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■
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Case
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Hi X :b T^ j^ :Et IT
OF Til 13
Peabody Museum of American ArctEBology and Ethnology
IN CONNECTION WITH HARVARD UNIVERSITY.
PBESEWTED BY
y^.
r
^y-^
SX*'
\
GEOLOGY
OF
THE COUNTY OF CAPE MAY,
STATE OF
NEW JERSEY.
TRENTON:
PRINTED AT THE OFFICJS OP THE TRUE AMERICAN.
1867.
^f 'j^„. CO a^'c'^^
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year One thonsand eiglit
hundred and fifty-six, by the
SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY,
In the Clerk's Office in the District Court of the United States for New Jersey.
TO HIS BXCELLENGT
RODMAN M. PRICE,
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSET,
▲s A
TRIBUTE TO THE ENLARGED VIEWS WHICH HAVE ORIGINATED,
AND THE ENERGY AND PERSEVERANCE
WHICH HAVE SUSTAINED THIS IMPORTANT WORK;
DESIGNED TO DEVELOP THE RESOURCES,
AND
TO FOSTER THE INDUSTRIAL ENTERPRISE OF THE STATE,
BY
BIS OBBDIINT 8BRVAKT,
WILLIAM KITOHBLL,
SupertnUndent </ ^ew Jersey State Geological Surveff.
TO DR. WILLIAM KITCHELL,
Superintendent of the Geological Survey of the State of New Jersey.
Sir:
I have the honor herewith to submit the Final Report
on the Geology of the County of Cape May.
With much respect,
Tour obedient servant,
GEO. H. COOK,
Assistant State Geologist.
RuTOBRS College, New Brunswick,
November 24, 1856.
INTRODUCTION..
The following Report, on the Geology of the County of
Cape May, is made under the authority of an Act of the
Legislature of the State of New Jersey, passed March 2,
1854, entitled "An Act to cause a Geological Survey."
The act requires, " That when the survey of a county
shall have been completed, it shall be the duty of the
Governor to require the same to be published."
In presenting this Report I feel some degree of hesi*
tation ; for the general survey of the State is yet incom-
plete, and I cannot flatter myself that all my conclusions
will remain without modification, when a more extended
series of facts is brought together; or that my views are
so comprehensive as not to be extended with longer time
and further observations.
The survey was partly made in the summer of 1855,
and was finished in that of 1856.
In the geology of the county there is but little variety ;
its formations are all of the most recent period. A gra-
dual subsidence of the land, and the changes attending it^
10 INTRODUCTION.
are perhaps the most interesting features in its geological
history.
The agricultural resources of the county, and the means
for their development, have been prominent subjects of
study ; and, in this respect, I feel confident that the results
will be valuable to the State, and will justify the enlight-
ened policy which originated and has sustained the survey.
From the location of the County of Cape May, remote
from the great lines of travel, it has heretofore been but
little known in other parts of the State; and, on account
of its distance from market, its agriculture has not been
much developed. Its climate is delightful; it has a soil
which yields generous returns to the cultivator; and its
resources for fertilizers are almost unequaled. It is sus-
ceptible of a high degree of agricultural improvement, and
is now rapidly advancing. Within the last six years the
quantity of its staple agricultural products has increased
fifty per cent., and the price of land has doubled. When
the railroads now in process of construction are opened
through this county, and proper facilities for marketing
are afforded, the whole area of Cape May will be desirable
ground for farmers and market gardeners.
Accompanying the Report is the elaborate and beauti-
fully executed map of the county, by Lieut. E. L. Viele,
State Topographical Engineer. The importance of this
map for exhibiting the geography and topography, as well
as the geology of the county, must commend it to the
approval of every one. I have colored it in accordance
with the geological descriptions given in the Report.
Though no specific provision has been made for other
INTRODUCTION. 11
departments of Natural History than Geology and Mine-
ralogy, I have thought it would be useful to present cata-
logues of its zoological and botanical productions ; and for
this purpose have availed myself of the opportunities
which have offered to procure such catalogues, and regret
that I am not able to present them in every department.
A catalogue of the birds and of the larger wild animals
of the county has been contributed by Thomas Beesley,
Esq., of Dennisville. To persons in the county, the name
of the contributor will be a suflScient voucher for the full-
ness and accuracy of the list.
A catalogue of the fishes found in the vicinity of Bees-
ley's Point, prepared by Prof. Spencer F. Baird, of the
Smithsonian Institution, is copied from the Ninth Annual
Report of that Institution. This list adds much to our
knowledge of the fishes of the shores of New Jersey; and
the distinction of Prof. Baird, as an ichthyologist, gives it
the stamp of authority.
A catalogue of plants collected at, and near, Beesley's
Point by Samuel Ashmead, Esq., is inserted. It contains
but a small proportion of the plants found there; but it
shows the most common species of flowering plants of that
part of the State. Mr. Ashmead also furnishes a list of
the Marine Algaa growing in the same neighborhood. He
" has found a much greater variety of species at Beesley's
Point than Professor Harvey allots to the New Jersey
coast." A set of beautifully preserved specimens of all the
algaa, and of part of the phenogamous plants, was pre-
sented to the State collection by Mr. Ashmead.
A Sketch of the Early History of the County of Cape
12 INTRODUCTION.
May has been prepared for this Reporivby Dr. Maurice
Beesley^ of Dennisville. It embodies the facts which he
has been years in collectings and contains a great deal of
matter which has never before been printed. Intended as
this work is for general circulation in the county, I think
this article will increase its importance and usefulness.
^
Turr^.
n
PART I.
PART I.
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
As a district for geological investigation, the County
of Cape May presents but few features of interest. It
has no mines, no quarries, no rock formations whatever.
It has no hills, no bold shores ; nor any railroad or other
excavations by means of which its geological structure
can be studied. With an area of 266 square miles, it has
only 46 square miles of cleared upland. The rest of the
county is either in forest, or is salt-marsh.
No remains of animals or of plants, of species different
from those now living, are known to have been found
within the limits of the county.
§ In geographical position, it is the most southerly
county of the State. The well-known cape, which lies on
the north side of the outlet of Delaware Bay, is in this
county, and gives name to it. Its boundaries are as follows :
Beginning " at the mouth of a small creek on the west of
Stipson's Island, called West Creek; thence up the said
creek as high as the tide floweth ; thence in a straight line
16 PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
to the place where the waters of Mill or Hickman's Creek
fall into the channel of Tuckahoe River; thence down this
and Great Egg Harbor Bivers to the sea; thence along
the sea-coast to Delaware Bay^ and so up the said Bay
to the place of beginning,"
It is divided into four townships, Lower, Middle, Dennis,
and Upper. Each reaches entirely across the county from
the sea-shore to Delaware Bay, or to the Cumberland line ;
and, beginning at the south end of the county, they stand
in the order in which they have been named.
The line between Lower and Middle, as described in
the order of the Court in 1723, runs "from John Tay-
lor's Branch to the middle main branch of Fishing Creek."
It is drawn on the map as it is generally received.
The line between Middle and Upper was described at
the same time, as running "from Thomas Leaming's
[Branch?] to a creek called Dennis' (now Sluice) Creek,
and down it to the Bay."
Upper (which formerly included "the residue of the
county,") was divided by act of the Legislature in 1826 ;
a new township called Dennis, being set off from the side
next Middle. The division line runs from the intersection
of the old County, or Cape May road, with the Cumber-
land line, southeasterly, a direct course to the head of
Ludlam's Creek at the Shore road; thence, down said
creek to its mouth ; thence, the course of the direct line,
crossing Ludlam's Sound and Beach to the Atlantic
Ocean.
§ The areas of the several townships are given in the
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
17
following tables j in the first, in square miles, and in the
second, in acres. Under the head of Cleared Upland^ is
included all the land which is now free of timber, and
has been cultivated. With the Wood and Bitah-landy is
included all the land now in timber or sprouts— also the
cedar and timber swamps. The Salt-Marsh, includes the
flat meadows which, when not banked in, are liable to
be overflowed by high tides; together with the creeks,
thoroughfares, and inlets which are in them. A few of
the large Sounds and Bays which lie in the Salt-Marsh
have been computed and are set down separately. The
Beaches, are the long and narrow sandy ridges which
line the whole length of the sea-side, and much of the
bay-side of the county.*
Classified Areas of the Townships of Cape May in Square Miles,
Cleared
Upland.
Wood and
Bush-land.
Salt-Marsh.
Sounds.
Beaches.
Total of
Townships.
Lower . . .
Middle . . .
Dennis . . .
Upper . . .
12.133
16.862
9.358
7.786
11.416
30.274
41.330
27.467
11.410
37.808
17.265
25.430
1.108
5.643
1.730
1.962
1.374
3.240
0.611
1.688
37.441
93.827
70.294
64.333
Total of County
46.139
110.487
91.913
10.443
6.913
265.895
* These areas were obtained by carefully copying the Map of the County on tracing
doth, and then cutting the cloth in pieces on the lines dividing these several descriptions
of land; and estimating each separately. The estimate was made by weighing a portion
of the cloth which would represent a square mile ; weighing the several pieces of the map,
and then qalculating the a^reaa by proportion.
Within this area was of course included the water of the bays, sounds, and inlets.
The north line was traced along the borders of Tuckahoe Bivor and Great Sgg
Harbor.
18
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
Classified Areas of the Toumships in Acres.
Cleared
UpUnd.
Woodatid
Bush-land.
Salt-Manh.
Sounds.
BeaehM.
ToUl of
Townships.
Lower ....
Middle. . . .
Dennis ....
Upper ....
7,765
10,792
5,989
4.983
7,306
19,375
26,451
17,579
7.302
24,197
11,050
16,275
710
3.610
1,107
1,256
880
2,073
391
1,080
23,963
60,047
44,988
41,173
Total of County
29,529
70,711
58,824
6,683
4,424
170,171
The accompanying Map of the county shows the several
varieties of land referred to in the table, and gives a clearer
idea of their distribution than any description in words
possibly can.
§ A MOST remarkable feature in the topography is the
large extent of salt-marsh. A strip of it extends the
whole length of the eastern side of the county, from Bees-
lej^'s Point to Cape May, being thirty miles long, and from
two, to three and a half miles wide. Marshes of a more
limited width are found along the Bay-shore for ten or
twelve miles up from the Cape ; and about the mouths of
Goshen, Dennis, East and West Creeks there is another
very large body of marsh. It is somewhat triangular in
form, with a base on the Bay of about five miles, and
its apex on Dennis Creek, four miles and a half from the
Bay. On Tuckahoe River, and on Great Cedar Swamp
Creek, there is another tract of marsh several miles in
extent.
The cleared upland is almost entirely upon the two
main roads of the county, the sea-shore and the bay-side
roads; and the wood and bush-lands occupy its central
portions. Included in the woodlands are several large
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
19
tracts of white cedar swamp, and of hard-wood or timher
sivamp.
§ The surface is uniform, and but little elevated above
the level of the sea. The salt-marshes, indeed, are nearly
at the level of high-water mark. The sand beaches are
usually from 1 to 25 feet high, though some are higher ;
one or two on Seven-mile Beach were found reaching the
height of 35 feet. The upland, or fast land of the county,
is also very uniform. The highest ridges in the county
are not more than 40 feet high, and it is doubtful whether
any reach that elevation. The highest one measured,
which was that between the sea-side road and the marsh,
ten miles up from Cape Island, was a little under that
height. The ridge called Mount Pleasant, on the road
between Dennisville and Tuckahoe, is only eight or ten
feet above the surrounding country, and is probably not
more than twenty feet above high-water mark.* The
slight variation in the surface of the upland will be seen
from the following table of heights, from the profiles of the
West Jersey Railroad.f The line of the road, as sur-
* Tide9. — The following table is taken from the Report of the Saperintendent of the
U. S. Coast Survey for 1854.
Governor's Island, New York Harbor
Sandy Hook
Cold Spring Inlet ....
Cape May Landing ....
Higbie's
Egg Island Light ....
Philadelphia^ Walnut Street Wharf
Rise and lUl of the tide in feet and tenths.
Mean.
jlpring.
Neap.
4.3
mA
3.4
4.8
5.6
4.0
4.4
5.4
3.6
4.8
6.0
4.3
4.9
6.2
3.9
6.0
7.0
5.1
6.9
6.6
5.1
t For the use of these profiles, the Survey is indebted to the kindness of Gen. Wiliiam
Cook, Chief Engineer of the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company.
20
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
veyed, was straight from the bridge over Island Creek at
Cape Island to Dennisville ; there it curved slightly to the
left, and then continued, on another straight course, to the
western border of the county, which it crossed near Hoff-
man's Mill. In the table, the first column gives the miles
from Cape Island ; the second gives the average elevation
in feet, of each mile above high tide ; the third gives the
highest ground passed over in each mile; and the fourth
gives the lowest.
Mili-K from
Arerago height in
Greatest height ic
Least height in
Cape iHlaod.
feet.
feet
feet.
1
1
2
2
10
3
8
15
4
17
22
11
5
15
18
9
6
13
22
14
7
16
22
10
8
11
17
6
9
16
19
11
10
15
22
8
11
10
18
6
12
12
15
9
13
7
16
14
5
9
1
15
10
15
6
16
6
10
2
17
5
14
18
9
18
3
19
2
11
20
9
11
1
21
14
17
10
22
19
22
16
23
20
23
16
24
19
24
10
24t
25
28
20
11
28
0-
§ This extreme uniformity of surface is a great hindrance
to the study of the geological structure of the county.
The slight elevations, which are met with, are generally in
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION. 21
hillocks rather than in extended ridges ; and the streams,
which in some countries indicate a general direction for
the valleys and ridges, are here short. They rise in the
swamps and higher flat grounds in the central part of
the county, and run directly towards the ocean or Bay.
The only valley of much length is that of the Great Cedar
Swamp, which extends from Delaware Bay to Great Egg
Harbor, a distance of fifteen miles. Its direction is north-
east and southwest. In that part of the county, between
this valley and the Cumberland line, the ridges and
streams tend to a northeast and southwest direction more
than to any other ; but the difference is not a very marked
one.
§ The soil and subsoil of the upland is generally a sandy
loam; in some places so light as to be called a sandy
soil, and in others with clay enough to make it a loam.
Gravel is found in all parts of the county, though very
irregularly deposited. It is coarser and more abundant in
the northern and northwestern parts. At North Dennis-
ville, at Petersburg, and on the intervening ridges, all of
which lie on the northwest margin of the Great Cedar
Swamp, the gravel is very coarse, and forms a large con-
stituent of the soil. In the wells, which are generally
from eight to twenty feet deep, the materials passed
through are similar to those upon the surface, consisting
of sand and gravel, with an occasional layer of compact
clayey loam. At Cape Island there is a bluff bank about
twelve feet high, and several hundred yards long, which
gives a short section of the material which forms the
Island. It is a fine, loamy sand, with some gravel, similar
22 PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
to the surface soil of that place. At Town Bank the upland
comes out to the Bay with a bold shore from fifteen to
twenty feet high ; and the action of the waves has exposed
its structure very distinctly. It is composed of stratified
sand and gravel, with a little loam in some of the layers.
The lines of stratification are generally horizontal, though
a slight inclination, in one direction or the other, is per-
ceptible at a few points.
At Congress Hall, Cape Island, a deep well was dug by
the proprietor of the house, for the purpose of supplying
it with good water. Jonas Miller, Esq., has kindly fur-
nished me with the following memoranda of the different
kinds of earth passed through in digging it.
1 foot of soil ;
4 feet of hard, pebbly gravel ;
10 feet of coarse sand ;
4 feet of clay ;
2 feet of clay, with crusts of iron ;
9 feet of white sand, with an abundant supply of water j
30 feet, whole depth.
Several Artesian wells have been bored at, and near.
Cape Island. Two of these, one at the United States
Hotel, and the other at the Mount Vernon Hotel, have
been very successful, yielding an abundant supply of
water. The details of the materials passed through,
and the depths, are given in the accompanying figures.
A well bored for Mark Devine, Esq., on the shore at
the bridge near the light-house, failed of furnishing fresh
SECTIONS OF ARTESIAN WELLS.
ScalCj 16 /i£t to an inch.
WELL AT CONORBBS HALI., CAPS IBLAHO. WELL AT MT. VBB50V HOUSB, CAPB ISLAHD
i.£yei or CAPt /sijknogt
WATKJt IM WeiL.
tUOaWkJKBIUUUl^
t
CtMH WTttltP,
WAm IN wm -
-l.tVCL-Of-MAKV
J I-
^i
II
at^QFTumM
MYormAmf'^
&
J»HYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION. 25
water at 120 feet. There was no layer of clay found to
shut off the salt water. For the particulars in regard to
these wells, the survey is indebted to Mr. J. N. BoUes,
of Baltimore, a gentleman who has had extensive experi-
ence in boring Artesian wells in various parts of New
Jersey, as well as in the adjoining States. The remark
made by Mr. BoUes, that the gravel in the bottom of the
well at the Mount Vernon House is like that at Cold
Spring, should be noticed. Cold Spring, three miles north
of Cape Island, is noted for a large spring of fresh water
in the valley just north of the village. There is no
spring of fresh water on the Cape south of this; and
it appears to be thought by Mr. BoUes, and others
have expressed the opinion, that the gravel stratum, in
which the water comes to the surface at Cold Spring,
dips to the south, and is eighty or ninety feet below tide^
level at Cape Island ; and that the water in the Artesian
wells at the Island is from the same stratum which sup-
plies the spring at the former place. 1 am sorry to say
that I have not been able to get any other facts, which
would throw further light upon this point.
§ Vert few boulders are to be found anywhere in the
county; none in the southern part. In the vicinity of
Dennisville, particularly of North Dennisville, they are
more common than elsewhere. Several of them are in
sight of the road from Dennis to Port Elizabeth, and within
one or two miles of the former village. They are found
among the gravel on the ridges along the northwest border
of the Great Cedar Swamp; they are said to be found in
the gravel beneath the muck of the Cedar Swamp, and a
26 PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
few occur on the southeast side of the same swamp near
Dennisville. These boulders vary from a few pounds up
to two or three tons. They are mostly of a stratified sili-
cious stone, some specimens compact enough to be called
quartz rock, and others more or less friable like a sand-
stone. Small boulders of granite rock are occasionally
met with.
§ The gravel stones found with the boulders are very
coarse, and remarkable for the variety in their compo^
sition. Quartz pebbles are most abundant, but those of
slate, limestone, and sandstone are common; and those
containing shells, corals, and other organic remains, are
frequently met with. These fossils appear to belong to
the Silurian rocks which are in place in the northwestern
part of the State, and in New York and Pennsylvania.
Towards the lower part of the Cape the gravel is not as
coarse, and is more quartzose in its character; not only
granular quartz, but impure agate, chalcedony, &c., being
common. The strands near the steamboat landing, and at
Town Bank, are noted localities for transparent quartz
pebbles. These are much sought after by visitors, and are
known as Cape May diamonds. The same varieties of
pebble are also found in the banks and on the upland, but
bemg covered with loam, they are not as conspicuous as
they become after having been washed from the bank, and
exposed for some time to the roll of the surf.
§ At Tuckahoe, casts and impressions of the common
clam( Venus mercenaria) are found in cemented gravel. The
cementing material is oxide of iron, and no traces of the
lime of the original shell are left. Some of the casts are
PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION. 27
very perfect; and being supposed by many in the vicinity
to be the fleshy part of the clam petrified, they arc known
as petrified clams. The locality where they are found
most abundantly is upon the point of land between the
two roads which lead from Tuckahoe, the one towards
Petersburg, and the other towards Dennisville, and
within a quarter of a mile of the village. They are
usually within a few inches of the surface. The ground
is nearly level, and six or eight feet above high water.
About five miles south of Beesley's Point, and a short
distance west of the sea-side road, on land of Mr. Jonathan
Godfrey, is a locality of shell-marl. It was discovered
several years since in the roots of a tree which had been
blown down. It was also found in a water-hole. Mr.
John Stites and myself, found it on the right of the road
leading from the sea-side to the upper bridge across Cedar
Swamp Creek. It was in a swampy hollow, and was
covered by a foot of decayed leaves and muck, and one
and a half feet of sand. The marl was a mixture of
broken shells and blue mud, and only about a foot and a
half thick. The shells appeared to be those of the oyster ;
all very much broken. A few specimens of a little snail,
or periwinkle {Bucdnum dbaoUtum) were found. It does
not appear to be very extensive, as in trials since made in
the vicinity it was not met with. The ground is several
feet above tide, and is covered with trees and bushes.
§ A REMARKABLE fact in regard to buried stumps at
Cape Island, was related to me by Dr. S. S. Marcy, of
that place. It was observed by himself several years
since. Immediately after a violent easterly storm, which
28 PHYSICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION.
had washed the earth out very low on the strand in front
of the boarding-houses, when the tide was out, he saw a
large number of stumps upon the sand. They were stand-
ing upright, and, on examining them carefully, he found
there was every indication that they were in the spot
where they grew. They were of medium size ; about as
thick as trees usually stand in a forest — ^perhaps a hundred
of them on an eighth of an acre — some of them were of
oak. The bark was still on the roots, and the traces of
the fibrous rootlets were to be seen in the earth around
them. The next tide again buried them in the sand, and
they have not since been seen, to the Doctor's knowledge.
The spot where they stood, was, within the last thirty or
forty years, covered twelve feet deep by the rich loamy soil
t)f Cape Island.
The farm near the light-house, which is a loamy and
fertile soil, without any resemblance to the beaches now
forming from the ocean, is underlaid to some extent, at
the depth of about two feet, by oyster and clam shells. It
is common to find them, at that depth, in digging holes for
fence posts, as I am informed by the Hon. Dqwnes Ed-
munds. This land is elevated a few. feet above tide-level.
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 29
GEOLOGICAL AGE OF THE COUNTY, AND ITS FORMATIONS.
'PHE facts which have been stated, together with others
collected in adjacent parts of the State,* become the
basis for classifying the formations of the county, and
determining their geological age. The conclusion I have
arrived at from them, is, that they all belong to the Quor
ternary System of the Geologists, and that two formations
can be distinctly recognized — the Drift and the Alluvium.
System^ has reference to geological age, and the Quar
ternary System is that which has originated in the latest
or most recent of the geological periods*
Formation^ has reference to origin, and the Drift Forma-
* Shells of the common clam and oyster have been found several feet beneath the sur-
face, in digging wells near the Delaware, in the township of Lower Alio way's Creek, Salem
County. They were but little above tide. At Fairton, Cumberland County, on the east of
the Cohansey, shells have been found near the bottoms of wells; the land there being not
much elevated above tide. Shells have also been found in wells on Turkey Point, in
Downe Township, under similar circumstances. They have also been found a little above
high-water mark, in the clay, at the brickyard in Buokshutem. In the east bank of Man-
rice River, a mile above Port Elizabeth, on the Lore property, there is an oyster-bed ex-
posed by the wearing away of the bank, which is at least ten feet above high- water mark.
It is in blue mud, and the shells are closely bedded in with their edges upward, just as
they i6*e in the shell-beds found at the mouths of the creeks, and in the bay. The bank
is twenty feet high, and about two hundred feet long. The material under the shells is clay
and sand ; the shells are in a layer of from a foot to a foot and a half thick in blue mud,
which is stratified in curved strata. The upper part of the bank is sand, and without strati-
fication. The tide rises there between seven and eight feet Other beds of shells are found
on the Manamusking, near Port Elizabeth. Near Leesburg, and also near Heislerville,
on Ewing's Neck, shells, of the species now common m the Bay, are found in the upland,
covered with several feet of earth. At May's Landing, Atlantic County, stumps have
been met in digging wells ; and at Bamegat, in Ocean County, both stumps and shells of
the common kinds have been fo9nd in like situationB.
30 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
tion includes those materials — sand, clay, gravel, and loose
stone — which have been brought to their present places
from sources more or less distant; while the Alluvial For-
mation includes those sands, clays, loams, mud, peat, &c.,
which have been deposited where they now are, from
sources comparatively near.
Of these two formations, the Drift is the oldest. The
mode of its origin, and the causes which have brought
its materials to their present places, have been the subject
of much discussion, and are not yet well understood. The
Alluvium is still forming, and the modes of its production
are various, but well known.
§ The remains of animals and plants which are found
in the Alluvium are those of species still in existence;
and the same is true, of at least a part, of those of the
Drift.
The Drift Formation^ in this county, includes very nearly
all the uplands within its bounds. That part where loose
stones and boulders are found, is unquestionably of this
formation ; and the remainder of the upland, which con-
tains no fossils, which has extensive beds of gravel — the
gravel containing fragments of rocks which are in place
considerably north or northwest of this — and, in general,
which possesses none of those peculiar and distinctive cha-
racters belonging to the upland of the succeeding formar
tion, is, so far as my present knowledge extends, properly
classed here.
The Alluvium includes some limited portions of upland
not comprehended in the above description of the Drift.
It is not easy to draw a distinct line of division between
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 31
the Drift and the upland Alluvium, unless there are fossil
shells, trees, or other organic remains found in them. By
these means Cape Island, the farm near the light-house, and
the shell marl near Beesley's Point, which were mentioned
on p. 27, are easily distinguished as Alluvium. Some
other points, as Stipson's Island, on which organic remains
have not been found, can be recognized as being also Allu-
vium from the quality of their soil, and from the mud and
brackish water which are found a few feet beneath the
surface. There are numerous points of land on the edge of
the fast ground, both on the Bay-shore and on the sea-side,
which are probably Alluvium ; but the lack of other evi-
dence than the quality of the soil prevents the positive
decision of the question. These alluvial soils appear to
have been formed by the washing of the finer sand and
loam from the higher grounds, and the deposition of
them in lower situations.
§ The sand-beaches on the ocean and bay-shores, the
salt-marshes, and the cedar swamp-bottoms, are also
alluvial, and they are now in process of formation or
change.
§ As these changes are of an important character, and
will aid in making intelligible the descriptions of the
formations above mentioned, they may be introduced here.
For many years past it has been a subject of remark
among the older inhabitants, that the tides came up on the
uplands higher than formerly, and that the salt grass was
killing out the fresh grass, or the timber which formerly
grew on the borders of the upland. Judge Goflfe, of East
Creek, gives it as his opinion that fifty acres, part heavy
32 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
oak timber, and part cultivated land, have thus been lost
from Stipson's Island within the fifty years since he resided
there with his father. His opinion is corroborated by Mr.
James L. Smith, who has resided on the island for the last
thirty-six years, and has lost many acres of good wheat
land within that period. Mr. Charles Ludlam, of South
Dennisville, pointed out to me places now covered with
salt grass which were formerly upland, and covered with
trees; he also showed me an island in the marsh, west of
the bridge, which he thinks has lost two feet of its eleva-
tion above the marsh since his recollection.
An island in the meadow of Richard Leaming, between
Dennisville and Goshen, had living trees upon it seventy
years ago. Mr. Albert Peterson sounded the depth of the
mud on it this summer, and found it to be four and a half
feet. The bottom of this may be muck, but it has a con-
siderable depth of marsh mud on top, and high tides run
over it.
Mr. Stephen Hand, on the sea-side, ten miles from Cape
Island, showed me places in the boixiers of his salt-marsh
where trees and bushes had grown since he owned the
land. Mr. Joshua Townsend, near Townsend's Inlet, on
the sea-side, knows, in his own vicinity, several spots where
white oak trees grew since his recollection, which are now
covered with marsh. Mr. Nicholas Godfrey, two miles
below Beesley's Point, has instances on his own land where
the timber has been killed out, and salt-marsh taken its
place since his recollection. Mr. John Stites, Sen., of Bees-
ley's Point, says the advance of the marsh on the upland
is unquestioned. Mr. Stephen Young, at the Toll Bridge
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 33
over Cedar Swamp Creek, " knows the sjlt water comes
higher on the upland than formerly, by the killing of tim-
ber on the low borders of the upland." Testimony of the
same sort, to any amount, can be obtained ; but the above,
from different parts of the county, is sufficient. Observa-
tions on the dying out of timber can easily be made by any
one who is interested to do so.
In most of the marsh near the upland, which is shallow,
fallen timber is found buried ; and the stumps of trees are
still standing with their roots in the solid ground where
they grew. The timber found in this condition is of oak,
gum, magnolia, cedar, pine, and other species, such as are
now the natural growth of the country. Where they are
of pine, cedar, or other durable wood, their broken and
weather-worn trunks are seen projecting above the marsh
which has overrun the place of their growth. On the land
side of the beaches, along the sea-shore, large numbers of
leafless and dead red cedars may be seen standing in the
marsh, the indestructibility of the wood keeping the trees
erect, although the marsh has, in some instances, gathered
around them to the depth of several feet. Instances of
this sort were seen on all the beaches ; and they may also
be seen on the low sandy islands which stand in the marsh
opposite each of the inlets. It was observed very strikingly
in the salt-holes on Nummy's Island, which lies in front of
Hereford Inlet. Cedar stumps and roots were lying in
many of these holes, and the sandy bottom on which they
grew was but little under the marsh. Within the last
fifty years the island is said to have had a considerable
growth of cedar on it ; now there is but a single living tree
3
84 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
left, and there is every indication that the whole island
will soon be covered by the marsh.
The swamps of white cedar, adjoining the marshes, are
continually encroached upon by the tide ; the timber on
the borders is gradually being killed by the salt water; and
hundreds of acres are to be seen about Dennisville all
dotted over by cedar stumps, which are still standing
where they grew, though the salt grass has long since
taken the place of the living timber. The soft and spongy
nature of the cedar swamp-bottoms would lead one to sup-
pose that the mud, with the load • upon it, was gradually
going down, were it not for the fact that these bottoms are
found far below tide-level, and the muck of which they con-
sist, extending down to the gravel. The following section,
from examinations made in company with Dr. Maurice
Beesley, shows the extent, and some of the effects of this
settling.
The timber and earth of the swamp, it will be seen, ex-
tend quite down to the hard ground, which is eleven feet
under the surface of the marsh. In some trials which were
made in the thoroughfare between Dennis and Goshen Creeks,
the cedar swamp earth was found at least seventeen feet
below the level of the marsh ; and some cedar stumps of
large size are known to be in the bed of Dennis Creek,
which are covered by seven feet of water at low tide. The
appearance of these last-mentioned, indicates that they are
in the spot where they grew.
Some years since, an outlet was needed from a number
of tide-ponds near East Creek, into Dennis Creek. For this
purpose a ditch, ten feet wide and three feet deep, was dug
c DEr«N|« CREEK
GEOLOGIC A.L AGE AND FORMATION. 37
across the marsh from the ponds to the creek. Nothing
but mud and grass roots were met in digging the ditch.
From the size of the ponds, a large quantity of water neces-
sarily passed through the ditch at every tide. The noise
made by the violent rush of the water gave the name of
Roaring Ditch to the outlet; and the wear of the banks
soon changed it from its original narrow dimensions to a
large channel, seventy or eighty feet wide, and from one to
four feet deep at low water ; and, what is very remarkable,
is, that the whole bottom of the passage is thickly set with
pine, cedar, and gum stumps. Some of these are laid bare
at low water, and others are covered with several feet of
water. They stand upright, and there is every indication
they are in the spot where they grew.
Judge GofFe relates, that, in digging a ditch through one
of the shallow tide-ponds, under the mud were found mag-
nolia and huckleberry roots ; then four feet of mud, beneath
which were found large pine stumps; and when the ditch
came to be worn or dug still lower, white cedar snags were
found four or five feet under those of pine. The cedar
snags were standing, and there were four or five feet of
water on them at low tide.
§ The wearing away of the shores wherever exposed to
the action of the tides is not uncommon in other localities ;
but it is so rapid on most of the shores of this county, that
it may be fairly considered an eflfect of this subsidence.
On the side towards the Atlantic, the upland is protected
by the salt-marsh and the beaches; but the beaches them-
selves are rapidly wearing. Hundreds of acres of flat or
sloping sands are now to be seen where a few years since
S8 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
sand banks from fifteen to thirty feet high were standing,
and covered with living trees. The rapidity with which
these wear away is different in different years. Dr. Learn-
ing, of Seaville, thinks that the Seven-mile Beach, opposite
his residence, has worn away a hundred yards within the
last twenty years. Other residents of the county, who are
familiar with the beaches, think this estimate not a large
one.
Mr. Ezekiel Stevens says, that from the accounts given
him by his fatlier, the shore in front of the boarding-houses
at Cape Island must have worn away nearly a mile since
the Revolution. During the war of that period a militia
artillery company had its practicing ground here. Their
gun was placed near a house which stood just outside the
present shore line, and their target was set up at the outer
side of a com field three quarters of a mile east. Beyond
this there were sand beaches for nearly or quite a quarter of
a mile, and then- the sea-shore. The whole of this ground
is now gone, and one of the boarding-houses has been
moved back twice. The wear has not been as perceptible
for a few years past, the bank having been protected by a
covering of cedar brush.
At Town Bank, on the Bay-shore, where the first settle-
ment in the county was made in 1691, there has been a
rapid wear of the shore. In a note made by Aaron Learn-
ing, in relation to the grave of his grandfather, who was
buried here in 1694, he says : "In 1734 I saw the graves;
they were then fifty rods from the Bay, and the sand was
blown up to them. The town was formerly between them
and the water. There were still some signs of the ruin of
the houses." The grave-yard is now all washed away. A
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION, 39
few years since a skull was picked up on the strand which
had the appearance of one long buried, and which had
probably fallen from the bank. At dead low water, the
marks of three wells can just be distinguished at the same
place. Nathan C. Price, surveyor at Town Bank, says his
Unes, which run to the shore, are shorter by forty or fifty
rods than they were in 1776. The Cedar Hummocks at
Goshen are also wearing away.
From the Cedar Hummocks to West Creek there are no
sand beaches, and the salt-marsh is exposed to the direct
action of the waves. Dennis Creek is said to have lost
more than a mile of its length within the last sixty or
seventy years, by the wearing away of the marsh at its
mouth. Several rods in width of the marsh are sometimes
worn away during a single storm. Four years since, a
human body, in an advanced stage of decomposition, was
washed up on the shore near the mouth of Dennis Creek.
