And she's encouraged by would-be customers coming to her door as she works to ready her restaurant. Originally, the area was referred to as Middletown Point, named for its central location for farmers to ship their goods via Matawan Creek and the ocean to New York City, says Bob Montfort, vice chairman of the historical sites commission and president of the historical society. The creek became impassable, and in the mid-1800s Matawan became a center for manufacturing. It was home to piano factories, a lime kiln, and tile and furniture factories. Matawan is still a center of sorts.
Most activity focuses around the train station.
The platform is technically in Aberdeen, where it has been for more than a year. The two towns share the platform, just as they shared the name of Matawan up until this century. It's hard to talk about Matawan without Aberdeen. They share the station, as well as the benefits and disadvantages, like the parking crunch, that come with the 3,400 commuters passing through each morning from surrounding towns. Some residents cross town lines by walking through their houses.