Product Description
"Villages have disappeared even from the maps, the vestiges described by Beck having been obliterated by the bulldozer or the attrition of time. Only this book remains, a labor of love, to tell their stories." --Chicago TribuneLong regarded as folklife classics, Henry Charlton Beck's books are vivid re-creations of the back roads, small towns, and legends that give New Jersey its special character. Rutgers University Press is pleased to make these important books available again in newly designed editions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Sweet and succinct
I had this book when I was a teen and lost it. I've read it a few times. I can't say that about many books. I've also read More Forgotton Town a few times as well. A must have for anyone interested in Jersey history.

A classic on the local history of southern NJ
Henry Charton Beck spent much of his spare time in the 1930s traipsing around the rural areas of New Jersey searching out local history and lore. He wrote about what he learned in newspaper articles and then in full-length books. This book is the first in a series, published in 1936 (always in print since then, but never revised).

Beck is concerned with the tiny settlements that grew and died mainly in the Pine Barrens, a huge, sparsely settled area that stretches across a good portion of southern NJ. Beginning with Ongs Hat, he tells about 37 different places, one per chapter. The chapters are short, and all the places were visited by Beck, with much of his narrative told through his own eyes. Many of the places are still identified on larger topo maps (there are no maps in the book, unfortunately); very few of these places were ever large enough to support a post office and were merely placenames. Photos grace the book, though what is depicted in them has long disappeared for the most part. Also missing, though it would be very helpful, is an index.

Beck's style has the effect of drawing the reader out into the field to see what he's seen. I've been to quite a few of the places mentioned in the book and have enjoyed having the book along with me. Being almost 70 years old, the book is somewhat outdated (some isolated areas he writes about outside of the Pine Barren reserve are filled with housing developments and strip malls now), but it's still a great book on the local history of southern NJ of long ago.

This book will take you back in time.
Including Forgotten Towns of Southern New Jersey I also owned 4 other books by Henry Carlton Beck.
I purchaded these books in 1982 and read them over and over until the pages became worn.
There is no better way to study and get to know the ghost and forgotten towns of southern New Jersey than through these books.
Henry Carlton Beck put his heart into every word and deed, the information coming from that is wonderful.
There is no better reading on southern New Jersey that can be found on book shelves.
These books will live on forever and to experience his windom in these is a real blessing.
I lost all my books to a fire but plan to replace them next month.
If your interest is in southern New Jersey these are the books to have on your shelf.

If you love the Pine Barrens,...
Need a brief escape from the modern world? Want to know what life was like a hundred years ago in Southern NJ? This is the book for you. Mr. Beck wrote in a beautiful, yet folksy style about the people and places that once existed in what we now call the Pine Barrens. After reading this, I am anxious to go back and look for some of these places myself.

Excellent
Beware that once you read this book, you'll be hooked on trying to find these towns.

An excellent reference for those looking to disover the history of Southern New Jersey. ... Read more

Product Description
In 1676, shortly after the English seized the territory from the Dutch, New Jerseywas divided into the colonies of East and West Jersey. Under the Duke of York--the originalproprietor--East Jersey was settled predominantly by small landowners and entrepreneurs, whileWest Jersey was settled by Quakers, and was in fact the first Quaker colony in America,preceding Pennsylvania by six years. Organized by a group of Quaker proprietors in London in1676/7, West Jersey was governed initially by nine commissioners who held court at Burlington.Besides its legislative authority over the colony, the court at Burlington had jurisdiction overlocal matters and served as the court of appeals for Salem and other towns in West Jersey after1683.Quaker justices continued to hold court in Burlington until May 1703, losing their right to selfgovernment following the end of proprietary rule and the creation of the united Province of NewJersey under royal charter the previous year. While non-Quakers would eventually overshadowthe Quaker inhabitants of West Jersey, Burlington remained a Quaker stronghold throughout theperiod of proprietary rule.The minutes of the Burlington court, transcribed and published originally by the AmericanHistorical Association in 1944, and now available in this facsimile reprint, contain the day to dayminutiae of Quaker temporal life, just as the meeting records illuminate Quaker spiritual life.While they reflect virtually all facets of life in West Jersey, the majority of the court minutesconcern property rights, civil suits, grievances involving slaves, servants, and Indians, and allmanner of domestic complaints. They constitute not only the most important judicial record ofthe colony of West Jersey but are a goldmine of clues about the early inhabitants of West Jersey.A mirror of the life and times of this almost forgotten colony, the minutes of the Burlingtoncourt offer rare possibilities for genealogical research, for many of the cases brought before thecourt, such as inquests, petty civil suits, and criminal cases, give the names of spouses, children,and other related individuals. Since the majority of the persons named in The Burlington CourtBook were Quakers, researchers may be able to profit even further from the clues it contains byprobing among New Jersey Quaker meeting records for the same period.With an index containing over 15,000 references, this little known work is sure to attract theattention of all researchers with an interest in early New Jersey. ... Read more

