Lost Towns of the Pine Barrens

New Jersey’s Pine Barrens make up 1.1 million acres in the southern/central part of the state. It encompasses 7 of the state’s 21 counties, and more than 50 municipalities. The Pine Barrens is the National Pinelands Reserve, and is alive with plant and animal life, and has a unique history. This website will explore the history and mystery of this unique forestland. Read more for information on the New Jersey Pine Barrens. And be sure to check out the Award-winning Documentary DVD [Read more →]

Part three in the series on iron making.

As the mixture of bog ore, charcoal and flux was heated, the flux would float the impurities to the top where they would be raked off. If you visit some of the lost towns like Atsion and take a walk in the woods you can still see some of this “slag” today. Bits of charcoal will be staring out at you from the black mass.

When the ironmaster decided the time was right, the bottom of the furnace would be opened, and the molten iron would flow out into channels dug into the sand. These channels branched off into short fat straight channels where the molten iron would form what was called a pig. They called it a pig because they resembled baby pigs suckling their mother.

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Part two in the series on Iron Making in the NJ Pinelands.

New Jersey’s Pine Barrens had all the needed components to support a thriving iron industry. The highly acidic pine needles on the forest floor leached acidic rain water down through the sandy soil and the iron laden clay beneath it. That bog ore built up along the shores of the local waterways and was harvested.The pine trees played another role in this industry. If you take pine wood, and slowly cook it, you create charcoal. That charcoal burned at just the right speed and intensity to fire the furnaces and forges that created the bog iron.

There is another ingredient to this recipe. Flux. Flux is added to the mixture and it helps get rid of the impurities, leaving just the iron. Lime is a good flux, and since the pine barrens was not far from the Jersey shore, sea shells were the obvious choice.

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As I posted previously, I am not really “into” ghosts, though I love the lost towns of the pine barrens. SciFi channel’s Ghost Hunters’ most recent episode visited the Historic Burlington County Prison in Mount Holly.

I have to say I was disappointed. Actually I have a love/hate relationship with that show. I watch it when there is nothing else good on television. It’s always good for a few laughs. People recount their other wordly experiences to them, and these former plumbers ” investigate.”  [Read more →]

I just received this review of “Lost Towns of the Pine Barrens, Vol. I” from a wonderful writer of several historical books about New Jersey. I urge you to check out the review, the DVD and his wonderful books.

A terrific video for those who love the Pinelands and appreciate its rich history and for those who want to learn more about this beautiful area, seemingly untouched by people.It was fascinating to learn how the Pinelands once bustled with industrial activity, including glassmaking and ironmaking, thanks to the area’s unique ecosystem. Lost Towns of the Pine Barrens does a wonderful job of showing how this area evolved from an industrial center into a historical and recreational center.
Mike Mathis, author of Marple and Newtown Townships, Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Cherry Hill Then and Now and co-author of Burlington, New Jersey and Campbell Soup Company.

Lost Towns of the Pine Barrens, Vol. I is a 45 minute award-winning DVD on the ghost towns of the New Jersey Pine Barrens and the industry that supported them. You can learn more about it here

This is just a quick update. The Sci Fi channel’s show Ghost Hunters just wrapped up taping at the Historic Prison in Mount Holly, and the episode is set to air March 5 at 9 p.m.

I recently toured the prison, and it’s extremely interesting and well worth the trip. I hope to get back there soon.

The next several posts are going to deal with iron making in the New Jersey Pine Barrens.

From the mid 1700’s until the late 1800’s New Jersey’s Pine Barrens was a hot bed of iron making. The Pine Barrens has a unique ecology. Most forested areas progress over time from grasslands, to brush , to softwoods like pine, then onto hardwoods. The Pine Barrens have never gotten past the softwood stage. That is key to the success of the iron making process that took place.

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The Burlington County Times reports restoration work on the Atsion Mansion in Shamong should be completed by this summer. I have been trying to get information on this story since the bid procedure was announced months ago. But unfortunately the Public Information Officers in the Press Office at the State Department of Environmental Protection apparently do not want to speak with a member of the public. I was rebuffed for not being a “member of the press.” Seems they forget that the press is a surrogate for the public. Anyway back to our story.

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New Jersey’s Pine Barrens touch 7 of the state’s 21 counties and cover more than 50 municipalities. This is a unique environmental area, that stretches southeast from near Camden in the West to near Cape May County in the East. [Read more →]

Although there was the threat of the first Nor’easter of 2007, the weather was chilly but clear at Historic Batsto Village. It provided for a nice walk thru the village to the worker’s homes.

The standard displays wereopen. but the real treat was the volunteers dressed in Victorian costume with the homes decorated for an 1890’s Christmas.

One has to remember Christmas in the 1890’s bore little resemblence to today’s holiday. Christmas trees were small and often decorated onlyw ith Christmas cards.

The Mansion is undergoing renovations and is closed to the public. This was the first time the Living History Victorian Christmas was celebrated in the worker’s cottage displays.