It was carried in forty rods from the shore, and buried in
the marsh. A year ago it was found the shore was worn
away quite up to the grave, and the coffin was washed out.
Mr. James L. Smith, of Stipson's Island, who has sur-
veyed much of the land about Dennisville, says there was
always a large allowance made by the old surveyors in
running out the marshes, so that it is difficult to trace their
lines with accuracy ; but that, to the best of his judgment,
a strip fully three-quarters of a mile wide has been worn
from the marsh, the whole distance from West Creek to
Dennis, since the first surveys were made.*
* Numerous facte of the same kind have been collected along the shores of Delaware
Bay and River, in Salem and Cumberland Counties, and on the sea-side in Atlantic,
Ocean, Monmouth, and Middlesex Counties.
40 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
There is a common opinion among the watermen along
the Bay-shore, that the mouth of Maurice River was for-
merly down near Fishing Creek, and that East, West, Den-
nis, and Goshen creeks were its branches. Their reason
for this opinion, in addition to that derived from the pre-
sent rapid wear of the shore, is, that a line of oyster-beds
is found out in the Bay, at diflferent points, between the
present mouth of Maurice River and Fishing Creek; and
similar beds extend out from the mouths of the other
creeks for some distance into the Bay. New beds do not
form in the Bay now. These beds, near the mouths of the
creeks, are almost bare at low-water ; that opposite Fishing
Creek is in twelve feet of water. There is also a tradition^
derived from the Indians, that trees formerly grew on the
bank which is now Fishing Creek Shoal. More facts are
needed to give certainty to this opinion; but it is by no
means improbable.
§ The change of level between the land and water has
produced an eflfect upon the efficiency of several mills
which were located on or near tide- water. Mr. Nicholas
Godfrey had a tide mill on the sea-shore, two miles below
Beesleys Point. He attended this mill himself for twenty-
five years, during which time no changes were made in the
arrangement of the wheel and raceways. He knows that in
that time he lost, at least, four inches of head by the in-
creased height of low water, and says it may have been more.
The lower mill on West Creek was built fifty-two years
since. It is a pond mill, and its wheel-pit floor was care-
fully set, so that it might be as low as possible, and not be
aflfected by the tide which flows up to it; and it has not
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION, 41
been altered since. When first built, it was only an ex-
tremely high storm-tide that would stop it ; now^ a com-
mon perigee tide will stop it ; and it is stopped in this way
perhaps twenty times in a year. Judge Goffe, my informant,
is of opinion, that the tide rises on the wheel fifteen inches
higher than at first, and he is sure it is not less than twelve
inches.
The saw-mill on Sluice Creek, owned by Mr. Clinton Lud-
1am, has been built a hundred years. It is a pond mill,
and from the old papers in Mr. Ludlam's possession, he is
well satisfied that it was originally located so as to be out
of the reach of ordinary high tides. Now, such a tide
would come half way up the mill-dam; and the mill is
only kept in operation by a dam and sluice some distance
below. Judging from all the facts, he thinks the tides rise,
on an average, at least two feet higher than when the mill
was built.
These measurements agree in giving the rate of sub-
sidence as about two feet in a century, or one quarter of
an inch a year ; a conclusion which was arrived at in my
Annual Report of last year from observations in other
counties of the State.*
The whole amount of this subsidence is not known ; it
* The facts as to the rate of subsidence given last year, were, that below Hancock's
Bridge, over AUoway's Creek, in Salem County, the sluices in a meadow bank, built about
the year 1700, are full three feet below low-water mark ,* so low that my informant had
only seen them twice in thirty years. On the opposite bank of the creek is an oak stump
standing, the roots of which are in hard bottom, and the top of it, where cut off, is about the
level of high tide. It has been cut by an axe; and, of course, has been cut since the set-
tlement of the country, or within about one hundred and fifty years. The tides would have
killed a tree in that location when they were three feet lower than now. A settling of
three feet in a hundred and fifty years, or a rate of subsidence of a)>oat two feetin a cen-
tury, is shown by these facts.
42 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
must, at least, equal the whole depth from high-water
mark to the lowest points at which stumps and roots of
trees have been found in their places of growth. This,
from the evidence on p. 34, is seventeen feet, and it may
be more.
In this connection it may be interesting to again notice
the facts mentioned on pp. 27 and 28, of the existence of
shells of the same species now inhabiting the adjacent bay
and ocean, at elevations considerably above the present
tide-level. From this we may fairly infer, that the present
period of subsidence was preceded by one of elevation, in
which, what was before the bottom of the sea or bay, was
carried upward at least twenty-five or thirty feet above
high-water. And there may have been several alternate
periods of elevation and depression; of which that, when the
timber and shells of the Alluvium were buried, must have
been one of depression.
In these alternations of elevation and subsidence we may
find a reasonable explanation of the various phenomena
connected with the upland Alluvium. If we go back to
the commencement of the period of subsidence preceding
the present, for our starting point, and assume, as there is
reason to, that the ground was a little higher than it now
is, then, as the ground slowly sunk down, the water would
overflow the upland, killing the timber, and carrying it
beneath the level of the tide. This subsidence must have
continued until most, if not all, of the present upland of the
county was below tide-level. Oysters and other shell-fish
would of course be found wherever the sea-water extended.
The action of the waves would wash out the loam and finer
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 43
particles of soil from the most elevated parts, and deposit
them in banks and points on the adjacent lower grounds,
burying beneath them whatever remains of animals or
plants might be there. In the succeeding elevations, these
points and banks, composed of fine and rich washings,
have become the most productive soils of the county. The
shells and other fossils buried beneath them are preserved
unchanged, while those on or near the surface have decayed
without leaving any traces, except in cases like that at
Tuckahoe, when some cementing matter has preserved the
form of the shell in the more indestructible materials which
surrounded them.
§ From what has been said in relation to the advance
of the salt-marshes on the upland, and to the existence of
cedar-swamp earth under them in many places, the evi-
dence is conclusive that these marshes are of very recent
origin. Quite large portions of them have been formed
since the first settlement of the county. The marshes
along Delaware Bay, especially those about Maurice River
Cove, are well illustrated by the section, across the cedar
swamp and marsh from the upland in front of Mr. W. S.
Townsend's to near the mouth of Sluice Creek on Dennis
Creek.* In this section it will be seen that the marsh is
on nearly the same level with the cedar swamp; the
lowest ground being near the place where the marsh and
swamp meet, and the surface rising gradually both toward
the creek and the upland. The bottom on which the
swamp stands is full of logs and other remains of fallen
timber, quite down to the sand and gravel which underlies
* See page 36.
44 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
the whole. This cedar swamp bottom, it will be perceived,
extends out under the marsh for a considerable distance,
and, beyond where it is marked as extending, stumps and
logs are frequently found low down in the mud.
The marshes on the sea-side are well represented by the
accompanying Section, from the edge of the upland, opposite
the stone marking nine miles from Cape Island, to Five-mile
Beach, two hundred and twenty rods below its northeast
extremity. The marsh appears to occupy a hollow or valley
between the mainland and the beach, and to increase in
depth very gradually from either side towards the middle;
slight inequalities only being noticed on the bottom. Mr. N.
C. Price, who constructed this section, says, that in sounding
the depths, " the mud was quite soft until I got within
about thirty chains of Grassy Sound ; then I struck some-
thing similar to a sand-bar about eighteen inches from tlie
bottom, and this seemed to rise as I neared the Sound ;
after driving the rod through this bar, it would pass down
very easily to the bottom. Upon reaching the Sound, this
bar was about three or four feet below the bottom of the
w^ter, and very hard to penetrate. Crossing the Sound, I
found many such bars or layers of sand; sometimes there
would be three or four, one below the other, with a few feet
of soft mud between, quite down to the bottom. The rod
always brought up very fine sand sticking to it after meet-
ing these bars. Sometimes the mud would be soft near the
bottom for several feet, and then again only for a few
inches. When about half a mile from the Five-mile Beach,
these sand-layers would come almost to the top of the
marsh ; then, in a direction to the northeast, there would
.N",
M
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION*. 47
always be an island, with a few trees on it. These layers
I found until I came to the beach." "From the channel
of Grassy Sound to twenty rods west of the drain on the
left, shells were found down below the surface of the mud
twelve and fifteen feet." No trees or buried timber of any
kind are found in the deep parts of the marsh; they are
not uncommon in the shallow parts near the shores.
The level of the salt-marshes is nearly that of high-
water mark; those portions along the creeks, and other
water-courses, are usually a few inches higher than those
further back. Where there is no cedar-swamp bottom, the
marsh is more solid near the passages through which the
tide flows than at a little distance from them ; the differ-
ence being due to the greater or less amount of mud in it.
In many parts of the marsh scarcely any mud is to be
found, the whole substance consisting of the roots of sedge,
reeds or flags, which, when dry, is almost as light as hay,
is very combustible, when consumed leaves very little ash,
and, when allowed to decay slowly, wastes away to almost
nothing. The muddy water which comes in with the tide
deposits the principal part of its sediment near the water-
courses, where its rapid flow first slackens, and by the time
it has reached the back part of the marshes it becomes
clear. The banks which are made by the mud hinder the
water from draining out completely at low-tide ; and the
coarse grasses which thrive in such localities continually
increase, and their matted roots, buoyed up by the water;
maintain the apparent level of the marsh. This appears
to have been the mode of growth throughout; for in sound-
ing the marshes at different depths, variations in solidity
48 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
will be found quite to the bottom, just as we now find on
the surface. In forcing the rod down, much difficulty is
experienced in piercing the layers of mud, while it will
drop by its own weight in passing through the layers of
roots. In sounding for the Dennisville Section, a layer of
sedge, or other grass roots, was found about four feet under
the surface, and extending back from the creek a quarter
of a mile. It was extremely difficult to penetrate, being a
foot thick, and almost solid, with coarse and strong roots.
It is represented on the section.
§ The marsh, as will be perceived, is of variable depth ;
twenty-seven feet is the deepest found in sounding for the
section across the marsh near Grassy Sound. Mr. John
Stites, Sen., informs me that the deepest marsh opposite
Beesley's Point is thirty feet. In sounding across the
marsh at Tuckahoe for the Delaware and Raritan Bay
Railroad, the greatest depth found was seventeen feet.
Near the mouth of Dennis Creek, in putting in a stopping
across the mouth of a ditch, the piles driven down reached
the bottom at twenty-nine feet.
§ The marsh along the sea-shore, and also the smaller
ones on New England Creek, Cox Hall Creek, Fishing
Creek, Green Creek, and Dyer's Creek, are all protected
from the action of the waves by sand-beaches, and appear
to have formed in quiet water. That about the mouths
of Gosben, Dennis, East and West creeks, is now exposed
to the direct action of the waves; but there is reason to
believe that a sand beach has extended in front of these
also, and that it has been worn away.
The Cedar Hummocks at Goshen have evidently been a
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 49
part of this line, and within fifty years, as I am informed
by Judge GofFe, the line of beaches between West Creek
and Maurice River was standing where now there is only a
low sandy shore. The interval between these two points
is less than three miles, and I have no doubt the line of
beaches has extended entirely across at a comparatively
recent date.
The marshes on the Bay-shore, and on Tuckahoe and
Great Egg Harbor rivers, have evidently all been formed
in the broad and shallow valleys of the streams ; and in
this respect they have a common character. There is,
however, no cedar-swamp bottom in those below Goshen.
The marshes along the sea-shore in this county are only
part of a long strip of salt-marsh which extends from a
short distance below Long Branch, in Monmouth County,
to Cape May, and has the same general features throughout.
They seem to fill a broad valley which formerly extended
along the shore. On the side next the upland the marsh
is shallow, and the fast land meets it at a very gentle slope.
On the sea-side the marsh is terminated by a ridge, or
series of parallel ridges of sand beaches. These are not
quite continuous, being broken at intervals by the occur-
rence of inlets, through which the sea-water finds entrance
to the marshes, and the fresh water brought down by the
streams escapes. The marshes include considerable bodies
of water, which are known as hays and sounds ; and they
are traversed in various directions by tTioroughfares^ which
connect the larger bodies of water, and creeks^ which
branch out from the sounds and thoroughfares, and termi-
nate in the marsh or upland.
4
50 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
In this county the marsh extends along its whole sea-
side, a distance of thirty-two miles. It is from two to three
miles and a half wide, including the beaches. An in-
spection of the Map will give a good idea of this line of
marshes, of the several beaches which bound it on the sea-
side, and of the inlets and other water-courses by which the
sea water enters and penetrates the marsh in every direc-
tion. The tide enters the inlets with a good deal of cur-
rent, and causes wear and shifting of the channels and
sand-bars ; and the marsh wears in some places where it is
most exposed; but generally there is an increase in the
marsh surface, and a diminution in the area covered by
water. The sedge-roots extend out into the water, mud is
entangled in them, and soon strong sods are formed ; and in
this way the sounds and bays are continually diminished
in area. Ditches and narrow passages, if left uncared for
a few years, become entirely filled up by these roots. Sods
torn ofi* from the edges of the marsh have been deposited
in the shallow water in the sounds, where they have taken
root, and soon became islands of considerable size. Many
such islands can be pointed out by those who have been
familiar with the sounds for a long time. " Old pilots say
they used often to run in the sounds with their boats
during northeast storms, and that then they were so large
as to be like bays ; now they find it diflScult to get in at
all." Several old maps which I have seen also represent
the area of water in the marsh as being greater than it
is now.
§ There is a kind of regularity in the arrangement of
the sounds, in relation to the beaches, which is worthy of
OhrvBuiwo,
viywyAfB
a 8
o
H
O
W
ywisrv^vsj
aiBmL^SBh
.■•■■■ /.o?^
3 An J|g
v-:- f
. i^
8 33t]i tfV3Q^E
,;:^
3ai;.\fla3i7m^^
V;^
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 53
notice. Directly behind each of the beaches, and almost
opposite its centre, is a large sound or bay; thus, opposite
Peck's Beach is Peck's Bay; Ludlam's Bay is opposite
Ludlam's Beach; Learning's opposite Seven-mile Beach;
Grassy Sound behind Five-mile Beach ; Jarvis's Sound op-
posite Two-mile Beach ; and Cape Island Sound opposite
Poverty Beach. Each of these sounds is connected by
thoroughfares with the inlets at both ends of the beach.
There is another series of sounds opposite the inlets, and
nearer the upland ; some of the inlets have one, and others
two. They have thoroughfares connecting them with the
inlets to which they stand opposite, but are not connected
with the other sounds by thoroughfares. It would be diffi-
cult at this time to give a good explanation of the causes
which have produced this peculiar order, but it is evidently
in some way connected with the movement of the tides.
The beaches lie directly on the borders of the water, and
in ridges and hills which have a general direction parallel
with the shore. They are composed of beach-sand, which
has been drifted or washed up into these long and narrow
banks. On the side next the water the sand is generally
bare, and easily moved by the wind ; further in, the ridges
are covered by timber, and undergo but little change at
present. The accompanying Sections will help to explain
some of their peculiarities.
Section 1 was taken square across Five-mile Beach,
about two hundred and twenty rods below the northeast
end. Bearing in mind the distortion of the profile, which
represents the ridges as five times as high as they really
are in proportion to their breadth, it sufficiently explains
54 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FOBMATION.
itself in most respects. The part called Old Beach is made
up of parallel ridges^ which extend without breaks almost
the whole length of the beach. The timber on it is also
very old. Little or Young Beach has its hills shorter and
more irregular, and the timber on it is younger. The
" Savannas'^ are open, flat spaces between the parallel ridges
of Old Beach. In wet seasons these are covered with fresh
water, and then are called Slashes. They are a little
higher at the end, so that the water is shut in. Water-
fowl frequent the slashes in great numbers, and they are
noted resorts for sportsmen. For the last three years those
on Five-mile Beach have been mostly dry, and now are
covered with grass, weeds, and moss. The ridges on Old
Beach are of about the usual height, but Young Beach is
much higher in some places. A section across Seven-mile
Beach would vary but little from this; there are, in some
places, a greater number of parallel ridges on Old Beach,
the ridges being lower and wider apart, which are further
out in the marsh.
Peck's and Ludlam's Beaches consist of but little except
the irregular hills of the Young Beach. A trace of the
parallel ridges may perhaps be recognized on the northeast
end of Peck's Beach, and on the southwest end of Ludlam's.
Two-mile Beach is shorter and more curved, but it is
covered with aged timber.
The beaches are wearing away by the action of the
waves; and there are places on Peck's and Ludlam's
Beaches where the sea has broken entirely over them, and
spread the sand on the marsh, so that nothing but a sandy
shore is now left between the ocean and the marsh
m4ina/i
o
o
jm^.
WBIVM H£HH
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 57
Seven-mile, Five-mile, Two-mile, and Poverty Beaches are
wearing away fastest at their southwest extremities; the
effect of which is very apparent in the narrowed ends, as
exhibited on the Map. Poverty Beach, in particular, has
almost all worn off. On an old map of New Jersey, en-
graved and published by William Eaden, in London, in
1777, it is called Four-mile Beach, and extends downwards
from Cold Spring Inlet for that distance ; now it is not a
half-mile long on the part which has sand banks.
Section 2 is taken across the beach on the Bay-shore,
sixty yards south of the steamboat landing. There is the
same series of parallel ridges of sand to be seen here that
were in the other section, and equal irregularity in the
ridges near the water ; but instead of a salt-marsh behind
it, the last sand ridge lies directly upon the upland. Lilly
Pond, which is here shown, is somewhat noted from being
the only fresh-water pond on the Cape, below Cold Spring ;
it is at high-water mark, and storm tides have occasionally
driven the sea-water into it. Beaches of this sort are found
all along the Bay up as far as the Cedar Hummocks, and
beyond that they formerly existed between West Creek
and Maurice River; and they can be traced up the east
bank of that river to Millville. These beaches are wear-
ing away on the water side.
The cedar swamps of the county are so extensive, and
the deposits of peaty earth, or muck, which they have
formed are so great, as to make an important feature in the
geology of the county. The tree of which these swamps
are composed, is the white cedar, the Gupressua thuyoidea
of the botanists. It is an evergreen, which thrives best
58 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
in wet ground, and in favorable situations forms dense
swamps. It is most commonly found on the head-waters
of streams, and several of those in this county rise in such
swamps. West Creek, East Creek, Dennis Creek, Great
Cedar Swamp Creek, and many of their small branches,
have cedar swamps through their whole lengths. There
is no cedar on the streams south of those mentioned, ex-
cept in a few spots of limited extent, where it has been
planted. The area of these swamps has not been estimated,
but there must be some thousands of acres. The largest
is that which lies in the valleys of Dennis and Great Cedar
Swamp creeks, and is continuous from the upper bridge on
the former creek, to Dennisville on the latter. The timber
which originally covered these swamps has now all been
cut off, and there is no first growth to be found. Very few
trees are known which are more than one hundred years
old, and most of the swamps are now cut off when the tim-
ber is of about sixty years growth. Formerly, trees of
great age were found. Mr. Charles Ludlara counted 700
rings of annual growth in a tree which was alive when cut
down. Dr. Beesley counted 1080 in a stump; and Hon. J.
Diverty found 1000 in a log dug up out of the swamp
earth. The trees stand very thick upon the ground, and
the first part of their growth is very rapid, but as they get
larger they are more crowded, and their tops remain small.
The annual growth is here very little ; the rings near the
heart of the tree are frequently an eighth of an inch thick,
while in those near the bark of a large tree they are as thin
is paper. The average size of the old trees was from two
to three feet in diameter ; those of four, five, and six, and
A CEDAB SWAMP, CAPB MAY COUNTY.
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION". 61
3ven seven feet, were found, but rarely. The accompany-
ing cut was taken from a sketch of the swamp. It gives
a correct general impression, though in the thrifty growth
of trees these trunks are not half tall enough for their
diameters.
The soil in which these trees grow is a black peaty earth,
which, when dry, will bum. It is of various depths.
Several soundings in the swamp near the Burnt Causeway,
showed a depth of from two to eight feet ; which was the
deepest. Soundings in the Great Cedar Swamp near Long
Bridge showed the gravel bottom to be from six to eight
feet below the surface. Near Dennisville it has been found
thirteen feet deep, with no mixture of mud or any foreign
substance. It is very loose and porous, and always full of
water. The trees which grow on it have their roots run-
ning through it in every direction near the surface, but not
penetrating to the solid ground. Their evergreen leaves
keep it continually shaded, and cool; and these conditions,
with the constant presence of water, retard the decay of
the twigs and leaves which fall every year: and thus there
is a continual and rapid increase in the amount of this
peaty soil, or muck. Mr. Charles Ludlam told me, that he
recently found a log in the swamps which, from its cut
ends, he was satisfied had lain there ever since the timber
was last cut off, which was sixty years ago. It was about
a foot in diameter, and the accumulation of matter on the
surface since that time was enough to entirely bury it.
Timber which is buried in the swamp undergoes scarcely
any change ; trees which are found several feet under the
surface, and which must have lain there for hundreds of
62 GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION.
years, are as sound as ever they were ; and it would seem
as if most of the timber which had ever grown in these
swan^ps was still preserved in them. Trunks of trees are
found buried at all depths beneath the surface, quite down
to the gravel; and so thick, that in many places a number
of trials will have to be made before a sounding-rod can be
thrust down without striking against them. Tree after
tree, from two hundred to one thousand years old, may be
found lying crossed one under the other in every imagina-
ble direction. Some of them are partly decayed, as if they
had died and remained standing for a long time, and then
been broken down. Others have been blown down, and
their upturned roots are still to be seen. Some which have
been blown down, have continued to grow for a long time
afterwards, as is known by the heart being very much
above the centre, and by the wood on the under side being
hard and hoxy. These trunks are found lying in every
direction, as if they had fallen at different times, as trees
would in a forest now. The view of fallen timber which
is here presented was sketched in the swamp of Mr. Henry
Ludlam, near Dennisville. The living timber was cut off
fifty years ago, and the swamp earth being exposed to the
sun and air^ has decayed from around the timber which
was buried, and thus brought some of the uppermost sticks
to view. It is not known how many others there may be
under these, as there is still six feet of the swamp earth
undecayed.
In this view, if we begin at the left hand, we notice the
cut end of a small log, which lies across a second ; this
second has its broken and shivered end resting on a third
^^
GEOLOGICAL AGE AND FORMATION. 65
and much larger log ; and this third lies directly across a
fourth, which lies with its cut end partly in the water. By
the side of this fourth log an old and decayed stump is
shown, from beneath which a fifth log is seen projecting.
The stump just mentioned must have grown since the fifth
log fell, and yet its roots appear to run under the third log,
as if it had grown before the falling of that; while just
to the left of this stump, and partly behind the third log,
is a second stump, the roots of which grow over the third
log, thus showing that it has grown entirely since that
has been lying in its present position. Both these stumps
are those of trees from two hundred to four hundred years
old; and we know not how long since the last one died.
By looking at these permanent records of the age of the
swamp, we soon come to reckon the time of its accumulation
by hundreds, or even thousands of years. And yet this is
only the last of a succession of such changes which have
left their permanent marks upon this portion of the
State ; and all of them only carry us back through the
last, and what has usually been considered the most in-
significant, of all the periods of geological time.
5
PART II.
PART II.
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
SOILS.
The soils are generally light ; there are none which are
clayey, and very few which would be designated as heavy
loams. The term, sandy loam, would designate almost all
the soils of the county. Spots are occasionally found
which are decidedly sandy, but these are not of any con-
siderable extent. Tracts of loamy soil are also found.
The varieties of soil run into each other so much, in all
parts of the county, that it is not possible to give descrip-
tions which would be of any local value. In most cases,
the subsoil is similar to the soil, except in the want of
organic matter. A more tenacious subsoil has been found
in a few places; as on Stipson's Island, and at Fishing
Creek.
For the purpose of showing the character of the culti-
vated soils, a few specimens, taken from different parts of
the county, have been analyzed.*
* The obemical analyies which accompany this Report haye been made in my Laboratory,
and under my direction, by Mr. Julius Koch.
70
ECX)N0M1CAL GEOLOGY.
TABLE L
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Silica .......
92.210
3.637
0.571
0.279
0.261
0.226
0.059
1.598
0.707
91.601
3.205
0.428
0.252
0.463
trace.
0.082
3.006
0.904
93.014
3.739
0.341
0.429
0.444
0.280
0.091
2.035
0.602
90.887
4.758
0.430
0.291
0.304
0.171
0.073
1.817
1.497
90.089
4.983
0.457
0.345
0.497
trace.
0.182
2.020
1.462
84.800
6.951
0.224
0.699
0.713
0.358
0.193
4.570
1.522
94.786
3.528
0.121
0.158
0.249
0.109
0.081
0.504
0.371
Perox. iron and
Alumina j .
Xiime
Magnesia ....
Potash ....
Salpburio acid
Pliosphoric acid .
Organic matter .
Water . . . •
99.548
99.941
100.974
100.228
100.035
100.030
99.907
Ammonia . • .
' •
0.342
1. Taken from a back field of Dr. Wales*, at Tuckahoe.
2. From a field of Stephen Young, near the Toll-bridge,
over Cedar Swamp Creek.*
3. Prom a field of John Stites, Sen., Beesley's Point.
4. From a field of Joshua Swain, Townsend's Inlet.
5. From Richard D. Edmunds' field, Cold Spring.
6. From the farm of James L. Smith, Stipson's Island.
7. A gravelly loam, from the farm of Peter Corson,
Petersburg.
For the purpose of comparison, analyses of different
varieties of fertile soils are copied from agricultural works,
and inserted here : —
* This soil is a sandy loam, known in Gape May at a hlaek tand. The field of one and
a half acres was manured, in 1854, with twenty loads of barn-yard manure, and three
hundred pounds of guano,* and fifty bushels of wheat were harvested from it in 1855.
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
71
TABLE n.
Silica and quartz sand . .
Silica and fine claj . . .
Soluble silica
Alumina
Oxide of iron
Oxide of manganese . . .
Lime
Magnesia ......
Potash
Soda
Phosphoric acid ....
Sulphuric acid
Carbonic acid
Chlorine
Organic matter .....
Water
Carbonic acid and loss . .
Sandj soils.
Clay soils.
1
2
3
4
5
6
90.221
2!r06
3.951
.960
.539
.730
.066
.010
.367
trace.
*"oio
1.040
94.7
2.0 J
"iVo
trace.
1 ■■
trace.
"".5
84!r6o
1.450
3.070
".'415
.605
.269
.220
.386
trace.
.325
trace.
3.621
5,539
72V83
"6.67
8.82
"1.44
0.92
1.48
1.08
0.51
trace.
trace.
1 3.38
2.87
63.195
14.040
4.870
o!830
1.020
2.800
1.439
0.240
0.091
0.050
0.010
8.551
2.700
99.836
81.26
3.41
i.'28
1.12
0.80
1.50
0.38
0.09
0.92
trace.
2.43
2.60
100.000
99.9
100.000
100.00
99.37
1 is a soil from near Gandesheim, in Brunswick, giving
luxuriant crops of pulse.
2. A fertile sandy loanii near Brunswick, producing
luxuriant crops of lucerne, sainfoin, lupins, poppies, &c.
1 and 2 from Sprengel.
3 and 4 are clay soils from near Cirencester, England ;
analyzed by Dr. Voelcker.
5 and 6 are loamy soils; (5) by Dr. Anderson, and is
presumed to be from Scotland ; (6) by Dr. Playfair, and is
probably an English soil.
A comparison of these two tables will show the class of
soils to which those of Cape May belong. Soils containing
the largest amount of silica and quartz sand are the
lightest, and those containing the largest amount of
alumina and oxide of iron, or of fine clay, are the heaviest ;
and in this respect the soils in Table I. must be classed as
sandy soils, or sandy loams.
72 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
It will be perceived that the proportion of lime is less in
Table I. than in Table H.
The soils which have been analyzed have been first dried
in the open air before commencing the analysis ; and those
in the second table have undoubtedly been prepared in the
same way. It will be perceived that the amount of water
retained in the soils, after this exposure, varies, being least
in the sandy soils, more in the loamy, and most in the
clay soils. This, of itself, is a most important property ;
but it becomes doubly interesting when it is considered
that the power of absorbing and retaining manures varies
in somewhat the same ratio. A consideration of this point
will suggest the importance of improving the texture and
retentiveness of the soils, by adding clay or mud from the
marshes.
The following is an analysis of a soil from the farm
occupied by Downes Edmunds, Jun., near the Cape May
Light-house : —
ANALYSIS.
Silica 87.506
Alumina 3.455
Peroxide of iron 2.882
Lime 0.967
Magnesia 0.753
Potash 0.736
Sulphuric acid trace.
Phosphoric acid 0.155
Chloride of sodium (common salt) 0.139
Organic matter 2.594
Water 1.894
101.081
Ammonia • ••••• 0.091
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 73
Mr. Edmunds says of this soil : " It has been worked for
the last hundred years, as I am informed on the best au-
thority, without any vegetable or mineral matter whatever
being put on it. It has been under cultivation in com,
wheat, rye, oats, and potatoes, successfully, every three and
four years, from the time spoken of until the present. I
am not aware of its being impoverished by this mode of
cultivation since my knowledge. I have found the crop
to be as good the last season as it was the first that I knew
it. The area of that part of the field so productive is about
five acres. In many places- the soil is shelly; so much so,
that it requires some skill to manage the plow. The sub-
soil is deep, with a black sandy mould. I think the shells
have been in some way the cause of the productiveness of
this field."
The analysis of a soil which has been under constant
cultivation for a hundred years, with a three or four years'
rotation of field crops only, and which still produces fifty
bushels or upwards of com per acre, is worthy of notice.
The following are analyses of the deposits on the salt-
marshes. They can hardly be called soils at present, but
with an improved agriculture they must yet become the
most valuable and productive in the county; and they are
also the repository of vast stores of fertilizing materials for
improving upland.
74
ECX)NOMICAL GEOLOGY.
ANALYSIS— Marsh Mud.
1
2
3
Soluble Biiica
25.919
15.696 )
48.383 j
66.500
Insoluble silica (sand)
25.946
Protoxid of iron
6.833
3.925
5.440
Alumina .
14.335
9.412
8.000
Lime
0.866
2.171
0.656
Magnesia .
1.917
1.657
0.532
Potash
1.570
2.376
2.076
Sulphuric acid .
2.472
1.697
1.472
Phosphoric acid
0.343
0.327
trace.
Carbonic acid .
0.551
0.837
• • • .
Common salt
1.396
2.001
0.537
Organic matter .
8.624
6.270 1
5.361 J
14.600
Water
9.014
99.786
100.113
99.813
Ammonia ia 100 parti
}
•
0.591
0.318
1 was taken from the surface of the marsh opposite
South Dennisville, last spring, and is entirely composed of
the deposit of last winter.
2 was taken from the bank of a creek in in Richard C.
Holmes' meadow, near Cape May C. H.
3 was sent to me by Charles Ludlam, of Dennisville,
and was taken from the bank of Dennis Creek.
The following is the analysis of a subsoil from the farm
of Wm. J. Bate, of Fishing Creek.
ANALYSII?.
Silica 87.468
Iron and alumina 7.940
Lime 0.423
Magnesia 0.647
Potash 0.610
Sulphuric acid 0.236
Phosphoric acid 0.134
Organic matter • . . 1.760
Water 1.353
100.571
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 75
FORESTS.
§ The natural growth of timber on the upland is —
White Oak Quercus alba.
Black Oak Quercus tinctoria.
Red Oak Quei^cus rubra.
Pin Oak Quercus palustris.
Peach Oak Quercus pheUos,
Scrub Oak Quercus nigra.
Cheetrut Oak Quercus castanea f
Turke '^ Oak Quercus obtusUoba,
Yellow _- Pinus mitis.
Spruce riTY^. r, Pinus inops.
Red Cedar Juniperus Virginiana,
Persimmon Diospyros Virginiana,
Dogwood • Comusflorida.
Hickory (White Heart) Carya iomentosa.
Hickory (Red Hpart) Carya albaf
Wild Cherry (introduced ?).... Cerasus scroiina.
Chestnut (introduced ?) Castanea vesca.
Sassafras Sassafras officinale.
The original growth of timber on the upland has been
all cut oflf. The growth of the young timber is rapid;
from fifteen to twenty years is long enough for it to get
sufficient size for fire-wood, and it is then cut off*. An acre
cut off* in this way will 3deld about as many cords of wood
as it has been years in growing; thus, a twenty years'
growth will turn out twenty cords per acre. Last year
there was cut and sold 15,408 cords of wood in the county.
Its average price at the landings is about $2.75 a cord.
With land at a low price, the growing of fire-wood has in
many cases been found profitable. The greatest drawback
to this business are the fires, which are too common, and
6 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
which sometimes destroy hundreds of acres of growing
timber; and the late frosts, which frequently do serious
damage to the young sprouts.
§ In the timber swamps^ which are found in the central
part of the county, there is a heavy growth of
White Oak Quercus alba.
Black Oak Quercus coccinea t
Beech Fagus fenruginea.
Sweet Gum Liquidambar siyracifolia*
Sour Gum, or Pepperidge Kyssa muUiflora,
Spoonwood Magnolia glauca.
Aspen Populus tremuloides.
Buttonwood Plaianua occiderUalis.
Maple Acer rubrum.
Holly Ilex opaca.
Ash Fraxinus Americana.
Elm Ulmus Americana,
Yellow Poplar Liriodendron tulipifera.
The timber in these swamps has been very large and
fine. The first growth is mostly cut off, but the young
growth is springing up rapidly. The trees are much taller
than on the dry upland ; some of them are said to be more
than a hundred feet high. It is reported that many years
since, a hollow yellow poplar was felled in the swamp on
the head of Sluice Creek, which was so large that Aaron
Learning rode into it on horseback, turned, and rode out
again.
§ The timber on the beaches, though rather short, is
excellent for building purposes. The red cedar is in much
demand on account of its durability.