Product Description
In this lively romp through history from the primitive past to the present day, Marc MappenÂ's message resonatesÂ--ThereÂ's More to New Jersey than the Sopranos. Real tales, wise tales, tall tales abound throughout the pages of MappenÂ's collection, filled with zest, humor, scandal, and occasionally tragedy. Provides a lens into American history through lively prose and more than twenty-five illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Northern NJ gets its due
After publishing two books on forgotten towns of southern New Jersey (mainly in the Pine Barrens) and one on the central part of the state, Henry Charlton Beck finally got around to writing a book dealing with the northern part. The word "Tales" enters the title of this work (rather than just "Forgotten Towns" as with the southern NJ books), and rightly so, since much more emphasis on the stories and people of the region is made here than in the earlier books. The earlier works, especially the two on southern NJ, were more specific and sharper in focus than this book, and after reading them one had a very strong feeling for place and geography, of truly "forgotten towns." That's not so much the case here. Perhaps the least interesting chapter is the first, about an eccentric character of Johnsonburg known as The Pig Drover, which gets the book off to a shaky start. Other chapters are much improved, and the ones on Waterloo before its reconstruction, Wantage, Snufftown (Stockholm), and the Shades of Death Road west of Allamuchy (an article on this road appeared in "Weird NJ" a while ago) are especially good. Fr. Beck resided on a farm near Robbinsville and had a special love for the Mullica River region, which might explain why this northern NJ book is missing the verve and enthusiasm found the his earlier southern NJ books. It's not a bad book and certainly is interesting (Beck never lost the ability to inspire readers to get out and explore for themselves), just not as interesting as what came before.

Well told, well researched folklore
Henry Charlton Beck tells folklore and legends about the small towns in Northern New Jersey.Although not an official account of our history, Beck toured small towns, researched local resources, and had conversations withthe locals.Highly recommended for someone who has an interest in localhistory. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent Reading & Resource
Great book for to research genealogy or local history.It's even a great book just to curl up with!The writer did an excellent job!I would love to hear more from her!

Old Busirla Grounds of New Jersey: A Guide
This book is an excellent resource for not only finding the old burial grounds in NJ but the explanations of the different funerary art and customs that Janet Sarapin details along with the approriate pictures as apictorial guide.I would highly recommend this book to anyone who desiresto know more about the old burial grounds and their history.These oldburial grounds are also a living history of our country. ... Read more

Product Description
Nelson's New Jersey Marriage Records is perhaps the most frequently consultedbook in New Jersey genealogy. It was originally published in 1900 as Vol. XXII of the Archivesof the State of New Jersey, and it remains today the principal authority on early. All told itcontains approximately 30,000 entries (15,000 marriages), giving place of residence and date ofmarriage. The bulk of the work derives from marriage bonds and licenses formerly located in theSecretary of State's office but now on file in the New Jersey State Library. The balance--perhapsan additional 5,000 entries--were extracted from the marriage records of churches and countiesin New Jersey. For the sake of simplicity the marriages are arranged in two alphabets, male andfemale. ... Read more

Product Description
Mr. Dobson continues with his series of booklets pertaining to unexplored aspectsof Scottish genealogy. The first of these new titles is his Scottish Quakers and Early America,the aim of which is to identify members of the Society of Friends in Scotland prior to 1700 andthe Scottish origins of many of the Quakers who settled in East Jersey in the 1680s.

Quakerism came to Scotland with the Cromwellian occupation of the 1650s. Scottishmissionaries eventually spread the faith to various locations throughout the country, includingAberdeen in the Northeast, Edinburgh and Kelso in the southeast, and Hamilton in the west. TheSociety of Friends never grew to large numbers in Scotland, however, owing to its persecutionby both the Episcopal and Presbyterian churches, as well as civic authorities. Understandably, anumber of Scottish Quakers ultimately emigrated to the North American colonies; for example,there were some Scottish Quakers among the landowners of West Jersey as early as 1664, andbetween 1682 and 1685 several shiploads of emigrants left the ports of Leith, Montrose, andAberdeen for East Jersey.

Drawing upon research conducted in both Scotland and the United States in manuscript and inpublished sources, David Dobson has here amassed all the genealogical data that we know ofconcerning members of the Society of Friends in Scotland prior to 1700 and the origins ofScottish Quakers living in East New Jersey in the 1680s. While there is great deal of variation inthe descriptions of the roughly 500 Scottish Quakers listed in the volume, the entries typicallygive the individual's name, date or place of birth, and occupation, and sometimes the name of aspouse or date of marriage, name of parents, place and reason for imprisonment in Scotland,place of indenture, date of death, and the source of the information. Without a doubt this is aground-breaking work on the subject of Scottish emigration to North America during thecolonial period. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume contains the Middlesex County clerk's handwritten recordings of deeds, listed as they were presented. This information has been gleaned from early deed books maintained at the Middlesex County Court House in New Brunswick. Smatterings of miscellaneous documents, such as Release of Dower, creditor's agreements, Division of Property, Power of Attorney, divorce decrees, applications for lost deeds arising from British actions during the Revolution, and deeds of sale by the Commission of Forfeited Estates of Fugitives and Offenders are also included. The majority of the documents recorded in this book originated between the 1720s through 1780s, and provide a rich source of genealogical information. 8.5x11, fullname index, paper, #H1434 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

