"Among the other roads laid out in 1705 by John Bishop, George
Drake, and John Matthews, commissioners of roads for the county of
Middlesex, the record of which throws light upon still earlier roads, is
one which is described as follows : ' And also for one other public comon
and general highway, to extend from Woodbridge to Piscataway; and
also from Amboy to Piscataway, and from thence along the road to and
through Somerset County to the North Branch, as it was formerly laid
out in the late Gov. Laurie's time' So that if this record be accurate,
this road was first laid out during the administration of Gov. Laurie,
which extended from 1G84 to 1G8G. That it must have been laid out in

| As no mention has been made in any publication the writer has seon
of the precise date of the laying out of the following road.it is here
given. It is recorded in Liber A, the same as the one heretofore given.
May 29, 1685, a road was laid out "from the turning out of Piscattaway
Road to goo to Amboy along the north side of the great swamp com-
monly known as Amboy's great swamp, winding alung the swamp to the
oast end thereof, and from thence to the intended town plott at Amboy,
as may bo found most convenient." Tho commissioners who laid out
this road wore Samuol Dounds, Isaac Thornhill, and Hopewell Hull.

I Middlesex.



EARLY HOADS AND BRIDGES IN SOMERSET COUNTY.



575



1C80 appears from the following affidavits, which were mado in 1720,
when Bomo difficulties had arisen about the trae coarse of th<
Raritan,' and which are preserved in the old book of record ol
eex County, pp. 80, 81 -Si :

"* Fir*t, William Bharp, "f Woodbrldge, in the County of Middlesex,
In the provinco of Now Jersey, yeoman, aged about
maketh oath on yo Holy Evangelists of Almighty God that he, this, de-
ponent, from tho ono thousand six hundred and eighty-six (1G86), that
ho Bottled upon tho north side of y« Raritan River near tho meeting of
North mi'] South Branches, ho used y* road which wan commonly called
and eetcomed y« highway, said to bo laid out by the authority of y« gov-
ernment of tho province of Now Jersey. During tho nine yean thai he
Lived there the highway lead from Bound Brook near to Ur.GUe
through tho land late In tho tenor of John Rudyard, and so behind the
improved land of Capt. Coddington,* Mr. White's, and y other y r Inhab-
itants, onto y« North Branch of y said river, to the upper end of a plau-
Bttony west aide thereof.

"'William Sharp, April 20,1720/

"'Second. John Campbell, of I'iscntuu, in tho county of Middlesex, in
tii. province of New Jersey, yeoman, aged about fifty-eight years, maketh
oath "ii the Holy Evangelists of Almighty God that in the year of our
i thl de] mentwas coming down Baritan River wiili several of
the sorvnnts of Lord Nell Campbell, going to Woodbrldgo meeting.
Thcio being no way this deponenl knew bat through the Inclosureof
Mr. John White, deoeased, they were etopt by Mr. White by bin gate for
some little time, but then not before this deponenl and other servants re-
turned. Ye .said J>. iiu White went to Amboy to Governor Loury and
complained against them, who were called
l,uii i y, and answered they know i ther way. The Goveruoi said there

tdioiiU le a way appointed f->r to go up the country clear •! Mi. White

and the other Inhabitants' imp) ovemonte. Accordingly, befoi e this de-
ponent, with others aforesaid, went up the way marked out, leading from
Bound Brook, near Mr. Gilo's house, through the land Late In the tenure
of Mr. John Budyard, b« bind the reai of all the Improved lauds behind
his fields, and so several Inhabitants on the said Raritan River, to the
Abrth Branch thereof, at or near tho upper end of a plantation on the
v I Ida tl dd branch belonging to Peter Van Vosteyf and that
during the space of nine yean thai this deponenl lived up the Baritan
and South Branoh thereof, he always understood that to be ye highway
layed out by ye authority of yo government r l£astJ

• I 02 OaMFBKLL, Apl. 29, 1720.'

