Tuckerton Stage Road

[Ben Ruset]

I drove the length of the Tuckerton Stage Road today. The whole trip from Marlton to Tuckerton took roughly 4 hours. Most of the route was paved.

I plan on writing an article on it, but there are some things that need to be cleared up.

First, I don't believe that the Tuckerton Stage Road ran through Flyatt and ended up out by Hampton Gate like Beck (and Tabernacle Township) claims.

The problem is at Piper's Corner. The road "Tuckerton Road" comes through and hits a angled intersection. If you continue on Tuckerton Rd, you'll pass Flyatt, Oriental, and be able to take a dirt road that will bring you out to Carranza Rd. However this doesn't jibe with the fact that the Tuckeron Road supposedly ran through Quaker Bridge and Mount.

To go through to Quaker Bridge and Mount, you'd have to take the slight right onto Stokes Rd. at Pipers Corner. This, followed all the way through, will take you out to Quaker Bridge, Mount, and eventually Washington.

Now you can take Carranza Rd. all the way through to Washington, which makes me wonder if in fact the Tuckerton Road was supposed to go through to Quaker Bridge and Mount. If not, then why was there a hotel at Mount anyway?

The two paths meet at Washington. You can then take Iron Pipe Road all the way out to 563. If you cross 563 and stay on the dirt road through Maxwell, you'll eventually find a ton of No Trespassing signs and a road that pretty much peters out.

I had to take a detour around 563 to Chatsworth Rd. which will bring you will need to make a left onto "Stage Road" to bring you to Tuckerwton. Back in the day it looked like Iron Pipe Road would have taken you through Maxwell, past the southern part of Harrisville, and directly onto Stage Road.

I will be posting pictures and maps shortly. (after dinner.)

 

[Teegate]

Who said the Tuckerton road went through Quaker Bridge and Mount? The route you took through Flyatt, Oriental, on to Carranza and High Crossing is the proper route as far as I have ever read.

Guy

 

[Ben Ruset]

Who said the Tuckerton road went through Quaker Bridge and Mount? The route you took through Flyatt, Oriental, on to Carranza and High Crossing is the proper route as far as I have ever read.

Guy

John Pierce in Heart of the Pines plus several other websites.

 

[Ben Ruset]

"Very little is known about the Mount Tavern on the Tuckerton Road between Washington and Quaker Bridge." Heart of the Pines, pg 747.

"The school building stands off the road, the last structure on the old Tuckerton Stage Road (the Quaker Bridge Road in these parts.)" Heart of the Pines, pg 52 [talking about the Atsion School, which I did NOT pass today.]

"There was a tavern located here [Quaker Bridge -ed]overlooking the Batsto River (1808-09 to 1849) that became an important stage coach stop on the Tuckerton Stage Road. It was eventually destroyed by fire." http://mywebpages.comcast.net/sjunpaved/default.htm

"Located here at Quaker Bridge overlooking the Batsto River, Tompson's Tavern was an important stage coach stop on the Tuckerton Stage Road. The exact date that it was built cannot be determined. However, I've read that it served as the town meeting place as well as election headquarters prior to 1810. It was eventually destroyed by fire around 1849." http://mywebpages.comcast.net/sjunpaved/qbridge.htm

"Many sand roads dating from the eighteenth century still exist in the Pinelands, the most famous being the Tuckerton Stage Road. Three well- known tavern sites are located along this road- Quaker Bridge, Mount, and Washington. " http://www.state.nj.us/pinelands/pinecur/peopres.htm

"The Philadelphia-Tuckerton stage line stopped at Long-a-Coming (now Berlin), Atsion, Quaker Bridge, Mount, and Washington, and on to the Wading River and to Tuckerton. (McPhee 1969:34)" http://nynjctbotany.org/njoptofc/quakerbr.html

 

[Ben Ruset]

Here's a map of the two routes. It's big so you will most likely want to download it to your computer and open it in an image editing program.

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/albums/album113/The_Tuckerton_Road_Mystery.jpg

 

[Teegate]

I am not an expert on this subject, but you must remember this was pre 1849 and some of the roads on that map were not there. In any event here is an opposing view.


In 1849 the Marlton Turnpike company was formed and five toll gates were
built, one at Pine Grove to catch the travel on the Marlton Pike and the
travel coming out of Tuckerton Road.

Skip

Prior to the forming of the turnpike company, the Tuckerton Stagecoach
Company used this road. Coaches would start at Cooper's Ferry in Camden
where people in Philadelphia would cross the Delaware River on the ferry
boats, and then the trip by coach to Tuckerton on the Atlantic shore.

skip

After leaving Pine Grove the road was mostly sandy all the way to
Tuckerton. Hotels lined this road at convenient distances apart- at
Ellisburg, Marlton, Flyatt, Hampton Gate, and Washington.

Leaving Cooper's Ferry in the morning and trotting the horses one would
reach Ellisburg-a distance of seven miles in an hour and a half. Another
five miles and Marlton was reached. Allowing for short stopovers at
these two hotels, half of the morning was gone.

After leaving Pine Grove the road was mostly sandy, and the horses came
to a walk. Another ten miles and Flyatt Hotel was reached. It was now
dinner time. The horses had to be fed and watered, and the passengers
went into the hotel for their dinner. After a layover of an hour and a
half, another five miles brought them to Hampton Gate Hotel. Another 10
miles and Washington Hotel was reached. It was now time to put up for
the night.

skip

On the marrow ( in the morning), a drag of 15 miles bought them to Tuckerton. In between was a stopover at Bodine Hotel at Harrisville.