§ The products of the cedar swamps are quite an im-
portant item to the industry of this county. The live
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 77
timber, being all of second growth, is cut when large
enough to split into rails. Occasionally, a very thrifty
tree is found large enough to make one or two saw logs ;
these are sawn into boards. The value of a good cedar
swamp, of from fifty to seventy years' growth, is from
$400 to $1,000 an acre j and some acres have yielded con-
siderably more than that. There were sold from Dennis
and Upper townships, last year, 315,000 white cedar rails,
which were worth from $8 to $10 a hundred; and 595,670
feet of white cedar boards, worth $20 a thousand; being an
aggregate value of $40,263.
The cedar logs which are buried in the swamps are also
mined, or raised and split into shingles ; and this singular
branch of industry furnishes profitable occupation to a con-
siderable number of men. Six hundred and ten thousand
shingles of this kind were sold last year at $15 a thousand,
or an aggregate of $9,150.
In conducting this latter business, a great deal of skill
and experience is requisite. As many of the trees were
partly decayed and worthless when they fell, it becomes
important to judge of the value of the timber before much
labor is wasted upon it. With an iron rod the shingler
sounds the swamp until he finds what he judges to be a
good log ; he tries its length and size with this rod ; with
a sharp-cutting spade he digs through the roots and down
to it ; he next manages to get a chip from it, by the smell
of which he can tell whether it was a windfall or a hreah-
down; that is, whether it was blown down or broken off.
The former are the best, as they were probably sound
when they fell. If he judges it worth working, he cuts
78 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
out the matted roots and earth from over it, and saws it
off at the ends. This latter operation is easily performed,
as the mud is very soft, and without any grit. By means
of levers he then loosens it, when it at once rises and floats
in the water, which is always very near the level of the
swamp. The log is then cut into shingle lengths, and split
into shingles. The logs are sometimes, though rarely,
worked for thirty feet. The process, as carried on in the
swamp, is shown in the cut.
It is very interesting to see one of these logs raised. It
comes up with as much buoyancy as a freshly fallen cedar ;
not being water-logged at all. The bark on the under side
looks fresh, as if it had lain but a few days ; and what is
remarkable, the under side of the log is always the
lightest; the workmen observe that when the log floats
in the water it always turns over, the side which was
down coming uppermost. The drawing was taken in a
swamp which has been worked, for its buried logs, for fifty
years past ; and the scattering trees which are seen are
only such as have escaped the workman's axe. The levers,
spade, and other tools of the shingler are seen, and he is
in the act of cutting up the floated log. Several holts^ or
blocks in form for splitting into shingles, are lying on the
ground in front of him. In the background, a man is
seen shaving the shingles. The workmen go over the
same ground again and again, and find new logs each time.
The buoyancy of the timber remaining, it is probable the
lower logs rise in the mud when the roots over them are
cut loose, and the logs which laid upon them are removed.
These logs are found not only in the swamp, but also
Jiki
^*
%
EODNOMICAL GEOLOGY, 83
out in the salt-marsh, beyond the living timber. Such
marsh has, however, a cedar swamp bottom, which has
been overrun by the tide. In the view it will be noticed,
that while no living timber is to be seen, stumps are pro-
jecting above the surface of the marsh on all sides. In
this case, the method of working the timber is the same as
in the preceding. The drawing was made at high-water,
and the shingler is seen working at the timber below the
tide-level. Twenty thousand shingles were taken from a
small spot near this, the present year. A good idea may
be obtained from the drawing of the appearance of these
lands, which are now being changed from timbered swamps
to salt-marshes. The heaviest part of the business in
making the shingles is done in the neighborhood of Dennis-
ville.
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.
The leading agricultural products of the county, and, to
some extent, its agricultural condition and capabilities,
may be seen from the following statistical table. The
materials from which it has been made were collected by
the assessors : Richard D. Edmunds, in Lower Township ;
Stephen Hand, in Middle; Albert Peterson, in Dennis;
and Champion Corson, in Upper. In prosecuting the sur-
vey, it was found that agriculture had advanced very
rapidly since the United States' Census of 1850, and that
the returns made at that time would give a very inade-
quate idea of the present annual produce. Hence the
preparation of the present table, which, it is gratifying to
say, shows an increase beyond what was expected.
84
j:conomical geologt.
Lower.
Farms.
Acres of cultivated land
** Wood and Bush-land
** Banked Meadow. . .
" Salt Meadow
Value of cultivated land per
acre
Stock.
Number of Horses
" Cattle
Sheep
" Hogs
I\'oduc€.
Bushels of Wheat
Rye
Oats
Corn
" Potatoes
" Sweet Potatoes.
Pounds of Butter sold
Tons of Upland Hay cut. . . .
** Salt Hay cut
Value of fruit sold in dollars
Value of market garden pro
duco in dollars
Middle.
4,150
5,228
447
1,295
$50
281
945
526
563
5,080
318
4,135
20,732
3,126
1,320
3,386
73
1,915
592
748
Dennis.
4,827
10,572
80
4,925
35
242
1,214
1,175
776
10,570
50
5,705
37,680
4,565
1,357
4,515
184
2,500
500
340
3,190
27,318
631
2,303
35
175
915
734
505
4,833
290
3,920
13,365
3,753
1,310
729
115
2,222
317
Upper.
3,580
18,560
760
8,700
30
245
1,608
790
1,170
4.130
1,115
3,000
18,740
6,215
2,130
6,230
660
4,590
1,000
188 1,740
Total in
1856.
15,747
61,678
1,918
17,223
37i
943
4,682
3,225
3,014
24,663
1,773 )
16,760 f
90,517
17,659 )
6,117}
14,860
1,032 )
11,227)
2,409
3,016
Total in
1850.
14,310
37,653
519j
3,563
3,849
1,905
16,334»
12,429
84,915
18,548
46,269
9,972
S,188
70
In the area of land cultivated, it will be noticed that
the amount is considerably less than the area of cleared
land set down in the table on p. 18. Some of the cleared
lands are not cultivated ; and the house lots of six acres
and less were not all included in the returns. There
are one hundred, and eight of this kind in Middle Town-
ship. In the same way, the wood and bush-land is not all
given in, not being attached to farms ; and the salt-marshes
are by no means all in meadow. The prices of wood and
bush-land are not given. That of the former is extremely
variable ; the price of the latter is from two to eight dollars
an acre, according to quality and location ; the average is
probably not above five dollars. No comparison can be
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
85
made in the article of butter, the estimate for this year
being on the amount soldy while in 1850 it was on the
amount made.
The population of the county, according to the State
Census of 1855, was 6,936.* The comparative ratio of
agricultural production to population, in diflferent parts of
our country, is shown in the following table, mostly taken
from the Compendium of the United States Census of
1850:—
1
1
i
1
e
a
1
New England ......
.08
.54
.53
.99
.99
.80
.77
.67
.96
1.26
2.49
3.13
3.18
2.25
0.89
1.39
8.40
4.19
0.77
7.80
5.55
3.81
.3J3
.9J2
28.22
39.45
44.02
25.53
13.06
7.19
4.00
5.39
5.49
2.82
4.49
3.43
Middle States
.15
Southern States
.29
Southwestern States ....
.29
Northwestern States ....
United States
.29
.21
County of Cape May. . .
.14
The larger part of the able-bodied men of the county
are engaged in other pursuits than agriculture, such as
* Population of Cape May according to the State Census
Of 1855
: —
Native.
FORBION.
i
i
Townships and
1
1
S
1
1
1
1
S
1
1
Incorporated City.
S
S
S
1
.S
5
'i
?
i
2
^
§
a
%
a
§
1
Cape Island
226
259
21
33
28
30
597
Dennis
741
549
941
767
720
576
961
751
1
70 ,
32
12
5
83
83
7
161
8
14
28
7
6
10
12
5
1
1.480
1,302
2,007
1,550
Lower
Middle
Unner
3,224
3,267
136
85
62
1
6,936
86
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
wood-chopping, lumbering, or going bytoater; and yet the
amount of grain raised is very nearly, if not quite sufficient
to support the population. This is a very great advance
on the production of fifteen or twenty years since, when,
as I am informed by a respectable inhabitant of Lower
Township, there was not wheat enough raised in that
township to make a barrel of flour.
The average crops of wheat, corn, lye, oats, and pota-
toes, are not very different from those grown in the rest
of the State, or in the adjoining States. The following
tabular statement, copied mostly from the Census of 1850,
gives the average of two or three staple crops per acre.
New York.
PennsylTania.
Delaware.
New Jersey.
Cape May.
Wheat . . .
Corn ....
Potatoes . . .
12
27
100
15
20
75
11
20
11
33
75
14
30
150
By extra cultivation, large crops, thirty bushels of wheat
per acre, sixty to eighty,^ corn, &c., are not uncommonly
raised.*
* A view of the industrial resouroei of the County would be incomplete without some
knowledge of those branches of business which the location and the tastes of the inhabitants
have largely deyoloped.
Shipping. — The following is an estimate of the number, tonnage, and value of ressels
owned in the County. It comprises, however, but little more than half those which are
tailed from here. Ordinarily, the vessels are held by several shareholders, and it is com-
mon to have some of the shares held by merchants or others in the large cities.
TABLE.
Number of vessels
Lower.
Middle.
Dennis.
Upper.
Total.
10
954
30,600
40
29
2,691
74,010
132
13
2,145
56,940
76
28
6,400
80,000
120
80
12,190
241,550
268
Tonnage....
Value
Number of men ..••.....
Fisheries. — The waters of the ocean and Bay, as well as the sounds, creeks, and the-
roaghfaresi abound in fish, olams, and ojsten. Very large quantities of these are taken
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
87
The com crop of 1855, which is given in the table, was
shortened by drought.
§ The soil is particularly well adapted to the growth of
truchy or market garden produce. Early potatoes, tomatoes,
melons, &c., thrive here. Apples, pears, peaches, black-
berries, strawberries, cranberries, &c., can be raised in
abundance, and are very fiqe. The spring is between one
and two weeks earlier than in the central part of the
State; and for raising early crops this would give very
great advantage; but the distance from market, and want
of proper facilities for conveyance, have discouraged enter-
prise in this line of business. The results of a few trials
which have been made will give an indication of what
might be done under favorable circumstances.
Early potatoes have been raised by William J. Bate, of
Fishing Creek, as early as the first were brought from Nor-
folk and Portsmouth, in Virginia. Two years ago he dug,
from a field of one and a quarter acres, fifty-one barrels,
which were sold in Philadelphia market at an average
price of six dollars a barrel. ' They were full grown, and
were dug the 20th of June.
Early com was raised by Dr. Wiley, of Cape May C. H.,
this season, which was pulled for market on the 13th and
for home consumption. Some attempts were made to ascertain the value of the fish and
shell-fish sold. The following are the returns made by the assessors, but they do not con-
sider them very reliable. It is difficult to get accurate statistics of this branch of business.
TABLE.
1
Value of oysters sold
Value of clams sold
Value of Fish sold
Lower.
Middle.
Dennis.
Upper.
TotaL
$564
1,056
637
16
$770
2,400
2,105
21
$1,014
644
188
14
$4,635
2,450
2,485
$6,983
6,550
6,316
Number of men engaged ...
8fi ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
14th of July; being as early as any was offered in New
York market. The only manure used was plaster and
ashes. With poudrette, or some well-made compost, Dr. W.
thinks he can get it forward a week earlier.
Strawberries have been successfully cultivated. Mr.
Edwin Allen, of New Brunswick, and Mr. Townsend, of
Town Bank, have in bearing several acres of plants near
the latter place. The fruit ripens so early, that the entire
qrop is disposed of in New York by the time the Monmouth
berries are first offered.
Cranberries of large size and good flavor grow in the
swamps, and some attehtion is being paid to their cultiva-
tion. Mr. Bate, of Fishing Creek, has set out several
acres, in a swamp which he cleared up for the purpose.
Prom draining off the water too thoroughly, the plants
suffered at first; but on again filling the swamp with water,
they thrive. Severg^l smaller patches are known. Mr.
Townsend Stites, at Beesley's Point, raised eight bushels
from a patch two rods square.
Sweet potatoes, melons, and tomatoes, early and of supe-
rior quality, are raised by every one for home consumption;
but, for want of a market, no attempt is made to raise
them in large quantities.
Apples are abundant and very handsome ; fairer, it is
said by good judges, than those grown farther up the State.
Pears have had but little attention. Large and vigorous
trees are common, but the fruit is mostly natural. If the
fruit should equal the trees, it would be profitable for cul-
tivation. Peaches are not materially different from other
parts of the State. In some localities, the trees are healthy
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 89
and long-lived; in others, two or three crops of fruit are
all that can be expected from a tree. The native fox-
grape grows luxuriantly in the woods and on the beaches.
It is said that a white grape is found on Five-mile Beach
which is of superior quality. It is thought to be a foreign
grape, the seeds of which have been thrown up here from
some wreck.*
§ Good crops of clover are raised ; but, as is commonly
the case in warm climates and on light soils, upland grass
does not thrive. When sown on good ground it soons runs
out ; and the open fields, when left, do not become covered
with a spontaneous growth of rich, soft grass, such as is
everywhere to be seen in the northern part of the State.
It is partly on this account, and partly because of the
worrying of flies and musquitos, that a larger amount of
etock IS not kept. From the tables it will be seen that
* Cldcate. — It is to be regretted that there are so few records of the climate of this
county. There haye been no meteorological registers kept, for any length of time. In
addition to the facts in regard to the seasons, in the preceding section, I may add the fol-
lowing note from Dr. S. S. Marcy, of Cape Island : " Our winters embrace every variety
of cold and temperate weather. Ice is rarely obtained in this neighborhood more than
four inches thick, and frequently but three inches ; often it is but a short time that it can
be obtained of this thickness. It is cut from still water in artificial ponds, which are only
one or two feet deep. So great is the uncertainty of obtaining a supply of ice, that we
commence filling our ice-houses with ice from two and a half to three inches thick; and
every team within a distance of &ix miles is put in requisition for that purpose, with re-
taining fee, some weeks before the appearance of ice.
" The lowest temperature observed here for the last thirty years was 2° above zero.
This was on the 9th of January, 1856. On the lOtb, it was 4® ; and for several days the
thermometer was as low as 8° or 10°. This will long be remembered as the cold winter
of 1855-6. In our winters generally, the thermometer does not fall below 14® to 18®,
though it has been known as low as 8® above. Up to last winter, the latter was thought
to be the extreme of cold weather here.
'' The mildness of our winters admit of large numbers of cattle being wintered on Seven,
Five, and Two-mile Beaches, without any provision being made for them by their owners.
In cold weather, the cattle find shelter in the thickets on the beach."
90 ECONOMICAL GK)LOGY*
the stock is considerably below the average of our country.
There is no occasion for this deficiency, for any amount
of fresh meadows and pastures, of the first quality, could
be obtained by banking-in the salt-marshes. Our great
staple, Indian com, also thrives, and for green or dry
fodder for cattle, is unsurpassed; sown broadcast or in
drills, it could be raised so as to be a cheap and excellent
substitute for grass. There is an inducement to make
this improvement, especially for dairy purposes. Butter
commands a price from five to fifteen cents a pound
higher than in New York market, and there is always a
demand for it in the county. From the want of cool
milk-houses, difficulty is experienced in making good
butter. A convenient plan for obviating this difficulty
was seen at the residence of Mr. Wm. Few, on the sea-
side road, three miles below the Court House. Instead
of a spring house, he has an out-of-door cellar dug to
the ordinary depth of a well, (nine or ten feet in this
case), so that the water stands a few inches deep all
over the bottom. This cellar is planked up at the sides,
and covered with beams, boards, and earth. The de-
scent is by a flight of stairs at one end ; and planks sup-
ported just above the surface of the water, furnish con-
venient footing about the room. The shelves are placed
just beneath the surface of the water, so that pans of
milk or plates of butter set on them, may be kept cool.
Ventilation is secured by a latticed ventilator in the door
of the stairway, and another on the opposite end of the
cellar. To have a supply of fresh and cool water, it may
be pumped out occasionally, and more allowed to drain in
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 91
from the earth to take its place. The plan works admir-
ably ; the milk remains sweet long enough for the cream
to rise perfectly, and the butter is kept cool and hard.
The whole cost of the cellar was but five dollars.
Improvement of the Marshes. — By a comparison of the
statistics of the marshes as given in the tables on pp. 17, 18,
it will be seen that there is a very large extent still lying
unimproved. The whole area of the marshes in the
county, is 58,824 acres. The number of acres from
which the tide is banked out, is 1,918; and the number
of acres of sali^marsh connected with farms, and in part,
at least, meadow, is 17,223. The low price of land has
heretofore prevented the investment of much capital in
improvements of this sort; but the rapid advances now
making in the agriculture of the county, cannot but attract
attention to the opportunities for such improvements, and
the benefits to be derived from them.
When the flow of the tide is shut oflf from the marshes
by proper banks and sluices, they soon become fresh, and
are capable of being improved for meadows or for cultiva-
tion. The marshes, in regard to their improvement, may
be divided into three kinds. — 1. Those with a mud bot-
tom, or covered with a thick layer of mud. — 2. Those
made up mostly of turf and grass roots. — 3. Those which
have a muck or swamp bottom.
1. The first kind having already a solid bottom, and
the elements of fertility in their substance, are easily
improved. They settle but little, and can at once be
brought into fresh meadow; or they may be cultivated,
when they will produce luxuriant crops of com, wheat,
92 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
oats, or broom corn. In Salem County, great value is
attached to such meadows, on account of their heavy
crops of hay and grass seed; in the latter article of
which, the Census Report of 1850, under the head of
Claoei' and oilier grass seeds, sets down to this county
53,875 bushels — a quantity greater than any of the other
States produced, except New York and Pennsylvania.
In Cumberland County, enormous crops have been raised
on some of the banked meadows of Maurice River: — 100
bushels of oats, 90 of corn, 45 of wheat, and three or four
tons of hay to the acre are reported. As meadows, these
reclaimed marshes are unequalled.
2. The marshes, which have been mostly raised by the
growth of grass roots and turf, when the water is drained
oflf from them, settle considerably ; and if they are kept
in bank for a few years, will be found to have their sur-
face three or four feet below high-water mark. Fresh
grasses grow in them ; but from the deficiency of mineral
matter in the soil, or some other cause, the grass is wiry
and of little value. These marshes are usually away
from the creeks and other water-courses, and the. tide
reaches them only after it has flowed over the mud-bot-
tomed marshes, where its current has been checked, and
its sediment deposited, so that it is comparatively clear.
These marshes are usually a* few inches, or perhaps a foot
lower than the others; and could be much improved, before
banking, by cutting ditches, so that the muddy tide-water
might be carried directly to them before its . current is
/checked and the sediment precipitated. After* they have
sunk down by banking and draining, they can be very
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. ^3
rapidly filled up by opening ditches, and giving a free
channel to them. Several years ago the marshes on Den-
nis Creek were banked in, and it is said they sunk three
feet or more. The bank has since been broken, and now
they are filled with mud up to high-water mark. I have
been informed by some owners of marshes, that they can
lay an inch of mud on their meadows in a year. In the
settled marshes, they must have filled up at a much more
rapid rate than this. The settling arises from the decay
of vegetable matter which has been drained and exposed
to the action of the air; and as thie decay does not go on
below the water level, it is probable the marshes which
have been filled up in the way mentioned above, are per-
manently improved.
In places where the tide-water is too clear to form any
deposit of mud, the marshes may still be improved by
covering them with a thin layer of clay or loam from the
upland. An excellent piece of meadow, improved in this
way, was seen on the farm of Judge Holmes, at Cape May
Court House. It had received a coating of twenty or
thirty loads per acre of sandy loam, from an adjacent
knoll.
3. The marshes which have muck bottoms are those
which have been originally swamp, and have been brought
to the tide-level by the subsidence of the land. A con-
siderable portion of the marsh on the Bay-shore, and some
of those which are shallow and near the upland on the
sea-shore, are of this kind. These marshes do not settle
as rapidly as those with a turf or peat bottom, and can
be more easily improved. Dressings of loam or clay will
94 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
benefit them ; but a light coat of lime or ashes will usually
be sufficient to make them produce clover and fresh
grasses, or to fit them for tillage.
There is a large area of salt-marsh which is now en-
tirely unimproved, and at the present price of lands, it
would not pay interest on costly improvements; but a
moderate expense, by which it could be made to produce
salt-grass suitable for mowing, would be found profitable.
Salt-hay is in demand in the cities and towns for litter
and for packing merchandise ; and at fair prices, the sup-
ply is not sufficient to meet it. By proper ditching, open-
ing the salt-holes to the flow of the tide, and other compa-
ratively cheap improvements, a growth of grass might be
produced. Farther up the bay, it has become a regular
business to cut salt-hay for the city markets. With the
new adaptation of horse-power to cutting tliis kind of
grass, a great facility is added for turning to profit this
hitherto waste land.*
* The mud which is broaght on the marshes is of mach the same chamcter with that
deposited on a tract of land at the mouth of the rirer Humber, on the east coast of Eng-
land. The mud is there called tcarp, and the process of filling up low grounds with ity
is called warping. ** About 20,000 acres of fine, productive soil, averaging at least two
feet in thickness, have been thus made by artificial deposition, covering up poor, worth-
less wastes, and giving a more elevated surface for securing good drainage. Five or six
hundred acres have been sometimes warped in one piece ; but the compartment^ as it la
cadled, which is banked round and laid open to the river water, is generally of much
smaller extent, say fifty acres or less, being such a portion as the farmer can conveniently
spare at a time.
" The thickness of the warp deposit varies from one to three feet^ the land being raised
to this extent in one, two, or two and a half years. Sometimes the spongy moor subsides
80 much with the weight of solid material thus laid upon it» as to need a second warping
after a few years ; but once is generally sufficient.
<'A sluice having been erected in the bank of the river, and a main drain cut from it
to the land which is to be warped, (this drain being sufficiently large, say of three times
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 95
Improvement of the Beaches. — In the early part of the re-
port, the rapid wearing away of the beaches was alluded to.
This wear has been much increased by cutting oflF the
timber, so as to leave the sand loose and exposed to the
full force of the wind. The value of these beaches is
not very great; but it might be much increased by
favoring the growth of timber on them; and they are
the area of the slaice, so as to prevent any considerable resistance to the flow of water),
an embankment is thrown up all around the intended compartment. The dimensions
of the embankment are commonly two or three feet wide at the top, with a slope of fifteen
to eighteen inches horizontal to one foot perpendicular ; the altitude varying according
to the level of the surface. Of course the actual levels of the ground and of the river-
water must be ascertained, in order to determine the height of the embankments ; but
this may decrease as they recede inland from the river, because the water does not
rise so high in the compartment as in the stream, owing to the ebb-tide commencing
before high-water mark is felt in the warping ground. When the water is to be admitted,
the doors of the sluice — which point outward, so as when self-acting to exclude the tide —
are held open by rods and staples attached for the purpose, the thick-water flowing ra-
pidly in carries the mud in suspension until arived at the point where it begins to expand
in a quieter current, and then lets it fall slowly upon the surface it inundates. The warp-
ing drain is prolonged to the farther side of the compartment, say along one side, and the
deposition there begun ; the water passing very slowly back over the ground, and escaping
again into the drain at the turn of the tide by a tunnel laid for the purpose on the near
side of the compartment When the farther side has received a sufficient coating, the
water is admitted through an aperture cut in the bank at a less advanced position, and
so on, until the water gradually shuts itself out. • . . • Great care and judgment are
required in guiding the currents of water from the inlets, so as to insure an equal distribu*
Uon of the warp, both as to quality and to the final uniform level of the surface. . . •
The water having flowed over the ground again into the drain — mintu much of its earthy
matter— returns to the river, scouring out in its passage any deposit that may be accumu^
lated in the drain. . . • The water is not shut up in the compartment; the deposition
commences directly it has got free from its restraint in the drain, and it is run off as
quickly as the tide will allow, in order to make room for another flowing,
** The expense is a very variable item, depending upon various conditions. With the
cost of large drains and other works included, it would probably be from £12 to £20 per
acre ; while on lands adjacent to the public warping drains, it would be much less than
half that sum. The improvement, however, is very valuable, as it converts most worth-
less moors into firm, dry, and prolific land, worth £60 to £100 per acre, and commanding
a rental of 50«. to 60«., or even much more." — *' Cyc. of Agr; Art, Warping.*'
96 :economical geology.
of importance in protecting the marshes behind them and
the main land. In some foreign countries, forests have
been cultivated for the purposes of fixing such loose sands.
Boussingault, in his " Rural Economy," p. 237, says : —
" It is a problem of the highest importance, in many
instances, to fix permanently masses of sand blown up
from the sea, by covering them with productive planta-
tions. This problem was studied and successfully resolved
by M. Bremontier, a French' engineer. Aware that cer-
tain plants thrive in the sands of downs, he saw that they
alone were capable of staying their progress and consolidat-
ing them. The grand object was to get plants to grow in
moving sand, and to protect them from the violent winds
which blow oflf the ocean, until their roots had got firm
hold of the soil.
" Downs do not bound the ocean like sea-beaches. From
the base of the first hillocks to the line which marks the
extreme height of spring-tides, there is always a level over
which the sand sweeps without pausing. It was upon
this level space that Bremontier sowed his first belt of
pine and furze seeds, sheltering it by means of green
branches fixed by forked pegs to the ground, and in such
a way that the wind should have least hold upon them,
viz: by turning the lopped extremity toward the wind.
Experience has shown that by proceeding thus, fir and
furze seeds not only germinate, but that the young plants
grow with such rapidity, that by-and-by they form a thick
belt a yard or more in height. Success is now certain.
The plantation, so far advanced, arrests the sand as it
comes frpm the bed of the sea, and forms an effectual bar-
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 97
rier to the other belts that are made to succeed it toward
the interior. When the trees are five or six years of age,
a new plantation is made contiguous to the first, and more
inland, from 200 to 300 feet in breadth; and so the pro-
cess is carried on until the summits of the hillocks are
gradually attained.
" It was by proceeding in this way that Bremontier suc-
ceeded in covering the barren sands of the Arrachon basin
with useful trees. Begun in 1787, the plantations in 1809
covered a surface of between 9,000 and 10,000 acres. The
success of these plantations surpassed all expectations ; in
sixteen years, the pine trees were from thirty-five to forty
feet in height."
As a matter of profit, the raising of pines on such lands
is entered upon in some parts of Massachusetts — the
French or Sea-side pine {Pinus maritima) being preferred
to our Yellow pine, on account of its standing the searair
better, and being a more rapid grower.
The cultivation of pine has succeeded well on the up-
lands of this county. It makes an average growth of
about a cord a year on old fields which grow up to pine.
Mr. J. Diverty sowed a field with pine many years since.
The growth was rapid, and in thirty years it yielded ffbm
thirty to thirty-five cords of wood per acre.
Beach sands are fixed in many places by holding them
together by means of the creeping and matted roots of
some varieties of beach grass, which are cultivated for the
purpose. In the Report of the Patent Office for 1854, it is
mentioned that among the seeds imported were the sand or
Sea-side Lyme Grass {Elymus anenarius), and the Sea-Reed,
98 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
(Arundo arenaria) from Holland. They are of no use for
fodder. " The object of importing the seeds of these
grasses was, to sow them on such parts of our coasts as
may be threatened, or are suflFering injury from the 6ea,
particularly on beaches or sand-hills which are liable to
changes from abrasion or drifting winds. The world-
renowned dikes of Holland owe much of their strength
and durability to the protection afforded by these remark-
able plants."
The timber svximpa of the county contain the best of its
arable lands. Though flat, they are sufficiently elevated
to be drained without difficulty, and need only a little
enterprise and skill to fit them for farming purposes.^
Being out of sight of the sea or Bay, they have not suited
the maritime tastes of the inhabitants; and requiring a
small investment in draining, they have been passed by
for lands which could be brought into cultivation with less
labor.
IMPROVEMENT OF THE SOIL.
It would be out of place here to enumerate the various
means of improving the soil ; and I shall only undertake
to point out some of the sources from which fertilizers may
be obtained. The proper and liberal use of manure lies at
the foundation of successful farming ; and he who avails
himself of all the means within his reach for enriching the
soil, is laying the sure foundation for success in his calling.
FoLrm-yard Manure, — The most important source of
manure for every farmer should be the farm-yard ; and
when the fertility of the soil is to be kept up mainly from
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 99
this, every eflfort should be made to increase its amount.
For this purpose an adequate amount of stock should be
kept; in which respect there is now a deficiency as com-
pared with our country generally, as shown in the table
on p. 85. The stock should be furnished with a liberal
amount of food ; and their stalls, pens, or yards kept well
littered with hay, straw, weeds, leaves, or other vegetable
matter. Any desired amount of salt-grass and sedge, for
this purpose, can always be obtained from the salt-marshes.
The manure of the farm, thus increased, should be kept
from waste. It may be plowed in green in the spring,
or it may be kept for the fall crops ; in the latter case, its
decomposition should be regulated by composting with
muck or earth, so as to allow none of its gases to escape
into the air.
The supplies of manure may be greatly increased from
various sources, such as aea-weedy muck^ marsh mudy king
crabsy fishy shell-fijsh^ and shells.
Sea-weed. — This substance is thrown up on the shores in
immense quantities at some seasons. Dr. S. S. Marcy, of
Cape Island, says that he has known two thousand wagon
loads to come ashore in a single tide, on a mile of Poverty
Beach. It is equally abundant at other places on the sea
and Bay-shore. It has been used to some extent, but not
at all in proportion to its value ; and the mode in which it
has been used, by throwing it into piles to decay or dry
up, is extremely wasteful. Sea-weeds diflFer from land
plants in decaying much more rapidly; and, when mixed
with soil into a compost, they soon crumble down into a
black earth, in which little or no trace of the plant can be
100 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
perceived. They are remarkable, also, for their large per-
centage of ash, containing, when dried, about twice as
much as the dry land-grasses. The components of the
ash, too, are those most generally found in vegetable ashes.
The following is the average of analyses of the ash of
several species of sea-weeds, taken from "Morton's Cyclo-
pedia of Agriculture."
Analysis of the Ash of Sea-weed.
Potash 17.50
Soda 12.70
Lime 7.39
Magnesia 9.89
Chloride of sodium 16.56
Chloride of potassium 0.93
Iodide of sodium • 0.95
Phosphate of lime 7.24
Oxide of iron 0.24
Sulphuric acid 24.76
Silica 1.82
99.98
Percentage of ash in weed dried at 212® Fah. 16.46
Common sea-weed contains from seventy-five to eighty-
five per cent, of water; it is also said to contain, when dry,
two per cent, of nitrogen. When exposed to the air it
loses about half its water; the remainder, amounting to
not far from forty per cent., is retained with great perti-
nacity. " The organic, or combustible portion, principally
consists of a peculiar mucilaginous substance and of nitro-
genized compounds, which latter are the cause of the rapid
decay to which sea-weed is subject.
^' Sea-weed is more valuable as a green manure than any
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 101
other vegetable substance, whether occurring naturally or
cultivated for the purpose of being employed for the im-
provement of land.
" When used by itself in a fresh state, it is advisable to
plow it in at once. The decomposition then proceeds in
the soil; and this acts as an excellent absorber for the
ammonia which is gradually given oflf during decay. There
can be no objection to its application in the form of a com-
post J and when there is a command of vegetable refuse
matters, peat mould, and similar substances, which cannot
be economically applied in any other form than that of a
compost, the addition of sea-weed will be found a most
valuable means to hasten the decomposition, and materially
to improve the fertilizing qualities of the compost.
" Sea-weed produces very powerful fertilizing eflfects
when applied in a fresh state upon grass land ; and mixed
with lime or shell sand, it has also been used with advan^
tage as a top-dressing for young wheat and potatoes. The
addition of sea-weed to barn-yard manure hastens its de-
composition in a remarkable manner, and considerably
improves its quality." — Gyc. Agr.
" The saline and other inorganic matters which are con-
tained in the sea-weed we lay upon our fields, is a positive
addition to the land. If we plow in a green crop where it
grew, we restore to the soil the same saline matter only
which the plants have already taken from it during their
growth, while the addition of sea-weed imparts to it an
entirely new supply. It brings back from the sea a
portion of that which the rivers are constantly carrying
into it ; and is thus valuable in restoring, in some mea-
102 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
sure, wLat rains and crops are constantly removing from
the land.
*^ Sea-weed is collected along most of our rocky coasts, and
is seldom neglected by the farmers on the borders of the
sea. In the Isle of Thanet it is sometimes cast ashore
by one tide, and carried off by the next ; so that after a
storm the teams of the farmers may be seen at work, even
during the night, in collecting the weed, and carrying it
beyond the reach of the sea. In that locality, it is said to
have doubled or tripled the produce of the land. On the
Lothian coasts, a right of way to the sea for the collection
of sea-ware increases the value of the land from 25«. to 30«.
an acre. In the Western Isles it is extensively collected,
and employed as a manure; and on the northeast coast of
Ireland, the farming fishermen go out in their boats and
hook it up from considerable depths in the sea.
"In the Western Islands, one cart-load of farm-yard
manure is considered equal in immediate effect, — upon the
first crop that is, — to 2i of fresh sea-weed, or to li after it
has stood two months in a heap.
" Sea-weed is said to be less suited to clay soils ; while
barren sand has been brought into the state of a fine loam
by the constant application of sea-weed alone for a long
series of years." — JohnatorCa Ag. Chem.
Swamp Earthy or Muck. — This valuable fertilizer, the
product of the decay of leaves, twigs, and other vegetable
matters, is found in great abundance. The localities are
so numerous, and the deposits so commonly noticed and
so well known, that it has not been thought necessary to
collect a list of them. Generally they are found in all
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 103
the timber swamps in the central parts of the county, on
the heads of the streams where there are no cedar swamps,
in ponds, and in the meadows above where the tide flows.
