Sandy Ridge

[Neil in SJ]

Can someone shed some light on the history of Sandy Ridge? the 1954 Geologic Survey map shows 8 structures off of Caranza Road Just Northeast of the Friendship ruins. I do not recall any history of a community there.

1954 Geo Survey

 

[LARGO]

Is it at all possible they were just Barracks housing for Bog workers and not a community?

Although, (I do this as an edit) I guess in hard definition... any group of people living in a shared interest makes for a community though right.

 

[Ben Ruset]

Check out the 2nd edition of Heart of the Pines by John Pierce. It has a short addendum on Sandy Ridge. There isn't much information on it.

I will try to re-read it and post a summary tonight.

 

[Neil in SJ]

Is it at all possible they were just Barracks housing for Bog workers and not a community?

Although, (I do this as an edit) I guess in hard definition... any group of people living in a shared interest makes for a community though right.

I think I would agree with you Largo. Friendship is a short walking distance and the 8 or 10 houses at Friendship would not have had enough manpower to operate the cranberry operation there.

 

[Teegate]

Can someone shed some light on the history of Sandy Ridge? the 1954 Geologic Survey map shows 8 structures off of Caranza Road Just Northeast of the Friendship ruins. I do not recall any history of a community there.

1954 Geo Survey

The 1950 Chatsworth Quad I have shows two more dwellings for a total of 10.

Guy

 

[Teegate]

And slightly off the subject it also shows two dwellings off of Eagle road, one being in the woods behind the Charles Wills grave, and one in the woods opposite and across the road from the sign at Eagle on the curve.

Guy

 

[Ben Ruset]

So I checked last night -- Sandy Ridge was a bog system started by Joseph Wharton. The bogs were closed down in 1941 and it's thought that the state bulldozed the buildings in the 50's when they took over the area.

It was mentioned in the article that one of the people still living who grew up in the area only remembered four houses there.

 

[Oriental]

Is it at all possible they were just Barracks housing for Bog workers and not a community?

I think that most of the structures must have been workers shacks. I am told that in the Woodland Township building there are supposed to be photos (collected by DeMarco) of Sandy Ridge, Friendship, Hampton Gate, etc. I have yet to check them out. I also remember hearing that these were very rustic structures that may have been moved from place to place. I even remember someone quoted as having a relative who helped build the structures there. I will try to locate the source.

It is interesting how Wharton's bogs at Sandy Ridge bump right up against the Friendship Tract.

As Wharton is supposed to have sorted, packed, and shipped his berries from Atsion, I wonder if there was ever a packing house there. Most berries in those days were carted to a town for cleaning and shipping.

I also wonder to what degree those building might have had something to do with lumbering that might have occured there. (Don't confuse this with the other Friendship sawmill in Tabernacle)

 

[suresue592003]

living at Sandy Ridge

My father was a small boy when he lived at Sandy Ridge. He didn't remember much about it. He did say that a Mrs. Holloway lived next door to him. Mrs. Holloway was my bus driver when I was alittle girl living on Carranza Road. At the time I lived in the old red house that belongs to Joe Conti. I went to Tabernacle School. Mrs. Holloway used to live across from Nixon's Store. I think she passed away a long time ago.
Years later my dad took me and my mom back to Sandy Ridge to hunt for old bottles. We walked way in back of the property to an area were there was alot of sugar sand. It was here that my dad said a saw mill once stood.
Yes there are pictures of Sandy Ridge in Chatsworth Municipal Building.

 

[Neil in SJ]

It turns out there was a smelting operation operating at Sandy Ridge into the 20th century.

I went out there last month and checked it out and there is no sign of a community, but there is a large amount of trash metals, almost like slag, but not iron..

 

[Y-BUC-BILL]

Sandy Ridge;Dave Amoto was a Fire Warden and he told me if you wanted to catch a rattlesnake...Sandy Ridge was the place to go.