harrisville

[stizkidz]

i visited the harrisville paper mill ruins today. i remember reading in Forgotten Towns that there is a road nearby here that leads into Calico. maybe i am mistaken, but isnt Martha furnace nearby which is near Calico? Beck also mentions a mansion that was in Harrisville, is this evident anywhere (it said an apple orchard marked the center of town). i have decided to go camping this upcoming week at Bodine Field so i thought i would gather some research on this general area first...

thanks,
-Benny

 

[jokerman]

There are many foundations across the street from the main ruins. There are also some clearings back there which may be what you're looking for. There's also the ruins of what appears to be a second mill back there. Someone else may know more. I was back there last weekend and got covered with ticks, so be prepared! I would also like to know where the center of town was also, if someone else knows.

 

[Ben Ruset]

There is a road across the highway from Harrisville that will take you back along the canal towards Harrisville dam. That road will eventually turn and take you out to Martha. You can then take Calico Road (I think) to get to Calico - if you can find it. I haven't been able to find Calico yet - just the Ellis Adams Farmhouse ruins.

Barry from the Yahoo group told me that there are ruins of another house *somewhere* back there but I have never been able to locate it.

That area also gets pretty wet, so be careful driving through puddles/mud.

 

[Teegate]

As Ben can collaborate, where Calico is shown on old maps is a very dense area of woods that you might want to explore in the fall or winter.
But if you are going to explore download the George Cook map #16 from 1885 in Ben's archive and it shows you the general location of Calico. Here is the download link. It is 5.6MB.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=UpDownload&file=index&req=getit&lid=26

Guy

 

[stizkidz]

so what about the pictures in the album entitled "Calico" in the ghost towns section of this website? what are those pictures of? is that the ellis adams farmhouse or is it calico? has anyone on this site actually been to the site of calico or is the exact location still lost to us?

also on an unrelated note... today i visited the property of an old (early 1900s) abandoned house in cologne. in the rear of the property, i found a couple pieces of bog ore! why would there be bog ore here? i found bog ore in the middle of a field in estellville once too. another odd find at old sites is wild ground cactus! what is up with that?

-Benny

 

[Ben Ruset]

Nobody knows the *exact* location of Calico. The pictures in the Calico gallery were of the general area I believe it to be in. The Ellis Adams Farmhouse is considered to be part of Calico, even if it is a mile or two away from the town site.

Bog ore shows up in the weirdest places. I have a chunk of it that I found on a path at the Friendship bogs.

 

[stizkidz]

i failed today in my search for Calico. i started off heading down Oswego Rd. i followed this until i crossed the wading river past the penn state forrest sign. from here there is an intersection of 3 dirt roads. i went straight and it was actually paved for a while. then it started getting confusing with turn offs of sand roads everywhere! i never saw any sign of anything existing. i passed several swamps but never saw beaver branch. i did find several hilly areas off the sides of the trails with lots of old trash in them, mostly bottles and porcelain pieces. these "dump sites" were all hilly like in a pit. i followed the trail to the end which led me out to old tukerton rd and eventually to baptist rd to 563. the only plus side to my adventure was stopping in Buzby's where Mrs. Schmidt gave me a map to "Old Half Way Rd." to see an old hotel.

-Benny

 

[bach2yoga]

wild ground cactus? you mean prickly pear cactus?
It's the only cactus native to NJ.

Al--not sure when I can get out there, a map would be a great idea! I will try to find that Aetna map for you as well.
Renee