" In connection with the deponent, who was a servant of Lord Neill
Campbell, and in 1686 was on hi.- way from the North Hi audi to attend

church at Woodbrldge, it may he mentioned that Lord Neill in li'.M. r » he-
came tho owner of one-fourth of a twenty-fourth part of Kant Jersey.
In January, 1686, he had located sixteen hundred and lilt\ aci. - on the
Raritan ami North Branch, and It WftB ii ■■in tin plantation,' without

doubt) that bis clansman was proceeding to Woodbrldge when arrested

by Mr. John White.

"Tho course of tho 'mad up Baritan' from Piscataway to Hound Brook
is not cloar. Certainly it did not no Pi* ttaway to Cnlan*B

Ferry and run from thence along the rivei to Hound llrook a« tho road
now lies, that road being of much later origin. After oombtnlng all tho
information I have been able to gate I I thai the road left

Pj-catawjiv i;i si\-r.nl t...nl ;

the no in ;i aorthweaterlj direction wee) ol Hetncheo, through Quibble-
town and New Uarkel to Bound Brook. Considerable portions of this

road remain -ix rods wide to this day, altl gh mueh of the original

road hai been obliterated by the plow, and parts of the existing road are

made ap of newei and nai ros B id Brook the

road extended to Somerville, running, a* we have teen by the above affi-
davits, in the rear of the Improved laud - and (arm-houses on
ol the Raritan, a little to the south of tho present turnpike, following
the north side of the Uaiitan to tho Junction of the two bran

iv.'Mt to l.auil ei tville, at that tine
Ferry. There i- in existence oUOthei affidavit, made in 1.720, i

this road, which bj of Interest becanss it was made by Petal '
{or, as he la iometlmse< died, Van \ its , who was ons of the early pio-
neers of Somerset County and a man of mark In hli day, one ol the
branches of the Baritan, and also one of the bridge* over tho Mine, re-
ceiving their names from him. This, affldavll in of the same purporl u

those before recited, aiel bj U follow- :

"' Totor Vau Neato, of tho county of Somerset, In tho provinco of New



I



| Pi tei Van Neato.



Jersey, yeoman, aged about sixty years, Maketh Oath on the Iloly Evan-
gelists of Almighty God that this deponent, to the best of his knowledge,
in the year 1686, Hen, hick Oorsended and William Richardson came to
this deponent's house and Udd him that by order of Governor Lour)*, tho
Governor of East New Jersey, they had boon marking out a way leading
from Mr. Codington's laud behind the improved land of Mr. White, and
so leading up crosB a brook t ailed, by the name of the deponent, Peter's
Brook, near that place, where he bath since erected a grist-mill, and con-
tinuing behind all tho Improved lands belonging to the Inhabitants to
the North Branch ofthe Baritan Bivier, neai toa phu e whereon William
Dunlapthen lived, which in near to the upper end of a plantation on tho
westsido ofthe said brani b I deponent Some time after,

in the time when r.d. Hamilton was Governor of Bast Jersey, this Do-
ponenl was chosen overseer of ye highways by ye Inhabitants of Somer-
set!, and, according toys law or Custom "f ye said province of East Jer-
sey, tie called ye Inhabitants of Somcrsett together and repaired yo said
highway from Round Brook to that place, on ye North Branch aforesaid,
and that ye said highway continued without any alteration, SO far as the

deponent knowoth, until within this four or two years that Jacob Bape-
ties fenced In part thereof. And further this Deponent saycth not
'" PXTXB Van Ni.sii, JURAT COBEMUB, Wm. ElKR.

"•Apnloyo 29th, 1720.*"

It will be noticed that Peter Van Neste mentions
that he was commissioner of high way sunder Governor
Hamilton (who was in office in 1694 I. He was asso-
ciated with John Boyce and John Tunison. It was
enjoined upon them not to change the location of
roads without necessity, and to lay out and open new
onea fl here required.