The timber swamp on the head of Johnson's Branch, be-
longing to Mr, J. S. Nixon, contains several hundred acres
of soil covered with from one to two feet of muck. It
is abundant in the timber swamp on the head of Sluice
Creek. The cranberry patch of Mr. Bate, at Fishing
Creek, is a pond filled up with leaves, wood, and decayed
vegetable matter. Some of the head streams of Fishing
Creek have muck deposits to a great extent along their
courses. The deposit of shell-marl, near Beesley's Point,
is covered with the same substance. There is an exten-
sive deposit of this material on the high, swampy ground
south of Tuckahoe; but it is not necessary to enumerate
more. It is so generally found, that there are few farms
in the county to which this material is not accessible.
It has not been much used by the farmers, though it is
highly prized as an addition to the supplies from the barn-
yard, wherever there is an improved agriculture.
By itself, in the open air, or when mixed in the soil,
it decays very slowly, and its effects on growing crops are
not satisfactory. But if its decay can be hastened, its
fertilizing powers are very plainly seen. It is the practice
of many good farmers to compost it with barn-yard ma-
nure, in the proportion of two or three loads of muck to
one of the manure. The pile is made by putting down a
layer of muck about six inches thick, then a layer of ma-
nure of half that thickness, then another of muck six
inches thick, and so on till the heap is as high as con-
104 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
venient; the whole should be covered with the muck.
This is allowed to heat moderately, and ferment together,
and turned over once or twice in the course of the season.
In this way, the whole mass is thought to become as valu-
able as an equal weight of farm-yard manure.
It is recommended, where sea-weed is convenient, to use
that substance, mixing the muck with from a sixth to a
quarter of its bulk of fresh sea-weed ; the rapid decay of
this last will gradually reduce the entire heap into a ferti-
lizing mass.
Where barn-yard manure is not to be had conveniently,
the muck may be composted with lime, using from one to
five bushels of lime to a cord of muck. The action in this
case seems to be reciprocal ; the muck is made valuable,
and the lime is in a better form for applying to the soil,
than when in its caustic and pure state. Johnson says,
" such a compost is especially adapted to the lightest and
driest soils, and to such as are poorest in vegetable matter.
In this form, lime has imparted an unexpected fertility,
even to the white and barren sands of the Landes^ in
France ; and upon the dry hills of Derbyshire, it has pro-
duced an almost equal benefit."
In one or two localities, it was noticed that the muck
was charged with sulphate of iron (copperas) suflScient to
give it a decidedly inky taste. For such kinds of muck,
lime is absolutely necessary; or else they will be injurious
to the soil, if used in any considerable quantity.*
§ No reference has been made in the preceding para-
graphs to the immense deposits of cedar swamp-eartli,
* I hare met with no formations of peat, sach as is formed in wet and mossy meadows.
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 105
which cover several thousand acres of land, and are from
four to twelve or more feet thick. I have no knowledge
in relation to the fertilizing properties of this substance.
There is a common impression that muck or mould, from
the decay of the leaves and wood of trees yielding turpen-
tine, is not valuable. Its great quantity, however, and its
importance, if it can be made available for manure, have
led me to some chemical examinations of it.
The cedar swamp-earth is, in appearance, like the muck
from other sources. It is combustible ; when dry, burning
with a bright flame, and a good deal of smoke. The
amount of ashes left is quite small, only 3.35 per cent, of
the dried earth. The following is the analysis of this ash.
Ash of Cedar Swamp-eariTi — Analysis,
Silica, 54.427
Peroxide of iron and alumina, 16.620
Lime, 11.042
Magnesia,..' 3.920
Potash, 4.249 ^
Sulphuric acid, • 3.111
Phosphoric acid, 5.436
Chloride of sodium, (Salt), 0.987
99.792
An examination was made for nitrogen and ammonia ;
but the result obtained was so large, that I have not been
willing to publish it, without the trial of another specimen ;
and a second specimen sent to me has been lost on the
way, so that I cannot now verify it.
King crabsy or Hors&'feet — The Bay-shore of this county
is remarkable for the immense numbers of this animal, (the
Polyphemvs oocidentalisy or Idmulvs polyphemvs of the na-
106 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY,
turalists) which frequent it. At the season for depositing
their eggs, which is in the latter part of May and in June,
they come on shore in almost incredible numbers. The
whole strand for many miles is covered with them — some-
times two or three deep. Mr. Thos. P. Hughes, of Town
Bank, says that on his shore of one hundred rods, he could
get 100,000 in a week ; 750,000 were taken on about a half
mile of the strand, a year since ; and this year, 1,200,000,
were taken on about a mile. They deposit their eggs, and
then leave the shore entirely, till the same season next
year. But little, if any thing, is known of their habits
or localities during the interval. The number of eggs is
very great. They are so thick along the shore, that they
can be shovelled up and collected by the wagon load.
Great numbers are thus gathered and carried away to feed
chickens. When they hatch, the sand is fairly alive with
the little creatures. A year or two since, a vessel took in
a load of sand on the shore, and in two or three days, so
many of these young king crabs appeared in it, that they
were obliged to throw the whole overboard.
Hogs eat the crabs with great avidity; and it is the
common practice along all our shores, to gather them for
that purpose, in the proper season. It is common also to
gather them into pens, and allow them to putrefy, and
form a kind of compound, to be used as manure. Other
persons have composted them for the same purpose. For
the raising of wheat, they have been very successfully
used. On land which would liot grow wheat at all up to
that time, crops of twenty, twenty-five, and even thirty
bushels to the acre, have been raised by the use of these
ECX)NOMICAL GEOLOGY. 107
crabs composted with earth. It has been thought by some
that they injure the ground for the succeeding crops of
corn or grass, and that they promoted the growth of sorrel.
Many persons, however, have continued their use for
years in succession, with success. Mr. Wm. J. Bate, of
Fishing Creek, uses them every year, and with the best
eflfects, in compost, on early potatoes. A remarkably fine
and thrifty young orchard of his, has been manured princi-
pally with crabs, in their raw state. Mr. Springer, of
Dyer's Creek, has used them for a number of years, com-
posting them with saw-dust, coal-pit bottoms, mud, and
barn-yard manure. With a compost of 7000 crabs, twenty
loads of mud, two coal bottoms, seven or eight loads of old
hay and manure, applied on six acres of sandy loam, he
raised 151 i bushels of wheat. On another field, where
the crop, succeeding that manured with crabs, did not look
thrifty, he sowed a light dressing of quick lime. The crop
immediately began to improve, and turned out to be an
excellent one. Mr. Levi Corson, of Dyer's Creek, has an
acre and a half of sandy loam, on which he has raised all
the com and wheat needed for the use of his family, con-
sisting of himself and wife, for the last fifteen years. He
has it in two fields, and raises corn in one, and wheat in
the other, every year, giving each field a two years' rota-
tion. Occasionally, he has plowed in the wheat stubble,
and raised a crop of buckwheat, thus getting three crops
from the same ground in two years. The straw and
stalks have all been taken off the field, and the only ma-
nure that has been applied, has been a compost of 2000
crabs, with eight or nine loads of sods from the fence cor-
108 ECONOMICAL GEOIXKJY.
ners, each year. The compost was all put on the wheat;
no manure being used on the corn. The sorrel grew very
rank in the com ; but by a diligent use of the hoe, it was
kept down. His first crop of wheat on 90 rods of ground,
was 16 bushels, weighing 65 pounds to the bushel ; and
his wheat has usually yielded at the rate of from 25 to 30
bushels an acre. His corn crop has been at the rate of
from 30 to 50 bushels an acre. Two years ago, he stopped
gathering crabs, and has used lime ; but his crops are not
as heavy as before. He thought they were falling oflf
while using crabs; but his neighbor says they had not
fallen off more than was due to the variation in seasons.
It is presumed these cases are sufficient to show the
value of this manure. In regard to the methods of apply-
ing the crabs, there is room for much improvement. Allow-
ing them to lie in piles, and decompose by themselves, is
very wasteful ; and the composts which are usually made
have by far too small a quantity of absorbent material
added, as is evident from the escape of the gases from the
heaps, as well as from the results of experience in making
composts in other localities. The crabs, when alive, weigh
three or four pounds, and when thoroughly dried they
average nearly, if not quite, a pound each. To save all
the gases which will escape from them in the course of
their decay, not less than five times their weight of muck,
sods, loam, or other absorbent material, should be used ;
and a much larger quantity would not be injurious.
The abundance of these crabs has suggested the plan of
drying and grinding them for use as a concentrated ma-
nure ; and Messrs. Ingham and Beesley have erected a mill
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 109
at Goshen for this purpose. They dry the crabs, grhid
them as fine as possible, and mix them with a small quan-
tity of some deodorizing material. The material, thus pre-
pared, is put up in bags, and sold under the name of
cancerine. Its price is from $25 to $30 a ton at the works.
Several hundred tons were manufactured and sold last
year ; and an increased quantity will be made the present
vear.
It was applied on wheat last year ; but the winter was
so severe that all the wheat crops were injured, and the
reports on the action of the cancerine were very contra-
dictory. Some, who tried it side by side with guano and
barn-yard manure, asserting that it is by no means equal
to them ; others claim that it is fully equal ; and others
still that it is superior to either. The manufacturers' cir-
cular shows very favorable reports from many thrifty and
observing farmers. It has met with universal approval
from those who have used it on summer crops, this season ;
corn, potatoes, &c., being greatly benefitted by it.
Analysis of Cancerine,
Water 9.321
Organic matter 70.867
Lime 4.358
Phosphoric acid 2.714
Sulphuric acid 5.170
Alkaline salts 3.687
Sand 3.883
100.000
Ammonia, 10.750 per cent.
The specimen analyzed was sent to me by Mr. Ingham,
one of the proprietors of the manufactory. It appears to
110 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
be almost pure crab, there being scarcely any charcoal or
other absorbent material in it. The slight loss which may
have been in the analysis is involved in the organic matter.
The ammonia was determined by an ultimate analysis. It
does not exist in the cancerine, ready formed, but the
nitrogen, from which ammonia is generated, is in it j and in
accordance with the common practice of chemists, the
amount of ammonia which the nitrogen will produce, is
calculated.
Another specimen of the crab shells, unmixed with other
matter, and only dried in the air, gave 10.78 per cent, of
ammonia. Two other specimens of the cancerine gave 9.22
and 9.77 per cent, of ammonia. The phosphoric acid in the
last two was 3.87 and 4.24 per cent. The analysis of the
single specimen is retained rather than the average of the
three, as it is understood to be the intention of the manu-
facturers to send the dried and ground crab material into
market without the addition of deodorizers or absorbents.
The establishment of this manufactory has been the
subject of much interest. The increasing use of concen-
trated manures, the continued reports of their early ex-
haustion, and their enhanced price, has drawn the atten-
tion of the public to other sources of supply ; and every
honest attempt to meet this want should meet with public
encouragement. The agricultural value of the cancerine,
and its price compared with that of Peruvian guano, may
be estimated. The following table gives the highest, the
lowest, and the average composition of thirty-two well
authenticated specimens of Peruvian guano. It is copied
from " Morton's Cyclopedia of Agriculture."
ECONOMICAL GEOIXJGT.
Ill
Highest
percentage.
Lowest
percentage.
Average
percentage.
Water
Organic matter, and suits of
ammonia
Sand
22.68
58.82
2.95
34.45
13.48
8.88
37.78
1.17
19.46
0.61
13.09
52.61
1.54
24.12
8.78
Earthy phosphates
Alkaline salts
Ammonia yielded by 100 parts .
18.94
15.98
17.41
Prof. Way, an eminent agricultural chemist, in England,
and some in our own country, have computed the value
of guano from the amount of ammonia and phosphates, or
phosphoric acid it contains; considering the other ingre-
dients as of little comparative value. The phosphates are
allowed, by them, to be worth about one eighth, and phos-
phoric acid one fourth as much as ammonia. Taking
these valuations as the basis of calculation, the ammonia,
and one eighth of the phosphates of the Peruvian guano,
amount to 20.42, or are equivalent to that percentage of
ammonia ; the ammonia, and one fourth of the phosphoric
acid in the cancerine, are in the same way equivalent to
11.43 per cent, of ammonia; and the values of the two will
be as the numbers 20.42 and 11,43; or when guano is
worth $60 per ton, as it is now, the cancerine is worth
$dO.OO.
An analysis of guano was made in my Laboratory for
th6 purpose of comparing it with the cancerine. The
sample was obtained by taking small quantities of guano
from each of a large number of bags in the storehouse of a
merchant, and mixing them carefully. It was said to be
an average quality of guano.
112 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
Analysts.
Water 13.914
Sand 1.962
Lime 10.264
Potash and soda 5.874
Pbospborio acid 10.155
Organic matter, and salts not estimated 57.831
100.000
Ammonia in 100 parts 14.793
This analysis was made by the same method which
was pursued in analyzing the cancerine. If we calculate
its value according to the principles given in the preceding
page, it will be to the cancerine as 17.33 to 11.43 ; or
when guano is worth $60 a ton, cancerine is worth $39.57.
Not having its ammonia ready formed, the cancerine
may not be quite as quick in its action as guano; but in
turn it is neither volatile nor soluble, and so not liable to
loss from exposure to air and water; and it appears to be
more lasting in its effects.
The amount of the material (cancerine) which can be
produced annually is not yet known. There is so little
knowledge of the habits of the king crab, that no judgment
can be formed as to the effect that will be produced on a
coming year's supply by the destruction of great numbers
of those which come to the shores to lay their eggs. If
the number is not materially diminished, the manufacture
could be extended so as to produce many thousand tons
every year.
Fish for Manure. — The ocean and Delaware Bay, adja-
cent to this county, as well as the bays and sounds in the
salt-marshes, contain immense quantities of fish^ which
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 113
might be profitably caught for manure. Sharks, of which
there are several species, are abundant in the Bay. A
fishery for them has been carried on in Delaware Bay,
opposite Fishing Creek, the past season. The main object
was the shark-liver oil ; but the bodies of the sharks have
furnished the material for a very rich compost heap, the
worth of which will go far towards paying the expenses of
the fishery. Over five hundred were caught at that place
the present season. Of the average amount of oil I am
not informed, but one large fish yielded nine and a half
gallons of good oil.
The moss-bonker (the Alosa menhaden^ or Glupea menJuxden)
or, as it is sometimes called, bony-fish, menhaden, and other
names, is an abundant fish in all the waters of this part of
the State. It is frequently seen in immense shoals, fairly
blackening the surface of the water for many miles. It is
easily caught, and in large quantities at once. Mr. John
Stites, Sen., of Beesley's Poitit, with his brother, some years
since, caught, in a ninety fathom net, thirty two-horse wagon
loads, at four hauls; taking fourteen of the loads at a single
haul. Last summer, in a trip through the sounds from
Beesley's Point to Cape Island, we passed through water
filled with these fishes. Many of them swam so near the
surface that their back fins projected above it ; and the
appearance of the water was entirely changed by the slight
ripple they made in moving. They were most abundant
then in the vicinity of Hereford Inlet ; but they are found
near all the shores; and the only limit to the amount
which can be taken is in the ability to take care of them
when caught.
8
114 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
The value of these fish for manure is well known; but
the best methods of applying them has not been at all
understood. They have been usually spread upon the
surface, or very incompletely covered with earth in the
compost heap or the field; so that in their decay tiiey
have filled the air with their odor, and generated swarms
of flies. Their cheapness, and their eflSciency as manure,
are strongly in their favor, and enable them to maintain
their ground in spite of these objections. By composting
them with muck, or other vegetable matter, in sufficient
quantity, these offensive products could be avoided, and
the whole of the fertilizing properties of the fish retained.
The amount of absorbent material necessary to mix with
them I do not know. It is said that in Cambridgeshire,
England, a compost of one barrel of fish refuse to four or
five cart-loads of earth, is approved by the farmers. And
it is probable that from five to ten times as much of the
absorbent as of the fish should be used.
A correspondent of the " Country Gentleman," Vol. 5,
p, 152, writing from Worcester County, Mass., says : " In
all the towns on the North Shore, fish are extensively used
as a manure. Most of the fish caught at this season are
for salting; and the refuse, which is very considerable,
consisting of heads, backbones, &c., when mixed with
muck, and allowed to ferment for a few months, makes an
excellent fertilizer. For com, potatoes, and turnips, he
has used it in this way with great success. It appears to
ameliorate the effects of drouth."
These fishes are used all along the New Jersey shore.
A common way of applying them on com, is to plow the
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 115
corn, turning the furrow away from the hill, and then to
deposit a fish in the furrow on each side of the hill, and,
after a day or two, to turn the furrow back to the hill
again, and cover the fish. In this way they carry the com
through to maturity, and good crops are gathered from the
poorest and lightest soils in the State.
Dr. Dekay, in the " Natural History of New York," says
of this fish that, ^^ although it is seldom eaten, as it is dry,
without flavor, and full of bones, yet it is one of the most
valuable fish found within our waters. Its use as a manure
is well known in the counties of Suffolk, King's, and
Queen's, where it is a source of great wealth to the farmer
who lives upon the sea-coast. They are used in various
ways : for Indian corn, two or three are thrown on a hill ;
for wheat, they are thrown broadcast on the field, and
plowed under — although it is not uncommon to put them
in layers alternately with common mould, and, when
decomposed, spread it like any other compost. Its effects
in renovating old grass-fields, when spread over with these
fish at the rate of about two thousand to the acre, are very
remarkable." • • •
" They appear on the shores of Long Island about the
beginning of June, in immense scholes ; and, as they fre-
quently swim with a part of the head above or near the
surface of the water, they are readily seen and captured.
They are commonly sold on the spot at the rate of two
dollars the wagon load, containing about a thousand fish.
The largest haul I remember to have heard of, was through
the surf at Bridgehampton, at the east end of the island.
Eighty-four wagon loads, or, in other words, 84,000 of
these fish were taken at a single haul."
116 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
Sixty wagon loads, of at least 2,500 fish each, were
taken at one haul in Raritan Bay this season.
Notwithstanding the large quantity of these fishes, their
quick decay, their bulk, and the large quantity of water
they contain, render it impossible to get the advantage of
them in their fresh state, far from the shore. About four-
fifths of their weight is water ; they yield about two per
eent. of oil; and analysis, it is said, shows them to contain
not far from two per cent, of nitrogen.
The oil is supposed to be of no value to the farmer. K
they could be freed from it, and from the water, and then
pulverized, they would make a valuable manure, and one
which would bear the cost of transportation to considerable
distances. A good deal of attention has been directed to
this subject, and many experiments tried; some, appa-
rently, with success.
S. B. Halliday, Esq., in a letter published in the
^^ Country Gentleman," Vol. 6, p. 250, describes the process
used in making fish-guano at an establishment near Bristol,
R. I. : " The oil is taken from the fish by cooking with
steam; and with some chemical combinations the remains
are converted into two varieties of guano. One kind is
prepared somewhat as follows : the remains, after cooking,
is a soft mass of flesh and bones, and after being chemically
treated and partially dried, it is put into an oven and tho-
roughly baked, and then ground fine.
" The company have fixed its price lower, some ten dol-
lars a ton, than Peruvian guano is sold at."
An article written for the " Country Gentleman," Vol. 8,
p. 43, by Prof S. W. Johnson, of Yale College, contains
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY, 117
valuable matter in relation to the manufacture of fish mor
nure. He says the method of De Molen, a Frenchman,
"consists merely in boiling or steaming the fish until they
are disintegrated to a pasty mass; then pressing them to
separate the oil, which is itself economized ; then drying
the cake left after this operation in a current of hot air;
and finally grinding it to powder. Pettit's patent process
involves the use of sulphuric acid, which is added to the
fresh fish, and has the same eflfect as steam in destroying
their consistence. After treatment with sulphuric acid,
the mass is pressed and dried as before.
" De Molen has at present an establishment on the island
Kerpon, near the Straits of Belle Isle, which was fitted up
to employ one hundred and fifty workmen, and sends yearly
to Prance large quantities of Tangrum^ as the product is
called. This name seems to be applied to the manure pre-
pared from herrings, or herring refuse.
" At Concameau (Pinisterre) is also a large manufactory
offish-manure, in which, in 1854, the labor of six men and
ten children produced daily, for two hundred days in the
year, eight to ten thousand pounds of dry manure, from
thirty-six to forty thousand pounds of fish, or fish-refuse.
About half the supply of the raw material is the refuse of
the Sardine fisheries. Arrangements are making to in-
crease the product to eight thousand tons yearly. This
manure is sold at $35 a ton. It is represented to contain
twelve per cent, of nitrogen, equal to fourteen and a half
of ammonia, and six per cent, of phosphoric acid ; and is
considered much cheaper than Peruvian guano.
"According to an article in the ^Practical Mechanic's
118 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
Journal/ Nov. 1853, the cost of making fifty tons of fish-
manure by Pettit's patent method is as follows : —
100 tons fish, at £2 per ton ... . £200
Sulphuric acid 17 10^.
Labor 25
Total J5242 lOs.
^^ The cost of one ton is therefore £4 17^., not including
interest or capital invested, wear and tear, &c. The price
paid for fish is the chief expense of the manufacture ; and
when reduced one half or more, as it can be in some locali-
ties, we see how promising this manufacture is. It is to
be considered too, that the fresh fish yield, when steamed,
two and two and a half per cent, of oil, the value of which
must be deducted from the cost of the fish manure.
" A company has recently been formed at Christiana, in
Norway, with the object of making fish manure. Samples
of their first products have been analyzed by Dr. Stock-
hardt, and contained about ten per cent, of nitrogen, and
eight per cent, of phosphates of lime and magnesia.
"On the coast of the North Sea, in Oldenburgh, an
excellent manure is made from a kind of small sea crab
that is caught there in large quantities. The crabs are
simply dried and ground. . . . This manure, called Granat
Guano, from the name of the crab, contains 11.23 per cent,
of nitrogen, and 5.23 per cent, phosphates of lime and
magnesia."
The amount of material which can be obtained from the
waters for the manufacture of manure, it is impossible to
estimate ; but the quantities of fish drawn from them, for
ordinary consumption, is enormous. Poole, in the " Statistics
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 119
of British Commerce," says the aggregate weight of herrings
caught each season has been estimated to average 600,000
tons in weight. In the Compendium of the United States
Census of 1850, the annual product of the Massachusetts
fisheries is set down at 215,170 quintals of codfish ; 236,468
barrels of mackerel ; 1,250 barrels of lierring; and 187,157
barrels of oil and bones. And of the moss-bonkers, which ai'e
caught only for manure, Connecticut is set down as having
taken 36,946,000 fish j and Rhode Island, 187,000 barrels.
The number of these caught on the shores of New Jersey
has not been estimated; but a friend who has inquired into
the matter, informs me that 100,000 barrels could be de-
livered, at a single point on the shore, in one season.
For several years past the price of these fishes, on the
shores of Baritan Bay, has ranged from five to eight cents
a bushel. The weight of a bushel is about eighty pounds.
Since the above was written I have received some of
these fishes for analysis. They were caught' in Baritan
Bay, in the latter part of October. The weight of the five
fishes sent was 4 pounds 4i ounces. These fishes are a
little fatter and heavier at this season than in the summer.
Three-quarters of a pound is about their average weight.
They were several days on the road ; and Mr. Charles
Sears, who sent them, found it necessary to add something
to keep them from spoiling; and accordingly added four
ounces of sulphuric acid. They were received in good
condition.
The oil was first separated from the fish by adding water
to them, as they were received, and boiling until the flesh
was reduced to a pulp. The oil was then skimmed oS,
120 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
and purified firom water and other substances by ether. It
then weighed 2.66 ounces; which is equivalent to 3.914
per cent, of the original weight of the fish.
The substance of the fish remaining was then strained
out and carefully dried in an air-bath at a temperature of
290° Fah.; when the dry mass was found to weigh 11.8
ounces. On account of the solvent power of the sulphuric
acid, which was added to the fish, it was thought proper to
separate all the mineral matters from the fluid in which
the fish had been boiled, and add them to the dried fish ;
excluding, of course, the sulphuric acid. These weighed
1.1 ounces; and added to the weight of the dried fish given
above, 11.8 ounces, made, for the whole weight of the dried
matter 12.9 ounces; which is equivalent to 18.936 per cent,
of the original weight of the fish. There was still left in
the fluid some animal matter, which could not be satisfac-
torily separated, and was left out.
The water in the fish was 77.15 per cent., as ascertained
by deducting the percentages of oil and dry matter from
100.
The nitrogen in the dried fish was ascertained by ulti-
mate analysis to be 7.762 per cent., which is equivalent to
9.282 per cent, of ammonia.
The mineral substances contained in the fish were freed
from the organic matter by burning, and then separated
from each other by the ordinary processes of analysis.
Analysis of the Fresh Fish.
Water 77.150
Oil 3.914
Dried fish 18.936
100.000
^ ECX)NOMICAL GEOLOGY. 121
Analysis of the Dried Fisli»
Lime 8.670
Magnesia 0.670
Potash 1.545
Soda 1.019
Phosphoric acid 7.784
Chlorine 678
Silicic acid 1.333
Organic matter and loss 78.301
100.000
Shell-fish for Manure. — There are great quantities of
mussels in the creeks and thoroughfares of the marshes.
They are usually attached to sods and roots in the banks,
entirely covering the surface of such objects. They could
be very easily and cheaply collected, by detaching them
from the sods, by the use of a sharp spade, and loading
them directly into boats. The animal matter and the
lime of their thin shells are both valuable for manure, and
could be advantageously used.
The value of mussel beds for manure is given in an arti-
cle from Essex County, Mass., published in the " Country
Gentleman," Vol. 7, p. 155. ^^ Thousands of cords of mussel
beds are annually taken from the bed of the streams bor-
dering on the sea, and used on grounds cultivated. I have
repeatedly witnessed the value of this fertilizer in the
growing of carrots and onions. The very best crops of
carrots I saw the last season, more than thirty-four tons to
the acre, had no other fertilizer applied to the land. For
the last thirty years I have known it applied to lands on
which onions have been grown, with a product varying
from three hundred to six hundred bushels to the acre. It
122 EGOKOinGAL GEOLOGY.
sells, delivered several miles from where it is dug, at four
or five dollars the cord. It is usually gathered in the
winter months^ taken to the shore in scows or gondolas,
and thence to the fields where it is to be used. Sometimes
it is laid in a pile of several cords together, and, after it
has been exposed to the frosts of winter, distributed from
four to eight cords to the acre. At other times it is laid
out in heaps of a few bushels only, which remain for a
time exposed to the frost. What is the chemical efiect of
this exposure I am not advised, but it is generally under-
stood to be improved by being thus exposed before it is
used.
" Mussels and star fish (five fingers),'* says a writer in
the " Agricultural Gazette," " have long been an established
manure in the neighborhood of Faversham, Kent. They
are procured by dredging. The mussels sell at sixteen
shillings sterling per wagon, and five fingers at twenty-
one shillings."
Marsh mvd. — The mud exposed in the banks of the
creeks, and also that which is deposited on the marshes
by the tide, has long been known to possess fertilizing
properties, and has been used to a limited extent as a
manure.
The mud has been used very successfully by Mr. B. C.
Holmes. He has had it dug out and exposed to the frost
for one, or sometimes for two winters, so that it might be
slacked down fine, and the salt leached out by the rains.
He uses it in compost with lime-— one bushel of stone lime
to twenty of mud ; also composted with bam-yard manure.
Its effects have been tested on wheat, com, and grass, to
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY, 123
his satisfaction. Mr. Joshua Swain has also used the mud
from the salt-marshes, and finds it to be a valuable and
lasting manure. Mr. Joshua Townsend has used it com-
posted with lime, with decidedly beneficial effects. Mr.
Coombs, at Port Elizabeth, Cumberland County, has used
mud from the fresh marshes of Maurice River, with very
striking results. His soil is a very poor and light sand —
so poor, that with ordinary cultivation, it does not yield
more than ten bushels of com to the acre. By the appli-
cation of from sixty to eighty loads of mud, to the acre,
it is made a permanently retentive soil, which, with good
cultivation, yields fifty bushels of corn, or twenty bushels
of wheat to the acre. Mr. Providence Ludlara, of Hopewell
Township, Cumberland County, has used the mud from the
fresh marshes on the Cohansey, for a number of years past.
His compost heap consisted of 300 loads of mud, with 475
bushels of lime. With this compost and ordinary barn-
yard manure, he raises very fine crops of com, potatoes,
wheat, and grass. Other instances might be mentioned;
but these are sufficient to show the practical effect of
these muddy deposits, and to confirm the conclusions
which could be drawn from their chemical composition.
In using this deposit fi*om the salt-marshes, it should be
dug one, or, if possible, two years before using. The fix)sts
of winter cause the clayey lumps to slack down to a fine
mellow consistency ; and the rains leach out any salt that
may be retained from the sea-water. It may then be
spread directly upon the soil ; but its best effects will be
produced by composting with lime or bam-yard manure.
Its value upon the light soils of this county will be found
124 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
greater even than what is due to the fertilizing substances
it contains ; acting by the clay it contains to make them
withstand drought better, to be more retentive of manures^
and to favor the growth of wheat and grass.
SheU-marl and Shells. — There are no extensive deposits
of shell-marl in the county ; one small one has been men-
tioned on p. 27, as occurring below Beesley's Point. This
consists of 41 per cent, of crumbled shells, probably of the
oyster, and the remaining 59 per cent., of a bluish mud,
like that of the present oyster beds. It is probable that
as the county is more cleared up, other deposits of this
kind will be found. For applying to the soil, it only needs
exposure to the weather long enough to slake fine, when
it can be spread upon the surface. Both the lime and the
mud are valuable fertilizers.
The deposits of recent shells of the clam and oyster, are
very common, and in some places, very large. At Beesley's
Point, I saw a large pile of broken clam shells ; no others
were mixed with them, and there were no whole shells ;
the fragments were quite small.* They are just in the
borders of the marsh. A number of other piles of shells,
of the same kind, are known along the shore. Large piles
of oyster shells are found in different places along the
borders of the creeks and the upland. Oyster shells are
also found in great quantities in the bottoms of some of
the creeks and bays. They also form solid beds of con-
siderable thickness and extent in Delaware Bay, opposite
the mouths of Dennis and other creeks which run into
* They are supposed to be the remains of ohim shells, broken up by the Indians, in rnak*
ing wampum.
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 125
Maurice River Cove. On some of the fields, it has been
observed that the soil was mixed with great quantities of
shells, probably left there by the Indians. The soil in
these spots is always good.
Shells may be used to improve the soil, in their natural
state ; and by applying them in large quantities, they will
be found beneficial. They may, however, be used with
better economy, by grinding them in an iron mill, or under
an edge mill. The most common way of using them is
to burn them into quick lime. This is best done in kilns
constructed for the purpose ; but for agricultural use, it is
very frequently more convenient to burn them in a pile
with wood. By constructing a hollow square of logs, and
filling it with alternate layers of wood, brush, or chips, and
shells, and then firing the pile, the shells will be burned
into lime. If too little wood is used, they will only scale
and crack in pieces ; but if a sufficiency is used, they will
slake into a fine powder. A large portion of the supply
of lime for the county might be obtained in this way, at
a cheap rate. The mode of using lime, its effect upon the
soil, and its great importance in good husbandry, are too
well known to need repeating here.
BUILDING MATERIALS.
Clay suitable for making bricks is found in some places,
but it is not abundant. A thin streak of tough, light blue
clay can be seen near the edge of the water, at Beesley's
Point, which would make bricks ; but it does not promise
to be sufficiently abundant to pay for working. The same
layer can be traced further up Great Egg Harbor and
126 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
Tuckahoe River, past Tuckahoe, to Marshallville, where
it has been used for making bricks. Clay has also been
dug and used quite extensively for brick making, by Peter
Corson, Esq., at Petersburg. The clay is seen at other
places to the southwest of Petersburg, along the Great
Cedar Swamp Valley, but has not been worked. I do not
know that there has been any attempt at brick making in
the county, except the above. There is some clay near
Cresse Town, but it has not been worked.
Some of the clay at Petersburg is nearly white. Fire
bricks were made from it by Mr. Corson, some years since.
White clay is also found on the borders of the cedar
swamp, on the land of W. S. Townsend, Esq., at Dennis-
ville. There is also white clay found near East Creek,
on the land of Mr. Dan Bishop, as I am informed by Judge
Goflfe, who tested it by boring, some years since. He
thinks the layer is four feet thick.
A kind of concrete brick has been made from gravel,
which promises to be a cheap and durable building mate-
rial. The bricks, or rather blocks, for they are of large
size, are made by mixing the gravel with lime and water,
and then forming them in moulds. Tlyfy harden by ex-
posure to the sun and air, and are not burned. The
gravel used may have sand in it, without injury; but
it must be free from loam. Good stone lime should be
used, in the proportion of one bushel of lime to twelve of
gravel.
In making the bricks, the gravel is laid on a common
mortar bed; and the lime, which has been previously
slaked and made into a thin putty in a lime trough, is
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 127
then run on the gravel, and the whole worked up into
mortar. The mortar is then shoveled into the moulds,
worked a little with the edge of the shovel, and struck off
at the top. In ten or fifteen minutes, the mortar will
have set, so that the moulds can be taken off. In a short
time, the bricks are dry enough to handle, when they can
be piled up and allowed to dry thoroughly. The moulds
for the bricks are made by taking two long side pieces, as
wide as it is intended to have the thickness of the bricks ;
these are set on their edges, as far apart as is needed for
the length of the bricks ; and the space between the side
pieces is divided up by partitions set at intervals, equal to
the breadth of bricks desired. No bottom is needed,
smooth earth answering for that purpose. The sizes are
varied to suit circumstances ; the length in general being
equal to the thickness of the wall to be built ; the breadth
half the length, and the thickness one-third the length.
Other sizes, however, may be adopted, and they can be
made of any pattern. They are laid in mortar similar to
that frqm which the bricks are matle, and the outside of
the builclbig is roughcast with the same.
These bricksViOuld be made early in the season, so that
they may become thoroughly dried before the winter's
frost ; and in laying them up, great care is needed to get a
solid foundation ; for the bricks are not very strong the
first year or two after they are made, and any irregularity
in settling would cause the walls to crack.