A History of Evesham Township

Maurice W. Horner

 

[Teegate]

And a little tid bit which I have mentioned before, is that one of the hotels in Marlton along that route was the Bareford (originally Swain's Tavern) which my brother and mom watched be destroyed in 1965 to make way for the 7-11.

On the left

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/post/bareford.jpg


Guy

 

[BEHR655]

Guy,

That makes sense to me since the road I know as Tuckerton Rd cuts off of Carrenza Rd very near Hampton Gate. Of course it is possible that the stagecoaches could have cut off of Tuckerton Rd and gone through Mount but I think it would make more sense to just continue on to Washington without veering off.

Steve

 

[Teegate]

And it is also possible that the stages could have gone to both places. If you were heading to the shore you took the Tuckerton, and if you wanted to go to Quaker Bridge, it would turn off to there.

I have no idea what is correct.

Guy

 

[jokerman]

That's cool, that has been a drive I have been meaning to do for some time. The barrier at Maxwell is really lame. I posted at another time that the road through Mount must have been a separate stage route since the two (Washingtom and Mount) are too close together. I think the Washington stop serviced a road from Eagle Tavern and Mount would have been a closer stop for the route you travelled. I'm sure both roads eventually converged to end at Tuckerton. I will check me references and I think I remember reading about a stage from Cooper's Ferry and another one, possibly from Bordentown? Have to check. I was very interested in your travels.

 

[jokerman]

Wow, I hadn't refreshed my web page since several hours ago when I replied. I saw, once I had, that a lot of great info had been posted, which made my response look dumb. This is the best thread I've seen in a while. The info posted about the stopover schedule is amazing! The map is also wonderful. Pipers Corner has been reveived as an important or at least interesting point along that route.

 

[Ben Ruset]

One idea that I have is that there were two different Tuckerton stages. One from Philadelphia, and one from Marlton. The Phila one took the route that I used today, and the one from Marlton took the other one.

I would be inclined to believe that the route through Flyatt and into Washington is correct, but there is a LOT of material (even from Beck's later books) that suggest that QB and Mount were on the Tuckerton Road.

 

[Ben Ruset]

Here's all the pictures I took:

http://www.njpinebarrens.com/forums...e=index&include=view_album.php&page=1

 

[Teegate]

Ben,

A really nice report and photo's.


A few thoughts:

Pipers Corner originally had another road meeting at the intersection, which can be viewed in Ben's map below. It is between the word Stokes and Tuckerton.

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/post/piper.jpg

But within the last 20 years it was altered for safety reasons so that the road does not intersect at the intersection. You must travel south on Stokes for another few hundred feet to get on it. Much like they did with Carranza.

What is interesting is that if you stand at the intersection, you can get a nice view of where the trees are growing where the road was, still showing the original route. I can see many years from now that being a discussion as to why that road no longer intersects.

Also, as I have mentioned if you compare Ben's photo of the Pine Grove church with Beck's photo of it on page 75 in FTOSJ, you can see where they have made the Tuckerton road a through road, when originally the Old Marlton Pike was the through road and the Tuckerton was the stop. This has occurred since I was a kid because I remember it as a stop. Most likely in the middle to late 60's. Certainly before 1973 when I started driving.

Ben's photo.

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

Also, in the History of Evesham Township, Mr. Horner mentions that when the toll booth was erected at the start of the Tuckerton road, people would pretend to be sleeping and let their horses walk through the tolls, wanting to not have to pay. I guess if you were new to the area, the toll taker could not trace your tag number

Guy

 

[BEHR655]

I see in Ben's photos that the shed for the gauging station at Mount has been knocked over. That must have occured within the past month as it was standing the last time I passed it.

Steve

 

[Boyd]

Some nice pix and a fascinating discussion, especially as I live in Medford not far from some of the places you mention. I have also been baffled by these conflicting descriptions of the Tuckerton Road. That road you mention between Stokes and Tuckerton is Indian Mills Road.

Sometime when you're passing through, visit LB Daniel's restaurant (aka "The Lite Bite"), they have a bunch of old Medford photos on the walls. Also the Medford branch of PNC bank in the Ironstone Village plaza at Stokes has some big photos of old time Medford locations. Can't remember which place, but one of these has an interesting old photo of that church on Old Marlton Pike.

Have you ever driven out to the end of Great Bay Blvd in Tuckerton? Fascinating place. I've spent quite awhile shooting photos and video out there. Nice place to watch the sunset. That old factory (called the "fish plant" on the USGS maps I think) is really spooky looking! Has anyone gone out there in a boat?

 

[Ben Ruset]

I think WNJ had an article on it in one of the latest issues.

 

[Teegate]

I don't have that mural, but here is the one from the Commerce Bank in Medford.

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/post/MedfordCommerceBank.jpg

Guy

 

[Teegate]

I see in Ben's photos that the shed for the gauging station at Mount has been knocked over. That must have occured within the past month as it was standing the last time I passed it.

Steve

I wonder if they are even going to use them in the future? It seems that they are adding solar panels to the one's they want to get info from, and saving money not having someone visit these places. The solar panels and transmitters are even on the gages at Batsto, Harrisville, etc.

I actually know of someone who does this, and his relative was once a poster on this site. I will see if I have his email address still, and ask him what is going on.

Guy

 

[Ben Ruset]

I actually know of someone who does this, and his relative was once a poster on this site.

There's a lot of people who used to post here but don't anymore.