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    Chester
    Chester
    Chester
    Ebook126 pages33 minutes

    Chester

    By Joan S. Case

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    About this ebook

    Chester, part of the Then & Now series, places the history of this North Jersey community in a new light by contrasting the old and the new. Vintage photographs are paired with contemporary ones, showing both the changed and unchanged elements of the scene. Zephaniah Drake’s Brick Tavern, established after the opening of the Washington Turnpike, still stands in the center of town. But the Chester that was once an important iron-mining center, with 30 mines and two railroads, has disappeared from view.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 29, 2005
    ISBN9781439616345
    Chester
    Author

    Joan S. Case

    Ms. Case is a resident of Chester whose work represents an important contribution to the town's recorded history. Chester residents will surely treasure this illustrative volume for generations to come.

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      Book preview

      Chester - Joan S. Case

      Asdal.

      INTRODUCTION

      The town of Chester is a small community located in the rolling hills of Morris County, New Jersey, and stills retains much of the rich historic heritage that is obvious in the architecture of the remaining older structures throughout the town.

      In the early 1700s, Lenni-Lenapi Indians inhabited Chester, originally known as Roxbury and also Black River. Chester was first surveyed and mapped in 1713 by proprietors for the provinces of East and West Jersey. The Lawrence line, dividing East and West Jersey in colonial times, went directly through Chester. The first permanent settlers arrived in the 1730s and began farming. Later in the 1700s, their activities centered on inn-keeping, mining, and milling, along with simple agricultural life. In 1799, Chester Township became incorporated and broke away from Roxbury. Then in 1930, the village center broke away from the township due to a water dispute and became Chester Borough.

      During the early 1800s, Chester was a stagecoach stop where travelers sought overnight accommodations at the different inns and hotels along the highly traveled roads through town. These roads influenced the growth of early Chester. Products from Pennsylvania, such as wheat, grains, vegetables, and sundries, passed through on the way to New York. Chester also had products to send to the New York market, such as their famous Jersey Lighting applejack and fine furniture, notably, James Topping’s clock cases and bureaus.

      Chester’s apples and peaches were of the highest quality, and these crops were a financial success. Many distilleries opened, and ease in transporting the crops became a necessity. There were forges, furnaces, a brickyard, and gristmills in every corner of the township.

      The Civil War changed Chester from a farming community to a small industrial town. Chester had a boom, and the iron mines were the sole cause of considerable prosperity. There were at least 35 working mines in and around the town. During the period from the late 1860s to the late 1880s, several hundred thousand tons of iron ore were taken from these mines. A railroad was built for the ore to be shipped, and two different railroad stations were built. The Central Railroad built one in town, and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad built the second one about a mile north of town. Iron was discovered in the Mesabi Desert in Minnesota, which was the demise for the high iron life of Chester. Those who knew only mining were hard-pressed. Those who had retained their farms began again to raise crops. Their apples, peaches, garden produce, and grains helped to keep the economy alive. Chester became quiet and relaxed, and existed as a small farming community with beautiful homes, but with little money to support itself.

      The land mass is just over 29 square miles, with a population estimated to be approximately 7,250, according to the 2000 census. Today, there are approximately 2,100 homes in Chester Township. The land use is primarily residential and agricultural.

      The borough enjoys a flourishing commercial area, while most of the land area in the 1.45 square miles of the community is devoted to single-family housing. The township completely surrounds the more densely developed Chester Borough, which lies at the geographic center of the township. The borough serves as the town center for the area and has several shopping centers. Of the 29.3 square miles (18,497 acres) that comprise the township, less than two percent is zoned for commercial or industrial use. Over 40 percent of the township is currently devoted to some form of permanent open space,

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