I have been doing some searching on Lidar for old home sites and tar kiln in my area and have found something near Estelle Manor Park off of South river. I spotted this last year and have tried making multiple attempts to get to the area with no luck. Tried getting to it from different directions and it is really thick. There looks to be a road going to what looks like a foundation or wall of some sort from lidar. Aerials doesn't really show much. Any help or info would be appreciated https://boydsmaps.com/#17.30/39.418938/-74.721568/midatlidar/0.00/0.00
Help identifying what i see on Lidar
- Thread starter Brandon Yachere
- Start date
Not familiar with that site although I've been all over the Belco ruins just West of there and have included them on recent maps.
I see that line (wall?) to the left of the link you posted but not sure what it is, maybe the the remains of an old road with a ditch that was excavated? You can play around with the lighting and other parameters in the terrain viewer and see if that helps.
https://boydsmaps.com/terra/#39.418...0/4/0/1239/704/-1000/45/4/2d/shader40/0/0/z17
I see that line (wall?) to the left of the link you posted but not sure what it is, maybe the the remains of an old road with a ditch that was excavated? You can play around with the lighting and other parameters in the terrain viewer and see if that helps.
https://boydsmaps.com/terra/#39.418...0/4/0/1239/704/-1000/45/4/2d/shader40/0/0/z17
Just looking some more, I see that the Vermeule map shows some roads in that area that don't appear on other maps.
https://boydsmaps.com/#15.00/39.418938/-74.721568/vermeule/0.00/0.00
https://boydsmaps.com/#15.00/39.418938/-74.721568/vermeule/0.00/0.00
It's hard to believe it today, but this stretch of land was probably used by the eighteenth century as horse and cow pasture—savannah, as in Demitroff 2024 (Soggy Ground). Just to the northeast Dowers had a ferry to Tompsontown that ran through at least the Civil War. This connected the Lower Cohansey trail to the Long-a-Coming trail. Due south, across Tows Island Creek, lies Tow Island.
My guess is that "tow" refers to bundle of untwisted natural fibers, perhaps a place in the eighteenth century to grow flax like around Absecon. That might help explain the other Tow Islands around South Jersey. To the east, across the Great Egg Harbor River were extensive wharves and fisheries going back to the late seventeenth century.
Barns and fish-processing sites were present on the west bank of the Great Egg Harbor River, but were mostly atop Pleistocene dunes or protodunes adjacent to a navigable waterway. Ruddick or Ruddock Townsend owns the property by 1758. There may have been an Enoch Lord living nearby. It is imortant that the archeological integrety of such sites are maintained as we know so little of this area's early history, cultural heritage that will soon be inundated.
My guess is that "tow" refers to bundle of untwisted natural fibers, perhaps a place in the eighteenth century to grow flax like around Absecon. That might help explain the other Tow Islands around South Jersey. To the east, across the Great Egg Harbor River were extensive wharves and fisheries going back to the late seventeenth century.
Barns and fish-processing sites were present on the west bank of the Great Egg Harbor River, but were mostly atop Pleistocene dunes or protodunes adjacent to a navigable waterway. Ruddick or Ruddock Townsend owns the property by 1758. There may have been an Enoch Lord living nearby. It is imortant that the archeological integrety of such sites are maintained as we know so little of this area's early history, cultural heritage that will soon be inundated.
I think I see another one. They might be corrals? This one abuts the ferry access road—
Note how the ferry causeway on the west bank correlates well to the Thompsontown road-cut access ramp on the east side (forgot an "H" in the last post). The presumed corral (paddock) is well fit to the road curve, which is convenient to the ferry.
Anyone else see it, or am I reading too much into it? Here's an interesting read written by an old friend on salt-marsh utility—
www.smithjam.com
The ferryman lived at what was last known as the Smallwood Place, here shown on the deed map for Bethlehem Loading Company. Housed at the Atlantic County Historical Society, it is the Rosetta Stone to all the associated properties. Sadly, it is in too poor of shaped to handle without some sort of conservation first.
S-M
Note how the ferry causeway on the west bank correlates well to the Thompsontown road-cut access ramp on the east side (forgot an "H" in the last post). The presumed corral (paddock) is well fit to the road curve, which is convenient to the ferry.
Joseph Smith
www.smithjam.com
I have walked the west side of the river in the past and there is definitely some interesting stuff going on. I've seen wood supports that look like they could have been part of the the ferry causeway you speak of Spungman and it is clear after seeing the lidar. By the way to post are I would guess it would have been some thing like a boardwalk.
I have been on that spot that looks like a corral and it was different there than everything around that area. Crazy to think that it could have be a pasture back then with how it looks in there today.Thanks Spungman for the info so far and I think your spot on. Also, thanks Boyd for site and maps. I spend more time on there than I like to admit
I have been on that spot that looks like a corral and it was different there than everything around that area. Crazy to think that it could have be a pasture back then with how it looks in there today.Thanks Spungman for the info so far and I think your spot on. Also, thanks Boyd for site and maps. I spend more time on there than I like to admit
Attached is a warrant of the area and its conversion from cursive to print. Unfortunately, few early accounts of the Dutch, Swedes, and Finns who came here first in the seventeenth century can be found.
For example, John Stanaland on the attached warrant is a Dutchman who partners with George May by 1737 in forest supplies. At the time John owns a mill in the area, and I'm hoping to have that answer soon. Stanaland last lived where the couthouse now stands, then left the area. May's (Mays Landing) wife spoke a foreign tongue, but was she Dutch, Swedish, or Finnish? By 1886, the last two decendents of May were deceased.
Agreed, Boyd has made a most wonderful contribution to Pinelands appreciation, which is well worth our time. Hooray!
S-M
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