Absecon, NJ

It's not entirely clear exactly when people began living in this place in Galloway township; in 1716 it is known that the “King’s Highway” was built over an Indian trail that had existed for many years before. This road is now known as Shore Road. It was probably still not a settlement here though, but just a road passing through the area. Then, in 1769 on a map Entitled “The Province of New Jersey Divided Into East and West, commonly called The Jerseys” (Published Dec. 1, 1778, Drawn from the survey made in 1769 and subsequent military surveys made by British troops), Gloucester County is depicted extending from the Delaware River to the Atlantic Ocean. Absecum Beach is shown between Brigantine Beach to the north and the Great Egg Harbour River to the south. The only roadway shown in an area now called Atlantic County is a roadway now called Shore Road ( the aforementioned Kings Highway ). The road runs from the Great Egg Harbour River to the Mullica River through the village of “Leeds”. The area now called Absecon was unlabeled on this map, which would seem to indicate that there was still probably no settlement there. In 1773 The James Holmes Tavern was built at the northeast corner of Shore Road and Church Street, perhaps the first actual European habitation of the area. In the following year,King George III gave permission for the Township of Galloway to be and remain a perpetual township and community. The metes and bounds description included what is now Brigantine, part of Atlantic City, Port Republic, Mullica Township, Hammonton, Egg Harbor City and what is now Absecon City north of Absecon Creek. Absecon Inlet, Absecon Bay and Creek was then called “Absequan”. By 1776, it is believed there was bustling port at Absecon.

In 1780,by act of the State Legislature, owners of the tide marsh and meadow lying on Absecom Creek was permitted to erect and maintain a bank, dam and other waterworks across the creek. The first recorded transfer of land in what is now Absecon dates from 1795, when John Reading sold 200 acres to Thomas Budd in “Mount Eagle”. In 1800, the Road to Robert Doughty’s Mill was built. This road was built from Shore Road to Robert Doughty’s Mill at Mill Road on property presently owned by the Blee family. This road is now know as New Jersey Avenue. In 1807, the first Post Office in Absecon was established. In 1821, the road now known as West Church Street was known as the road to Samaul Cooper’s Ferry in Camden. This road continued west through lands now occupied by McGinnis Well Drillers and the American Legion to connect to what is now known as New Jersey Avenue and continued west to what is now US Route 30. In 1832, The Lenni Lenape (forty in number) ceded all lands for the payment of $2000.00 from the New Jersey Legislature. A spokesman of a Lenni Lenape by the name of Wilted Grass addressed a letter to the Legislature, in which he said: “ Not a drop of blood have you spilled in battle; not an acre of our land have you taken but by our consent. Nothing but benisons can fall upon New Jersey from the lips of a Lenni Lenape.

In 1833, Pitney Road was built--before the Camden-Atlantic Railroad arrived, the village of Port Republic had more residents than did Absecon. Dr. Pitney had to travel Wrangleboro Road to Port Republic to treat patients. This route was today’s Highland Blvd. which traversed through Absecon Highlands to Port Republic. Pitney Road was built to Port Republic bridge to provide Dr. Pitney a direct route to his patients. In 1835, Dr. Pitney being acutely aware of the dangers to seafarers at “Graveyard Inlet”, started his letters and pleas to Congress to build a lighthouse on Absecon Island. Around this time, according to Thomas Gordon’s “Gazeteer of the State of New Jersey”, Absecon conisted of a tavern, store, and 8 or 10 dwellings. Which makes one wonder just how 'bustling' the seaport of Absecon really was sixty years before, if that's all that lived there by the 1830s. Also around this time, the town had been going by any number of different spellings for the last few decades; by the 1830s, me the spelling was narrowed down to Absecom or Absecon. There was a friendly rivalry among the citizens of the community over just how it should be spelled. Enoch Doughty insisted Absecom was correct and used that form all his life. Dr. Pitney favored Absecon, and in his various passions in the community he would assert his preference. On July 4th, 1854, the Camden-Atlantic railroad was opened to the public and its first paying passengers passed through Absecon to the new city of Atlantic City on Absecon Island. Two years later, in 1856, after 20 years of Dr. Pitney's reports of shipping losses, Congress gave in and appropriated $35,000.00 for the construction of the “Absecom Lighthouse”. Evidently by now the town was coming into its own a a real settlement, and in 1872 the town officially incorporated--with its current spelling. 1872 Town of Absecom / Town of Absecon An Act to Incorporate the Town of Absecom, out of parts of Galloway Township and Egg Harbor Township, in the County of Atlantic was approved by the Assembly, No. 104, State of New Jersey. A supplement to above Act was approved February 29th. It contained minor changes to the description of the town’s boundary and a change in the spelling of “Town of Absecom” to “Town of Absecon”. However, locals and residents continued to use both the "n" and the "m" in official papers referring to the town. By the turn of the century, the town had a population of just over 500 people. On March 24th, 1902 the Legislature of the State of New Jersey approved an Act to Incorporate Absecon City in the County of Atlantic, as a city. Within the description of the city boundaries the Act refers to “All that part or portion of County of Atlantic, formally herein as the Town of Abescon”. At the conclusion of the description of the city boundaries the official statement reads (in part) as follows: “ be and they are hereby ordained, constituted and declared to be, from time to time, and forever here after one body, politic and corporate in fact and in name by the name of Absecon City”.