TOWNSHIPSCHOOLSHOUSES OF WORSHIPHISTORYOCEAN COUNTY

HISTORY

Jackson, as a corporate entity, was created in March, 1844, by an Act of the State Legislature. While its new territory was created mostly from the lower portions of Freehold and Upper Freehold Townships, a portion of the northern end of Dover Township was also taken to form Jackson Township.

Through the years, the corporate limits of Jackson have been amended by various Legislative Acts, which at times added, while at other times subtracted from its area. The first boundary change in 1845, set off 40 square miles to establish Plumsted Township, while the last boundary change occurred in 1928, less than seventy years ago, when a section of Howell Township between what was then its western boundary with Jackson Township and the Metedeconk River, was added to and includes Five Corner (Irons), Larson Road Firehouse, Edgewood Park I & II, and the Brookwoods. Jackson Townships present area is 100.4 square miles.

While the Township has existed as a corporate entity only 150 years, events within its boundaries have been recorded since the first English settlement. In the spring of 1665, the Monmouth Patent was granted by New York's Governor, John Nicoli, to a group of Englishmen from Long Island. This Patent included most of the Township within its boundaries, and was granted shortly after Governor Nicoli, acting on behalf of James, Duke of York (and brother of King of England) ousted Peter Stuyvesant and ended Dutch sovereignty over the New Amsterdam colony of New Jersey-New York in 1665.

During the revolution, Jackson heard the marching of General Clinton's army in it's retreat from Philadelphia to New York, in June, 1778, the mighty British Army used the Monmouth Road (Route 537) on its way to the Battle of Monmouth, harassed as it passed through Jackson, by contingents of the American Army on both flanks.

While the legislature proclaimed that the creation of townships was to provide local petitioners with a separate entity within which these citizens might direct their own destinies. Jackson Township and others were created by the legislature in an attempt at retaining political control of the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders. The Jacksonian Democrats (Locofoco Party) were on the brink of losing their majority of the Monmouth Board as the Whig Party gained increasing popular supporting the more urbanized townships of the County. And as each township was created by the Legislature, that township was allowed to elect two additional Freeholders to the County Board as the new township's representatives.

In 1844, with the creation of Jackson and Millstone Townships, four freeholders were added to the Monmouth County Board. Plumsted's creation in 1845 added two more. Atlantic Township in 1847, and Marlboro and Ocean in 1849, added six more. The number of seats on the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders rapidly rose from fifteen in 1843, to thirty-two members by 1849. In 1849, it was by far the largest Freeholder Board in all of the eighteen counties of the state, and hastened the creation of the following year of a new Ocean County from the lower townships of old Monmouth in March, 1850.

How did Jackson get it's name? The version which is confirmed by 1865 recollection of the retired Governor, George Fort, is that Jackson Township was named in honor of the then ex-president, Andrew Jackson. This version is further buttressed by the fact that at the same time theTownship was created, the name of it's largest village, Goshen, was renamed Cassville. Cassville was renamed in honor of General Lewis Cass, President Jackson's Secretary of War. The conservative citizenry of the area still held both men in high esteem, even though they had both left their respective offices some six years prior to the creation of Jackson Township. Legislative approval was sought for the creation of the new township from a State Legislature whose majority were members of the surviving Jacksonian Democratic Party.

Jackson Township, until the most recent thirty-five years of the Twentieth century, has maintained a rural farming atmosphere with the existence of numerous grist (flour) and saw mills, as well as small villages at the more important road intersections. An occasional post office and general store, as well as one-room schoolhouses dotted the countryside prior to 1848. In that year, the first consolidated Elementary School was opened as Switlik School.

Coupling the fact of a rural settlement pattern with the massive forest fires which raged through the Township, destroying everything in their destructive path, it is a small wonder that any long standing historic items remain. And yet, a few outstanding items may be found.

At least six veterans of the American Revolution rest in the cemeteries of the Methodist Churches. The Cook House on Cooks Bridge Road has withstood the elements since its erection in 1750 by the Reynolds family. Jamison's General Store, with its added historic value as a Post Office until 1960, stands in operation for more than 100 years, when Van Hiseville was known as Irish Mills.

Some of the township's one-room schoolhouses stand today, converted into private homes, but the living monuments of the rural school system of the Township prior to the construction of the Switlik Elementary School. Schoolhouses may yet be found at Leesville, Hyson, Holmansville and Pleasant Grove. Six other school houses of the rural system no longer exist. The Prospertown Schoolhouse serves as a museum at the municipal complex.

Churches, initially Protestant denomination and mostly Methodist-Episcopal, were established during the revival of the mid 1800-s. Methodist churches survive throughout the Township. The Cassville Methodist church was organized in the early 1840's and erected its first log church in 1844. Holmansville Presbyterian was organized in 1847 as the first of that sect in the county. And a Holmansville Methodist sect reorganized in 1869, utilizing the Presbyterian facility. Pleasant Grove Methodist church organized prior to 1850, while Whitesville Methodist church was organized in 1860. During the early years of the formation of these churches, the Mormons were active as a sect, utilizing the Holmansville church prior to its reorganization as Presbyterian,; while Baptists erected a church near Prospertown. Other Methodist churches organized in the 1860-1870 era but dies before the turn of the century, at Colliers Mills, Leesville, Jackson Mills and Webville.

In addition to these churches, eleven more complete the modern day religious spectrum of the community. They are the DeBow Methodist church (1896), Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, St. Vladimire Russian Orthodox, St. Mary's Russian Orthodox, St. Monica R.C., St. Aloysius R.C., The Jewish Community Center, the Brook Road Temple, the Baptist Church (erected in 1976), the Community Church at Holmansville and the Jesus Harvest Home Church (1992).

The remains of speculative attempts in 1905 and again in the 1920's to "bring in" commercial oilwell production, may yet be found near the Jackson Mills Lake, where an eight inch casing pokes its head above the earth's surface. Another well was initiated during the same era on the Van Hiseville-Cassville Road (Route 528), but this too died without producing a drop of commercial oil. In all, five speculative wells were sunk in Jackson.

Foundation remains of some of the early grist mills and saw mills and their earthen dams, may yet be found at Prospertown, Francis Mills, Van Hiseville, Bennetts Mills and Jackson Mills. At the latter of two sites, today's streets traverse the crest of the original dame.

Postal delivery service was not centralized until September 1, 1960, when the main post office, with rural delivery routes, as established at Cassville. Prior to that time, each settlement center had its own General Delivery located in the General Store. Whitesville, Jackson Mills, Bennetts Mills, Van Hiseville, Cassville, and Prospertown were among the General Delivery locations where the surrounding citizens periodically came to check whether they had received any mail. In 1974, the Main Post Office was relocated from Cassville to Bennetts Mills to meet the population shift generated by the construction of the Brookwood developments. The Cassville location has become a sub-station.

Service and Civic organizations abound in the community and include a Volunteer First Aid Squad and four Volunteer Fire Companies. Today the number of organizations has grown to 65; all activity contribution toward the good and the well being to the Jackson community.