The Monmouth inquirer., 1923-01-18
ST. Peters Church,
Freehold and It's ReciOrs
By MARCY APPLICABLE. sH.
REV. GEORGE KEITH, FOUNDER OF
FREEHOLD.
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By MARCY APPLICABLE. SR.
ToPANEMUs.

Most authorities think the mans
lTopanemus is Of Indian origin. Ao-
cording to James Steen, Esq, Of Ea.
tontown (1922 dec6ased) it il said by
one authority to mean the place be-
tween" 81. @. between two continent
streams, and by another the clearing
or the cleared part between the
woods. On the other hand, however,
Judge George c. Beekman, formerly of
Freehold. now 1904 of Red Bank,
Judge Beekman died in 1922 at the lat
ter piacel intimates that as George
Keith, first a Presbyterian minister,
then Quaker preacher, and finally an
Episcopalian Clergyman, who while 3
Friend or Quaker was instrumental
with the help Of others in building, as
early as 1884, the first Quaker meeting
house in East jersey at Topanenus,
was q Greek and Latin scholar, and a
man Of ability, lie might have coined
the name from some Greek or Latin
combination. OF course, this the
Judge says, is only conjecture Still
we looked the matter up with the fol-
lowing result.
Greek. ] opan- wholly; Nemos, Latin.
Menus, pasture, pasturRge. Hence.
wholly a pasturage" Why may not
this really be the meaning? 1t is GER
tainiy descriptive of the surroundings
and must have been eminently 80 IN
those days. Or the Greek word Memo,
which means to hold, possess, may be
the second part OF the name. Hence,
to wholly hold or possess.
In Old Times in Monmouth by Geo.
g. Beekman, 238, we learn that
those who aided Keith in the erection
OF this old meeting house were Thomas
Lowrie, John Barclay the brother of
the Governor who had sent out Keith
and perhaps Thomas Warne with 9th
er Scotch and English Quakers.'
Stillweil, also. although as will be
seen, giving a different date for the
erection of this ancient building, says,
1T was here, by this old grave yard.
through the efforts Of George Keith.
that Quaker Meeting House 1.-THE site
of which is now exactly located by
trees planted many years ago by John
Vanderyerel was built IN or about the
year 1892. which subsequently,, when
ne repudiated Quakerism and crossed
over to the Established Church Of Eng
land and became an Episcopal house of
worship As such it was used for some
time. but doubtless later was either
T6Dul1b Vi 6uDbkltuLCkA 10y dnQb&lC1l Ctld-
fee which the Episcopatians called St
Peters 1t is claimed by Maxcy APP
plegate, of Freehold. In a letter TO E. "
S. Besson. of Hoboken, May 4, 1905
that Topanemus was bequeathed to
st. Peters Church qy the viii of
Thomas Boell, or Boels, proved ITO
Mr. Apologize, who is clerk In st. Pc
ter's church in Freehold, further add
that in 1851, the old church on Topas
menus Hill was torn down and still
bearing the name OF St. Peters, Was re
built at the village of Freehold. Into
this new structure was worked por-
ton of the material taken from Topa-
menus, and it is in this now old Church
that the Episcopal service is yet con
Quoted
Salter in his History Of Monmouth
and Ocean Counties, Genealogical
Record. D 10, ass erts that the ground
on which stands St, Peters Church u
Freehold. was the gift Of Thomas
Boels We are not sure, however that
this statement is correct The refer
ence may be to Topanemus, once in
the township of Freehold. 1t nm
doubtedly wasl Stillwell. who in this
connection adds, Topanemus was IN
no sense a settlement, but merely
Church site, and here he quotes the
Rev Thomas Thomson, who wrote
1745- so, The situation Of Topanemus,
which is distant from any town IS,
however, convenient enough TO the
congregation and was resorted TO by
many families IN Middlesex County,
SC
Continued Next Week.
s-