OUTSTANDING, WELL DOCUMENTED RESEARCH
As a result of 20 years research in the US and UK, the book presents much useful information.It provides ancient research from the UK and transitions well to the colonies.It was especially useful to me, as my grandmother's family is Hughes and her mother and father are included as were their ancestors.It also points out research that contradicts conclusions that I had drawn concerning Edward "Ned" Hughes and his father Thomas (a famous settler and Rev War soldier in frontier Virginia).I knew there were several named Thomas Hughes in that place and time, and now I have identified more sources to review and attempt to evaluate or verify by further documentation.The notation is standard and simple to follow through the generations.When names are partially known, that is noted as are alternative place names and dates.As with any book of this type, it must be considered a guide to your further research.It also very interesting reading even if you don't have a direct link to these people as it provides a window into a time and place and lives where extreme risks and hardships were overcome daily.As to others comments about "claiming every Hughes", consider the arithmetic progression aggregating thru the generations, i.e, ten children, each of which marries and has ten children ...It doesn't take many generation to "generate" large numbers of descendants.

Not a genealogy research source
Too scatter-brained.No real consistency in family line.Looks like the author is trying to claim kin to every Hughes that came to early America.
Cannot recommend as a genealogy research source. ... Read more

Product Description
Records are grouped by deed book: Book A (1669-c1680), Book B (c1685-1690), Book C (c1691-1696), and Book D (1697-1714). The early deed books covered much more than deeds, including the minutes and orders resulting from the first "Assembly". Appointments, elections, court cases, juries, Letters of Attorney, Powers of Attorney, business transactions, land sales, marriages, recorded ear marks, arrest warrants, notes, and items of interest to the community are also recorded. Land transaction entries include the names of buyer(s) and seller(s), their hometowns, date of sale, location, size and price of the purchase, names of adjoining landowners and witnesses to the deed.,., 8.5x11, fullname index, paper, #H1479 ... Read more

Product Description
In this sweeping tour of New Jersey's burial sites from the seventeenth century through the dawn of the twenty-first, readers will discover how headstones are much more than place markers for the deceased. From the earliest memorials that were once used by Native Americans, to some of the elaborate structures of the present day, historians Richard Veit and Mark Nonestied use grave markers to tell an off-beat account of New Jersey's history that is both fascinating and unique.

In detailed descriptions, the authors explain what cemeteries and their gravemarkers say about different individuals and the communities in which they lived. Images that decorate seventeenth-century headstones, such as skulls, hourglasses, and crossed bones, speak to the brevity of life in the colonial world. Eighteenth-century cemeteries reflect the distinctive cultures that sprang up in the state at that time, ranging from the unadorned marble markers used by Quakers, to rich brown sandstone used by settlers in the central and northern regions of New Jersey.By the Victorian era, markers were transformed into elaborate monuments and mausoleums as New Jerseyans honored their dead relatives with a cavalcade of obelisks, pillars, ornate statuary, and sculpture. Today's tombstones continue to mirror New Jersey society.A life-sized Mercedes Benz headstone in a Linden cemetery, for example, reflects the materialism of the new millennium. Also considered are modern-day novelties such as pet cemeteries and what they mean for modern culture.

Having visited more than 900 state burial grounds, and interviewed dozens of owners of monument companies, this richly illustrated book is essential reading for history buffs and indeed anyone who has ever wandered inquisitively through their local cemeteries. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Outstanding Overview and Not Just for NJ Residents
The early chapters deal with headstones and the people who made them. Veit and Nonestied discuss the materials the headstones where made of and the symbolism behind the artwork on the early headstones. Cherubs, urns, trees, angels, lambs etc. all had specific meanings and the authors sort them all out for us.Subsequent chapters track the movement from church graveyards, to cemeteries, to today's memorial parks, with a chapter devoted to alternative grave markings and mausoleums.

Rather than being a dry, morbid work, the writing style is breezy and at times humorous.

Though the book centers on NJ cemeteries, much of what can be gleaned from within can be applied to old cemeteries throughout the US. This is an outstanding book for those who are interested in cemeteries, regardless of their location, as well as anybody with an interest in history.

History for genealogists
If you have family buried in New Jersey, this book is an excellent source of history in NJ cemeteries.It includes some black and white photos, which help to understand styes of burials in the past.This book also includes information on ethnic groups which are usually ignored in any history, but especially in cemetery history. ... Read more