The bricks were selling in Bridgeton, last year, for twenty
dollars a thousand; each one was 12 by 9 by 6 inches, or
between seven and eight times as large as a common red
128 ECONOMICAL 6EOL0QT.
brick. The cost of laying and mortar is about ten dollars
a thousand; which is not half so much as a red brick wall
of the same dimensions would cost. The above are cash
prices^ and show something of the saving which is effected
by them ; but, in addition to this, most of the labor of
making and laying is such as every farmer can command
without the outlay of money.
A few good dwellings have been built of this material in
the county. The residences of Messrs. Wescott and Whi-
taker, at Tuckahoe, have been standing some years, and
are liked by their owners. The house of Dr. Wiley, at
Cape May C. H., is also built of this material. It has been
standing two years, and is as solid and substantial, in every
respect, as if built of stone. Other buildings of the same
material have been put up the past season. Bricks of this
sort have been used about Bridgeton, Cumberland County,
for eight or ten years, and are found to stand well, growing
harder and stronger every year. In Norristown, Pennsyl-
vania, they have been used for eighteen years past, with
entire success.
There is an abundance of material for making such
bricks; and the experience already gained in their use is
80 satisfactory, that they can, with confidence, be recom-
mended for economy, comfort, and durability. For the
foundations of the buildings, stone, or burned brick should
l>e used ; or else gravel brick, in which hydraulic cement
has been used instead of lime.
§ The red or brown stone which is found in many parts
of southern New Jersey, is almost unknown in Cape May.
A few specimens have been dug out df a field on the farm
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 129
of Judge Goffe, at East Creek; but I have not seen or
heard of any others.
§ There are large quantities of beautiful washed pebbles
and gravel on the shore of Delaware Bay, in Lower Town-
ship. It is in considerable demand for graveling tarred or
pitched roofe. Two thousand tons have been sent to Phila-
delphia, for this purpose, the past year, from the strand
below the steamboat landing.
Wells and Springs. — Water is found everywhere on the
upland at a moderate depth beneath the surface; the ave-
rage being not above fifteen feet. The supply of water in
such wells, though not very abundant, is sufficient for ordi-
nary purposes of household use. By sinking the wells a
few feet deeper, the supply is much increased, both in con-
stancy and amount. Generally, the water is good, but in
some localities it is brackish. The brackish water, as fax
as I have observed, or been able to learn, is confined to
the alluvial uplands of the county.
The well at Congress Hall, on Cape Island, which was
mentioned on page 22 as being thirty feet deep, is twelve
feet in diameter. It yields an abundant supply of water,
ninety hogsheads a day being pumped fix)m it. The water
is good, and soft enough for washing.
The Artesian well at the United States Hotel is ninety-
five feet deep, and eight inches bore. The water rises to
within about seven feet of the surface, and is but little
lowered even by hard pumping. The water is abundant,
and is said to be soft.
The Artesian well at the Mount Vernon House is eighty-
one feet deep, and eight inches in diameter. The water in
9
130 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
it rises twenty inches above the marsh. It will supply
sixty gallons of water a minute; and continued pumping
at that rate will not reduce the head more than nine feet
below the marsh.
§ In digging a well to supply the steam-engine at the
Cancerine manufactory in Goshen, water was reached within
a few feet of the surface, but was found to be salt ; much
Salter than sea water, the owners judged. The salt in-
crusted the boiler, and much diflBculty was experienced on
that account during the whole of last year. It has since
been found that of the water in the well, that which is near
the surface is fresh, and the salt water lies under it. After
learning this, a large . and shallow well was dug, and the
supply for the boiler was drawn from near the surface of
the water in the well. The plan is entirely successful ; no
salt scale forming in the boiler.
There are some very fine springs of fresh water at Cold
Spring, in Lower Township. These springs are in a valley
near the village. They issue below the tide-level ; and the
flow of water is so copious, that even when overflowed by
sea water, the fresh water can be obtained by sinking a
proper vessel down through the salt water to the opening
of the spring.
The springs at Cold Spring have been mentioned on
page 25. There are a number of others of the same cha-
racter, in the edge of the marsh between Cold Spring and
Beesley's Point. They are generally small.
A few springs have been noticed which precipitated
oxide of iron, when the water came to the surface. One,
in the cedar swamp, just below Johnson's saw-mill at North
•>!
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 131
Dennisville, was remarkable for the abundant reddish pre-
cipitate which covered the mud and sticks about it.
There are no springs on the beaches, but fresh water is
found in the slashes on the old beaches ; and it can be found
at any time in the sand in the protected hollows between
the sand hills, by digging holes two or three feet deep,
Salt — The manufacture of this useful article might be
carried on to some extent with profit. It was made on the
shore during the war of 1812, but on the return of peace,
the manufacture was abandoned. The flat sands near the
beaches furnished the supply of brine. It was procured by
digging holes in these sands, and allowing the brine to
drain into them. It was so strong that a barrel of it would
make a bushel of salt. The brine was evaporated by
heating in iron kettles.
There are hundreds of acres of these flat sands on the
back of the beaches. They appear to have been made by
the waves, which have at some time broken over and
washed away portions of the beach spreading out and
depositing the sand in an even layer on the surface of the
marsh. The sea water, with which the sands are wet, is
concentrated by the heat of the sun, until it becomes almost
saturated brine. Last August, in company with Mr. Thos.
Beesley, I visited the sands on Peck's Beach for the pur-
pose of examining them, and bringing away a specimen
of the brine. It had rained the day before, and parts of
the sands were entirely covered with fresh water ; and yet,
by scraping a hole ten or twelve inches deep, we obtained
a supply of pretty strong brine. On testing, it proves to
have a specific gravity of 1.128, and to contain 15.11 per
132 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
cent, of common salt. The value of it may be estimated
by comparing it with some other brines from which salt is
made: —
l^>ecUle gnTlty. FereenUge of uH.
Saturated brine 1.205 25.00
Sea-water 1.030 3.00
Brine from Onondaga, N. T 1.130 15.50
Brine from Kanawha, Va 1.073 7.25
The English Liverpool salt is made from saturated brine,
by artificial heat. Thirty million bushels are made an-
nually, which, at the works, can be sold for five cents a
bushel, and yield the manufacturer a fair profit.
The Turk's Island, St. Ube's, and most other varieties of
coarse packing salt, are made from sea-water by the heat
of the sun. This is of course most rapidly made in hot
countries; but in the vicinity of Marseilles, in France,
which is the most northerly point of which I have informa-
tion, where it is made from the waters of the Mediterra-
nean, 10,500,000 bushels were made in 1851, which, at
nine cents a bushel, paid a fair profit. It is sometimes
sold as low as five or six cents a bushel.
The brine of Onondaga is obtained from wells, and is
principally evaporated by artificial heat. Six million
bushels of salt are annually made from this brine. It sells
at the works for fix>m twelve to twenty cents a bushel.
Salt is also made from the same brine by solar heat, and is
sold at nearly the same prices.
The Kanawha brines are also obtained from wells, and
the salt is made by artificial heat. Three million bushels
are made annually. The price at the works is about
sixteen cents a bushel.
ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY. 133
The prices mentioned above are much below those at
which salt is sold in our markets; a difference due to the
expenses of transportation^ and the cost of bags or casks
used in packing it.
Sea Bathing* — ^Cape May has acquired a very high repu-
tation as a resort for sea bathing. The entire length of
the county, from Beesley's Point to the extremity of the
Cape, is adapted to this purpose ; but from the peculiar
location of Cape Island, at a point where the upland comes
directly out upon the sea-shore, it has received nearly all
the visitors.
The excellencies claimed for Cape Island, as a resort for
sea bathing, are, ^^ that it has a rolling surf, safe at all
times, and with easy access from the shore and the board-
ing-houses. The bottom is clean, hard, and sandy. There
is a cool and refreshing sea-breeze every afternoon. It has
a delightful surrounding country of well cultivated landi
The location is proverbially healthy .f The temperature
of the place, during the bathing season, is fix)m 75° Fah.
to 95°, at noon. At 90° the heat is not oppressive, and
during the evenings, in consequence of the sea-breeze,
woolen clothing is not uncomfortable.
The season for sea bathing commences about the 20th
of June, and closes the 1st of September. A very small
number of visitors is found there at either of those times ;
but, in the course of the season, it is estimated that as
* For the facts under this head I am indebted to Dr. Samuel S. Marcj, of Cape Island.
f Morse, in his Geography, edition of 1819, says this county is so healthy that no regu-
lar bred physician has ever settled there. Several have come in since that time. There are
now eight' in the county. It is perhaps worthy of note that no lawyer has ever resided
here.
134 ECONOMICAL GEOLOGY.
many as twenty thousand persons visit the place ; and,
during a portion of the time, there are as many as five
thousand at once— or, including children and servants, six
thousand.
There are twenty-four public boarding-houses, varying
in their capacity to accommodate boarders from fifty to five
hundred each.
Beesley's Point, on Great Egg Harbor, has two public
and several private boarding-houses; and is a pleasant
resort for sea bathing. The beach is about two miles from
the Point. Sail-boats, provided by the keepers of the
houses, are used to convey boarders to the bathing ground.
Those who enjoy sailing, or the sports of fishing and hunt-
ing, find this a delightful location. The whole shore, from
one end of the county to the other, is much resorted to by
visitors.
" The character of the bathing ground opposite Beesley's
Point, and also along the beaches extending to the point
of the Cape, is good ; but near, and immediately at the
Island, the shore becomes more steep, or less flat ground
between high and low-water mark; consequently, the surf
approaches nearer the main land, and a stronger current
of the tide — ^particularly the under-current, or under-tow,
as it is termed — which, at near low water, with the wind
north or northeast, is of such strength as to make it dan-
gerous for persons venturing out so far as to lose a firm
foothold. Most of the accidents that have happened to
bathers here, have arisen from want of knowledge, or
inattention to this fact."
CATALOGUES
ZOOLOGICAL AND BOTANICAL PRODUCTIONS
COUNTY OF CAPE MAY.
LIST OF THE LARGER WILD ANIMALS OF THE COUNTY OF
CAPE MAY.
By Thomas Bbesley, Esq.
Latin Names.
DlDELPmS YIBGINIANAy
TJbSUS AllERIOANUS,
Peooyon LOTOR,
Mephitis ameeioana,
putorius vison,
MUSTELA PUSHiLA,
LUTBA CANADENSIS,
VULPES FULVTS,
VULPES VIEGINIANUS,
LYNCUS BUFUSy
SOIUBUS LEUOOnS,
S<STJBUS VULPINUS,
SdURUSHUDSONIOUS,
SOIXJBUS STBIATUS,
Ptebomys YOLUCELLA,
Fiber zibethigus,
Lepus nanus,
CeEYTJS YIBGINIANUSy
Engliih Namef.
American Opossum. Common in woods
and thickets adjacent to the farms.
American Black Bear. The Bear is quite
plentiful at certain periods, particularly
in the dense cedar swamps in the upper
part of the county, where fire hare been
killed the present autumn.
Raccoon. Common in the swamps and on
the beaches.
Skunk. Not rare.
Mink. It is numerous in some portions of
the county
Weasel. Common.
Otter. The Otter is by no means rare ; but
on account of its cunning and shyness, is
seldom captured.
Bed Fox. Seldom taken.
Gray Fox. Common.
Wild Cat. Rare.
Gray Squirrel.
Fox Squirrel.
Bed Squirrel.
Ground Squirrel.
Flying Squirrel.
Musk Bat. Very numerous.
Gray Babbit. Common.
Deer. There are still a few remaining in
the northern part of the county.
Not very abundant.
CATALOGUE OF THE BIRDS OF THE COUNTY OF CAPE MAT.
By Thomas Beesley, Esq.
The names of the birds are as given in " Wilson's* Ornithology.''
Species marked by a * preceding the name, breed in the county.
LAND BIRDS.
ORDER I. RAP ACES, Birds of Prey.
FAMILY VULTURIN^, VuUures.
Lfttin Names. English Names.
♦VuLTUR AURA, Turkey Buzzard, or VuUure.
FAMILY FALCONIDiE, Hawks.
♦Palco leuoocephalus, White-headed or Bald Eagle.
*Falco lineatus. Red-shouldered Hawk.
♦Faloo boreaiis. Red-tailed Hawk.
Fakk) pereqrinus. Peregrine Falcon, or Duck Hawk. Rare.
Falco columbarius, Pigeon Hawk.
Falco sparverius, American Sparrow Hawk.
Falco cooperi, Cooper^s Hawk.
Falco sancti-johannis, Black Hawk. -.---- Rare.
Falco fuscus. Sharp-shinned Hawk.
*Falco cyaneus. Marsh, or Mou^e Hawk.
*Falco haliaetus, Fish Hawk, or Osprey.
FAMILY STRIGIN^, Owls.
*Strix nebxjlosa, Barred Owl.
Strix nyctea, Snowy Owl. Rare.
Strix acadica, Acadian, or Little Owl. - - - Rare.
♦Strix otus, Long-eared Owl. Rare.
* Wilson made a number of visits to this county in the pnrsait of his favorite science.
He is still remembered by some of the older inhabitants; and the interest which he
awakened in the study of Ornithology has never ceased. The field for the Ornithologist
is a remarkably rich one. A citizen of the county says: ''If birds in their choice of a
residence are gifted in determining what is the fairest, and what is best, there can be no
question but that the County of Cape May is among the most attractive portions of the
earth ; for here they congregate in as great a variety and abundance as upon any other
portion of, at least, the civilised globe."
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
139
ORDER II. INSESSORBS.
FAMILY CAPRIMULGID^.
Latin Names. Englifh Names.
♦Caprimulgus VIRGINIANU8, NigM Hawk.
* C APRIMTTLGUS VO0IFERU8, Whip-poOT- Will.
FAMILY HIRUNDINID^.
*HiRUNDO PELASQIA, Chimney Swallow.
*HiRUNiK) PURPUREA, Purple Martin.
♦HmuNDO RUSTIOA, Bam Swallow.
♦HiRUNDO RiPABiA, Bank Swallow.
♦HmuNiK) BicoLOR, White-bellied Swallow.
FAMILY HALCYONID^.
♦Alcedo alcyon, BeUed King-fisher. .... Rare
FAMILY MUSCICAPIDiE.
♦MusciCAPA CRINITA, Grested Fly-catcher.
*MusciCAPA TYRANNUS, Tyrant Fly-catcher, or King-bird.
*MusciCAPA PUSCA, Fewit Fly-catcher.
*McJSCiCAPA viRENS, Fewcc Fly-catcher.
*MusciCAPA RUTiciLLA, American Redstart. - - . - Rare.
*Musc5iCAPA cffiRULEA, Bluc-gray Fly-catcher.
♦MusoiCAPA CANTATRix, Whitc-cycd Fly-catcher.
*MusoiCAPA cuouLLATA, Eooded Fly-caicher.
♦MusciCAPA OLTVACEA, Bcd-eycd Fly-catcher.
FAMILY LANIAD^.
Lanius boreaxjs, Chreat American Shrike. - - - Rare.
FAMILY MERULIDJB.
♦TURDUS MIGRATORIUS, BoUn.
*Turdu8 mustelinus, Wood Thrush. Rare.
*TuRDU8 RUFUS, Browu Thrush.
TuRDUS 80LITARIUS, Hermit Thrush. Rare.
*TuRDUS POLYGLOTTUs, Moching Bird. ------ Rare.
*TuRDU8 FELivox, Cat Bird.
AiAUDA RUFA, Brown Lark. ------ Rare.
140
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
FAMILY SYLVIADiB.
UtiB NUBM. Sngtiah Naaefl.
♦Sylvia cobonata, Yellcno-rump Warbler.
♦Sylvli striata, Black'poU Warbler.
♦Sylvia vibxns, Black-throated Oreen Warbler.
Sylvia mabitima. Cape May Warbler. - - - - Rare.
♦Sylvia ghbysoftsra, Golden-winged Warbler. - - - Hare.
Sylvia autumnalis, Autumnal Warbler. - - - - Bare.
♦Sylvia citbinella, Blue-eyed Yellow Warbler.
♦Sylvia soutabia, Blue-vdnged Yellow Warbler.
♦Sylvia pusilla, Blue Yellow-back Warbler. - - Bare.
♦Sylvia vebbovoba, Worm-eating Warbler. - - - Bare.
♦Sylvia petbohia, Yellow Bed-poll Warbler. - - Bare.
♦Sylvia vabia, Black and White Creeper.
Sylvia pennsylvanioa, Chestnui-sided Warbler. - - - Bare.
Sylvia Philadelphia, Mourning Warbler. - - - - Bare.
Sylvia blaokbubnia, Blackbumian Warbler. - - - Bare.
Tboglodytes ludovkjianus, Carolina Wren. Bare.
♦Tboglodytbs JBDON, House Wren.
Tboqlodytes HYEBiALiSy Winter Wren. Bare.
♦Troglodytes PALUSTBis, Marsh Wren.
Tboglodytes BEWicKn, Bewick^s Wren. Bare.
♦Sylvia siaus, Bluebird.
♦Sylvia BEOULUEf, Golden-crested Wren. - - - - Bare.
♦Sylvia oalendula, Buby-crowned Wren. - - - - Bare.
family CERTHL^DA
Cebthia rABOUABis, Brown Creeper. Bare.
♦Pabus BicoLOBy Crested Titmouse.
♦Pabus ATBiOAPHiLUSy BUick-cap Titmouse.
AMILY VIREONINJB.
♦ViBEO flavubons, Yellow-throated Vireo.
♦ViBBO GiLVUS^ Warbling Vireo.
♦ViBEO NOVEBOBAOENSis, White-eyed Vireo.
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
141
FAMILY PIPRAD^.
Latin Namei. Bnglifh Namif.
♦PiPEA P0LY6L0TTA, Yellow-breosted Chat, - - - - Bare.
♦Ampelis AMERICANA, Cedar Bird.
FAMILY ALAUDINJB.
Alaudra alpestris, Shore Lark.
FAMILY FRINGILLID.®.
Fringilla iliaca, Fox-colored Sparrow,
♦Fringilla melodia, Song Sparrow,
♦Fringilla pennsylvanica, White-throated Sparrow,
♦Fringilla pusilla, Field Sparrow.
♦Fringilla sociams, Chipping Sparrow.
♦Fringilla canadensis, Tree Sparrow.
♦Fringilla hyemams, Snow Bird,
♦Fringilla maritima, Sea-side Finch,
♦Fringilla catjdacuta, Sharp-tailed Finch,
Fringilla palustris, Swamp Sparrow, Rare.
Fringilla purpurea, Purple Finch, Bare.
Emberiza nivalis, Snow Bunting, Bare.
♦FBiNGiLiiA CYANEA, Indigo Bird, Bare.
♦Fringilla tristis, American Goldfinch.
♦Emberiza ERYTHROPTHALMA, Swamp Bohinj or Towh£ Bunting.
♦LoxLA CARDINAMS, Cardinal Grosbeak, or Bed Bird.
♦Tanagra jesttva. Summer Bed Bird. - - - - Bare.
Tanagra rubra, Scarlet Tanager. Bare.
FAMILY STURNID^.
♦Icterus Baltimore, Baltimore Oriole,
♦Icterus spurius, Orchard Oriole.
Icterus agripennis, Boh-6*-Link. Bare.
♦Icterus pecoris. Cow Blackbird,
♦Icterus phceniceus. Bed-winged Blackbird,
♦Gracula quiscala. Purple Grakle, or Crow Blackbird.
Gracula ferruginea, Busty Grakle. Bare.
♦Alauda magna, Meadow Lark.
142
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
FAMILY CORVID^.
LaUnNaoMfl.
£ogliali Nunee.
CORVUS OORAX,
Raven, -------
♦CORVUS AMERIOANUS,
Grow.
♦CORVTJS 08SIFRAGU8,
Fish Crow.
♦CORVUS CRISTATUS,
Blue Jay.
FAMILY SITTING.
SiTTA CAROUNENSIEf,
White-breasted Nuthatch. -
- -
SiTTA CANADENSIS,
Bed-bellied Nuthatch. - - -
- -
SiTTA PUSILUk,
Brown-headed Nuthatch.
FAMILY TROCHILIDiE.
♦Trochilus COLUBRIS,
Humming Bird,
FAMILY PICIDiE.
Pileated Woodpecker. - -
Oolden-winged Woodpecker.
Hairy Woodpecker. - -
Downy Woodpecker. - -
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker.
Bed-bellied Woodpecker. -
PiCUS PILBATU8,
PiCUS AURATUS,
PiCUS YILLOSUS,
PiCUS PUBESCEN8,
PiCUS VARIU8,
PiCUS CAR0LINU8,
*Picus ERYTHROOEPHALUS, Bcd-hcadcd Woodpecker.
FAMILY CUCULID^.
♦CucTJLUS CAR0LINENSI8, Yellow-bUled Cuckoo.
*CucULUSERYTHROPHTHALMUS,jBZac^-6l7/e6Z Cuckoo. -
Bare.
Eare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
Bare.
OBDEB III. BASOBES.
FAIRLY COLUMBIDiE.
CoLUMBA MiQRATORiA, Wild, or Passenger Pigeon. - - Bare.
♦CoLUMBA CAROLiNENSis, Turtle Dove.
FAMILY TETRAONIDiE
♦Perdix yiROiNiANus, . Common Quail, or Partridge.
♦Tbtrao umbellus, Pheasant, or Buffed Grouse,
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
143
WATER BIRDS.
ORDER I. GRALLATORES.
FAMILY RALLID^.
Latin Names. English Name.
FuLiOA ABfEBiOANA, American Coot, Rare.
♦Rallus crepitans, Clapper Bail, or Mud Hen.
*Rallu8 viRaiNiANUS, Virginia Bail - Rare.
Rallus oaromnus, Sora Bail, Rare.
*. , Black Bail. Rare.
FAMILY GRUID^.
Ardea herodias, Oreat Blue Heron.
Ardea oooidentalis, Great White Heron. ... - Rare.
*Ardea candidissima, Snowy Heron.
♦Ardea nycticorax, Night Heron, or Qua Bird.
Ardea centiginosa, American Bittern.
♦Ardea virescens, Oreen Heron.
Ardea gcerxtlea, Blv£ Crane. Rare.
Ardtca Exnjs, Least Bittern. Rare.
FAMILY CHARADRIAD^.
Charadrius marmoratus, Golden Plover. Rare.
♦Charadrius melodus, Piping Plover.
Charadrius hblvetigus, Black-bellied Plover.
♦Charadrius vociferus, Kildeer Plover.
♦Charadrius wilsonius, Wilson^s Plover. Rire
Charadrius rubidus, Buddy Plover. -.--.. Rare.
Charadrius calidris, Sanderling Plover.
Tringa hiaticula, Bing Plover,
Tringa interpres, Turnstone.
♦H-ffiMATOPus OSTRALEGUS, American Oyster-catcher. - - Rare.
FAMILY SCOLOPACIDiE.
Tringa oiNERBA, Ash-colored Sandpiper. - - - Rare.
Tringa alpina, Bed-backed Sandpiper,
Tringa semipalmata, Semi-palmated Sandpiper.
144 CATALOGUE OF BIRDS.
Lotin Namoi. English NamM.
Tringa bartramia, Bartram^s Sandpiper. - - - - Bare.
TaiNGA , Brown-hacked Sandpiper.
Tbinoa pusilla, LMle, or Least Sandpiper.
Tringa cinclus, Purre.
Tringa solitaria, Solitary Sandpiper. - - - - Bore.
♦Tringa magularia, Spotted Sandpiper.
♦ScoLOPAX SEMTPALMATA, Semi-polmated Snipe.
ScoLOPAX FLAYiPES, Yellow-legged Snipe.
SooLOPAX vociFBRUS, Tell-tale Snipe.
Numenius L0NGIR08TRIS, Long-UlUd Curlew.
SooLOPAX borealis, Esquimaux Curlew.
, Straight-billed Curlew.
LiMOSA HTJDSONicA, Hudsonian Oodwit. - - - - Bare.
f English Snipe.
♦ScoLOPAX MiNOBy American Woodcock.
ScoLOPAX NOVBBOBACBNSiB, RoUn, or Bed-breastcd Snipe.
OBDEE II. NATATOBES.
FAMILY PINNATIPEDES.
Phalabopus htpebbobeus, Bed Fhalarope. Bare.
FAMILY ANATID^.
Anseb CANADENSig, Canada Goose.
Anseb bernigla. Brent Chose. Bare.
Anasboschas, Mallard Duck. Bare.
♦Anas obscura, Black Duck.
Anas perspioillata, Surf Duck.
Anas fusca, Velvet Duck.
Anas albeola, Buffel-headed Duck.
Anas valisneria, Canvass-back Duck. ... - Bare.
Anas ferina, Bed-headed Duck, Bare.
Anas marilla, Scaup, or Blue-bill Duck.
*Anas sponsa, Wood, or Summer Duck. - - . Bare.
Anas acuta, Sprig-tail Duck. Bare.
Anas OLYPEATA, Shoveller Duck. Bare.
CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 145
Latin Names. English Names.
Anas rubidus, Ruddy Duck, Rare.
Anas americanus, Common American Widgeon,
Anas glacialis, South-soviherly, or Old Wife, - Rare.
Anas clangula, Golden-eye^ or WhMe Duck,
Mergus cucullatus, Hooded Merganser, or Hairy-headed Duck
Mergus merganser, Goosander,
FAMILY PELICANIDJ3.
Phalaorocorax oarbo, Cormorant.
FAMILY LARIDJE.
*Rhynchops nigra, Sheerwater, Rare.
♦Sterna raRUNDO, Great Tern,
♦Sterna minuta, Lesser ^ or Least Tern.
Sterna plumbea. Short-tail Tern, Rare.
Sterna aranea. Marsh Tern, Rare.
Sterna fuliginosa. Sooty Tern. Rare.
Larus zonorhynchus, American Winter Gull,
♦Larus atricilla, Black-headed Gull,
Larus Bonaparth, Bonaparte^s Gull. Rare.
FAMILY C0LYMBIDJ3.
CoLYMBUS GLACIALIS, Great Northern Diver, or Loon, Rare.
CoLYMBUs ARCTicus, Black-throotcd Diver, - - - - Rare.
PoDiCEPS CRiSTATTJS, Crested Grebe, or Water Witch, Rare.
PoDiCEPS RUBRicoLLis, Red-nccked Grebe, Rare.
10
146 CATALOGUE OF FISHES.
CATALOGUE OF FISHES.
Catalogue of Fishes, copied from a " Report on the Fishes observed on
the Coasts of New Jersey arid Long Island, during the summer of
1854. By Spencer F. Baird, Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution." From the Ninth Annual Report of the Smithsonian
Institution for 1854.
Almost all the species mentioned here were taken at Beesley's Point.
In this Catalogue no species have been introduced except those which
were actually caught, and carefully examined; though ''many others,
doubtless, are to be found in the same region." — Prof Baird.
Latin Names. Englich Names.
Labrax linbatus, Cuv. and Yal., Rock-fish, Striped Bass,
Labrax mucronatus, Cuv. and Val., White Perch,
Centropristes nigricans, Cuv. and Yal., Black Bass, Sea Bass.
PoMons 0BE8US, Girard.
PoMOTis OHiBTODON, Baird, Banded Sun-fisK
Centrarghus POMons, Baird, Bass Sun-fish,
Aphredoderus sayanus, Lesueur.
Sphtbjena borealis, De Kay, Northern Barracuda,
Prionotus pilAlTus, Storer, Flying Fish.
AcANTHOCOTTUs viRGiNiANUS, Girard, The common Sculpin,
BOLEOSOMA FusiFORME, Girard, Darter,
Gabterosteus quadraous, Mitch., Stickleback,
Leiostobius obliquus, De Kay, The Lafayette,
Otolithus reoaus, Cuv. and Yal., Weak Fish, Squeteague, Blue Fish.
CoRViNA ARGYROLEUCA, Cuv. and Yal., The Silver Perch.
XJmbrina alburnus, Cuv. and Yal., The King Fish.
PoGONiAS PASCiATUS, Lac^p, The Banded Drum.
Lobotes emarginattjs, B. and G.
Pagrus argyrops, Cuv. and Yal., The Big Porgee.
EuoiNOSTOMUS ARGENTEUS, B. and G.
Cybium maculatum, Cuv. and Yal., Spotted Cybium, Spanish Mackerel
LiCHiA CAROLINA, De Kay.
CATALOGXTE OP FISHES.
147
Latin Names. English Names.
LiOHiA SPINOSA, Baird, The Spinous Dory,
Caranx chrysos, Cuv. & Val., TTie Yellow Garanx, Yellow Mackerel
Argyreiosus oapillaris, De Kay, The Hair-finned Dory,
Temnodon saltator, Cu. & Yal., Blue Fish, Horse Mackerel^ Skip Jack,
Harvest Fish.
The Silverside, Sand Smelt,
The White Mullet.
The Variegated Goby,
Toad-fi^hf Oyster-fish,
PePRILUS TRIACANTHUS, CuV.,
Atherinopsis notatus, Girard,
MuGiL ALBULA, Linn.,
GOBIUS ALEPODOTUS, BOSC,
Batrachus variegatus, Les.,
Tautoga AMERICANA, Cuv. and Yal., Taviogj the Black-fish,
AiLURiCHTHYS MARiNus, B. and G., Sea Gat-fish,
Leucosomus americanus, Girard,
Catostomus gibbosus, Les.,
Melanura PYGMiEA, Agass.,
FuNDULUs ZEBRA, De Kay.
FUNDXJLUS DIAPHANUS, AgaSS.
PUNDULUS MULTIFASCIATUS, CuT.
Hydrargira flavula, Storer.
Hydrargira LUCLaE, Baird.
Cyprinodon ovinus, Yal.
Cyprinodon parvus, B. and G.
Esox FASCiATUS, De Kay,
ESOX RETICULATUS, Les.,
Dace, Wind-fishj Shiner
The Homed Sucker, Ghubsucker,
Mud-fish,
Short-hilled Pike,
Pickerel,
Belone truncata, Les.,
Saurus mexicanus, Cuv.
Engraulis vittata, B. and G.,
Alosa menhaden, Mitch.,
Alosa mattowaca, De Kay.
Alosa teres, De Kay.
Chatoessus signiper, De Kay,
Platessa ocellaris, De Kay,
The Bill-fish, Sea Pike, Stiver Garfish, dhc.
The Anchovy,
Moss Bonker, Bony-fish, Hard-head,
Thread Herring,
The Long-toothed Flounder,
Platessa plana, Storer, The New York Flat-fish, Winter Flounder.
Rhombus maculatus, Girard, The Spotted Turhot,
AcHiRUS mollis, Cuv., The New York Sole.
148
CATALOGUE OF FISHES.
Latin Names.
Anguilla tbnuirostris, De Kay,
CoNQER oociDENTAiJS, De Kay,
Ophidium marginatum, De Kay.
Syngnathus viridescens, De Kay,
DiODON MACULAT0-8TRIATUS, Mitch.,
DiODON FULIGIN0SU8, De "KbJ.
Tetraodon turgidus, Mitch.,
Cargharius ciERXJLEUS, De Kay,
MusTELUS cANis, De Kay,
ZYG-fflNA TIBURO, Yal.,
Pastinaca hastata, De Kay,
English Names.
The Common Eel,
The Conger Eel,
The Ofeen Pipe-fish,
The Spot- striped Balloon-fish.
Toad-fish.
The Small Blue Shark.
The Hound-fishy Dog Shark.
The Whip Sting Ray.
*»^.
LIST OF PLANTS.
149
LIST OF PLANTS.
List of Plants collected at and in the vicinity of Beesley^s Point,
By Samuel Ashmead, Esq.
Or those marked *, specimens were presented to the State Collection
Aghtllea millefolium, Lin.
ACORUS CALAMUS, Lin.
Agrostema githago. Lam.
♦Aletris parinosa, Lin.
♦Anagallis arvensis, Lin.
Anemone nemorosa, Lin.
Apios tuberosa, Moench.
*Aquilegia canadensis, Lin.
Arabis lyrata, Lin.
ASCLEPIAS CORNUTA, DeC.
A. TUBEROSA, Lin.
*A. PAUPERCULA, Michx.
♦ASCYRUM CRUX ANDRKS!, Lin.
*A. STANS, Michx.
Azalea nudiflora, Lin.
*A. visoosA, Lin.
*Chimaphila maculata, Pursh.
*ChRYS0P8IS MARIANA, Nutt.
♦Clethra alnifolia, Lin.
♦Coreopsis trichosperma, Michx.
♦CUSCUTA GRONOVn, WiUd.
Calkile maritima, Scop.
♦Calystegia sepium, R. Br.
Datura stramonium, Lin.
♦Desmodium viridiflorum, Beck.
Decodon verticillatum. Ell.
♦DiSCOPLEURA CAPILLACEA, Dc C.
*Draba verna, Lin.
♦Drosera rotundifolia, Linn.
*D. LONGIFOLIA, Lin.
♦Delphinium consouda, Lin
♦Baptisia tinctoria, R. Br.
BiDENS BIPINNATA, Lin.
*BaCCHARIS HALIMIFOLIA.
Calopogon pulchellus, R. Br.
Capsella bursa-pastoris, Moench.
♦Cassia chamjecrista, Lin.
C. MARILANDIOA, Lin.
♦C. niotitans, Lin.
♦Ceanothus americanus, Lin.
*Elodea virginica, Nutt.
Erigeron bellidifolium, Muhl.
♦Eupatorium perfoliatum, Lin.
E. purpureum, Lin.
E. restnosum, Torr.
Euphorbia hypericifoua, Lin.
*E. IPECACUANHA.
B. MACULATA, Lin.
♦E. POLYGONIFOLIA, Lin.
♦Eryngium virginianum, Lam.
150
LIST OP PLANTS.
Fragaria yiBGiNiANA, Ehrb.
GaULTHERIA PR0CUMBEN8, Lin.
Geranium CAROUNiANUBf, Lio.
G. BfACULATTJM, Lin.
*G. ROBERTIANUM, Lin.