The road up Baritan remained without alteration
until about 1718, when it was fenced in by one Jacob
Bapeties. No further information is obtained of it
until 1764. Difficulties continued to occur, and the
following action was taken by the board of justices
and freeholders of Somerset County. It is found in
the record of roads (old book, p. 62), and locates the
road definitely through the county. Eta various
changes of line and distance are given in detail. It
is quoted verbatim, except degree-, chains, and links :

"Win in a*. It huth Ih-.mi found by many years 1 experience that that
pari of the Baritan road, to called, on the north aide of Baritan Blver,

leading from tho North Branch of Bald river down tho Mine to Bound

■i ■ sundry dispub-s and difficulties attending

thereto, ami in order for remedy, whereof application hath been made by
tho inhabitant* of Bridgewater, in Bomareel County, to >>s wimeo names
eii) underwritten and subscribe^ being twelve Buneyorafor roods and
highways for the time being, six of us residing in tho county of Sonier-
dd,and being legally choaen for thai pnrpoeeiand the other six
residing in the adjacent county of Sunterdon, and being also legally
chosen for that purposo aforesaid, that tho said road, being disadvan-
tageous to tho oner ami oners of the lauds through the pass, praying
that the same may be altered and regulated by dj said surveyors at our
discretion, and after pabllok notice thereof advertised for at 1-ost twenty
days, ngreeablo to the law in inch coses mado and provided,— we, tho
nirveyon above cited, hai log met on tho promisee for tho sumo purpose,
and after hearing thegriovai intsofore-

said, do agree, and pnrauant to the power and authority given tons by
tho law of tho provinco of New Jersey end In dlacharge of our duty to
alter and regulate the laid road, we do determine and b
the said road shall run and be continued asapubUck (bur-rod rued, as
followetb,— via, : Beginning al the bridge by the mouth of (|
Branch of Mid Baritan Blver by the foot or aaal and of said bridge,
on tho cost side of said bl ■■ ran down said

road first north eighty-seven degrees and a half oast ... to a sign-
post of Garret Qenieon; thence sooth ... to a block-oak-tree;

riii ... t.> a white-oak-tree near «ud John Blgk
north ... to Garret Rocboom's lino; thence north ... to the lino
of land belonging to Jacob Vanostrandth, Bsor ; m oontinnlng said
courso north . . . to the blaokamlth-ehop now belonging u< the said
Vanoatrandth; thenoe north . . . to tho land of Samuel StaaU Goodman's



576



SOMERSET COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.



Esqr., and so continuing the said course north ... to Jonathan Run-
yan's line, and so continuing to the line of* Cornelius Middagh ; thence
north . . . fto George Middagh's line ; then north ... to the gate of
the parsonage-land of the Dutch congregation now in the tenure and
occupation of the Rev'd Mr. Hardenberge,J and so continuing running
north ... to Philip Tunison's line; thence south from Fritts' Hotel to
Peter's Brook, so called ; thence east . . . to the line of Derrick Van Vegh-
ten's § land ; thence south ... to Cornelius Van Horn's [] land ; thence
on the same course ... to a road leading to said Cornelius Van Horn's
dwelling-house; thence . . . to Middle Brook ; thence north . . . to the
house of Benjamin Harris; thence ... to the middle of Bound Brook
stone bridge. In testimony whereof we, the surveyors afores'd, have
hereunto set our hands, this thirtyeth day of June, Anno Domini, one
thousand seven hundred and sixty-four, and in the fourth year of His



Samuel Babnhardt,
Benew Dunham,
Henery Tbaphagen,
Andrew Emaus,
Abraham Prall,
Richard Holcombe,
Surveyors for Hunterdon.



" William Lane,
" Peter Dumont,
" Garret Voorhees,
" Peter Van Pelt,
"Benjamin Taylor,
" Samuel Brinton,

" SurveyoYs for Somerset.
" Recorded the 30th day of June, 1765.'



