Naturalist Describes South Jersey Ghost Towns

[Teegate]

Our very own member "German" in this article!

Ocean County Naturalist Describes South Jersey Ghost Towns - The SandPaper

The New Jersey Pine Barrens are extensive and mysterious. Within the 1.1 million acres are rare animals and plants that are found nowhere else. And there are towns that have disappeared with only cellar holes, sandstone “rocks” and glass slag to indicate this was once a thriving community. On...

www.thesandpaper.net

 

[Boyd]

Nice article. But there's considerably more than "just concrete foundations left" at Belco.

 

[manumuskin]

A couple nice cellar holes under the spruce at Buckingham

 

[Pan]

I can't find anything on the Pine Barrens ghost town, Mount. We camped there for a few days about 1973. There was nothing left of the town except the old dirt road intersection and some of the planted vegetation and the name on my geological survey map. It was beautiful weather and we were lolling around on the grass, and it wasn't until the second or third day that we noticed that our bodies were covered with ticks!

 

[MuckSavage]

Pan, was the little monitoring well (?) shack there back then? (on the NW corner of the intersection)

 

[Boyd]

Is that one of the "bumps" that are showing on the LIDAR?

https://boydsmaps.com/#19.00/39.685411/-74.605897/lidar2021bw/0.00/0.00

 

[MuckSavage]

I'm not sure it would show up as a "bump". It was a small shack, maybe 4' square & 4' high. My Dad used to call it "the outhouse for midgets"

 

[Pan]

Pan, was the little monitoring well (?) shack there back then? (on the NW corner of the intersection)

I don't think there was anything at all, except what I mentioned, still there, but I could be wrong, it was almost fifty years ago. I think we were there for three days and didn't see a soul. There were no off roaders or dirt bikers in the Pines back then. It was very pleasant and peaceful - except for the ticks.

 

[Teegate]

The gaging station has been there forever. It was there in 1973 when I first visited. I have a photo of it from then. This photo is from 2002. At the very bottom you can see the well from what might have been the tavern site.

 

[MuckSavage]

That's it!

 

[Boyd]

Cool! I must have gone past it many times but don't remember seeing it.

 

[Pan]

Is that Mount? Aren't there some planted trees there, one of the only things showing that a town once existed, that and the dirt roads, and maybe that little "gaging station" - what's that? I'm remembering from 50 years ago. I don't recall going back there again, tho i must have passed through it.

Say hello to the ticks for me!

 

[Boyd]

(on the NW corner of the intersection)

Here's the 2002 aerials - same year as Guy's photo. I'd think something that size would be visible but I don't see it on the "NW corner of the intersection".

https://boydsmaps.com/#19.00/39.685411/-74.605897/njgin2002/0.00/0.00

The 2007 aerials are much more clear, but maybe it was gone by then?

https://boydsmaps.com/#20.00/39.685411/-74.605897/njgin2007/0.00/0.00

 

[Broke Jeep Joe]

its still there