 |  | |
 |
|  |
 |  | |
| | |
|
| |
| | |
 |
 |
Originally published in 1939
Some of this information may no longer be current and in that case is presented for historical interest only.
Edited by GET NJ, COPYRIGHT 2003
PITTSGROVE, 48 m. (135 alt., 212 pop.), is the center of the vast
area of wasteland discovered by pre-Revolutionary settlers who soon
learned the fertilizing value of marl. The entire section was barren until
the dry, crumbling substance that lay near the earth's surface was spread
over the land. Benjamin Franklin, in his Pennsylvania Gazette of April
3, 1787, related how a joyous gathering in this village witnessed the raising of an American flag with 13 stars and as many stripes, in front of the
town tavern. A 13-gun salute followed.
A traffic circle in the center of the village is the SITE OF POLE TAVERN,
named for the flagstaff, and burned in 1918. Even the town adopted the
name of Pole Tavern; Pittsgrove is only the post-office designation. The
old tavern, which had served as a pre-Revolutionary recruiting station, was
the first regularly equipped military barracks with organization for defense
in South Jersey.
Behind a cluster of evergreens on the tiny grass plot in front of the
township hall is a BRONZE CANNON, bearing Latin inscriptions, the date
1763, and the Austrian coat of arms. It was captured from its original
owners by the French; from the French by the British, and from them by
local troops during the Revolution.
West of Pittsgrove vast fields stretch away to the horizon. Cattle graze
in pastures enclosed by old rail fences. Sturdy barns, often in better con-
dition of repair than are the farmhouses, top the rises in the fields.
At Pittsgrove is the junction with State 46 (see Tour 32).
|
|
|
Return To |
|
|
