The earliest settlers in the
Barnegat area were the Lenape Indians, who would leave their winter
homes inland and venture to the shore where they would spend the summer
gathering clams, roasting and drying them for use during the upcoming
winter.
The first white settlers came into the area around 1720. By 1750
several families had established homes on lands near the creeks and
bays. The first house built in Barnegat was at the Collins' farm.
Early settlers were of Dutch, Swedish and English origin.
One of the first recorded
land purchases was in 1759 by Levi Cranmer and Timothy Ridgway, who
bought 500 acres along what is now East Bay Avenue. From that land, one
and a quarter acres was deeded to the Quakers and in 1767 the Quaker
Friends Meeting House was built. The Quaker Meeting House is still
located at that spot and is most likely the oldest building in Barnegat.
It was the first church built in Barnegat and the third church to be
built in Ocean County. It should be noted that since most of the
families in Barnegat at this time were strict members of the Quaker
Society, who have a strong belief against fighting, there was little
participation by these Barnegat settlers during the War of Independence.
Barnegat Bay Gazebo As early as 1745
Episcopalian Minister, Thomas Thompson , held services in Barnegat. The
Presbyterian pioneers began holding services in 1760 in the Rulon House
located near Cedar Bridge.
The Old Free Church of
Barnegat (1829-1867) stood in the old graveyard next to Barnegat Primary
School which later became Perrine Boat Works.
The Methodists go back to
the Revolution, with the first Society being formed in 1829 with Job
Edwards as their leader. The first Methodist Church was dedicated in
1859, but burned down in 1882. The church was rebuilt and dedicated in
1887 with the Rev. John Wagg as pastor.
During Barnegat's early days
many citizens were whalers who built their whaling boats out of the
cedars of the Great Swamp. Later, around the time of the Revolutionary
War, Barnegat ships carried cargoes of cedar rails and pine wood to New
York. With the advent of the steam powered ship in the beginning of the
19th century the demand for pine wood as a fuel kept the Barnegat
seamen even busier carrying the wood to Virginia and other points along
the east coast.
Between 1820-1840 the supply
of pine wood diminished and Barnegat's seamen turned to the charcoal
trade, then to transporting freight from New York to parts of New
England to Virginia and as far south as Florida. This trade was at its
height during and after the Civil War. The majority of Barnegat's men
were either Captains of their own ships or sailors or crewmen aboard
these ships. It was not unusual at the time for the captain, mates and
crew to all be Barnegatters
The first Inn or "public
house" was built in 1829 by David Oliphant about one mile east of the
present day intersection of Rt. 9 and Bay Avenue. This Inn was later
replaced by one owned by Daniel Cranmer. Another Inn owned by Eli
Collins was said to have been patronized by such dignitaries of that era
as Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon's brother.
In the early 1900's J.H.
Perrine purchased the old Barnegat Primary School (erected in 1867) and
set up his boat-building business. His specialty was the Barnegat sneak
box - a boat designed for hunters, but also sailed in races and for
pleasure, not only on our bay but on waters all over the world. Due to
the popularity of the sneak box the Village of Barnegat was known round
the world.
During this era Barnegat
was the most popular place for people from surrounding communities to
shop. Barnegat bustled with grocery stores, a bank, a dry good's store, a
butcher, a shoemaker, a bakery, blacksmiths, two doctors, a lumberyard
and a coal yard. Automobiles were seldom seen in the area and the most
common mode of travel was either by horse and buggy or train. Two main
railroads had depots in Barnegat; the Tuckerton RR Station (also known
as the Pennsylvania RR Depot) located on the east side of Memorial
Drive, and the Central RR of New Jersey Depot located on the north side
of West Bay Avenue.
In 1908 Barnegat welcomed a central water system, Barnegat Water
Co., owned by Luther Cox, who , along with his wife Mary Ann also owned
the Times Beacon Newspaper. Luther was the son of Capt. "Billy" and
Marietta Cox, who built the Cox House which stands at the corner of Rt.9
North and Bay Avenue. The Cox House was the first house in Barnegat to
have electricity and running water. Currently the historic Cox House
is the meeting place for community organizations and hosts many special
events throughout the year.
In 1910 John Charles began a
Silkworm Industry. In this same year the first Post Office was built
on the north side of West Bay Avenue. This later became the Barnegat
Municipal Building , then a police station, the library and now houses
The Alliance for the Arts.Barnegat was also home to another unusual
business adventure during this period -George Ridgway's "mink farm."
There was no radio or
television in those early days - entertainment was provided by local
talent that put on plays, and by traveling vaudeville and minstrel shows
which made yearly visits to the Barnegat Opera House. This building was
located on Rt. 9 north in the vicinity of the present day liquor store.
Movies came to Barnegat somewhere between 1915-1920. They were first
shown in the Opera House which was later converted to the Park Theatre.
Barnegat Bay