One other road having more than a local importance
remains to be noticed. This is the old Middlebush
road. A considerable part of this road had been es-
tablished by custom and use probably as early as
1690, but, so far as I have been able to discover, it
was first laid out by authority in 1712, at which time
it was also greatly extended. The record describing
this road is as follows :

" Pursuant to an act of Assembly instituted for regulating highways,
and for appointing and confirming highway commissioners:

" Beginning at Innion's Kerry ; thence running ye nearest course to a
brook known by ye name of Salt Pond Brook ; thence along or as near
ye path as it now goeth till it comes to Derrick Jones's House; thence
upon a Btraight course to John Wilson's shop ;% thence directly ye most
convenient way as can be had to Capt. Harrison's Mill ;** thence along
ye new cartway to Justice Leonard's; thence along ye old roadff till it
comes near Stony Brook, so crossing ye said brook about three or four
chains below ye old road, so turning up to ye old road again, and so to ye
Province Line. The said country road is to be four rods in breadth.
Witness our hands this Cth day of June, 1712.

'• Andrew Bird, John Harrison,

" Thomas Yeates, Michael Van Veohtie."

This road then ran from Inian's Ferry westerly to
Middlebush, and probably to Millstone, from whence
it ran southwesterly to Rocky Hill, and from thence
to Harrison's Mill, on the great road near Kingston ;
thence it ran alongside the great or upper road — now
approaching to, now receding from, and sometimes in-
tersecting it — to Stony Brook and the province line.Jt

Mr. Deshler says that from 1705 to 1713 he has " dis-
covered records of thirty-five roads which were viewed,
opened, and established within the limits of Middle-
sex County alone." At that time the territory now
Somerset County was in certain respects within the
jurisdiction of Middlesex County. The precise time of
the laying out of the road from Bound Brook to Black
River, which is mentioned in early deeds as the " Pea-

• J. M. Mann. + Caleb Miller.

J J. Doughty. g C J. Wlllson. || Island Farm.

!j Another record says that John Wilson lived upon Rocky Hill.
** This mill was on Millstone River, at the point ncarwhoro it crosses
the upper road near Kingston,
ft That Is, the upper rond.
X\ Deshler's " Early Roads of New Jersey."



pack Road," is not known. It was certainly before
the record of roads was commenced, in 1733, as given
below. The road also from " Lamington Meeting-
House to Piscataway" was laid out before this time.
It joined the Peapack road before that road united
with the " Great Road up the Raritan."

The records of the justices and freeholders of Som-
erset County are not found prior to 1772. At a meet-
ing of the justices and freeholders, July 22, 1775, an
order was given to James Hude (deputy clerk of the
county) to " purchase a book for to copy the return of
the roads in, and likewise to copy the returns of sun-
dry roads that are entered in the justices' and free-
holders' book, which was begun in the year 1727 or
thereabouts." The records of roads in the clerk's
office of the county are in an old book in which the
first date is Feb. 25, 1773. It contains a record of
one hundred and forty-five roads either laid or relaid
from 1733 to 1776, and this is without doubt trans-
cribed from the justices' and freeholders' records, as
indicated above. From this book are given a few of
the roads :

" New Jersey, \
Somerset, J
" Memorandum, February 25th, Anno Domini 1733. — There layed out by us
named commissioners for ye laying out of highways for said county, at
ye request of ye inhabitants of Somerset County, beginning at a four-
rodd road laying cross the river at ye Widdow Beekman's comenly called
or noneg§ by the Millstone River ; from thence running threw ye middle
of said Millstone down said river under ye bridges until it goes down to
ye mouth of said Millstone River, four rodds wide.
" True Coppy from ye Recorded this 17th day of March, 1736-7.
" Barrent Stricker,
"Edward Griggs,
" Cornelius Suydam,
" Peteb Van Nest.
" R. L. Hooper,

" Clerk."