♦GeRARDIA PURPUREA, Lin.
*6. TENUIFOMA, YM,
Gnaphauum purpureum, Lin.
*G. POLYCEPHALUM, Mx.
♦Gratiola aurea, Mahl.
♦Helenium autumnale, Lin.
"i^Heuanthemum canadensb, Mx.
♦Hibiscus virginiana.
*H. MOSCHEUTOS, T. and G.
HlERACIUM SGABRUM, Mx.
H. VENOSUM, Lin.
HtDROGOTTLE AMERICANA, Lin.
HUDSONIA TOMENTOSA, Nutt.
*H. ERICOIDES.
♦Hypericum canadense, Lin.
*H. CORYMBOSUM, Muhl.
♦H. PERFORATUM.
*H. PARVIPLORUM, Mahl.
*H. ELUPncuM ? Hook.
♦Hypoxis erecta, Lin.
Inula helenium, Lin.
Iris versicolor, Lin.
Kalmia angustifoma, Lin.
K. LATIFOMA, Lin.
Krigia virginica, Wild.
Lespedeza hirta, Ell.
*L. viOLACEA ; var. Angustifoua,
Pere.
Leucanthemum yulgare, Lam.
LlATRIS PILOSA.
LiNARIA VULGARIS, Mill.
*L. CANADENSIS, Dumont.
♦LlATRIS PILOSA, j3 DUBIA, Ph.
♦LUDWIGIA HIRTELLA.
♦L. ALTERNIFOUA, Lin.
L. PALUSTRIS, Ell.
LUPINUS PERENNIS, Lin.
Lychnis githago. Lam.
♦Lycopus virginicus, Lin.
L. SINUATUS, Ell.
♦Lysimachia stricta, Ait.
L. QUADRIFOLIA, Lin.
♦LiNUM vntGiNiANUM, Lin.
Magnolia glauca, Lin,
Medeola virginica, Lin.
Mentha viridis, Linn.
♦MiKANIA scandens. Wild.
Monarda fistulosa, Lin.
♦Mitchella repens.
NUPHAR ADVENA, Ait.
♦Orontium aquaticum, Lin.
(Enothera fruticosa, Lin.
Ornithogalum umbellatum, Lin.
Opuntia vulgaris, Mill.
♦Panax trifomum, Lin.
Pedicularis canadensis^ Lin.
♦Phaseolus helvolus, Lin.
Phlox pilosa, Lin.
LIST OF PLANTS.
151
♦Physalis viscosa, Lin.
♦Platanthera chjaris, Lindley.
♦POGONIA OPHIOGLOSSOIDES, Nuttall,
♦POLYGALA LUTEA.
*POLYaONELLA ARTICTTLATUM.
Pluchea CAMPHORATA.
♦POTENTILLA CANADENSIS, Lin,
♦PiaNOS LAVIGATIS, PuFSh.
♦Prunella vulgaris, Lin.
♦Proserpinaca palustris.
*Pycnanthemumlinipolium, Parsh
♦Pontederla. cordata, Lin.
*Rhexia virginica, Lin.
Rhus toxicodendron, Lin.
R. copallina, Lin.
*R0SA CAROLINA, Lin.
R. rubiginosa, Liu.
RuBus canadensis, Lin.
R. viLLOsus, Ait.
RUDBECKIA, LACINIATA, Lin.
*RUMEX ACETOSELLA, Lin.
Sabbatia angularis. Ph.
*S. STELLARIS, Ph.
*S. CHLOROIDES, Ph.
S. GRACILIS, Salisb.
Samolus valerandi, Lin.
♦Saponaria officinalis, Lin.
♦Scutellaria integrifolia, Lin.
♦Sericocarpus conyzoides, Nees.
*S. soudagenous, Nees.
♦Salicornia herbacea.
♦Scleranthus annuus ?
*SiUM latifomum, Lin.
♦Smilax rotundifolia, Lin.
♦Sarracenia purpurea.
♦Specularia perfoliata, Alph.D.C.
♦Spiranthes gracilis, Bigelow.
Stachys aspera, Mx.
Statice limonium.
♦Salsola kali.
Tecoma radicans, Juss.
.Teucrium virginicum.
♦Tephrosia virginiana, Pers.
♦Thalictrum dioicum, Lin.
Thaspium barbinode, Nutt
♦Trichostema dichotomum, Lin.
♦Trientalis americanum. Ph.
♦Vaccinium macrocarpon, Ait.
y. STAMINEUM, Lin.
y. CORYMBOSUM, Lin.
yERBASCUM THAPSUS, Lin.
*y. BLATTARIA, Lin.
♦Verbena angustifolia, Mx.
♦yERNONIA NOVEBORACENSIS, Wild.
yiBURNUM ACERIFOLIUM, Lin.
♦y. NUDUM ; var, Claytoni, Gray.
yiOLA BLANDA, Wild.
y. CUCULLATA, Ait.
y. MUHLENBERGH, ToiT.
♦y. PALMATA, Lin.
♦y. PEDATA, Lin.
♦y. LANCEOLATA.
♦y. SAGITTATE, Ait.
152 CATALOGUE OF MARINE ALGiE.
CATALOGUE OF MARINE khGM.
Catalogue of Marine Algce, discovered at Beesley^s Point during the
Summer of 1855. By Samxtel Ashmead, Esq.
The limited number of the species of marine Algce at Beesley's Point ^
mast be attributed to the want of a suitable place, or foothold for deve-
lopment, as the climate and the water, it would seem, supply all the
other conditions favorable to their growth.
The following catalogue, embracing five Melanospebms, nineteen
Khodosperms, and six Chlobosperms, are all that I have as yet been
able to detect. A more careful search may probably supply a few more
species.
In the classification, and names of the species, I have followed that
eminent Algologist, Hon. Wm. H. Harvey, in his '* Nereis Boreali-
Americana,^^ published by the Smithsonian Institute at Washington.
Series I. MELAN0SPERMEJ3.
Fucus VESIOUL08US, lAn, Yery common between tide marks, on the
shores of the Bays and the thoroughfares ; not unfreqnently attached to
sods by a root penetrating several inches into the soil, throwing off
numerous lateral shoots, having the appearance of undeveloped fronds,
forming a strong hold-fast, and affording an interesting illustration of
the modification of a discoid root, where local circumstances are unfa-
vorable to such expansions. It is, however, more frequently found ad-
hering by a conical disc to mussels (Modiolo plicatula\ which, at high
water, unable to resist the buoyancy of the full-grown plant with its in-
flated vesicles, are, by degrees, wrested from their place of growth and
jast upon the shore to perish, whence the Fucus^ together with other ma-
rine plants, are carried away by the inhabitants for manure.
Stilophora RHizoDES, J. Ag, Rather rare; on old shells, &c., near
low-water mark. The few specimens which I obtained are fertile, of
vigorous growth, and densely covered with wart-like fructification.
CATALOGUE OF MARINE AUGM. 153
EcTOCARPUs LiTTORALis, Lyngh, Very abundant in the Bays, on
various submerged substances. Also fringing the steep banks of the
thoroughfares between tide marks. Disappearing in July.
EcTOCARPUs siLicuLOSus, Lyngh. Occurs sparingly on the shores of
Little Bay, on Fucus vesiculosus.
EoTOCARPus vrniDis, Harv, Common in the Bays, on Zostera marina,
&c. Disappearing in July.
SerUs II, RHODOSPERME^.
Chondria dasyphylla, Ag, Plentiful in Little Bay, and on " Bond's
Bar," growing in large tufts on the sandy mud, to which it is attached
by a fibrous root.
Chondria Baileyana, Mont. Common with the above.
PoLYSiPHONiA Olneyi, Harv. Rare, on Zostera marina in " Little
Bay."
PoLYSiPHONiA Harveyi, Bailey. Very abundant in the Bays, and on
Bond's Bar ; on Zostera marina.
PoLYSiPHONiA VARiEGATA, Ag. Ybtj commou, on Zostera mxirinaj
also attached to the mud by a fibrous root.
POLYSIPHONIA NIGRESCEN8, Grev. I Collected fine specimens of this
most valuable plant, in fruit, in the month of May. It occurs in great
abundance in Little Bay, attached to the bottom by a fibrous root.
Champia parvula, Harv. Plentiful in Little Bay, on Zostera
marina.
Grinellia Americana, Harv. Of this beautiful plant 1 only found a
solitary perfect specimen. It was growing in the Great Egg Harbor Bay
near the shore, attached to the bottom by a somewhat fibrous root.
Gracilaria multipartita, J. Ag. Plentiful, particularly fine on
planted oysters in Little Bay.
SouERLA ohordalis, J. Ag. Yery common on all the shores. There
can be no doubt but this bushy plant will grow and flourish in the coves
154 CATALOGUE OF MARINE ALG^.
of Little Baj, and other sheltered situations, without a foothold; for I
have rarely found it attached to the bottom.
Chylogladia Bailbyana, Harv, Frequent on Zostera marina, Ulva
laiissima, &c.
Sfyridida filamentosa, Harv. Particularly abundant and yigorous
in the Bays ; where, sheltered from the winds and waves, like the Solieria
chordalis, it will luxuriate without the slightest attachment to the bottom.
Geramittm rubrum, Ag, This plant, in all its perplexing yarieties, is
found on Zostera marina, rather abundantly.
Ceramium diaphanum, Roth, Occurs sparingly associated with the
abore.
Ceramium fastiqiatum, Harv, In dense tufts, on Zostera marina,
rather rare.
Galmthamnion btssoideum. Am. Frequent on Zostera marina, also
attached to old shells in Great Egg Harbor Bay.
Calltthamnion polyspbrnum, Ag. Rare, on old shells in Great Egg
Harbor Bay.
Geudtim oorneum, var. y. pinnatum, Orev. I obtained two or three
specimens of this plant in Little Bay, on old shells, near low-water mark.
Series III. CHLOROSPERMEiE.
Bryopsis plumosa, Ag. Not common; attached to old shells and
other submerged substances on the shore of Great Egg Harbor Bay.
Gladophora palcata, Harv. Occurs plentiful in Little Bay.
Enteromorpha G0MPRE8SA, Chrev. Yery common very where; in-
festing the small pebbles on Great Egg Harbor Bay.
Enteromorpha intestinalis. Link. Abundant in Little Bay, and on
Bond's Bar. Frequently found floating in large quantities in the Bays.
Ulva latissima, Linn. Gommon with the above.
PoRPHYRA YULQARis, Ag. Very rare. I have obtained but two or
tliree specimens of this Alga^ on Zostera marina in Little Bay.
Ca^st of Yenns iVle rc enariaL.
Proiile
Left Valve.
I Queen. Hel
ISmdairs litii,Hdf
FossUs meniumed on page 27 of thia vohmt.
BY PROFESSOR JAMES HALL.
VENUS MBROENABIA.
THE COMMON CLAM.
This is clearly the common clam sold in our markets: the cast gives the
characters of the recent shell in the most perfect degree ; even the subordi-
nate or second muscular impressions are seen above the principal ones, —
marked in the drawings, a, a.
BUCCINUM OBSOLETUM.
NASSA OBSOLITA, SAY.
This little shell is abundant everywhere on the coast, living more com-
monly on the muddy flats of the bays and creeks, preferring, apparently,
situations sheltered from the surf of the open sea. It is known from Florida
to Maine.
SKETCH
EARLY HISTORY
COUNTY OF CAPE MAY.
"^SKETCH OF THE EARLY HISTORY
OF THE
COUNTY OF CAPE MAY.
BY MAURICE BEE8LEY, M. D.
The difficulties to be encountered in making a historical sketch
of the County of Cape May, are perhaps as great, if not greater,
than will be found in any other county of our State. Isolated as
it was in early times from the upper districts of the Province, and
with a sparse population, we find no material to consult, except a
meagre court record ; hence the inquirer is compelled to seek from
musty manuscripts and books in other places, a goodly portion of
the little that has escaped oblivion, in the vista of years gone by,
and that little must necessarily be made up of scraps and fragments
which owe their interest, if any they have, more to their intrinsic
wortl^than to the skill bestowed upon their arrangement.
Or(^r cannot ceme out of chaos ; and any attempt to make a con-
nected history, with the resources at hand, would end in disappoint-
ment. Being partially surrounded by water, without a roadstead
or harbor to invite the hardy pioneers who first visited the Delaware,
to sojourn and rest upon her shores, she was passed by to more
inviting regions, on its waters above, where ships could find refuge
from winds and storms ; and man, in his inherent thirst for dominion
and power, could secure the virgin soil of the country, in extent
]G0 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
and proportions, and upon terms so inconsiderable, as to fill up the
full measure of his desires, and gratify his ambitious and venture-
some propensities.
After the most careful investigation and patient research in the
State and County archives, and the early as well as the more recent
chronicles of our past history, we find no data to prove that Cape May
was positively inhabited until the year 1685, when Caleb Carman
was appointed, by .the Legislature, a justice of the peace, and Jona-
than Pine, constable.*
These were independent appointments, as Cape May was not
under the jurisdiction of the Salem Tenth. This simple fact, how-
ever, that the appointment of a justice and constable for the place,
was necessary, goes to prove that there were inhabitants here at
this time; yet whence they came, in what number, or how long
they sojourned, are inquiries that will most probably ever remain in
mystery and doubt. Fenwick made his entry into " New Salem,'*
in 1675, and soon after extinguished the Indian title from the Dela-
ware to Prince Maurice River.f He made no claim and exercised
no dominion over Cape May ; and we have nothing to show at the
time of his arrival, that the country from Salem to the sea-shore
was other than one primeval and unbroken forest, with ample na-
tural productions by sea and land, to make it the happy home
of the red man, where he could roam, free and unmolested, in the
enjoyment of privileges and blessings, which the strong arm of
destiny soon usurped and converted to ulterior purposes.
Gordon, in his history of New Jersey, says : " Emigrants from New
Haven settled on the left shores of the Delaware so early as 1640,
some of whose descendants may probably be found in Salem, Cum-
berland, and Cape May counties/'
As far as regards Cape May, we have no tradition of any such
settlement. History tells us that Hudson, in the Half-Moon, en-
tered the Delaware Bay, the 28th August, 1609, ^^ but finding the
* Learning A Spicer's oolleotion. f JobDson's Salem, p. 13.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 161
water shoal, and the channel impeded by bars of sand, he did not
venture to explore it."
On the 5th of May, 1630, " a purchase of sixteen miles square,
was made at Cape May, for Samuel Godyn and Samuel Bloemart,
of nine resident Chiefs. This tract was purchased by Peter Heyser,
Skipper of the ship Whale, and Giles Coster, commissary. It was
probably the first purchase of the natives within the limits of New
Jersey ; at least it is the first upon record, and was made for and
in behalf of the Dutch West India Company."*
' The renowned Capt. Cornelius Jacobese Mey, visited our shores,
and explored Delaware Bay in 1623, and to him the County of Cape
May is indebted for a name. He built Fort Nassau, at Timber
Creek, the site of which is now unknown, t
David Pieterson de Vries was the next pioneer to the New World.
He entered Delaware Bay in 1631, and first landed at Hoorekill,
near Cape Henlopen. He left a colony there; but on his re-
turn the succeeding year, found they had been massacred by the
savages. ^^ Finding the whale fishery unsuccessful, he hastened his
departure, and, with the other colonists, proceeded to Holland by
the way of Fort Amsterdam," (New York). Thus, says Gordon, " at
the expiration of twenty years from the discovery of the Delaware
by Hudson, not a single European remained upon its shores." De
Vries, in his journal, says, " March 29th, 1633, found that our peo-
ple has caught seven whales ; we could have done more if we had
good harpoons, for they had struck seventeen fish and only saved
seven."
" An immense flight of wild pigeons in April, obscuring the sky.
The 14th, sailed over to Cape May, where the coast trended E. N. E.
and S. W. Came at evening to the mouth of Egg Harbor ; found
between Cape May and Egg Harbor a slight sand beach, full of
small, low sand hills. Egg Harbor is a little river or kill, and in-
side the land is broken, and within the bay are several small is-
* Mulford's N. J. p. 58 ; k Gordon. f Mickle's Reminiscenees.
11
162 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY,
lands. Somewhere farther up, in the same direction, is a beautiful
high wood." This was probably Somer's or Beesley's Point, clothed
in its primitive growth of timber.
About 1641, Cape May was again purchased by Swedish agents,
a short time before the arrival of the Swedish governor, Printz,
at Tinicum. This conveyance included all lands from Cape May
to Narriticon, or Raccoon Creek.*
Campanius, a Swedish minister, who resided in New Sweden, on
the banks of the Delaware, from the year 1642 to 48, says, page 46,
** Cape May lies in latitude 38° 30'. To the south of it, there are
three sand banks, parallel to each other, and it is not safe to sail
between them. The safest course is to steer between them and
Cape May, between Cape May and Cape Henlopen." But for this
account, these sand-banks could only have existed in the imagina-
tion, as there have been none there within the memory of man.
Johnson in his sketch of Salem, says : '^ The Baptist church at Cape
May took its origin from a vessel which put in there from England,
in 1675." He evidently obtained this from " Benedict's History
of the Baptists," who makes the same assertion, viz : ^^The founda-
tion of this church was laid in the year 1675, when a company of
emigrants arrived from England, some of whom settled at Cape
May. Amongst these were two Baptists, George Taylor and
Philip Hill."
It is most likely, as Mr. Benedict gives us no references for the
above statements, that an error has been made in the date, as no
record of the church here is to be found prior to 1711 ; and, as
before stated, no fact to prove that our county was inhabited until
1685.
The first will and inventory on file in the Secretary's oflSce, at
Trenton, from Cape May, is that of John Story, dated the 28th
of the nintb month, 1687. He was a Friend, and left his personal
estate, amounting to J&llO, to his wife, having no heirs. The next
* Miokle, p. 83.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 108
were those of Abraham WestOD, November 24th, 1687, and John
Briggs, in 1690. In April, May, and June, 1691, John Worlidge
and John Budd, from Burlington, came down the bay in a vessel,* and
laid a number of proprietary rights, commencing at Cohansey, and
so on to Cape May. They set off the larger proportion of this county,
consisting of 95,000 acres, to Dr. Daniel Coxe, of London, who had
large proprietary rights in West Jersey. This was the first actual
proprietary survey made in the county. In the copy of the ori-
ginal draft of these surveys, and of the county of Cape May, made
by David Jameison, in 1713, from another made by Lewis Morris,
in 1706, (which draft is now in my possession, and was presented
by William Griffith, Esq., of Burlington, to Thomas Beesley, of
Cape May, in 1812,) Egg Island, near the mouth of Maurice River,
is laid off to Thomas Budd, for three hundred acres. Since this
survey was made, the attrition of the waters has destroyed almost
every vestige of it — scarcely enough remaining to mark the spot
of its former magnitude. Upon this map likewise is laid down
Cape May Town, at Town Bank on the Bay shore, the residence
of the whalers, consisting of a number of dwellings ; and a short
.distance above it we find Dr. Coxe's Hall, with a spire, on Coxehall
Creek, a name yet retained by the inhabitants. As no other build-
ings or improvements are noted upon this map, than those above
mentioned, it is to be presumed there were but few, if any, existing
except them, at this day. The only attraction then was the whale
fishery ; and the small town of fifteen or twenty houses marked upon
this map, upon the shore of Town Bank in close contiguity, would
lead us to infer that those adventurous spirits, who came for that
purpose, preferred in the way of their profession to be near each
other, and to make common stock in their operations of harpoon-
ing, in which, according to Thomas and others, they seemed to be
eminently successful.
*' Dr. Coxe, in his capacity as proprietor, continued to be ac-
* J. Townsend'g Manuscript.
164 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY,
tivelj concerned in the management of business subsequent to the
surrender ; extensive purchases of land ^rere made by him of the
natives, and these agreements was assented to by the Council of
Proprietors. These several purchases of the natives were made
and dated, respectively, on the 30th March, 30th April, and 16th
May, 1688. They were laid in the southern part of the province?
including part of the present counties of Cumberland and Cape
May. Either disheartened by the difficulties he had experienced, or
tempted by an offer that would cover the disbursements he had made,
Coxe resolved upon a sale of the whole of his interest in this province.
He accordingly made an agreement, in the year 1691, with a body
composed of forty-eight persons, designated by the name of the
*We8t Jersey Society.' To this company, on the 20th January,
1692, the whole of the claim of Dr. Coxe, both as to government
and property, was conveyed, he receiving therefor the sum of
£9000."* This sale opened a new era to the people of Cape May.
As no land titles had been obtained under the old regime of the
proprietors, except five conveyances from George Taylor,t as agent
for Dr. Coxe, the West Jersey Society became a medium through
which they could select and locate the choice of the lands, at prices
corresponding with the means and wishes of the purchaser.
The society, through their agents appointed in the county, con-
tinued to make sales of land during a period of sixty-four years of
their having possession ; at the end of which time, in 1756, having
conveyed a large proportion of their interest, they sold the balance
to Jacob Spicer the second, for £300. The title is now nearly
extinct.
It has been handed down, that Spicer obtained the grant for the
proprietary right in Cape May, of Dr. Johnson, agent of the So-
ciety at Perth Amboy, at a time when the influence of the wine
bottle had usurped the place of reason, or he could not have ob-
tained it for so inconsiderable a sum as three hundred pounds ; and
♦ Mulford, 264, 6. f Cape May Records.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY, 165
that the Doctor, sensible he had betrayed the trust reposed in him,
left the society at his death a thousand pounds as a salvo.
As history throws no light on the original occupiers of the soil,
conjecture only can be consulted on the subject. It would seem
probable, in as much as many of the old Swedish names, as recorded
in Campanius, from Budman, are still to be found in Cumberland
and Cape May, that some of the veritable Swedes of Tinicum or
Christiana might have strayed, or have been driven to our shores.
When the Dutch governor, Stuyvesant, ascended the Delaware in
1654, with his seven ships and seven hundred men, and subjected
the Swedes to his dominion, it would be easy to imagine, in their
mortification and chagrin at a defeat so bloodless and unexpected,
that many of them should fly from the arbitrary sway of their
rulers, and seek an asylum where th^*^ uld be free to act for them-
selves, without restraint or coe^' t the stubbornness of myn-
heer, whose victory, though easily obtained, was permanent, as the
provincial power of New Sweden had perished for ever.
Master Evelinas letter in Plantagenet's New Albion,* dated 1648,
says : " I thought good to write unto you my knowledge, and first
to describe to you the north side of Delaware unto Hudson's River,
in Sir Edmund's patent called New Albion, which lieth between
New England and Maryland, and that ocean sea. I take it to be
about 160 miles. I find some broken land, isles and inlets, and many
small isles at Eg Bay ; but going to Delaware Bay by Cape May,
which is twenty-four miles at most, and is, I understand, very well
set out and printed in Captain Poweirs map of New England, done
as is told me by a draft I gave to Mr. Daniel, the plotmaster, which
he Edmund saith you have at home : on that north side (of Cape
May) about five miles within is a port or rode for any ships, called
the Nook, and within liveth the king of Kechemeches, having, as I
suppose, about fifty men. I do account all these Indians to be
eight hundred, and are in several factions and war against the Sar-
* Philadelphia Library.
y
166 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
quehanncoks, and are all extreame fearful of a gun, naked and un-
armed 'against our shot, swords and pikes. I had some bickering
with some of them, and they are of so little esteem that I durst
with fifteen men sit down or trade in despite of them. I saw there
an infinite quantity of bustards, swans, geese and fowl, covering
the shores, as within the like multitude of pigeons and store of
turkeys, of which I tried one to weigh forty and six pounds. There
is much variety and plenty of delicate fresh and sea fish and shell-
fish, and whales and grampus, elks, deere that bring three young at
a time."
He further says, " Twelve hundred Indians under the Raritan
kings, on the south side next to Hudson's River, and those come
down to the ocean about Little Eg Bay, and Sandy Barnegate,
and about the South Cape two small Kings of forty men a piece
called Tirans and Tiascons."
It would seem from the above description given by Master Eve-
lin, that he actually visited this part of the country at that early
day, and made the circuit of Cape May.
The name of Egg Bay has been perpetuated with but little vari-
ation, and the many small isles that he speaks of, yet stand there
in testimony of his having seen them as stated, in propria persona.
Now where it was the king of Kechemeches with his fifty men held
forth, it would be diflScult to ascertain : it might have been at Town
Bank, or Fishing Creek, or further up the cove or "nook,** as he
was pleased to call it. Master Evelin must certainly have the
credit of being the first white man that explored the interior, as far
as the seaboard, and his name should be perpetuated as the king
of pioneers. ... His account of the great abundance and
variety of fowl and fish seems within the range of probability, and
the story of the turkey that weighed forty-six pounds, would have
less of the " couleur de rose** were it not qualified in the same para-
graph, with "deere that bring forth three young at a time." And
what a sight it must have been to see the woods and plains teeming
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 167
with wild animals, the shores and waters with fowl in every variety,
where they had existed unharmed and unmolested through- an un-
known period of years ; and the magnificent forest, the stately and
towering cedar swamp, untouched by the axe of the despoiler, all
reveling in the beauties of Nature in her pristine state, the reali-
ties of which the imagination, only, can convey an impression, or
give a foretaste of the charms and novelties of those primeval
times.
Gabriel Thomas, in his history of West Jersey in 1698, gives us
the following particulars, viz : " Prince Maurice River is where the
Swedes used to kill the geese in great numbers for their feathers
(only), leaving their carcasses behind them. Cohansey River, by
which they send great store of cedar to Philadelphia city. Great
Egg Harbor (up which a ship of two or three hundred tons may
sail), which runs by the back part of the country into the main sea ;
I call it back, because the first improvements made by the Christians
was Delaware river-side. This place is noted for good store of corn,
horses, cows, sheep, hogs ; the lands thereabouts being much im*
proved and built upon. Little Egg Harbor Creek, which takes their
names from the great abundance of Eggs which the swans, geese,
ducks, and other wild fowls of those rivers lay thereabouts. The
commodities of Cape May County are oyl and whalebone, of which
they make prodigious quantities every year ; having mightily ad-
vanced that great fishery, taking great numbers of whales yearly.
This county, for the general part of it, is extraordinary good and
proper for the raising of all sorts of cattell, very plentiful here, as
cows, horses, sheep, and hogs, &c. Likewise, it is well stored with
fruits which make very good and pleasant liquors, such as neigh-
bouring country before mentioned affords.**
Oldmixon, 1708, says : *' The tract of land between this (Cape
May) and Little Egg Harbor, which divides East and West New
Jersey, goes by the name of Cape May County. Here are several
stragling houses on this neck of land, the chief of which is Cox's
168 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
Hall ; but there's yet no Town. Most of the inhabitants are fisher-
men, there being a whalerj at the mouth of the Bay, on this as
well as the opposite shore."
Cape May County, by an Act of Assembly on the 12th day of
November, 1692, was instituted as follows, viz: "Whereas, this
Province hath formerly been divided into three counties for the
better regulation thereof ; and whereas Cape May (being a place
well situated for trade) begins to increase to a considerable number
of families ; and there being no greater encouragement to the settle-
ment of a place than that there be established therein an order by
government, and justice duly administered : Be it therefore enacted
by the Governor, Council, and Representatives in this present As-
sembly met and assembled, and by the authority of the same, that
from henceforth Cape May shall be, and is hereby appointed a
County, the bounds whereof to begin at the utmost flowing of the
tide in Prince Maurice River, being about twenty miles from the
mouth of said river, and then by a line running easterly to the most
northerly point of Great Egg Harbor, and from thence southerly
along by the sea to the point of Cape May ; thence around Cape
May, and up Maurice River to the first point mentioned ; and that
there be nominated and appointed such and so many justices and
other officers, as at present may be necessary for keeping the peace,
and trying of small causes under forty shillings. In which circum-
stance the same county shall remain until it shall appear they are
capable of being erected into a County Court ; and in case of any
action, whether civil or criminal, the same to be heard and deter-
mined at the quarterly sessions in Salem County, with liberty for
the Justices of the County of Cape May, in conjunction with the
Justices of Salem County, in every such action in judgment to sit,
and with them to determine the same."
The time and place of holding the county elections were likewise
directed, and the number of representatives that each was entitled
to: Burlington to have 20, Gloucester 20, Salem 10, and Cape
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 169
May 5 members. Cape May continued to have five members until
the time of the surrender in 1702, except in the year 1697, when
she was reduced to one representative. No record, however, of the
names of the members previous to 1702 has come to light.
Act of Oct. 3d, 1693 : " Whereas it has been found expedient to
erect Cape May into a County, the bounds whereof at the last ses-
sion of this Assembly have been ascertained ; and conceiving it also
reasonable the inhabitants thereof shall partake of what privilidges
(under their circumstances) they are capable of, with the rest of the
counties in this Province, and having (upon enquiry) received satis-
faction that there is a sufficient number of inhabitants within the
said county to keep and hold a County Court, in smaller matters
relating to civil causes : Be it enacted by the Governor, Council,
and Representatives in Assembly met and assembled, and by au-
thority thereof that the inhabitants of the County of Cape May shall
and may keep and hold four county courts yearly, viz : on the third
Tuesday of December, 3d March, 3d June, and 3d of September ;
all which courts the Justices commissioned, and to be commissioned
in the said county, shall and may hear and try, according to law, all
civil actions within the said county under the sum of £20." All
above the sum of £20 were still to be tried at Salem.
The same Assembly passed the following, viz :
" Whereas the whaling in Delaware Bay has been in so great a
measure invaded by strangers and foreigners, that the greatest part
of oyl and bone received and got by that employ, hath been exported
out of the Province to the great detriment thereof : Be it enacted,
that any one killing a whale or whales in Delaware Bay, or on its
shores, to pay the value of ya of the oyl to the governor of the
Province."
In 1697 all restriction was removed from the courts in civil cases,
and the same immunities and privileges were granted as were en-
joyed by the courts within the several counties of the Province.
In the same year. May 12, 1697, " An Act for a road to and
from Cape May" was passed.
170 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
" Whereas the inhabitants of Cape May County do represent
themselves as under extreme hardship for want of a road from Cape
May, through their county to Cohansey, in order to their repair to
Burlington to attend the public service; Be it enacted by the
Governor, &c., that George Taylor and John CraflFord, be commb-
sioners appointed to lay out a road from Cape May the most conve-
nient to lead to Burlington, between this and the 10th day of Sep-
tember next."
It was ordered likewise that the expense be borne by the inhabit-
ants of Cape May until such time as those lands through which the
road goes are settled. This road, so important to the convenience
and travel of the people of the county, was not finished till 1707.
Prior to this the county was completely isolated from the upper
districts of the State by the extensive bed of cedar swamps and
marshes stretching from the head-waters of Cedar Swamp Creek to
the head-waters of Dennis Creek, and no communication could have
been held with Cohansey or Burlington except by the waters of
the Delaware, or by horse-paths through the swamps that consti-
tuted the barrier.
By the Act of the 2l8t January, 1710,* the county of Cape May
was reduced to its present bounds, viz : ^^ Beginning at the mouth
of a small creek on the west side of Stipson's Island, called Jecak's
Creek; thence up the same as high as the tide floweth; thence
along the bounds of Salem County to the southernmost main branch
of Great Egg Harbor River ; thence down the said river to the sea ;
thence along the sea-coast to Delaware Bay, and so up the said
Bay to the place of beginning.**
It seems the inhabitants on the western side of Maurice River,
the Cape May boundary, were without any legal control until
1707,t when an act was passed annexing the inhabitants between
the river Tweed, now Back Creek (being the lower bounds of Salem
County), and the bounds of Cape May County to Salem County,
* Pfttterson'fl Laws. Smith's N. J.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 171
putting them under its jurisdiction. The act of 1710 extends
Salem County, and curtails Cape May County, to Stipson's Island,
or West Creek.
The first town meeting for publib business was held at the house
of Benjamin Godfrey, on the 7th of February, 1692.* *' The com-
missions for Justices and SheriflF were proclaimed, and George
Taylor was appointed clerk." The first suit on record is for
assault and battery; "Oliver Johnson against John Carman.**
The second, John Jarvis is accused by George Taylor of helping
the Indians to rum. " William Johnson deposeth and saith, that
he came into the house of the said Jarvis, and he found Indians
drinking rum, and one of the said Indians gave of the said rum to
the said Johnson, and he drank of it with them. The said Jarvis
refusing to clear himself, was convicted."
As early as 1692,t a ferry was established by law, over Great
Egg Harbor River, at the place now called Beesley*s Point, a proof
there must have been inhabitants upon both sides of the river, and
contiguous to it at that period.
The original settlers, or those who were here previous to the year
1700, were principally attracted (as the authors heretofore quoted
sufficiently corroborate) by the inducements held out by the whale
fishery ; and Long Island supplied the principal proportion of those
who came prior to that time. The names of those who were known
to be whalers,t were Christopher Leamyeng and his son Thomas,
Caesar Hoskins, Samuel Matthews, Jonathan Osborne, Nathaniel
Short, Cornelius Skellinks, Henry Stites, Thomas Hand and his
sons John and George, John and Caleb Carman, John Shaw,
Thomas Miller, William Stillwell, Humphrey Hewes, William Ma-
son, John Richardson, Ebenezer Swain, Henry Young; and no
doubt many others.
The jaw-bone of a whale, ten feet long, was recently found a few
rods from the shore at Town Bank, by Thomas P. Hughes, the pro-
♦ Cape May Records. f Learning k Spioer's CoUection.
J Secretary's office, TreDton t Cape May records.
172 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY CX)UNTY.
prietor, partly imbedded in the sand, which has probably lain there
since the time of the whalers.
First Court.
At a Court held at Portsmouth (supposed to be Town Bank or
Cape May Town) on the 20th March, 1693, which is the first of
which we have any record, the following officers were present,
viz : — Justices — John Wolredge, Jeremiah Bass,* John Jervis, Jo-
seph Houlden, and Samuel Crowel. Sheriff — Timothy Brandreth.
