had a great time today

[alfonso]

i enjoyed showing you guys around my neek of the woods over here. its always great to meet you guys . alfonso

 

[njvike]

i enjoyed showing you guys around my neek of the woods over here. its always great to meet you guys . alfonso

Thanks for taking us on the tour. It was very interesting and am glad I went.

Thanks again.

Ken

 

[bach2yoga]

i enjoyed showing you guys around my neek of the woods over here. its always great to meet you guys . alfonso

Alfonso and Tom,

Thanks for taking us around today, we enjoyed ourselves. It's always nice to have someone who is familiar with that area!

What a surprise to find a sand pit back where we were looking for Lacey Station!

I'll post the links when the photos are done uploading.

Renee

 

[BorderWalker]

Yeah, the sand pits were definitely interesting. But man, have they torn up the area. Check out this aerial. What we saw was technically the smaller site. But thanks to everyone who came along; it was a fun day. Hope to do it again sometime soon.

--Tom

 

[Teegate]

That is in part the Clayton Sand Company.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/~teegate/ClaytonSandCompany.JPG

Here again is a photo of my 73 Land Cruiser there in January of 1977.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/~teegate/1_77.jpg

Guy

 

[bach2yoga]

That is in part the Clayton Sand Company.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/~teegate/ClaytonSandCompany.JPG

Here again is a photo of my 73 Land Cruiser there in January of 1977.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/~teegate/1_77.jpg

Guy

Love the Land Cruiser!

Here are some of the links:

Lacey Road explorations

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/module...ery&file=index&include=view_album.php

Clayton sand company

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/module...ery&file=index&include=view_album.php

Tired after a long day of exploring...

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/module...ery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

Tom, remember we were wondering why there was a Lacey station when the Bamber station was nearby? I looked it up in The Trail of the Blue Comet and found this info:

"The Lacey Materials Company opened a sand pit near Forked River in 1966 and forwarded about forty cars per week, primarily to Bethlehem Steel, for the remainder of the decade (372).

Lacey Materials trucked sand from their pits to the site of the Forked River station, where it was quickly loaded into hopper cars (373)."

It was apparently a spur. The Brookville quad shows the old railroad grade as beginning (or rather ending, I suppose depending on how you look at it) into Forked River.

I'll scan the photos when I get the newer scanner. Apparently they stopped shipping in 1969.

I printed out an order form for the book you told me about, Tom, Ocean Couny: Four Centuries in the Making.

Ken, laughs, I'm glad to hear Karen is enjoying your new Christmas present. It's a wonderful book, one of my favorites. Perhaps she will decide to head out exploring with us!

I love the words from this song, written by Merce Ridgway, in the Pine Barrens songbook I picked up Friday night; the words are nostalgic and wistful:

I left the place where I was born many years ago.
Cause times were hard and work was scarce--
I had no choice but go.
But I've been back there many a time in my memory,
Of all the places that I've seen, it's there I'd rather be.

Chorus:
Where the scrub pine, ground oak, berry bush and sand,
They never change; they never will--pine barrens land.
The weet may pink, curly fern and the leaves all turning green,
And the water still runs red in the cedar swamp streams.

Pine smoke from the wood fire blowing on the wind;
Lamplight upon the window, shining once again;
A one room schoool, a country store, all the folks you used to know;
Times have changed and they were gone a long, long time ago.

(chorus)

Wagon roads that run for miles down through the twisted pines;
Past little long forgotten towns that failed the test of time;
And some times there along the way, granite markers cold and gray
Mark the only ones who stay there in the barrens.

(chorus)

Renee

 

[BorderWalker]

Guy: That second pic is great. Looks like you took a trip to the tundra for the day. Those before and after shots of yours are always interesting, seeing how quick things change.

Renee: But at the same time, the station had been there since the 19th century. 1872 at the very least. I'm going to go do some reading tomorrow and see what I can come up with about it.

--Tom

 

[bach2yoga]

.

Renee: But at the same time, the station had been there since the 19th century. 1872 at the very least. I'm going to go do some reading tomorrow and see what I can come up with about it.

--Tom

Let me know what you find, and about Sunday, too. It would be nice if your girlfriend could make it too!

Renee

 

[bach2yoga]

Alfonso or Tom,
Familiar with this? Anyone have any pics of it?
Renee

Lacey Schoolhouse Museum
1860 Two-Room Forked River School


Features: Collection of local historical artifacts Including schoolhouse memorabilia; costumes & articles from life on Barnegat Bay
Also: Artifacts from the Knights of the Golden Eagles, a temperance organization
Open: Early June to Labor Day Weekend
- Mon., Wed. & Frl. 1 pm - 3 pm Sat. 10 to noon
Groups: Up to 25
Admission: Donations appreciated
Address: 126 S. Main St. (Rt. 9) P.0, Box 412 Forked River, NJ 08731
Phone: (609) 971-0467
Directions: From North: GSP Exit 74; east on Lacey Rd; right on Rt. 9, museum on right behind Ice Cream store. From South: GSP Exit 69, east on Rt. 539, left on Rt. 9, go approximately four miles to museum on left.

 

[alfonso]

i've been there a couple of times . its very nice there