The next one recorded is dated April 16, 1735, and
laid out " from Basking Ridge to ye west of ye bridge
on the norwest branch of Dead River." Another
record, dated April 17, 1740, recites, "That applica-
tion has been made to us, ye surveyors of highways of
the county of Somerset, to lay out a road from Rocky
Hill to Kingston, beginning at a road already laid
out from New Brunswick to Prince Ton," and join-
ing "the main road as ye path now runs that leads
from New Brunswick to Trenton." Nov. 14, 1741, a
record is made " concerning a rode through one Rena-
ersen's land, which was found inconvenient," and was
relaid part of the way along the road to the mill, and
from thence along the line of Plumstead land to the
river, and along the river to the " place as is formerly

yoused to River, over against Six-Mile Run,

four rods wide, and with ye previser that ye oald rode
shall be yoused for the space of one month, and then
be void."

Jan. 28, 1744, application was made to the survey-
ors to lay out a "two-rod road from the bridge at Mr.
Bairefoot Brinson's, on the west side of Millstone

Vb Meant for known.



EARLY ROADS AND BRIDGES IX SOMERSET COUNTY.



577



River," to "ye main road leading from Maidenhead
to ye bridge over Millstone River at ye old mill,
May' Harrison's." A four-rod road was laid out Feb.
15, 1744, " beginning from ye main road leading from
Rocky Hill to New Brunswick, passing Griggstown
Mill, over the bridge over Millstone Kiver at Christo-
topher Hoagland's, and |>as| Win. Heard's, Barnet Ha-
geman's, Samuel Baker's, and Daniel Spader's to the
main road to the court-house of Somerset, to be
opened by the first week in October next." Oct. 3,
1745, a road was laid out from Peapack to Lamington
meeting-house, and Nov. 12, 1717, one from Peter
Sebenek's mill to the Middhliii-li road. In Septem-
ber, 1748, application having been made for a road to
be laid oul " from the bridge at Christopher Hoag-
land's i" ye Q-real Road," the surveyors met and
established the road as requested. Its course is as
follows:

" From tlto bridgo to Gorurdus Bookman's land, along the road to Luko
Vnorhoos'; then ii|h.h the top of u bank to whoro a road enters tho low-
land ; along tlio foot of the bank to Isaac Skillman's land ; along Skill-
man land two rods upon the upland to John Skillman's; along J. Skill-
man's land to Beudow's Brook; op tho brook to It) forks; then upon
Jtullf Covonliovoii's land to tho upland; then, as tho road runs, to tho
top of yo bank of a stoop gully which enters Into tho brook below ye
fulling-mill ; tlionco ucross the field above tho gully to a line !>etween
Adrian Book man and Ohrlstophei Bookman; thence along tho line to
Robert I.ottico Hooper's land; then on tho road to James Van Horn's
land ; theme across to y,. Or. at Kuiid."

On page 69, old book, is a record dated Aug. 6,
1764. The surveyors were called to relay the road
leading from New Brunswick, on the south side of
the Karitan River, to the mouth of Millstone River:

" Boglnnlng at tho county line when it tachM Itaritnu River, near
Mr. Iludo's Boutbeast corner in New Brunswick ; tln-nco along tho Bouth
Bldo ofRaritan River to Voorhees' Mill; over tho mill-dum, through tho
lato Joseph Mount's I. iml aid Voorhoos' land till it comes to the said
rlvor; up tho river to within three chains of Georgo Aud.rsoii's bouse ;
bj his hoiiBe, with a gradual sweep towanls tin- river till within four
chains of tho deceased Evert Van Sy. hlc's land; llienco ono rod and a
half on the brow of the hill, and up the river till It como to a brook run-
ning ttuongh John Hortwoll'fl land, and over tho brook to tho present
fonling-place ; then Southward from the river, and running up tho rivor
till it comee to the mouth of the Millstone"

In August of the next year a four- rod road was laid
out "from the Millstone Bridge, at the court-house,"

i.. the mouth of the Millst Kiver. On Dec 28,

1767, a road was established leading " from Jacob
Van Derveer's, Esq., to My Lord Stirling's white

gale, in as direct a line as the ground will admit of."

li began at the middle of the road which lead- from
Black Bivei to Bound Brook. Karl> roads in the

different townships will be found described in the
township histories.

