Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1908-04-30


| Guards in Haddonfield On the 4th of
! May, same year, Michael Haggerty adj
| vertises in the same paper a reward
| for a deserter, on March goth, pre-
| vious, from the Jersey forces Under
the command of General Maxwell, to
be delivered to Capt. McFetridge, or
the subscriber at Hugh Creighton's in
Haddonfield.
| There were many prominent mill,
| tary officers. besides the commanders
iof the New Jersey troops. who quar-
ltered in Haddonfield during the Reyo-
Tuition, most of them in the odd Tav-
ern." We find records of Generals
Morgan and Greene, the Marquis AMI
| General Lafayette, whose official re-
port of the successful battle he fought
| with the enemy under CORVALLIS, be-
tween this town and Gloucester is
| dated Haddonfield, November &c,
l1777.' the Polish Count and General
Pulaski, whose appearance is describ-
led by a young lady, resident, as a dra-
COON wearing a tightly fitting green
jacket and buckskin breaches, mount
ed on superb charger and display
| ing his feats of horsemanship to the
admiring soldiers, and Gen. Anthony
Wayne, who in 1778, by d forced
march from Mt. Holly drove the enemy
out of Haddonfield
Among the British officers, who
were sometime quartered here, were
Count Donop, the Hessian commander
who met his death at Red Bank, Col
onels Sterling and Simcoe of the
| Queens Rangers and Lord CORVALLIS.
From the journal kept by John Bell,
secretary of Sir Henry Clinton. we
learn the particulars of the retreat of
| the British from Philadelphia in June,
1778.
"Jlne IS, Sir Henry Clinton, with
the army from the lines crossed at
Gloucester, having marched on the
back of the town. Early that morn
| ing Gen. de SHE marched from Coop
lers (now Camden) with the Rangers
and Yagers. in the van of the bag
gage to Haddonfeld, where we arrived
about 9 o'clock. and were soon after
| Joined by Gen. Clinton with the whole
army from Gloucester, Gen. Knyp-
| hansen having already arrived at this
| place" The army remained here that
! day and night, as the report says UNI
der date of the 18th, Gen. Clinton
moved with three brigades Of British,
leaving Gen. Knyphausen with the
Hessians at Haddonfield." Under date
of Mt. Holly. June %, Bell writes
at 3 o'clock a. M, Gen. Knyphausen
arrived with his division by way of
Moorestown
Notwithstanding the rayages of the
war, the Old Tavern House must have
had a profitable business. The COM
peting brick tavern building, which
still stands at the corner Of Main and
Mechanic streets, has on its western
gable the year of its erection, 1777
Hugh Creighton was the host of the
Old Tavern House for fifteen years.
On March rs, 1890, he sold the prop
erty to John Burrough. The deed
was never recorded and is lost. It's
title is, however, reeited in the next
conveyance, which was made Febru-
airy 90, 1904, by John Burrough and
his wife Elizabeth to Samuel Denny
of Gloucester township and county,
innkeeper for the consideration of
/ $4,000. 1t says: All that certain three
story brick messuage or tenement and
one frame messuage adjoining. The
/ lot pertaining to it had become much
reduced in size on its eastern and
northern side. It's frontage on the Main
street was al feet and its area / acre
| 2 roods and % peFches.
Samuel Denny, the next year.
March 5, 1905, sold the property to
John Roberts of Haddonfeld for 6 900.
The deed says call that three story
brick messuage or tenement, and one
frame messuage adjoining, now occu-
pied as an inn or public house of en-
tertainment." John Roberts held the
property until his death in 1841 be-
queathing it to his widow Hannah.
/ Upon her death in 1915, it descended
to her son John K Roberts, who died
in 1871, and his heirs sold it to George
w. Stillwell in 1874 1t remained in
the latter's possession until his de-
cease when it descended to his daugf-
ter, Harriet E., wife of Henry f.
Tompkins, who conveyed it on July %,
/ 1901, to the Haddon Heights Land and
! Improvement Company. BY an Act of
the Legislature of New Jersey, ap-
proved April 3, 1902, the State pur-
chased the Old Tavern House with a
lot 50x100 feet and the Governor -ap-
pointed the following commission to
4 tchS CLdlSG VI 1t, VIZ. EpuIdllu L
Gill. Charles r. Stevenson and James
Lane Pennypacker, of Haddonfe1d:
/ Peter v. Voorhees,, of Camden, and
Robert Gwynne. Jr., of Salem: Peter
v. Voorhees,, deceased and Henry D.
Moore, of Haddonfield, was appointed
! his successor.
/ After the transfer Of the ownership
Of the tavern from Samuel Denny to
John Roberts in 1906, the landlords
were, the first named who kept it for
many years, Samuel K Wilkins, Thorn
as Pearce and Joseph c. Shivers who
retired in 1850. 1t was during the
occupancy of this last landlord that
the District Medical Society of the
County of Camden was organized in
this building on August IA, 1916
At this time the value and import
ance of a tavern in Haddonfield, began
to decline The construction of the
Camden and Atlantic Railroad took
away much business. Between this
date and 8157 the landlords were: