amboy. Previous to 1849 its members were attended by the Rev. Father Rogers, the present ven- erable pastor of the Catholic Church of New Bruns- wick. After him came Fathers Sheridan and McCar- thy.

In 1849, Rev. Michael A. Madden was appointed the first resident Catholic pastor of South Amboy. At that time the Catholics were few in number,-some twenty-five families only,-and in very moderate cir- cumstances, nearly all being laborers in the employ of the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company. They had a small building which answered the purpose of a church. It was only eighteen by thirty-six feet in size, and had been built in 1846 on a portion of the Catholic cemetery lot. When Father Madden came the congregation was so large as to crowd this little meeting-place to overflowing, and in a short time he set to work to build a church. This the generosity of his people, though poor, enabled him to accomplish in a short time.

Rev. Father James Callen succeeded Father Mad- den, and remained pastor for nearly two years. The Rev. John A. Kelley, the present Catholic pastor, came to preside over the congregation October, 1854. After a few years he remodeled and considerably enlarged the church, and in 1864 built the rectory, and the church, a frame building thirty by ninety feet, was removed to an adjacent lot, where it is now used as a school-house and lecture-hall.

In 1873 it was determined to erect a new and more substantial building, fifty-nine by one hundred and fifteen feet, grander and more costly than any in the village. The corner-stone of the new church was laid Oct. 25, 1873, by Bishop (now Archbishop) Corrigan, a large number of people attending the ceremonies. The new church excited the wonder and admiration of all that so magnificent an edifice could be erected by a congregation the adult male members of which, with but few individual exceptions, depended on the shovel and the car-truck for the means of supporting their families. It must be mentioned that generous donations were received from many persons from all denominations. The church was dedicated and opened for divine service Sept. 17, 1876.

Father Kelley has had a wide field of labor in his parish, and in the earlier days of his pastorate it was almost wholly of a missionary character. As an evi- dence of appreciation of his long years of useful work in South Amboy, the twenty-fifth anniversary of his pastorate was made the occasion of presenting him with a magnificent service of silver, for which people of all denominations contributed.

The present membership of St. Mary's Church is about eleven hundred.

The Methodist Episcopal Church .- Rev. L. W. Johnson was the first Methodist preacher who held meetings at South Amboy, conducting services in private houses as early as 1830. In 1832 he organ-

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HISTORY OF UNION AND MIDDLESEX COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

ized a class of eleven members, and services were held in the old Union Chapel, sometimes referred to as the "Railroad Chapel" from the fact that the ground on which it stood was donated by the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company.

Rev. Mr. Johnson was located at South Amboy and remained there five years, assisted a portion of the time by Rev. Mr. Cross, of Staten Island, and Rev. John Littleton, of Perth Amboy. The Confer- ence sent Rev. Jolın Stockton to Mr. Johnson's assist- ance during the latter part of this period, and divided his labors between South Amboy and Wash- ington, remaining after the close of Mr. Johnson's connection with the South Amboy class, and effecting, as is thought, the organization of the present church.

The church edifice which stands on Broadway near the centre of the village was built in 1853, and dedi- cated in March, 1854, by Bishop James, of New York. It was remodeled, enlarged, and painted in 1880. The original building committee consisted of the follow- ing-named persons: John Seward, Dana Nichols, - Hudnut, John Sexton, and John F. Hunter.

Rev. William Franklin succeeded Rev. John Stock- ton in 1855, and was the first pastor stationed in South Amboy and devoting himself exclusively to that church. His successors have been Revs. William Brook, 1857-58; William Osborn, 1858-61 ; Sardis, 1861-63 ; William Chatten, 1863-65; William Racley, 1865-67 ; -- Shock, 1867-69; - Owens, 1869-70; William Mickle, 1870-71 ; - Norris, 1871-73; Joseph Ashbrook, 1873-75 ; Samuel Chat- ten, 1875-77 ; Thomas Carman, 1877-79; J. J. Graw, 1879-80; and John Wilson, 1880. The church is at present without a pastor.

The First Presbyterian Church .- Previous to the year 1864 unsuccessful efforts were made from time to time by the Rev. G. C. Bush and others to form a Presbyterian Church at South Amboy. In 1864 a church was organized by the New Brunswick Pres- bytery with ten members and the following officers : Elders, A. H. Van Cleve and R. M. Dey ; Trustees, A. H. Van Cleve ; President, E. O. Howell; Treas- urer, John Muirhead, Albert J. Rue, John Applegate, Alexander Southerland, and Matthew R. Dey.

In October, 1865, the Rev. W. C. Westervelt was installed as the first pastor. Meetings were held in the school-house. The present house of worship was completed in 1868, at a cost of nearly eleven thousand dollars, including the cost of the furniture.

Taylor, D.D., clerk of sessions. Organist, Miss Emma Laird.

The Sabbath-school has been maintained from the organization of the church. The present number of scholars on the roll is ninety, with the following officers : A. V. P. Jones, superintendent; Addison Bergen, librarian ; Charles Bergen, secretary ; Wil- liam Ingraham, treasurer ; Miss Edith Roll, organist. The number of classes and teachers, nine.

The Methodist Protestant Church of South Amboy was organized Jan. 17, 1866, with sixteen members and Josiah D. Stults as class-leader. It was then under the pastoral care of Rev. O. Ellerson, of the Union Valley (Monroe) Methodist Protestant Church.

About two years later a house of worship was built. During the summer of 1880 it was repainted inside and out, and new carpets and other comforts were added.

The first trustees of this church were Josiah D. Stults, Peter L. Dey, and W. Woodhull Dey. The successive pastors have been Revs. O. Ellerson, L. D. Stults, E. D. Stults, J. W. Laughlin, P. S. Vreeland, J. Shepherd, F. Stringer, J. H. Algoe, and the present incumbent, G. S. Robinson.

The present membership is seventy. There is a flourishing Sunday-school in connection with this church, numbering one hundred and fifteen scholars.

The First Baptist Church .- Previous to the year 1871 no Baptist meetings were held in South Amboy. In the early days of the Camden and Amboy Rail- road the Rev. Mr. Honsell, a Baptist, and ministers of other denominations visited the place occasionally, and held services in the old Union chapel and school- house that stood at what now is the junction of Broad- way and Main Street.

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History of Union and Middlesex Counties, New Jersey with Biographical Sketches of many of their Pioneers and Prominent Men, Part 201

Author: W. Woodford Clayton, Ed. Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia: Everts Number of Pages: 1224

Author: W. Woodford Clayton, Ed.
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia: Everts
Number of Pages: 1224