Clerk — George Taylor. Grand Jury — Shamgar Hand, Thomas
Hand, William Goulden, Samuel Matthews, John Townsend, Wil-
liam Whitlock, Jacob Dayton, Oliver Johnson, Christopher Leayeman,
Arthur Cresse, Ezekiel Eldredge, William Jacocks, John Carman,
Jonathan Pine, Caleb Carman, John Reeves, and Jonathan Foreman.
" A rule of Court passed, the grand jury shall have their dinner
allowed them at the county charge ;*' a rule that would seem reason-
able at the present day, when grand jurors have to pay their own
bills and serve the county gratis.
" Their charge being given them, the grand jury find it necessary
that a road be laid out, most convenient for the king and county,
and so far as one county goeth, we are willing to clear a road for
travelers to pass.*' "John Townsend and Arthur Cresse appointed
Assessors; Timothy Brandreth, Collector; Shamgar Hand, Trea-
surer ; Samuel Matthews and William Johnson, Supervisors of the
Road; and John Somers for Egg Harbor. At same Court, John
Somers was appointed Constable for Great Egg Harbor." " The
Court likewise orders that no person shall sell liquor without a
license, and that £40 be raised by tax to defray expenses, with a
proviso that produce should be taken at 'money price' in payment.*'
The above appointment by the Court of John Somers for Supervisor
* This is supposed to be the same Jeremiah Bass who was agent for the West Jersey
Society in 1694 and 5, for Gape May, at which time he resided at Gohansey, and next year
at Burlington ; was appointed governor of the State in 1698, and departed for England
in 1699. [Mulford, 261.] A Jeremiah Bass figured at Salem from 1710 to 1716, as an
attorney ; and a member of the Legislature from Cape May, from 1717 to 1723 : but whether
the same, or a relative, is uncertain.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
173
of the roads and Constable for Great Egg Harbor, confirms the
opinion advanced by Mickle (page 38) that the County of Glouces-
ter did not originally reach to the ocean, and that the inhabitants
of the seaboard, or Great Egg Harbor, were under the jurisdiction
of Cape May. The act of 1694, however, made them dependent
upon Gloucester, and that of 1710 extended the County of Glouces-
ter to the ocean. A passage from Oldmixon, 1708, heretofore
quoted, that Cape May County extended to Little Egg Harbor at
that time, is evidently incorrect.
The following named persons purchased of the Agents of Dr. Cox
and the West Jersey Society, mostly previous to 1696, some few as
early as 1689, the number of acres attached to th^ir respective names,
VIZ : — ^
Acres.
Christopher Leamyeng, 204
William Jacoks, 340
Abigail Pine, 200
Humphrey Hughes, 206
Samuel Matthews, 175
Jonathan Osborne, 110
Nathaniel Short, 200
Caesar Hoskins, 250
Shamgar Hand, 700
Joseph Weldon, (Whilldin), J50
Joseph Houlding, .200
Dorothy Hewit, 340
Thomas Hand, 400
John Taylor, 220
John Curwith, 55
John Shaw, 2 surveys, 315
Timothy Brandreth, 110
John Crawford, 380
Ezekiel Eldridge, 90
Oliver Russel, 170
Samuel Crowell, 226
John Carman,. 250
Thomas Gandy, 50
Caleb Carman, 250
* Trenton A Cape May Recordf.
Acres.
William Mason, 150
Henry Stites, 200
Cornelius Skellinks, 134
John Richardson, 124
Arthur Cresse, 350
Peter Causon, 400
John Causon, 300
John Townsend, 640
Wm. Golden & Rem Garretson, ..1016
William Johnson, 436
John Page, 125
John Parsons, 315
William Smith, 130
George Taylor, 175
Dennis Lynch, 300
William Whitlock, 500
Jacob Spicer, 2 surveys, 1000
Benjamin Godfrey, 210
Randal Hewit, 140
Elizabeth Carman, . . . .' 300
John Reeves, 100
Benjamin Hand, 373
James Stanfield, 100
174
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
Some few of the above locations were made on the sea-shore ; but
the larger proportion of them in the lower part of the county. In
addition to those who located land previous to 1700, on the fore-
going page, the following-named persons had resided, and were then
residing in the county, many of whom possessed land by secondary
purchase.^
Thomas Leamyeng
Alexander Humphries
John Briggs
Abraham Hand
Shamgar Hand, Jr.
Benjamin Hand, Jr.
Daniel Johnson
Oliver Johnson
William Harwood
Jacob Dayton
Richard Ha
Jonathan Crossle
William Lake
Theirs Raynor
Thomas Matthews
William Stillwell
John Cresse
Morris Raynor
Joshua Howell
Arthur Cresse, Jr.
William Blackburry
Daniel Carman
Joseph Knight
John Stillwell
John Else
John Steele
Thomas Hand
Joseph Ludlam, Sen.
Anthony Ludlam
Jonathan Pine
John Wolredge
John Jervis
Jonathan Foreman
Thomas Goodwin
Jonathan High
Edward Howell
George Crawford
Joseph Badcock
William Dean
Richard Jones
John Howell
Thomas Stanford
George Noble
John WoUy
Peter Cartwright
Abraham Smith
John Hubard
Thomas Miller
Robert Crosby
John Fish
Lubbart Gilberson
Edward Marshall
* State and County Reoords.
EARLY HISTORT OF CAPE MAT COUNTY.
175
James Cresse
William Simpkins
Thomas Goodwin
Thomas Clifton
Joshua Carman
William Duboldy
James Marshall
John Baily
William Richardson
Thomas Foster
Thomas Hewit
George Taylor, Jr.
John Dennis
Isaac Hand
Daniel Hand
Jeremiah Hand
Joseph Hand
Thomas Bancroft
Edward Summis
Henry Gray
Abraham Weston
Thomas Going
Jonathan Edmunds
Nicholas Martineau
John Garlick
Samuel Matthews, Jr.
William Shaw
Robert French
Jeremiah Miller
Zebulon Sharp
William Sharwood
John Story
Richard Townsend
Robert Townsend
The following is from the manuscript of Thomas Leaming, one
of the early pioneers, who died in 1723, aged 49 years.
"In July, 1674, I was born in Southampton on Long Island.
When I was eighteen years of age (1692) I came to Cape May,
and that winter had a sore fit of the fever and flux. The next summer
I went to Philadelphia with my father Christopher, who was lame
with a withered hand, which held him till his death. The winter
following, I went a whaling, and we got eight whales ; and five of
them we drove to the Hoarkills, and we went there to cut them up,
and staid a month. The 1st day of May we came home to Cape
May, and my father was very sick, and the third day, 169f5, de-
parted this life at the house of Shamgar Hand. Then I went to
Long Island, staid that summer, and in the winter I went a whaling
again, and got an old cow and a calf. In 1696, I went to whaling
again, and made a great voyage; and in 1697, I worked for John
Reeves all summer, and in the winter, went to whaling again. In
176 EARLY HISTORY OP CAPE MAY COUNTY.
1698, worked for John Crawford and on my own land ; and that
winter had a sore fit of sickness at Henry Stites* ; and in the year
1700, I lived at my own plantation and worked for Peter Corson.
I was married in 1701 ; and 1703 I went to Cohansie, and fetched
brother Aaron. In 1706, I built my house. Samuel Matthews
took a horse from me worth £7, because I could not train. In
1707, we made the county road.*'
According to the same author, in the winter of 1713-14, the
county came near being depopulated "by a grievous sickness,"
which carried oflF between forty and fifty of the inhabitants. " The
disease came on with pain in the side, breast, and sometimes in the
back, navel, tooth, eye, hand, feet, legs, or ear." Amongst the
victims were Nicholas Stillwell, Arthur Cresses, Sen. and Jr., Reu-
ben Swain, Richard Smith, Samuel Garretson, Cornelius Hand,
Joseph Hewit, William Shaw,* John Reeves, Richard Fortesque,
John Stillwell, James Garretson, Return Hand, John Foreman,
Jedediah Hughes, John Matthews, Daniel Wells, and over twenty
others." It can scarcely be conjectured from the above recital of
symptoms, what the true character of the disease could have been.
It was a severe retribution in a population of some two or three
hundred ; and Providence alone, who saw proper to afflict, can solve
the mystery.
From second Aaron Leaming's manuscript : —
" My father's father, Christopher Leaming, was an Englishman,
and came to America in 1670, and landed near or at Boston ; thence
to East Hampton. There he lived till about the year 1691, and
then leaving his family at Long Island, he came himself to Cape
May, which, at that time, was a new county, and beginning to settle
very fast, and seemed to promise good advantages to the adven-
turers. Here he went to whaling in the proper season, and at other
times worked at the cooper's trade, which was his occupation, and
good at the time by reason of the great number of whales caught in
* Aaron Learning first, afterward married his widow.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 177
those days, made the demand and pay for casks certain. He died
of a pleurisie in 1696. His remains were interred at the place
called Cape May Town, was situated next above now New England
Town Creek, and contained about thirteen houses; but, on the
failure of the whale fishery in Delaware Bay, it dwindled into com-
mon farms, and the grave-yard is on the plantation now owned by
Ebenezer Newton. At the first settlement of the county, the chief
whaling was in Delaware Bay, and that occasioned the town to be
built there ; but there has not been one house in that town since
my remembrance. In 1734 I saw the graves; Samuel Eldredge
showed them to me. They were then about fifty rods from the
Bay, and the sand was blown to them. The town was between
them and the water. There were then some signs of the ruin of
the houses. I never saw any East India tea till 1785. It was the
Presbyterian parsons, the followers of Whitefield, that brought it into
use at Cape May, about the year 1744-5-6; and now it im-
poverisheth the country."
" Aaron Leaming (the first), of the County of Cape May, departed
this life at Philadelphia, of a pleurisie, on the 20th June, 1746,
about five o'clock in the afternoon. He was born at Sag, near East-
hampton, on Long Island, Oct. 12th, 1687, being the son of Chris-
topher Leamyeng (as he spelt his name), an Englishman, and Hester
his wife, whose maiden name was Burnet, and was born in New
England. Christopher Leamyeng owned a lot at Easthampton, but
he came to Cape May, being a cooper, and stayed several years and
worked at his trade ; and about 1695-6 he died at Cape May, and
his land fell to Thomas Leamyeng, his eldest son ; the rest was left
poor."
Aaron Leaming was bound to Collins, a shoemaker in Connecticut,
but did not serve his time out, and came into the Jerseys at about
sixteen years of age, very poor, helpless, and friendless : embraced
the Quaker religion, lived a time at Salem, came to Cape May while
yet a boy (in 1703), settled at Goshen, raised cattle, bought a
12
178 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
shallop and went by water, gathered a considerable estate, but more
knowledge than money. The 12th day of October, 1714, married
Lydia Shaw, widow of William Shaw,* and daughter of John Par-
sons. By her he had four children, Aaron, Jeremiah, Matthias, and
Elizabeth. He was first a justice of the peace at Cape May. In
1728 he was made Clerk of Cape May ; and in October, 1727, he
was chosen assemblyman, and served in that post till July, 1744.
He was universally confessed to have had a superior knowledge ; he
amassed large possessions, and did more for his children than any
Cape May man has ever done. He left a clear estate, and was
buried in the church-yard in Philadelphia. At Salem and Alloway*s
Creek he became acquainted with Sarah Hall, an aged Quaker lady,
mother of Clement Hall. She herself was an eminent lawyer for
those times, and had a large collection of books, and very rich, and
took delight in my father on account of his sprightly wit and
genius, and his uncommon fondness for the law, which he read in
her library, though a boy, and very small of his age (for he was a
little man), and could not write ; for the Presbyterians of New
England had taken no other care of his education than to send him
to meeting'*
Aaron Leaming, the author of the foregoing manuscript relating
to his father and grandfather, was one of the most prominent and
influential men the county ever produced. The family lost nothing
in caste through him. He was a heavy land operator, and a member
of the Legislature for thirty years. From the manuscript he left
behind him, which is quite voluminous, it would appear he was a
man of great industry and much natural good sense, well educated
for the times, and withal a little tinged with aristocracy; a trait of
character not unexceptionable under the royal prerogative. No
man ever received greater honors from the county, and none, per-
haps, better deserved them. The Legislature selected him, and
Jacob Spicer second of our county, to compile the laws of the State,
* William Shaw died in the epidemic of 1713.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 179
known as " Learning and Spicer*s Collection/* a trust they executed
to the satisfaction of the State and the people. He was born in
1716, and died in 1783.
Another of the early settlers was William Golden. He emigrated
to Cape May in or about 1691. He was an Irishman, and espoused
the cause of James against William and Mary, and fought as an
ofiScer in the battle of the Boyne, in 1690. As he soon after came
to America, he was most likely one of those stubborn Jacobite
Catholics that William, in his clemency, gave permission to flee the
country, or abide the just indignation of the Protestant authority
for the part he took in said battle to promote its downfall. He,
with Rem Garretson, located 3,016 acres of land at Egg Harbor,
now Beesley*s Point. He was one of the justices of the Court, and
occupied other prominent stations. He died about 1715, leaving
but few descendants ; one of whom, his great grandson. Rem G.
Golding, now past eighty years old, lives near the first and original
location, and has in his possession at the present time the sword
with which his ancestor fought, and the epaulette which he wore at
the battle of the Boyne.
Benedict, in his history of the Baptists, says of Nathaniel Jen-
kins, who was a Baptist minister, and a member of the Legislature
from 1728 to 1733, he " became the pastor of the church in Cape
May in 1712. Mr. Jenkins was a Welchman, born in Cardigan-
shire in 1678, arrived in America in 1710, and two years after
settled at Cape May. He was a man of good parts, and tolerable
education, and quitted himself with honor in the Loan office whereof
he was trustee, and also in the Assembly, particularly in 1721 (3 ?),
when a bill was brought in to punish such as denied the doctrine of
the Trinity, the Divinity of Christ, the inspiration of the Holy
Scriptures, &c. In opposition to which Mr. Jenkins stood up, and
with the warmth and action of a Welchman said : * I believe the
doctrines in question as much as the promoter of that ill-designed
bill, but will never consent to oppose the opposers with law, or with
ISO EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
any weapon save that of argument,* Accordingly the bill was sup-
pressed, to the great mortification of those who wanted to raise in
New Jersey the spirit which so raged in New England."
Col. Jacob Spicer was in the county as early as 1691. He was a
member of the Legislature fourteen years, from 1709 to 1723, and
Surrogate from 1723 to 1741 ; and for many years a justice of the
Court. It is believed he came over with William Penn, and settled
in the upper part of Gloucester a while previous to coming here.^
Born in 1668 ; died, 1741.
His son, Jacob Spicer, deserves a more particular notice. He
was born in 1716. We have nothing to guide us in relatioa to his
early days, or until he became a member of the Legislature in
1744, which station he occupied for a period of twenty-one years ;
the first in connection with Henry Young, Esq., and afterwards,
until his demise, with Aaron Leaming (second) Esq. ; being almost a
moiety of the time he lived. He bore a prominent part in the pro-
ceedings and business of the House, as the journals of those days
fully prove, and received the appointment in connection with Aaron
Leaming second to revise the laws of the State ; and '' Leaming and
Spicer's Collection," the result of their labor, is well known at this
day as a faithful exposition of the statutes.f He was a man of
exemplary habits, strong and vigorous imagination, and strictly
faithful in his business relations with his fellow-men, being punc-
tilious to the uttermost farthing, as his diary and accounts fully
attest. He carried system into all the ramifications of business ;
nothing too small to escape the scrutiny of his active mind, nothing
so large that it did not intuitively embrace. He married Judith
Hughes, daughter of Humphrey Hughes, Esq., who died in 1747 ;
and in 1751 he married Deborah Leaming, widow of Christopher
* J. Townsend's manuscript
t I am more particular to reiterate the fact of his heing oonoemed with Aaron Leaming
in the work of compiling the laws, as Mickle, in his Reminiscences, claims the credit of it
fur Jacob Spicer, of MuUica HiU; which is no doubt an error, as I hare the most indubi-
table eyidence to the contrary.
EARLT HISTORY OF CAPE MAT COUNTT. 181
Learning . The written marriage agreement which he^ entered into
with the said Deborah Learning, before consummating matrimony,
is indicative of much sound sense and discriminating judgment. In
1766 he purchased the interest of the " West Jersey Society'* in
the County of Cape May, constituting what has since been known
as the. Vacant Right. In 1762 he made his will of thirty-nine
pages, the most lengthy and elaborate testamentary document on
record in this or perhaps any other State. He left four children,
Sarah, Sylvia, Judith, and Jacob ; and it would be curious and in-
teresting to trace their descendants down to the present day, whose
goodly numbers, on the side of the daughter, are still mostly in the
home and county of their ancestor; yet, upon the male side, the
name of Spicer has nearly run out, and will soon, in this county, be
among the things that were. He died in 1765, aged about forty-
nine years, and was buried by the side of his father, in his family
ground at Cold Spring; a spot now overgrown with large forest
timber.
Henry Stites, ancestor of all in the county of that name, came to the
county about or in the year 1691. He located two hundred acres of
land, including the place now belonging to the heirs of Eli Townsend.
He made his mark, yet he afterwards acquired the art of writing,
and was justice of the court for a long series of years, being noted
such in 1746. Hejeft a son Richard, who resided at Cape Island,
and he a son John, from whom the Lower Township Stites' have
descended. His son Isaiah, who died in 1767, and from whom the
Stites* of the Upper, and part of the Middle Township have de-
scended, lived on the places now occupied by his grandsons John
and Townsend Stites, at Beesley's Point. The Middle Township
Stites*, below the Court House, are descendants of Benjamin Stites,
who was probably a brother of Henry, and was in the county in
1705.
Nicholas Stillwell, who was a member of the Legislature from
1769 to 1771, was a son of John Stillwell, of Town Bank. He
182 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
purchased, in 1748, of Joseph Golden, the plantation at Beesley's
Point, now owned by Capt. John S. Chattin. After his death, in
1772, the place fell to his son, Capt. Nicholas Stillwell, who after-
wards sold to Thomas Borden, who sold, in 1803, to Thomas Bees-
ley, who resided on the premises until 1816, and on an adjoining
property until his death in 1849.
Capt. Nicholas Stillwell, son of the above, was an efficient officer
of the Revolution. Capt. Moses Griffing, who married Sarah, a
sister of Capt. Stillwell, was taken prisoner by the British towards
the close of the war, and placed in the famous, or rather infamous
New Jersey prison ship ; that undying stigma upon the name and
fame of Britain, where the dying, the dead, the famished and famish-
ing, were promiscuously huddled together. A truthful, yet romantic
story could be told of his young wife, who, upon hearing of his un-
fortunate imprisonment, true to her plighted vows, and actuated by
a heroism which woman's love only can inspire, resolved to visit
him and solicit his release, though one hundred miles distant
through woods and wilds, marauders and tories, or die in the attempt.
She made the camp of Washington in her route, who put under her
charge a British officer oi equal rank with her husband. She
reached New York in safety, and after a long and painful suspense
Sir Henry Clinton yielded to her importunities; her husband was
exchanged, and both made happy.^
John Willets was the son of Hope Willets, and was born here in
1688, married Martha Corson in 1716, left three sons, Isaac, James,
and Jacob. He was Judge of the Court many years, a member of
the Legislature in 1743, and was living in 1763.
Among those who deserve a passing notice as one of Cape May's
favorite sons, was Nicholas Willets, a grandson of John. In 1802
he took up the profession of surveying, which he practiced with
great success, and obtained the confidence and respect of all who
knew him, by the sprightly and urbane deportment which he ever
♦ Letter from Jured Griffing to Dr. R. Willets, 1834
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 183
manifested, together with stern integrity and strict impartiality in
his various business relations with his fellow man. It will be seen
he was a member of the Legislature nine years, and closed a life of
general usefulness in the year 1825, aged about fifty-six years.
These biographical sketches of the pioneers of Cape May, might
be extended much further, if the space allotted to the purpose
would permit. I must therefore close with the following notices : —
Joseph Ludlam was here in 1692, and made purchases of land on
the sea-side, at Ludlam 's Run, upon which he afterwards resided;
and likewise purchased, in 1720, of Jacob Spicer, a large tract in
Dennis's Neck. He left four sons : Anthony (who settled upon the
South Dennis property, which is yet owned in part by his descend-
ants), Joseph, Isaac, and Samuel, from whom all the Ludlams of
the county have descended. He died in 1761, aged eighty-six years.*
John and Peter Corson came about the same time, 1692. The
second generation was Peter, Jr., John, Jr., Christian, and Jacob.
Peter represented the county in the Assembly in 1707. This
family, all of whom are descendants of Peter and John, numbered
in the county, at the census of 1850, 295 souls ; 253 of whom belong
to the Upper Township, 6 to Dennis, 26 to the Middle, and 10 to
the Lower Township.
The Hand family was well represented amongst the early settlers,
there being eleven persons of that name previous to 1700.
John Townsend, the ancestor of all of that name now in the
county, and of many in Philadelphia and elsewhere, came from
Long Island by way of Egg Harbor, in or previous to 1691. He
traveled down the sea-shore until he found a spot to suit him, where
he cleared land, built a cabin and a grist-mill, and in 1696 located
six hundred and fifty acres of land. Capt. Thompson Vangilder
now owns the mill site, and a part of the adjacent property, for-
merly John Townsend's, upon which he resides. He left three sons,
Richard, Robert, and Sylvanus. He was sheriflF of the county five
* A. Learning's Memoirs.
184 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
years, and departed this life in 1722. It will be seen by the county
records and list of officers, that his descendants have acted a promi-
nent part in the county, through the several generations that have
passed away since 1691.
Henry Young came about the year 1713. He served the county
as Judge of the Court for many years, and was a member of the
Legislature ten years. Judge Young was an extensive landholder,
Deputy Surveyor, and was Judge of the Court from 1722 till his
death in 1767. He was Surrogate from 1743 to 1768. He was a
surveyor and scrivener ; and no one, of those times, was more highly
respected, or acted a more prominent and useful part. All of the
name now in the county have descended from him.
Jonathan Swain and Richard Swain, of Long Island, were here
in 1706, and soon after their father, Ebenezer Swain, came to
Cape May, and followed whaling; Jonathan being a cooper for
them. Their immediate descendants were Zebulon, 1721 ; Elemuel,
1724 ; Reuben, who died in the epidemic of 1713 ; and Silas, 1733.
There was a Capt. Silas Swain in 1778, from whom has descended
Joshua Swain, recently deceased, who held many important trusts
in the county, as sheriff, member of the Legislature nine years,
and a member of the convention to draft the new Constitution in
1844.
Cape May has never had the honor of but one representative
in Congress, and he was the Hon. Thomas H. Hughes, from 1829
to 1833. He was likewise a member of the Legislature nine years.
In the Upper Township, William Goldens, Sen. and Jr., Rem
Garretson, John and Peter Corson, John Willets, John Hubbard,
and soon after Henry Young, were the pioneers, and at a later day
John Mackey at Tuckahoe, and Abraham and John Vangilder at
Petersburgh. In Dennis, being a part of the old Upper precinct,
we find on the seaboard Joseph Ludlam, John Townsend, Robert
Richards and Sylvanus Townsend, sons of John, Benjamin God-
frey, and John Reeves, who were among the earliest settlers.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 185
Dennisville was settled upon the south side of the creek, in or
about 1726, by Anthony Ludlam, and some few years afterwards
the north side by his brother Joseph, both being sons of Joseph
Ludlam, of Ludlam's Run, sea-side, David Johnson was here in
1765, and owned at the time of his death, in 1805, a large scope
of land on the north side of Dennis Creek. James Stephenson
purchased of Jacob Spicer, in the year 1748, the property now
owned and occupied by his grandson Enoch, now aged over eighty-
five years. East and West Creek were settled by Joseph Savage
and John Goff, the last of whom was here as early as 1710. He
had a son John, and his numerous descendants now occupy that
portion of the county.
In the Middle Township, we may name on the seaboard, in the
order in which they resided, Thomas Learning, John Reeves, Henry
Stites, Shamgar Hand, Samuel Matthews, ana John Parsons. Wil-
liam and Benjamin Johnson, Yelverson Crowell, and Aaron Leam-
ing, first, were first at Goshen, the latter with the ostensible object
of raising stock.
Cape May Court House has been the county seat since 1745.
Daniel Hand presented the county with an acre of land, as a site
for the county buildings erected at that time. But little improve-
ment was made until within the present century, the last twenty-
five years having concentrated a sufiiciency of inhabitants to build
up a village of its present extent and proportions, embellished by
the county, with a new and commodious Court House, and by the
people, with two beautiful new churches, one for the Baptist and an-
other for the Methodist persuasion.
In the Lower Township, the greater proportion of those who lo-
cated land (see list) were congregated, some at New England, some
at Town Bank, and others at Cold Spring, and on the sea-shore
above and below.
Cape Island was owned previous to 1700 by Thomas Hand, (who
bought of William Jacocks,) Randal Hewit, and Humphrey Hughes.
186 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY,
Few settlements, and but little alteration occurred with Cape Island
until recently.
Thomas H. Hughes, Jonas C. Miller, R. 8. Ludlam, and the
Messrs. McMakin, were among the first to venture the experiment
of erecting large and commodious boarding-houses, who were fol-
lowed by a host of others, and an impetus was given to the enter-
prise, that has built up a city where a few years ago corn grew and
verdure flourished.
As a watering-place it stands among the most favored on the
coast, and the shore and bathing grounds are perhaps unrivaled.
In 1689, as noted in deeds to William Jacocks and Humphrey
Hughes, the distance from the sea across the island to the creek
was 265 perches. As the deed calls for a line of marked trees, it
must have been on the upland, at which place the distance has been
greatly reduced by the inroads of the sea since that time.
In 1'''56 Jacob Spicer advertised to barter goods for all kinds
of produce and commodities, and among the rest particularly de-
signated wampum. He offered a reward of £5 to the person that
should manufacture the most wampum ; and advertised, " I design
to give all due encouragement to the people's industry, nut only by
accepting cattle, sheep, and staple commodities in a course of barter,
but also a large quantity of mittens will be taken, and indeed a
clam shell formed in wampum, a yarn-thrum, a goose-quill, a horse
hair, a hog's bristle, or a grain of mustard seed, if tendered, shall
not escape my reward, being greatly desirous to encourage industry,
as it is one of the most principal expedients under the favor of
Heaven, that can revive our drooping circumstances at this time of
uncommon, but great and general burden."
In another place he advertises for a thousand pounds of woolen
stockings, to supply the army then in war with the French. He
succeeded in procuring a quantity of the wampum, and before send-
ing it off to Albany and a market, weighed a shot-bag full of silver
coin and the same shot-bag full of wampum, and found the latter
''Vs
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 187
mo8t valuable by ten per cent. The black wampum was most
esteemed by the Indians, the white being of little value.
Thompson, in his history of Long Island, page 60, says : " The
immense quantity which was manufactured here may account for
the fact, that in the most extensive shell banks left by the
Indians, it is rare to find a whole shell ; having all been broken in
thd process of making the wampum." This curious fact applies
especially to Cape May, where large deposits of shells are to be
seen, mostly contiguous to the bays and sounds ; yet it is rare to
see a piece larger than a shilling, and those mostly the white part
of the shell, the black having been selected for wampum.
Of the aborigines of Cape May little seems to be known. It
has been argued they were very inconsiderable at the advent of
the Europeans.* Plantagenet in 1648,t speaks of a tribe of
Indians near Cape May, called Kechemeches, who mustered about
fifty men. The same author estimates the whole number in West
Jersey at eight hundred ; and Oldmixon, in 1708, computes that
" they had been reduced to one quarter of that number." It can-
not be denied by any one who will view the seaboard of our county,
that they were very numerous at one time here, which is evidenced
by town plats, extensive and numberless shell banks, arrow heads,
stone hatchets, burying grounds, and other remains existing with us.
One of those burying grounds is on the farm formerly Joshua Gar-
retson's, near Beesley's Point, which was first discovered by the
plowman. The bones (1826) were much decomposed, and some of
the tibia or leg bones bore unmistakable evidences of syphilis, one
of the fruits presented them by their Christian civilizers. A skull
was exhumed which must have belonged to one of great age, as the
sutures were entirely obliterated, and the tables firmly cemented toge-
ther. From the superciliary ridges, which were well developed, the
frontal bone receded almost on a direct line to the place of the occipi-
tal and parietal sutures, leaving no forehead, and had the appearance
* Gordon, p. 62 f Master Evelln's Letter.
188 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
of having been done by artificial means, as practiced at present on
the Columbia among the Flat Heads. A jaw-bone of huge dimen-
sions was likewise found, which was coveted by the observer ; but
the superstitions of the owner of the soil believing it was sacrile-
gious, and that he would be visited by the just indignation of
Heaven if he suffered any of the teeth to be removed, prevailed on
us to return it again to its mother earth.
In 1630, when sixteen miles square was purchased of nine Indian
chiefs, it would infer their numbers must have been considerable,
or so numerous a list of chiefs could not have been found on a spot
80 limited. Yet, in 1692, we find them reduced to fractional parts,
and besotted with rum.*
A tradition is related by some of the oldest inhabitants, that in
the early part of the eighteenth century, the remnant of Indians
remaining in the county, feeling themselves aggrieved in various
ways by the presence of the whites, held a council in the evening
in the woods back of Gravelly Run, at which they decided to emi*
grate ; which determination they carried into effect the same night.
Whither they went no one knew, nor were they heard from after-
wards. In less than fifty years from the first settlement of the
county, the aborigines had bid a final adieu to their ocean haunts
and fishing grounds.
Less than two centuries ago Cape May, as well as most other
parts of our State, was a wilderness ; her fields and lawns were
dense and forbidding forests ; the stately Indian roved over her
domain in his native dignity and grandeur, lord of the soil, and
master of himself and actions, with few wants and numberless faci-
lities for supplying them. Civilization, his bane and dire enemy,
smote him in a vital part ; he dwindled before it as the reed before
the flame ; and was soon destroyed by its influences, or compelled to
emigrate to other regions to prolong for a while the doom affixect to
his name and nation.
* Court Records and Proud's Pennbylvania.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 189
The following (synopsis of an) Indian deed, and believed to be
the only one that has been handed down, was found among the
papers of Jacob Spicer, and is now in the possession of Charles
Ludlam, Esq., of Dennisville.
It was given January 1st, 1687, by Panktoe to John Dennis, for
a tract of land near Cape Island, viz. : " Beginning from the creek
and so running up into the woodland, along by Carman's line to a
white oak tree, at the head of the swamp, and running with marked
trees to a white oak by a pond joining to Jonathan Pine's bounds.
All the land and marsh lying and between the bounds above men-
tionedixnd Cape Island."
The witnesses were Abiah Edwards and John Carman. Pank-
toe's mark bore a striking resemblance to a Chinese character.
In 1758, the commissioners appointed by the legislature, of
whom Jacob Spicer of our county was one, for the purpose of ex-
tinguishing the Indian title in the State, by special treaty, met at
Crosswicks, and afterwards at Easton, and among the lists of land
claimed by the Indians were the following tracts in Cape May and
Egg Harbor. " One claimed by Isaac Still, from the mouth of the
Great Egg Harbor River to the head branches thereof, on the east
side, so to the road that leads to Great Egg Harbor ; so along the
road to the seaside, except Tuckahoe, and* the Somers, Steelman,
and Scull places."
" Jacob MuUis claims the pine lands on Edge Pillock Branch
and Goshen Neck Branch, where Benjamin Springer and George
Marpole's mill stands, and all the land between the head branches
of those creeks, to where the waters join or meet."
^' Abraham Logues claims the cedar swamp on the east side of
Tuckahoe Branch, which John Champion and Peter Campbell have
or had in possession."
" Also, Stuypson's island, near Delaware River."*
* Smith's New Jersey.
190 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
" At a court of the General Quarter Sessions of the Peace, holden
at the house of Robert Townsend, on the 2d day of April, 1723 :
" Justices Present. — Jacob Spicer, (first), Humphrey Hughes, Ro-
bert Townsend, John Hand, Henry Young, William Smith.
** The county divided into precincts, excepting the Cedar Swamp ;
the Lower precinct, being from John Taylor's branch to the middle
main branch of Fishing Greek, and so down ye said branch and
creek to the mouth thereof."
" Middle precinct, to be from the aforesaid John Taylor's branch
to Thomas Learning's, and from thence to a creek called Dennis
Creek, and so down the said creek to the bay shore, along the bay
to Fishing Creek."
** The Upper precinct, to be the residue of the said county, ex-
cepting the Cedar Swamp,* which is to be at the general charge of
the county."
In the year 1826, Dennis township was set oflF from the Upper
township by a line from Ludlam's Run to the county line, near Lud-
1am 's Bridge.
Previous to the year 1745, the courts were held for the most part
in private dwellings. At this date, however, a new house had been
constructed upon the lot still occupied for the purpose, and the first
Court held in it ; " On the third Tuesday of May, 1745, the follow-
ing oflScers and jurors were present :
^^ Justices Present. — Henry Young, Henry Stites, Ebenezer Swain,
Nathaniel Foster — Jacob Hughes, Sheriff; Elijah Hughes, Clerk.
" Grand Jurors. — John Leonard, John Scull, Noah Garrison,
Peter Corson, Joseph Corson, George HoUingshead, Clement Da-
niels, Benjamin Johnson, Jeremiah Hand, Thomas Buck, Joseph
Badcock, Isaiah Stites, Joseph Edwards, James Godfrey, Thomas
* Meaning the Long Bridge road over the Cedar Swamp, so essential to the people at
that time as thr only road off the Cape, and was always a county road until 1790, when the
road over Dennis Greek, which is likewise a county road, was made where it now exists.
The toll-bridge over Cedar Swamp Creek, at Petersburgh, was built in 1762, which
opened a more direct communication with the upper part of the county.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY, 191
Smith, Isaac Townsend, Ananias Osborne, Robert Cresse, and
Thomas Hewitt."
From Thomas Chalkley's journal, a traveling Friend from Eng-
land, dated 2nd month, 1726, it appeared to have been a wilderness
between Cohansey and Cape May.
" From Cohansey I went through the wilderness over Maurice
River, accompanied by James Daniel, through a miry, boggy way,
in which we saw no house for about forty miles, except at the ferry ;
and that night we got to Richard Townsend's, at Cape May, where
we were kindly received. Next day we had a meeting at Rebecca
Garretson*8, and the day after a pretty large one at Richard Town-
send*s, and then went down to the Cape, and had a meeting at John
Page's ; and next day another at Aaron Leaming's ; and several ex-
pressed their satisfaction with those meetings. I lodged two nights
at Jacob Spicer's, my wife's brother. From Cape May, we traveled
along the sea-coast to Egg Harbor. We swam our horses over Egg
Harbor River, and went over ourselves in canoes ; and afterward
had a meeting at Richard Sumers, which was a large one as could
be expected, considering the people live at such distance from each
other."
Jacob Spicer, in his Diary, gives us the following estimate of the
resources and consumption of the county, in the year 1758.
" And as my family consists of twelve in number, including my-
self, it amounts to each individual ^7 3«. S^d. annual consumption
of foreign produce apd manufacture. But perhaps the populace in
general may not live at a proportionate expense with my family, I'll
only suppose their foreign consumption may stand at £4 to an indi-
vidual, as the county consisted of 1 100 souls in the year 1746, since
which time it has increased ; then the consumption of this county
of foreign manufacture and produce, will stand at £4400 annually,
near one half of which will be linens.
192 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
**The Stock article of the county is about £1200
There is at least ten boats belonging to the county which carry oysters ;
and admit they make three trips fall and three trips spring, each, and
carry 100 bushels each trip, that makes 6000 bushels at what they
neat 2^. per bushel, 600
There is 14 pilots, which at £^0 per annum, 420
Mitten article for the present year, 500
Cedar posts, 300
White Cedar lumbar, 500
Add for boards, 200
Pork and gammons, 200
Deer skins and venison hams, 120
Furs and feathers, 100
Hides and tallow, 12U
Flax seed, neats* tongues, bees' wax, and myrtle, 80
Tar, 60
Coal, 30
£4430
Annual consumption of county, £4400
Add public taxes, 160
For a Presbyterian minister, 60
For a Baptist minister, 40
Education of youth, 90
Doctor for man and beast, 100
4850
£420
In arear £420, to be paid by some uncertain fund, or left as a debt."
It appears by the above statement, the mitten article of trade
in 1758 amounted to the sum of £500, which was quite a reward
to the female industry of the county. The manner in which the
mitten trade was first established, is related in a letter from Dr.
Franklin to Benjamin Vaughan, dated Passy, July 26th, 1748, " on
the benefits and evils of luxury."
" The skipper of the shallop employed between Cape May and
Philadelphia, had done us some service, for which he refused to be
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 193
paid. My wife, understanding he had a daughter, sent her a pre-,
sent of a new-fashioned cap. Three years afterward, this skipper
being at my house with an old farmer of Cape May, his passenger,
he mentioned the cap and how much his daughter had been pleased
with it; but, said he, *it proved a dear cap to our congregation.'
How so ? ^ When my daughter appeared with it at meeting, it was
so much admired, that all the girls resolved to get such caps from
Philadelphia ; and my wife and I computed that the whole would
not have cost less than one hundred pounds.' * True,' said the far-
mer, * but you do not tell all the story. I think the cap was never-
theless an advantage to us ; for it was the first thing that put our
girls upon knitting worsted mittens for sale at Philadelphia, that
they might have wherewithal to buy caps and ribbons there ; and
you know that that industry has continued, and is likely to continue
and increase to a much greater value, and answer better purposes.'
Upon the whole, I was more reconciled to this little piece of luxury,
since not only the girls were made happier by having fine caps, but
Philadelphians by the supply of warm mittens."*
"March 18th, 1761. — The election of Representatives began;
and on the 14th, it was ended, when the poll was : —
"Jacob Spicer, 72; Aaron Leaming, 112; Joseph Corson, 41.
Whole amount of votes polled, 225. Spicer and Leaming elected."!
In the year 1752, an association of a large number of persons
was formed for the purpose of purchasing of the West Jersey So-
ciety their interest in the county, having particular regard to the
Natural Privileges. These privileges, consisting of fishing and
fowling and all the articles of luxury and use obtained from the
bays and sounds, were held in high estimation ; and it was difficult
to name a valuation upon a right so endeared to the people as this.
This association being slow and cautious in its movements was no
doubt astounded, in the year 1756, to find that Jacob Spicer, upon
his own responsibility, had superceded them, and had purchased
* Franklin's Works, 2nd Vol., page 577. f A Learning's Memoirs.
13
194 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
the right of the Society, through their acknowledged agent, Dr,
Johnson, of Perth Amhoy, not only in the Natural Privileges, but in.
the unlocated land in the whole county. Spicer, although he did
not attempt or desire to prevent the people from using and occupy-
ing these privileges as they had heretofore done, received for his
share in the transaction a large amount of obloquy and hostile feel-
ing, which required all the energy and moral courage he possessed
to encounter. He was publicly arraigned by the people ; the follow-
ing account being from his own pen.
" Went to hear myself arraigned by Mr. Aaron Leaming and
others before the Public, at the Presbyterian Meeting-house, for buy-
ing the Society's Estate at Cape May, and at same time desired to
know whether I would sell or not. I said not. He then threatened
me with a suit in chancery to compel me to abide by the first asso-
ciation, though the people had declined it, and many of the original
subscribers had dashed out their names. I proposed to abide the
suit, and told him he might commence it. If I should see a bargain
to my advantage, then I told the people I should be inclined to sell
them the natural privileges, if I should advance myself equally
otherwise ; but upon no other footing whatever, of which I would
be the judge."*
The following is Aaron Leaming's version of the affair.
" March 26th, 1761. — ABout forty people met at the Presbyte-
rian Meeting-house to ask Mr. Spicer if he purchased the Society's
reversions at Cape May for himself or for the people. He answers
he bought it for himself; and upon asking him whether he will
release to the people, he refuses, and openly sets up his claim to the
oysters, to Basses' titles, and other deficient titles, and to a resurvey,
whereupon the people broke up in great confusion, as they have been
for some considerable time past."t
Jacob Spicer, at his death in 1765, left these privileges which
seemed to be so exciting to the people, to his son Jacob, who, about
* Spicer's Diary. f A Learning's Memoirs.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 195
the year 1795, conveyed by deed to a company or association of
persons, his entire right to the natural privileges, which were used
and viewed as a bona fide estate, and the Legislature passed acts
of incorporation, giving them plenary powers to defend themselves
from foreign and domestic aggression, thus virtually acknowledging
the validity of their title. Previous to the year 1840, a suit was
instituted in East Jersey, the result of which was favorable to the
proprietors ; but on an appeal to the United States' Supreme Court
from the Circuit below, the decision was reversed, confirming the
right of the State to all the immunities and privileges of the water
thereof, barring out the proprietary claims altogether, and establish-
ing the principle that the State possessed the right as the guardian
and for the use of the whole people, in opposition to the claims of
individuals or associations, however instituted or empowered.
In June following he offered them his whole landed estate and
the natural privileges in the county, excepting his farm in Cold
Spring Neck, and a right for his family in the privileges, for <£7000,
which offer was declined.*
He further states : " Mr. James Godfrey, in behalf of the Upper
Precinct, applied to me to purchase the natural privileges in that
precinct. I told him I should be glad to gratify that precinct, and
please myself also ; and could I see a prospect of making a good
foreign puwhase, and thereby exchange a 9torm for a calm to equal
advantage to my posterity, I should think it advisable ; and in that
case, if I sold, P^fe^d by all means give the public a preference,
but at present did not incline to sell. I remarked to him this
was a delicate affair, that I did not know well how to conduct
myself, for I was willing to please the people, and at the same
time to do my posterity justice, and steer clear of reflection. Re-
collecting that old Mr. George Taylor, to the best of my memory,
obtained a grant for the Five-Mile Beach and the Two-Mile Beach,
and, if I mistake not, the cedar-swamps and pines for his own uscj
* Spioer's Diary.
196 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
and his son John Taylor reconveyed it for about £9, to buy his
wife Margery a calico gown, for which he was derided for his
Bimplicity."
In the contest of our forefathers for independence, nothing praise-
worthy can be said of the other counties of the State, that would
not apply to Cape May. She was ever ready to meet the demands
made upon her by the Legislature and the necessities of the times^
whether that demand was for money or men. Being exposed, in
having a lengthened water frontier, to the attacks and incursions
of the enemy, it was necessary to keep in readiness a flotilla of
boats and privateers, which were owned, manned, and armed by the
people, and were successful in defending the coast against the
British as well as refugees. Many prizes and prisoners were taken,
which stand announced in the papers of the day as credible to the
parties concerned.* Acts of valor and daring might be related of
this band of boatmen, which would not discredit the name of a
Somers, or brush a laurel from the brow of their compatriots in
arms. The women were formed into committees, for the purpose
of preparing clothing for the army ; and acts of chivalry and forti-
tude were performed by them, which were equally worthy of their
fame and the cause they served. To record a single deserving
act, would do injustice to a part ; and to give a place to all who
signalized themselves, would swell this sketch beyond its prescribed
limits.
Of those who served in a civil capacity, no one perhaps deserved
better of his country than Jesse Hand. He was a member of the
Provincial Congress of 1775 and 1776, which, on the 21st of June,
in the latter year, at Burlington, resolved a new State govern-
ment should be formed. He was likewise a member of Council
in *79, '80, '82 and *83. He was selected by the county in con-
junction with Jacob Eldridge and Matthew Whillden, to meet the
convention at Trenton, on the second Tuesday of December, 1787,
* CoUina' Gazette, State Libraiy.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 197
to ratify the Constitution of the United States, which was unani-
mously adopted on the 19th, when the members went in solemn
procession to the Court House, where the ratification was publicly
read to the people, New Jersey being the third State to ratify. He
was entrusted by the Legislature with another important trust, viz :
that of a member of the Committee of Public Safety from *77 to *81.
The duties of this committee were arduous and responsible.*
He created great astonishment with the people, when he pre-
sented to their wondering eyes the first top-carriage (an old-fash-
ioned chair) that was ever brought into the county. The horse-
cart was the favorite vehicle in those times, whether for family
visiting, or going-to-meeting purposes; and any innovation upon
these usages, or those of their ancestors, was looked upon with
jealousy and distrust.
Elijah Hughes was a member of the Provincial Congress in 1776,
and was one of the committee of ten, appointed on the 24th of June,
to prepare a Constitution, which was adopted and conQrmed on the
2d day of July, two days before the Declaration of Independence.f
Those who first located lands in the county, were particular to
select such portions as were contiguous to the waters of the bay
or ocean ; hence the sea-shore and bay-shore were first settled upon,
evidently for the purpose of being within reach of the oysters, fish,
and clams, abounding in our waters. Thus we find the whole sea-
shore from Beesley's Point to Cape Island, a continuous line of
farms and settlements, regardless of the quality of the soil ; whilst
the interior portion, and considered by some much the better part,
remains to this day unimproved and uncultivated.
Between the years of 1740 and *50, the cedar-swamps of the county
were mostly located ; and the amount of lumber since taken from
them is incalculable, not only as an article of trade, but to supply
the home demand for fencing and building materials in the county.
Large portions of these swamps have been worked a second, and
* Minutes of Committee. f Gordon.
198 EARLY HISTORY OP CAPE MAY CX)UNTY.
some a third time, since located. At the present time, there is
not an acre of original growth of swamp standing, having all passed
away before the resistless sway of the speculator or the consumer.
The annual growth is suflBcient to fill our wharves yearly with
many thousands of rails and sawed lumber.
It was not until recently, within the present century, that cord-
wood became a staple article of trade. Many thousand cords are
annually shipped from the county, in return for goods and produce
of various descriptions, of which flour and corn were formerly the
most heavy articles.
The failure in some measure of wood and lumber, and the im-
provements progressing in all parts of our State in agricultural
pursuits, have prompted our farmers to keep pace with the era of
progression, so much so that the corn and wheat now raised in the
county, fall but little short of a supply; and when the grand desi-
deratum shall have been achieved, of supplying our own wants in
the great staple of corn and flour, it will be a proud day for Cape
May, and her people will be stimulated to greater exertions, from
which corresponding rewards and benefits may arise.
Being partially surrounded by water, inducements were extended
to her sons at an early day to engage in maritime pursuits. As
early as 1698, Richard Harvo owned a sloop; and in 1705, Gov.
Cornbury granted a license to Capt. Jacob Spicer, of the sloop
Adventure, owned by John and Richard Townsend, burden sixteen
tons. The license privileged her to run between Cape May, Phila-
delphia, and Burlington; and in 1706, Dennis Lynch built and
owned the sloop Necessity. About the year 1760, there were nu-
merous boats trading from the county to Oyster Bay, L. I., and
Rhode Island and Connecticut, carrying cedar lumber mostly ; and
others to Philadelphia, with oysters and produce of various kinds.
Spicer shipped considerable quantities of corn, which he purchased
of the ^people in the way of trade and cash, and forwarded to a
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
199
market. He owned a vessel which he occasionally sent to the West
Indies.*
It is supposed at the present time, that about one-fifth of the entire
male population are engaged in this pursuit ; and a more hardy and
adventurous band never sailed from any port ; no sea or ocean
where commerce floats a sail, they do not visit if duty calls.
The Pilots of Cape Island are likewise renowned for their skill
and enterprise in the way of their profession. They brave
the tempest and the storm to relieve the mariner in distress, or to
conduct the steamer, the ship, or the barque to the haven of her
destination. There were fourteen pilots at the Cape in 1658 : at
the present time their numbers are about trebled, being thirty-five
in 1850.
The population* of Cape May, at different periods since the year
1726, was as follows, viz. :
Tears.
Population.
Slaves.
Free Colored.
Quakers.
1726
668
1738
1004
42
1745
1188
54
1790
2571
141
1800
3066
98
1810
3632
81
1820
4265
28
205
1830
4936
3
225
1840
5324
218
1850
6433
247
1855
6935
297
The population meets with an unceasing annual drain in the way
of emigration. Numerous families, every spring and fall, sell off*
their lands and effects to seek a home in the far West. Illinois has
heretofore been the State that has held out most inducements to
the emigrant, and there are at present located in the favored county
of Sangamon, in that State, some sixty or seventy families, which
have removed from this county within a few years past, most of
* Spiccr's Diary.
f Manuscript proceedings of Assembly, State Library, and Oensns Reports.
200 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
whom, be it said, are blessed with prosperity and happiness. Many
of her people are to be found in the other free States of the West.
Peter Fretwell, the first member from the county after the sur-
render, and the first on record that ever represented her, belonged
to Burlington. He was a Friend and a cotemporary of Samuel
Jennings, as the record of the monthly meeting there attests, and
came over in the ship Shield^ in 1678,* with Mahlon Stacy, Thomas
Bevel, and others. It is curious that he, a non-resident, should
have been selected to represent the county in the Assembly for a
period of twelve years ; yet such is the fact, and I cannot find that
Jacob Huling, who was a member in 1716, or Jeremiah Bass, from
1717 to 1723, ever resided permanently here. The balance of the
list of representatives were all legitimately Cape May men, and
taken in a body were the bone and sinew of the county. Of some
of those ancient worthies in the list we know but little, except that
they held important offices of trust and responsibility. Others
among them seemed to live more for posterity than themselves, by
inditing almost daily the passing events of the times, and they are
consequently better known and appreciated. Their writings at that
day might have seemed to possess but little attraction, yet they
have become interesting through age, and valuable as links in the
chain which connects our early history with the reminiscences and
associations of times more recent; and to carry out this con-
nection, it will be the duty of some faithful chronicler to unite the
history of those times and the present, which is so rapidly giving
place to the succeeding generation, by a descriptive and truthful
account, more full and complete, as the data and material incident
to later times are more abundant and illustrative. The troubles,
perplexities, and trials the members of Assembly endured previous
to the Revolution, in visiting the seat of government at Amboy and
Burlington, to attend the public service, cannot in this age of rail-
roads and steam be appreciated or realized. A single illustration
* Smith's New Jersey.
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY. 201
mW suffice for all. Aaron Learning gives an account of his journey
to Amboy in 1759, on horseback, as follows :*
" March 3d. Set out from home ; lodged at Tarkil ; arrived at
Philadelphia on the 5th. On the 6th, rid to Burlington. 7th.
Extreme cold ; rid to Crosswicks, and joined company with Mr.
Miller; rid to Cranberry, where we overtook Messrs. Hancock,
Smith, and Clement, (of Salem) who had laid up all day by reasoa
of the cold. 8th. Got to Amboy. 17th. Had the honor to dine
with his excellency governor Bernard, with more of the members
of the house. It was a plentiful table, but nothing very extraor-
dinary. The cheese he said was a Gloucestershire cheese ; was a
present to him, and said that it weighed 105 pounds when he first
had it. He says its the collected milk of a whole village that
makes these cheeses, each one measuring in their milk, and taking
its value in cheese.
"19th. Left Amboy for home. 20th. Rid to Cranberry, and
lodged at Dr. Stites*. 25th. Arrived home.*'
In July, 1761, he attended the Assembly at Burlington on the
6th, and broke up on the 8th, and says : " July 9th. I set out home-
ward. 11th. Got home, having been extremely unwell, occasioned
by the excessive heat. Almost ever since I went away, the 5th,
6th, 7th, and 8th, were the hottest days by abundance that ever I
was acquainted with."
" Sept. 3d. A rain fell five inches on a level. The lower end of
Cape May has been so dry that there will not be but one-third of a
crop of corn — here it is wet enough the whole season."
" 14th. Went a fishing, and caught thirty-nine sheepshead."
It has not been necessary to enter into any disquisition of the
soil, productions, geological aspect of the county, or the general
statistics thereof, which are so ably set forth in the report, to which
this is but an accompaniment.
In justice to this sketch of Cape May, in which an attempt has
* A. Learning's Memoirs.
202 EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
been made to elucidate her earlj history, by collecting a few relics
and incidents of men and things, from the scattered fragments that
have suryived oblivion since her first settlement, it will be proper to
state, the space allotted for the purpose is insufficient to enter into
a more extended detail, or to embody but a small portion of the
material that years of inquiry and research have accumulated.
A history of the rise and progress of the diflFerent religious deno-
minations, and the numerous new and beautiful churches they have
erected in later years, would of itself form an interesting sketch,
yet it is necessarily postponed. The author has, therefore, sought
to give such portions of it, for the most part, as relate to the ear-
lier times, believing they would be of more particular interest, and
more gratifying to the generality of readers than those of a more
recent date.
As no system, as said before, could be observed in the arrange-
ment, except in the way of chronology, it is submitted in a form
imperfect and diversified, which will be better described in the lan-
guage of the poet :
" Various ; that the mind
Of desultory man, studious of change,
And pleased with novelty, may be indulged."
EARLY HISTORY OF CAPE MAY COUNTY.
203
MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE.
A List of the Members of the Legislature, from the first record of them
after the surrender of the Government in Queen Anne^s reign in 1702
to the present time.
COUNCIL.
DATE.
1702 to 1707
1707 to 1708
1708 to 1709
170U to 1710
1716 to 1717
1717 to 1723
1723 to 1733
1733 to 1740
1740 to 1743
1743 to 1744
1744 to 1745
1745 to 1769
1769 to 1771
1771 to 1773
1773 to 1776
Jonathan Hand,
1776 to 1778
Jonathan Jenkins,
1778 to 1779
Jesse Hand,
1779 to 1780
Jesse Hand,
1780 to 1781
£Iijah Hughes,
1781 to 1782
Jesse Hand,
1782 to 1783
Jesse Hand,
1783 to 1784
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1784 to 1785
Elijah Hughes,
1785 to 1786
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1786 to 1787
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1787 to 1788
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1788 to 1789
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1789 to 1790
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1790 to 1791
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1791 to 1792
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1792 to 1793
Jeremiah Eldredge,
1793 to 1794
Matthew Whillden,
1794 to 1795
ASSEMBLY.
Peter Fretwell.
Peter Corson.
Ezekiel Eldredge.
Jacob Spicer, Peter Fretwell.
Jacob Spicer, Jacob Huling.
Jacob Spicer, Jeremiah Bass.
Humphrey Hughes, Nathaniel JenkinSy
Aaron Leaming Ist, Henry Young.
Aaron Leaming, Aaron Leaming, Jun.
Aaron Leaming, John Willets.
Henry Younp, Jacob Spicer 2d.
Aaron Leaming 2d, Jacob Spicer 2d.
Aaron Leaming 2d, Nicholas Stillwell*
Aaron Leaming 2d, Jonathan Hand.
Eli Eldredge, Jonathan Hand.
Eli Eldredge, Joseph Savage, Hugh Hay-
thorn.
Eli Eldredge, Richard Townsend.
Henry Y. Townsend, James Whilldeni
Jonathan Leaming.
Joseph Hildreth, Jeremiah Eldredge, Mat-
thew Whillden.
Richard Townsend.
Matthew Whillden, John Baker, Elijah
Townsend.
John Baker, Joseph Hildreth.
Elijah Townsend, Levi Eldredge.
Elijah Townsend, John Baker, Nezer Swain*
Matthew Whillden, John Baker, Elyah
Townsend.
Matthew Whillden, Richard Townsend,
Elijah Townsend.
Matthew Whillden, Richard Townsend,
Elijah Townsend.
Eli Townsend, Nezer Swain, Elijah Town-
send.
Richard Townsend, Nezer Swain, Elijah
Townsend.
Richard Townsend, Matthew Whillden,
Elijah Townsend.
Richard Townsend, Matthew Whillden,
Elijah Townsend.
Richard Townsend, Matthew WhilldeDi
Ebenezer Newton.
David Johnson, Richard Townsend.
204
EARLY HISTORY OP CAPE MAY COUNTY.
COUNCIL.
Matthew Whillden,
Parmenas Corson,
Pannenas Corson,
Parmenas Corson,
John Townsend,
Parmenas Corson,
Ebenezer Newton,
Parmenas Corson,
William Eldredge,
Matthew Whillden,
Ebenezer Newton,
Joseph Falkenburge,
Matthew Whillden,
Matthew Whillden,
Nathaniel Holmes,
Joseph Falkenburge,
Joseph Falkenburge,
Furman Leaming,
Joshua Swain,
Thomas H. Hughes,
Thomas H. Hughes,
Thomas H. Hughes,
Joshua Swain,
Thomas H. Hughes,
Joshua Swain,
Israel Townsend,
Israel Townsend,
Joshua Townsend,
Jeremiah Leaming,
!Richard Thompson,
Amos Corson,
Thomas P. Hughes,
Maurice Beesley,
SENATE.
Reuben Willets,
Reuben Willets,
James L. Smith,
James L. Smith,
Enoch Edmunds,
Enoch Edmunds,
Joshua Swain, Jr.
Joshua Swain, Jr.
Joshua Swain, Jr.
Jesse H. Diverty.
DATK
795 to
796 to
797 to
798 to
799 to
801 to
803 to
804 to
805 to
806 to
807 to
808 to
809 to
810 to
811 to
812 to
813 to
814 to
815 to
819 to
821 to
822 to
823 to
824 to
825 to
827 to
829 to
830 to
833 to
835 to
837 to
839 to
841 to
ASSEMBLY.
1796
1797
1798
1799
1801
1803
1804
1805
1800 1
1807
1808
1809
1810
1811
1812
1813
1814
1815
1819
1821
1822
1823
1824
1825
1827
1829
1830
1833
1835
1837
1839
1841
1843
844 to 1845
845 to 1846
846 to 1848
848 to 1850
850 to 1851
851 to 1852
852 to 1853
853 to 1854
854 to 1855
855 to 1857
Richard Townsend, Reuben Townsend,
Eleazer Hand.
Abijah Smith, Elijah and Richard Town-
send,
Persons Leaming, (3 members till this year.)
Elijah Townsend.
Abijah Smith.
Persons Leaming.
Joseph Falkenburge
Matthew Whilldin.
Thomas Hughes.
Nicholas Willets.
Thomas H. Hughes.
Nicholas Willets.
Thomas H. Hughes.
Joseph Falkenburge.
Nicholas Willets.
Thomas H. Hughes.
Joshua Swain.
Robert H. Holmes.
Nicholas Willets.
Joshua Townsend.
Nicholas Willets.
Joshua Townsend.
Israel Townsend.
Israel Townsend.
Israel Townsend.
Joshua Townsend.
Jeremiah Learning.
Jeremiah Leaming.
Richard Thompson.
Amos Corson.
Thomas P. Hughes.
Maurice Beesley.
Reuben Willets.
John Stites.
Samuel Townsend.
Richard S. Ludlam.
Nathaniel Holmes, Jr.
Mackey Williams.
Joshua Swain, Jr.
Waters B. Miller.
Jesse H. Diverty.
Jesse H. Bivertv.
Downs Edmunds, Jr.
DARLT HISTORY OP CAPE MAY CX)UNTY.
205
SHERIFFS.
A List of the Sheriffs from 1G93 to the present time.
Timothy Brandreth 1693 to 1695
John Townsend 1695 to 1697
Ezekiel Eldredge 1697 to 1700
Edward Howell. 1700 to 1701
Csesar Hoskins 1701 to 1704
John Taylor 1704 to 1705
Joseph Whilldin 1705 to 1708
Humphrey Hughes ....1708 to 1711
John Townsend 1711 to 1713
Richard Downs 1713 to 1715
Robert Townsend 1715 to 1721
Richard Townsend 1721 to 1722
Henry Young 1722 to 1723
Richard Downs 1723 to 1740
Constant Hughes 1740 to 1744
Jacob Hughes 1744 to 1745
Jeremiah Hand 1745 to 1751
John Shaw 1751 to 1754
Thomas Smith 1754 to 1757
Jeremiah Hand 1757 to 1760
Ebenezer Johnson 1760 to 1763
Henry Hand 1763 to 1765
Svlvanus Townsend 1765 to 1768
D.inield Hand 1768 to 1771
Eli Eldredge 1771 to 1774
Henry Y. Townsend. . . . 1774 to 1777
Isaiah Sti tes 1777 to 1780
Richard Townsend 1780 to 1781
Nathaniel Hand 1781 to 1782
Daniel Garretson 1782 to 1783
Jonathan Hildreth 1783 to 1784
Benjamin Taylor 1784 to 1787
Philip Hand 1787 to 1788
Henry Stites 1788 to 1791
Eleazer Hand 1791 to 1796
Jacob Godfrey 1796 to 1798
Jeremiah Hand 1798 to 1801
Thomas H. Hughes 1801 to 1804
Joseph Hildreth 1804 to 1807
Cresse Townsend 1807 to 1808
Jacob Hughes 1808 to 1809
Joshua Swain 1809 to 1812
Aaron Leaming..(3rd). .1812 to 1815
Spicer Hughes 1815 to 1818
David Townsend 1818 to 1821
Spicer Hughes 1821 to 1824
Swain Townsend 1824 to 1827
Thomas P. Hughes 1827 to 1830
Richard Thompson 1830 to 1833
Ludlam Pierson 1833 to 1834
Joshua Swain, Jr 1834 to 1835
Samuel Matthews 1835 to 1838
Samuel Springer 1838 to 1841
Thomas Vangilder 1841 to 1844
Enoch Edmunds 1844 to 1847
Peter Souder 1847 to 1850
Thomas Hewitt 1850 to 1853
Elva Corson 1853 to 1856
William S. Hooper 1856 to 1859
CLERKS.
A List of the Clerks from 1693 to the present time.
George Taylor 1693 to 1697
Timothy Brandreth 1697 to 1705
John Taylor 1705 to 1730
Aaron Leaming, Ist 1730 to 1740
Elijah Hughes, Senr 1740 to 1762
Elijah Hughes, Jr 1762 to 1768
Jeremiah Eldredge 1768 to 1777
Jonathan Jenkins 1777 to 1779
Eli Eldredge 1779 to 1802
Jeremiah Hand 1802 to 1804
Abiiah Smith 1804 to 1824
Richard Thompson 1824 to 1830
Levy Foster 1830 to 1833
Jonathan Hand, Senr. . .1833 to 1834
Jacob G. Smith 1834 to 1835
Swain Townsend 1835 to 1840
Jonathan Hand, Jr 1840 to 1860
SURROGATES.
A List of the Surrogates from the first appointment^ in 1723, to the
present time. Previous to this, all business in the Prerogative Court
was transacted at Burlington.
Jacob Spicer, 1st 1723 to 1741
Henry Young 1741 to 1768
Elijah Hughes, Jr 1768 to 1787
Jesse Hand 1787 to 1793
Jeremiah Eldredge 1693 to 1796
Ebenezer Newton 1796 to 1802
Aaron Eldredge 1802 to 1803
Jehu Townsend 1803 to 1831
Humphrey Leaming.. . .1831 to 1852
Elijah Townsend, Jr.. . .1852 to
LETTER OF STATE TOPOGRAPHICAL ENGINEER.
Topographical Department of the State Survey^
May Ist, 1856.
Dr. Wm. Kitchbll,
Supt. of N. J. State Geol. Survey.
Dear Sir :
I transmit herewith, for the purpose of the geological in-
vestigations, the Topographical Map of the County of Cape May,
constructed upon a scale of ^ijJiju, or about two inches to the mile,
which is the scale upon which the field-work is executed. The
engraved Map will be drawn upon a scale of guiuu, or about one
inch to the mile. The principles upon which the survey is con-
ducted, and the details of the field-work, are fully set forth in the
last annual report of progress. It is proper, however, to state, with
reference to this Map, that while endeavoring to keep pace with
the geological investigations, I have failed to complete the triangu-
lation of the southern portion of the State, for the reason that the
face of the country is so remarkably uniform, that it would have
exhausted the greater portion of the funds at my disposal to erect
the necessary stations for taking observations. The alternative
therefore presented itself of relying upon such assistance as could
be derived from the secondary triangulation and plain-table work
of the Coast Survey, or of deferring for the present the topography
of that section of the State. The former course has been adopted
for the obvious reason that, without the topography, the geology
could not be satisfactorily described. Moreover, the peculiar shape
208 LETTER TO DR. KETCHELL.
and geographical position of the county were favorable to such a
course ; as being long and narrow, and surrounded on three sides
by water, there was little chance for error in laying down its topo-
graphy entirely with the plane-table. That portion already sur-
veyed by the general government, has simply been revised without
going over all its details.
It is presumed that the characters used in delineating the topo-
graphy will be comprehended without explanation. The salt
meadow can be readily distinguished from the upland ; the culti-
vated land from the wooded ; and the cedar swamps from the dry
forest.
In submitting this Map to the citizens of the county, I beg to
express the hope that it will meet their expectations ; and I will
add the conviction that, coupled with Professor Cook's Geological
Report, it will be of great value not only to them but to every
citizen of the State.
Very respectfully.
Your obedient servant,
EGBERT L. VIELE.
INDEX.
^ < • » >
Agricultural products, 83.
Alluvium, 30
Analysis of Cancerine, 109.
Cedar Swamp Earth, 105.
Fish, 120.
Guano, 111.
" Marsh mud, t4
" Seaweed, 100.
Soils, to, 72.
Sub-soil, 74.
Area of county, 17.
Artesian wells, 22.
Ashmead's, Samuel, lists of Plants and Algae, 149, 152.
Baird's, Professor S. F., list of Fishes, 146.
Beaches, 50.
Beaches, improvement of, 95.
Beach grass, 97.
Beesley's, Dr.Maurice, Early History of Cape May, 159
Beesley's, Thomas, lists of Wild Animals and Birds, 137, 138.
Boulders, 25.
Boundaries, 15.
Building materials, 125.
Cape Island, 21, 38.
Cedar Swamps, 57.
Clay, "126.
Climate, 89.
Concrete bricks, 126.
Cook's, G. H., Letter accompanying Report, 7.
County Clerks, 205.
Drift, 30.
Elevation, 42.
Elevation of surface, 19.
14
210
INDEX.
Economical Geology, 69.
Fisheries, 86.
Forests, 75.
Formation, 29.
Fossils, 26, 27, 29.
Geological Survey, Act relating to, 9.
Geology, 29.
Gravel, 26, 129.
HalPs, Professor James, Names of Fossils, 156.
History of Cape May, 157.
Illustrations.
View of the Beach near Cape May — Frontispiece.
Diagram of Artesian Wells, 23
Section across Cedar Swamp and Salt Marsh, 35.
" Salt Marsh, 45.
** Five-mile Beach, 52.
" ** Beach near Steamboat Lauding, 56.
View in Cedar Swamp, 59.
View of fallen timber in Cedar Swamp, 63.
Making shingles from buried timber, 79.
Mining buried timber, 82.
Figures of Venus Mercenaria, 156.
Indians, 165, 178.
Introduction, 9.
KitchelPs, Dr. William, Dedication of Work, 3.
List of Wild Animals, 137.
" Birds, 138.
" Fishes, 146.
" Plants, 149.
" Marine Algse, 152.
Lumber, 76.
Manures, Farm-yard, 99.
Fish, 112.
" King-crabs or Horse-feet, 105.
" Mai-sh-mud, 122.
" Muck or Swamp earth, 102.
" Sea-weed, 99.
Shell-fish, 121.
Shell-mari, 124.
Market Gardening, 87.
Marshes, improvement of, 91.
Members of the Legislature, 203.
INDEX. 211
Milk-house, 90.
Mills, subsidence of, 40.
Part I., 13.
Part II., 6t.
Physical features, 18.
Pines, planting of, 97.
Population, 85.
Proprietary Rights, 163.
Salt, 131.
Salt-marshes, 43.
Sand-stone, 128.
Sea-bathing, 133.
Settlers, list of, 173.
Sheriffs, list of, 205.
Shingles, 77.
Shipping, 86.
Soils, 69.
Soil, improvement of, 98.
Springs, 129.
Subsidence, 31.
System, 29.
Tides, 19.
Timber Swamps, 76.
Town Bank, 22, 38.
Viele's, Lieut., Letter respecting Map, 207.
Warping, 94.
Wells, 22, 129.
THE END.
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