The Jersey City news., 1901-08-10
SOUTH COVE WAR
Presence of the Dredgers
Worries the Peaceful
Inhabitants.
THINK THEY MUST 60
Interesting People Who From
Squatters Became Ten.
ants of the City.
THINK THEY MUST 60

The present fight of the city to retain
possession of it's property at South Cove
has focused public attention on that To-
cality. The sudden appearance of fleet
of enormous dredging machines and mud
scows in the narrow, half-hlled gap lead
ing from the basin to the cove focused
the attention of the inhabitants of that
unique section upon the dredging fleet.
Though in appearance somewhat in har-
mony with the surroundings, the
manoeuvres and activity of the fleet, with
great swaying derricks dropping and
hoisting the mammoth buckets that bring
up nearly a ton of mud scooped up with
their eapacious jaws at every drop We're
in strange contrast to the usual serenity
of the scene. Not little alarm has been
felt by the inhabitnats. They used to be
called "Squatters." But that day has
gone by. They are really tenants of the
city, paying a nominal price for the privl-
lege of living in shanties, constructed by
themselves on the rotten hulks of old
canal boats that long ago outlived their
usefulness and were run up into the
morass to die and rot. and, it is even
claimed with a possibility of truth, as
part of design on the part of railway
companies to assist in filling in coveted
property of the city upon which the Cen
trail and the Lehigh Valley Railroad Com
panies have surreptitiously encroached
A decade has thinned out these erst-
while "squatters" Scarcely more than a
score of the rude shanties out of PERHAPS
a hundred or more remain, but these are
properly designated as homes, and the
morals of the dwellers are perhaps of g
higher tone than those of many tenants
of the tenement house sections of the
city. Picturesque in their isolated sur
roundings, they form a study of the adj
vance of civilization. That Jersey City
has advanced in this direction abreast
with her sister cities is ''concretely''
shown in study Of the comparative re-
lation of what now exists in that section
with what existed there ten years ago.
All along the towpath of the canal from
east OF Jersey avenue to the Sugar House.
a route that skirts the northern edge of
the cove and now laid with double
track of the Lehigh Valley Railroad III
It's efforts, as lessee of the Morris Canal
and Banking Company, to find terminal
on the North River front, there used to be
an almost complete of shanties rest
ing upon the hulks of derelict canal boats.
These were some years ago torn away
and coal yards and freight depots have
taken their place. In their time they were
inhabited by tough lot of citizens ard
many of them labeled 'tBoatmen's Re-
treat ''Boatmen's Harbor," Fisher
mems Cove" ETC., were the rendezvous
of the old Henderson street gang and the
resort of desperate criminals ir hiding.
Twelve or fifteen years ago that section
of the city was infested with thieves and
all sorts of hard and dissolute characters,
male and female. The Henderson Street
Gang" headed by Tough" Murphy, was
a. terror not only to the people of that
section but to the police, and many a
Hard fought battle between them took
place before the gang was finally squelch-
ed 1t was unsafe, day or night, for any
respectable person to be found along that
section of the towpath. Women were as
saulted, murders were committed and men
found floating in the canal. with marks
of violence upon them. Yet in the very
midst of this desperate community there
lived some honest, well known characters
The name of .Laffy jack (Steven w.
TreadwelD was synonym for hon.
esty and integrity. He made living by
fishing in the Cove until the Cove got
hemmed in with h-old canal derelicts- Then
he built himself a hut on one of the old
hulks and gathered drift wood and tim
bers. which he sawed and split into
former days he was a constable and was
a terror especially to bad boys. He was
found dead in his old age in the hut he
constructed. John Engler was another
well known character. His son, who was
a champion ice skater, was found dead
in the hut in which he lived. Mat
Bradley, who kept rather shady joint
is also well remembered. In the rear of
some of the old dilapidated huts game
cocks were fought and bad whiskey cold
surreptitiously.
These old shanties stood back some
number of yards from the tow path and
were reached by rallied gang panks.
Some were isolated groups, where old
hulks huddled together. On them were
constructed rough cabins. They were
reached by labyrinths of bridge walks and
afforded an excellent place for the hid
ing or escape of a criminal hotly pursued
by the police.
Further to the east of where that row
was located there still stands number
of reminders of those days of "squatters'
sovereignty But they are occupied by
respectable families. The little windows
that were formerly canal boat cabin win
dows are curtained with cheap lace.
There are bright pots of flowers exposed
to view and other evidences of at least
refined taste One of group of rather
well constructed cabins is graced with
sort of portico, upon which yesterday
was seer a family group OF respectaply
dressed people A mother pushed TO ana
fro baby carriage in which lay Steep
ing infant AT the foot of the long gang
plank that connected the house with tne
tow path played two pretty chlioreh'
dressed neatly and ceanly.
Tho principal group of cabins, however
is located in an arm of the gap that con-
meets the basin with the cove near tne
foot of Van Worst street. 1t is a verltaoie
hamlet and the homes are mainly tnose
who work for the Lehigh Valley Ran
road. in adjacent shops, the Sugar House,
or who live by doing odd jobs. Most OF
these cabins are sta ationary, but the group
is supplemented by floating homes. That
is, canal boats out of service, but which
can ret be hauled out and towed any
where SO long as the water is deep
ansugh They lay in the rear Of the line
Of santies fronting ard connected by
pa4,E ,,Iar]xs With the towpatl Some of