The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1884-10-10

Commenced in No. 80

10 the swimming mole III the creek near the
bridge. where the Woodstown small boy of
those days was wont to disport himself in
the water, and, emerging. find his shirt
sleeve or his trouser leg tied in a hard knot
by some miscellaneous comrade a little too
big for him to whip,
In the house where John H. virgins
now lives Hannah Sickler kept millinery
store. The next house, belonging to the
estate of Albert Vanmeter, was then the
property of Mark Scull, and the pretty
lawn and flower garden adjoining was then
the site of an extensive wheelwright shop,
where Mr.. Scull carried on business Jo-
seph X. Riley occupied the house where
Mark Miller lives, and next to it was one
story cottage whose occupant we do not re-
member, and which was pulled down on
Christmas Eve, 1873, to check the spread
of the fire which consumed the shops of
Mark Ayres and F. w. Armstrong, then
standing between it and Dan Wares resi-
dence. At the time of which we write, the
site of the present wheelwright shop was
unoccupied, Mr.. Ware occupied his present
home, and Hickman Dickinson, father of
John W. Dickinson, lived where his son
now does. The other buildings ON that
side of the street were the same
On the other side, the house on the hill
opposite the Moses Ale property had not
been built. n. X. Lloyd lived where his
widow now does and the next three houses
were the same as now. The store now
occupied by John G. Reeves, was not then
built, but in its place was one story
building that had formerly done duty as
school house on the lot in the rear of the
present public sch ,ol In this building
John p. Crispin kept store and lived
where he now does. The present store
building was erected i'll a style to CORES
pond with his dwelling, a few years ago.
The dwelling occupied by Robert Hewitt
has been enlarged 1t was occupied by
Smith Dare who carried on the coopering
business in shop that stood on the adjoin-
ing lot. Elan Hitchner occupied his
present residence and Elias Mattson the
next house vacated by him only last spring.
The house where Samuel Carney now lives
was then standing. From there to the
corner was vacant lot which fronted also
on the Main street from the shop occupied
by Ernst Becker to E. A. Massey's present
residence. There were only two buildings
on this corner between Carney's and
Massey's houses. One was two
story frame building fronting on both
streets comprising store and dwell
ling. In the store Jedediah Allen and
Charles E. Loudenslager under the firm
name of Allen & Loudenslager car
ried III the hardware business which
they subsequently sold out to Dickinson
& Bro. Most of our readers well remember
when this building went up in flame and
smoke, to be replaced by the handsome
brick structure now standing on the corner.
The shop occupied by Ernst Becker was
the other building spoken of as occupying
the corner, and was then tailor shop, Rich
ard 2. Edwards carrying on the business
therein. This building has been enlarged
by an addition at the rear, but the front is
the same as it used to be. On the opposite
corner, Main street and Bullet Lane, stood
the brick store of Risley & Riley, and next
to it, back from the street, the residence of
Mr.. Risley the senior partner, who was one
of the lay judges of the Court of Errors and
Appeals of this State. At the lower end of
the yard attached to the residence was a
frame store-house standing on the street,
and next to that stood, ON the site of the
shoe store and hardware store, the double
house occupied by Michael Myers and Mrs.
Carrie Riley, which was moved to its pres
ent location to make room for the brick
buildings. This structure was then occu-
pied in one end by the Post Office, Richard
+. Turner then being Postmaster. The
other end, if our memory does not betray
us into an error, was occupied by Charles
Baker as clothing store and tailor shop.
Mr.. Turner also carried on business in
ice cream, the second story of his part of
the building being the saloon. Here the
young man Of the period took his best girl
and RECALLED her with six cent" or levy"
plates of frozen sweetness. We youngsters
usually contented ourselves with three
centers," levy plate being regarded as
the very acme of prodipalitv
Below the post-office was a vacant lot
Ito which the building was afterward
moveoD and then ON the site of the pres
ent handsome store of John H. Turner was
the cabinet making and undertaking es-
tablshment of Armstrong & Boon,
narrow, two-story shop with gable to the
street. Next to it, where now stands the
large three story house occupied by Smith
Hewitt, there stood the resi- lence of Robert
Pedrick, a justice of the peace. whose
office (the building now serving Geo. W.
Crothers as a livery office) stood in one
corner of his yard fronting the street
Here the litigants of those times had justice
administered in hundred dollar doses
sometimes satisfactory and sometimes not
so much so.
Further down was the small one story
office of DR.. L. &. Reed a young physician
thSh St'ilii pihotiCC WIN iiiS plOs-
poets of success. Eight years later, in the
prime of manhood he was cut down by the
relentless reaper, who sooner or later
gathers us all. During his practice he
built on the site of the old office, the
office now occupied by E. S. Fogg as law
office and which by recent additions has
been converted into dwelling also. His
resting place in the Presbyterian cemetery
is marked by handsome monument. In
the next house recently enlarged and i'm
proved by Rev. c. Bridgmall, resided Mrs.
Mary Nj. Reed, mother of the doctor and
widow of Israel S. Reed, and in the house
now owned by Israel A. Hewitt, DR.. Jacob
Hunt lived and died. He was a famous
practitioner in his day and his old fashioned
top-sulky went far and near. He had i'll
his employ colored man who was affiict-
ed with st. Vitus dance in manner that
while it did not prevent him from working
would cause him to roll his head and make
the most curious sounds ashe passed along
the street. He used to ride the doctors
horse through the town and always herald
ed his approach in this involuntary manner
much to the wonder of those who did not
know his popularity.
The lot between Dr. Hunts house and
the town hall was vacant then as now. The
public school building then half its present
length was used on the lower floor as a
town hall where were held all the elections,
town meetings. lectures, exhibitions and