Camden County History Tour Preview

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1

Camden County Historical Society (Pomona Hall)

1900 Park Boulevard, Camden856.964.3333Hours:Library and Museum: Wed-Fri: 10-4:30; Su: noon-3Pomona Hall: Su: 12-2 or by appointmentAdmission: $5 (members free)Pomona Hall. Pomona Hall is a notable example of an eighteenth century Georgian residence. One of the principal historic sites in Camden County, the house is notable for its fine interior detailing and architectural elements. Pomona Hall was associated with the Cooper family, pioneer Camden settlers. The house is able to be viewed during a one-hour guided tour.Museum. Renovated and reopened in 2016, the museum tells the fascinating story of Camden City and County's history through artifacts from the Society's collection. The centerpiece of the museum is an original RCA Nipper window.Library. The library is the most complete archival collection of information on Camden City and County.

2

Newton Friends Meetinghouse

808 Cooper Street, CamdenWorship:2nd and 4th Sundays at 10:30 a.m.This meeting can trace its lineage back to the first Quaker meeting in Camden County, whose first home was on the property of the Newton Burial Ground off Collings Avenue in West Collingswood, This meeting house was erected in 1824, and was remodeled in 1885 by prominent Philadelphia architect Wilson Eyre, Jr. it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.

3

Walt Whitman House

330 Mickle Boulevard, Camden856.964.5383Hours:Wed-Sat: 10-noon, 1-4Sun: 1-4Please call ahead to make sure the house will be open.In 1884, Walt Whitman purchased this modest two-story, wood-framed house for $1,750. It was the only house he ever owned. He lived there until his death in 1892 at age 72.Website:http://www.state,nj.us/dep/parksandforests/whitman/camden.html

4

Camden Shipyard and Maritime Museum

1910 Broadway, CamdenHours: Tues, Thurs, Sun: noon-4Admission: $5This recently established museum's mission is to educate, inspire and engage citizens about Camden's rich maritime hertiage and significant contributions to global shipbuilding and seafaring exploration. It also house's Urban Promise's Camden Boatworks. The museum is located in the former Church of Our Savior.

5

Nipper Building (RCA Building 17)

101 Market Street, CamdenThe only large surviving manufacturing building of the Victor Talking Machine Company's famous phonograph and record factory, it was built in 1911-1919 as the anchor building of the complex. It features the iconic tower with (replacement) stained glass Nipper windows (one of the originals is in the museum of the Camden County Historical Society). In 2002-2004, the building was gutted and reconfigured as the Victor apartments.

6

Johnson Park

101 Cooper Street, Camden856.964.8300Johnson Park, probably the most attractive open space in downtown Camden, was donated to the city by inventor and philanthropist Eldridge R. Johnson whose modern photograph helped launch the Radio Corporation of America. The centerpiece of the park is the former Cooper Branch Public LIbrary (note the elaborate decorative tilework in the portico) opened in 1918.The former library now houses the Walt Whitman Arts Center, a multi-cultural literary, performing arts and visuall arts center. The Center has become a hub for authors, both known and emerging, and its calendar features authors' readings, dance, open-mic nights, and a variety of musical and theatrical performances.

7

Benjamin Cooper House

Point and Erie streets, CamdenThis house was built for Benjamin Cooper in 1734 and is both one of the earliest remaining buildings in Camden and one of the most significant extant ferry-related buildings.Benjamin Cooper was a grandson of William Cooper, the scion of the famous Camden family. Benjamin died in 1772, leaving the house to his eldest son, Joseph. During the British occupation of Philadelpjhia in the American Revolution, the house was commandeered for use as the headquarters of British Lieutenant Colonel Abercrombie. In later years, the house was used as a saloon and as a pleasure garden. Beginning in the early 20th century, the property was used as the offices of John H. Mathis & Company, yacht manufacturer, and its successor, Camden Ship Repair. Vacant in recent years, it was severely damaged in a Thankgiving Day 2012 fire.

8

Joseph Cooper House Site

Pyne Point Park, north end of Seventh Street, CamdenThe earliest, stone, section of the Joseph Cooper House was erected in 1695, and a two-story brick addition was added in about 1785. The house was constructed for Joseph Cooper, son of William Cooper, scion of the family. Purchased by the CIty of Camden in 1913, it was used as a library branch and its grounds became Pyne Point Park. In 2005, much of the house was destroyed by fire.

9

Peter McGuire Memorial

Arlington Cemetery1620 Cove Road, Pennsauken8:30-4:30Peter J. McGuire is honored with two monuments. The older of the two marks the final resting place of McGuire and his family and includes a cross etched with "Labor Omnia Vincit." labor conquers all. This monument was constructed in 1906.A half a century later, his memory was honored by the portrait statue and colonnade that now dominate the site; Who was Peter J. McGuire?Born in New York City in 1852, McGuire grew up amidst a booming industrial economy that was often leaving the workers behind. They were often required to work long hours for low wages; children were frequently employed; and health and safety concerns were an afterthought. From age 20 until his death, McGuire devoted his life to improving conditions for labor. He founded one of the most powerful unions in the country,the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners.He is best known, however, for his May 1882 proposal for a day to be set aside to celebrate the American worker and the achievements of the labor movement This was the origin of Labor Day. McGuire's contribution is recognized annually by a graveside ceremony attended by local labor leaders that occurs every Labor Day.

10

Vennell Tavern

421 Cove Road, PennsaukenThe tavern was erected sometime during the last decade of the 18th century and was acquired by Thomas Bowne, a Philadelphia ship joiner. Bowne sold the property in 1813 to the Tammany Pea Shore Fishing Company, a sociakk club, which erected their clubhouse and kitchen building on the river bank. The area became known as Fish House Cove. The tavern building was sold in 1867 to Emily G, Vennell. Between 1888 and 1891, Isaac Vennell opened the Fish House Hotel in the building. During the twentieth ccentury, the area fell into decline, buildings were demolished, and the tavern building became vacant. It still awaits restoration.

11

Pennsauken Transit Center

Derousse Avenue, PennsaukenAn interchange stop of New Jersey Transit's RiverLine and Atlantic City rail lines, the station is decorated with decorative glass panels exploring the history of women in the area, designed by glass artist J. Kenneth Leap, son of well-known avocational historian Bill Leap of Runnemede.

12

Griffith Morgan House

243 Griffith Morgan Lane, PennsaukenThe original stone portion of this house (now gone) was built in about 1693. This handsome, rubble stone, pent-roofed block was built in 1715 for Welshman Griffith Morgan. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The house is open to the public for a variety of special events and reenactments during the year/

13

Burrough Dover House (Pennsauken Historical Society)

9201 Burrough Dover Lane, PennsaukenThis 300-year old stone house is the museum of the Pennsauken Historical Society. The colonial Quaker farmhouse houses the Society's artifact collection. It is open frequently for special events and programs. The house was the ancestral seat of the Burrough family, still prominent in Camden County. It was listed in the Nataional Register of Historic Places in 1973.

14

Colestown Cemetery

100 Kings Highway North, Cherry Hill.One of the oldest cemeteries .in present Cherry Hill Township, the cemetery contains an estimated 8,726 interments. Established in 1746, it is the only remnant of the Colestown community. Its Itaianate gatehouse was listed in the National Register in 1975. One side of the gatehouse was used as a chapel for funeral services, and the other side contained living quarters for the superintendent of the cemetery. Below the chapel is a receiving vault.

15

Croft Farm Arts Center

100 Bortons Mill Road, Cherry Hill856.216.0669Once a working mill and a purported stop on the Underground Railroad, it is today an active arts center. The property also includes over a mile of walking trails and other recreational facilities. The centerpiece of the property is the 16-room Kay-Evans Farmhouse. Built in several sections, the original section of the house was ereected in 1753 by Isaac Kay and exists today as the dining room, the "tight winder'' staircase, and the facade facing Evans Pond. An addition was made to the north side of the house in 1816. The Evans family sold the property in the 1920s to John W. Croft, Jr., who farmed the land until 1981. His family sold the property to the Township in 1985.

17

Scarborough Covered Bridge

Covered Bridge Road over North Branch, Cooper RiverThe centerpiece of Cherry Hill's Barclay Farm neighborhood, it was designed by famed South Jersey architect Malcolm Wells and erected for Robert Scarborough, a prominent local residential developer. One of two covered bridges in the sttae, it was dedicated on Valentine's Day 1959 by 101 kissing couples, marking the tradition of the "kissing" bridge.

18

Matlack Family Burial Ground

Between 533 and 537 Balsam Road, Cherry HillSet in an incongruous location in the middle of a post-World War II suburban neighborhood lies William Matlack, his family and his servants and slaves. William Matlack (1648-1720), the first of his family to come to America arrived in 1677 and made his home on a tract between the two branches of Pennsauken Creek. His wife, Mary Hancock, was born inn 1666, emigrated in 1681 and died in January 1728/1729.The burial ground, enclosed with a wrought iron fence includes a single upright monument.

19

Indian King Tavern Museum

233 Kings Highway East. Haddonfield856.429.6792 (please calll to inquire about tours)Hours:Weds-Sat: 10-noon, 1-4; Sunday 1-4 Indian King Tavern is New Jersey's first state-owned historic site. It is where New Jersey completed the transition from colony to State passing laws revising election procedures, creating township governments, and setting up state courts. At the Indian King, the assembl passed measures imposing martial law, strengthening the militia, regulating a war economy, and providing emergency support to the Continental Army after its defeat at teh Brandywine.Website: http://indiankingfriends.org

20

Hopkins House

250 South Park Drive, WestmontClosed except for special events.The original house (now the west wing) of this house was built in the 1740s. The newer east wing ws a WPA project, undertaken in conjunction with the straightening and widening of the Cooper River and the creation of Cooper River Park.

21

Collings-Knight House

500 Collings Avenue, CollingswoodOpen for special events.In 1824, Edward Zane Collings undertook the construction of a house for himself and his widowed sister, Rebecca Knight, on farmland north of Newton Creek that he had inherited from his father in 1820. The property had been passed down from his great-grandfather, Robert Zane, an original settler and member of the 1682 Newton Colony. He enagaged the services of local carpenter John Ireland with a design that imitated early Federal style farmhouses.

22

Harleigh Cemetery

1640 Haddon Avenue, CamdenMon-Sa: 8:30-4:30Harleigh Cemetery is the finest example of a picturesque Victorian cemetery in South Jersey featuring curving roadways, hillocks, groves of trees, and tombs set into hillsides. Organized in 1885, it is the final resting place of two well-known poets, Walt Whitman and the 20th century Haiku poet Nick Virgilio, as well as many prominent Camden County government officials and civic leaders. A portion of the cemetery is now used as the Camden County Veterans' Cemetery.

Camden County History Tour
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