by Ed Belding South Brunswick Historical Society
A long-neglected South Brunswick landmark of sorts was destroyed by fire on January 18, 2007. Few took notice and few cared. The ruined structure was the main barn on the eleven-acre farm of Thomas Titus, a freed slave who had purchased the property from Ferdinand Van Dyke for $50 in August of 1817. This farm remained in the family for three generations until Allen Hooper sold it to the Beekman family. The irony here was that Beekmans had once owned Thomas Titus. At the time of the fire (of suspicious origin), the property was owned by the Moravcek family. Shortly after the fire, the rest of the buildings on the property were torn down. Eventually, the eleven acres were added to Woodlot Park. All traces of the history of the place vanished except for a freed slave's grave marker. It can be found on the northeast corner of the land Thomas Titus once farmed. He passed away in 1849 when he succumbed to the plague. A ceremony dedicating Titus's marker was held in June of 2007, behind Benson Road in Kendall Park. Of added historical significance of the main barn was that it was filled with old farm equipment worthy of a display in a museum. However, all of it was destroyed in the fire. Included in the artifacts were a vintage steam generator and a very old, but stout, wagon. The flames of the barn fire destroyed everything except a few memories of days gone by. Sadly, at this time, even the memories are drifting away like the smoke from a barn fire . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment