Quakertown, New Jersey

Quakertown, New Jersey
Unincorporated community
Quakertown Methodist Episcopal Church
Quakertown Methodist Episcopal Church
Quakertown is located in Hunterdon County, New Jersey
Quakertown
Quakertown
Quakertown is located in New Jersey
Quakertown
Quakertown
Quakertown is located in the United States
Quakertown
Quakertown
Coordinates: 40°33′56″N 74°56′30″W / 40.56556°N 74.94167°W / 40.56556; -74.94167
Country United States
State New Jersey
CountyHunterdon
TownshipFranklin
Elevation
[1]
650 ft (200 m)
ZIP Code
08868[2]
GNIS feature ID879564[1]

Quakertown is an unincorporated community located within Franklin Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.[3] It was once known as Fairview.[1][4] The area was settled by Quakers from Burlington County, who organized a meeting house here in 1733.[4] The Quakertown Historic District was listed on the state and national registers of historic places in 1990.

History

In 1828, local wheelwright, John Deats (1769–1841), invented an iron plow, the Deats plow. In 1831, his son, Hiram Deats (1810–1887), started to make these plows. In 1836, Hiram built a foundry here for plow and stove castings. He later expanded his manufacturing business at Pittstown and Stockton and became the first millionaire in Hunterdon County.[5][6][7]

In 1836, a commercial tannery was built here by John Allen. The millstone used for crushing tree bark and extracting tannin is now in front of the Potter/Allen house.[8]

Historic district

Quakertown Historic District
William Probasco House, built c. 1814
LocationRoughly bounded by Quakertown, Cherryville Roads, Quaker Lane, and Locust Grove Road
Area78 acres (32 ha)
Architectural styleBungalow/craftsman, Greek Revival, Italianate
NRHP reference No.90001242[9]
NJRHP No.1590[10]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPAugust 23, 1990
Designated NJRHPFebruary 20, 1990

The Quakertown Historic District is a historic district along Quakertown Road, encompassing the village. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 23, 1990 for its significance in architecture and community development. It includes 74 contributing buildings.[11]

The district includes the Quaker Meeting House, a Friends meeting house, that was reconstructed in 1862 using the stones from the original 1754 building. The Potter/Allen House is a stone house built in 1765. The Federal style William Probasco House was built c. 1814. The Henry Cliffton House is one of the earliest erected buildings in the community. The William Cronce House has an oculus and decorative shingles. The Quakertown Methodist Episcopal Church, built in 1878, features an ornate 3-stage steeple.[11] It is the tenth oldest Methodist Church in the county.[12]

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Quakertown include:

References

  1. ^ a b c "Quakertown". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ^ "Quakertown ZIP Code". zipdatamaps.com. 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  3. ^ Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed January 31, 2015.
  4. ^ a b "The Township of Franklin". Hunterdon County, New Jersey.
  5. ^ a b Snell, James P. (1881). History of Hunterdon and Somerset Counties, New Jersey. Everts & Peck. pp. 444–445.
  6. ^ Ramsburg, Bernard F. (2014). "Industry, 1964". The First 300 Years of Hunterdon County, 1714–2014. Flemington, New Jersey: Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission. p. 129. LCCN 2013957213.
  7. ^ "A Brief History of Franklin Township, Hunterdon County". Franklin Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey.
  8. ^ Ramsburg (2014), p. 132.
  9. ^ "National Register Information System – (#90001242)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  10. ^ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Hunterdon County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. September 30, 2020. p. 6.
  11. ^ a b Brecknell, Ursula C. (April 1986). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Quakertown Historic District (Quaker Meeting)". National Park Service. With accompanying 46 photos
  12. ^ "Quakertown Methodist Episcopal Church". New Jersey Historic Trust.
  13. ^ Genocchio, Benjamin (July 22, 2006). "Master Who Turns Mud Into Vessels of Beauty". The New York Times.