The New Jersey Turnpike Company was incor-
porated in 1806, and the road W88 completed in L809,
That part of it in Sunterdon and Warren Counties
was surrendered to the several townships by the i i-

pany in 1 s:',s, :l ~ has loin already mentioned. The
line of road through the county of Somerset, the most
of the way from Hound Brook to Soiuerville, wa- a



little north of the old "Great Road." The old route
was -traight, and at the end of the old parsonage lane,
in the village of Soiuerville, it left the great road and

ran northwesterly through North Branch and Branch-
burg on to Ka-ton.

Sept. I, ISO 1 .', just before it- completion, the follow-
ing petition was presented to the board of freeholders

of Somerset ( 'ounty :

"The New Jersey Turnpike Company, by Andrew Howell, request to
be Infonnod whether tho board will relinquish to them the North Branch
bridgo, at Baylia Mill, on condition that the said company shall keep the
said bridge in good repair at their own expense until the said company
shall erect a new one."

It was resolved that the bridge be relinquished to

the company on the conditions proposed by them.

A bridge was erected over Peter's Brook, as shown
by this action of the board of freeholders:

"May 9,1810. — WiirnEAS, Tho bridgo over Peter's Brook mar this
placo has become almost useless by tho erection of a bridge
same stream hy the turnpike company ; therofore

', That Thomas Talmago bo authorized to remove tho said
bridgo and placo the same over the Bald Peter's Brook on the new road
leading from the court-house towards tho mountain."

Upon the completion of the road two toll-gates
were erected, one being at Middlebrook, about one
hundred and fifty feet east of the residence of John
Herbert. The keepers were John Van Nostrand,
David T. Talmage, William Tucker, Jacob White-
head, and Andrew H. Naylor. The other gate was
near North Branch.

The road was continued for many years, but its
affairs were not prosperous. The indebtedness of the
company had not been extinguished nor any dividend
paid to its stockholders until 1841, or later, — over
thirty years after it was opened. The collection of
toll was finally abandoned, and March 130, 1869, all
the rights, titles, and interests in that part of the road
through the townships of Bridgewater and Franklin
were conveyed to those townships.

EARLY BRIDGES.

The first bridge of any importance within the
limits of the county of Somerset was thai on the
North Branch of the Karitan, a little north of the
junction, where crossed by the " Road up Karitan."

The first item concerning bridges i- in the old book
of record of roads in Somerset County, page 1, and
is found in a record of a road established Feb. 25,
1733. This passage occurs :

"Running tbreu ye middle of said Millstone, down said ro.
yo bridges uutill it goes down to ye mouth of said Killatoiu Bttar."

This is a curious statement, but is probably the
road on the cast side of the river. Numerous bridges

arc mentioned in this old record.

In 1728* an act passed the Ajssembly as follows :

" .lnd If it further sjinrftd bf Ott iuUhtMH$ a/bnesf4 That as soon as may
bo convenient after the pahUeatlon of thil ad there shall t>o a bridgo
built over the Bound Hr.«>k tn the mod oommodloa place on the north*

• Acts of General Assembly of New Jersey from 1708-70, p. 16S,
Kcvlll.



578



SOMEKSET COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.



east side of the road, as it lies from Piscataway, in the county of Middle-
sex, up Karitan River ; which bridge shall be built, rebuilt, and amended
at the equal expeDse of the county of Middlesex aforesaid and the two
upper precincts of the county of Somerset."

The bridge was not built until after 1731, for in
that year an act was passed supplementary to the act
of 1728, reciting that difficulty of some kind had
arisen, and providing pains and penalties for all per-
sons who refuse to perform the duty enjoined upon
them.

In 1762* an act passed the General Assembly " to
empower the managers of the Bound Brook bridge,
in the county of Somerset, to raise by lottery a sum
of money for rebuilding and completing the said
bridge." In 1771f an act was passed to empower
certain persons therein named to raise a sum ot
money by subscription or taxation to rebuild and
keep in repair the bridge over Baritan Biver near