Blackwells Mills Canal House
Encyclopedia
Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey
-Communities of Franklin Township:The following are census-designated places, unincorporated enclaves, and historical communities located within Franklin Township...
, USA, on the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
. Across the canal is Blackwells Mills, New Jersey
Blackwells Mills, New Jersey
Blackwells Mills is a census-designated place located within Franklin Township and Hillsborough Township in Somerset County, New Jersey.Blackwells Mills is situated on the west bank of the Millstone River about two miles south of Millstone. A mill was first built there in 1746 by Peter Schenk...
.
History
The house was built around 1835, at the same time as the canal, to house the bridge tender. The bridge tender would open the swing bridge when canal boats came through, then close it to allow traffic to cross over the canal. In 1932, the canal closed and the swing bridges were dismantled. The house and the canal were transferred to the state of New Jersey. The last bridge tender, Sandor Fekete, lived in the house for forty more years until he died in 1970. In 1971 the Blackwells Mills Canal House Association was formed, and they leased the house from the state and began to restore it as a community center, museum, and library. The adjacent Delaware and Raritan CanalDelaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
was made a state and national historic site and later became a New Jersey State Park. The house is currently maintained by the Meadows Foundation
Meadows Foundation
The Meadows Foundation of Somerset County, New Jersey is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1978. It oversaw the restoration of seven historic houses in Somerset. The homes are on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places.-Houses:* Van Liew-Suydam...
.
Sandor Fekete
Sandor Fekete was the last bridge tender. He was born in 1879, in Sokoró Pátka, HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
to József Fekete and Paulina Pár. He emigrated from Hungary via Antwerp, Belgium to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He left Antwerp in 1906 at the age of 27. His final destination was the Hungarian community in New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, USA. It is the county seat and the home of Rutgers University. The city is located on the Northeast Corridor rail line, southwest of Manhattan, on the southern bank of the Raritan River. At the 2010 United States Census, the population of...
. Sandor married and his children include: Anne Fekete; Sandor Fekete II (1906-1983) who was born in Hungary and lived in Princeton and worked as a bridge tender also; Mary Fekete; Helen Fekete; Frank Fekete; Elizabeth Fekete; John Fekete who married Regina Marie Case; and Margaret Fekete. By 1907 he saved enough money to send for his wife who was still in Hungary. It would be another fifteen years before his two oldest children would come to the United States. His first job was laying brick and breaking up rocks along the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
. Later he was promoted to a supervisor for a work boats that made repairs along the canal. He was then promoted to foreman of a twenty-eight-man work crew. During this time he lived in an apartment on Conduct Street in New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, USA. It is the county seat and the home of Rutgers University. The city is located on the Northeast Corridor rail line, southwest of Manhattan, on the southern bank of the Raritan River. At the 2010 United States Census, the population of...
. In 1916 he was promoted to locktender in Griggstown, New Jersey
Griggstown, New Jersey
Griggstown is an unincorporated area and a historic district within Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey. It was first settled around 1733.-Selected sites:* * Griggstown Quail Farm...
. He died in 1970.
See also
- Meadows FoundationMeadows FoundationThe Meadows Foundation of Somerset County, New Jersey is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1978. It oversaw the restoration of seven historic houses in Somerset. The homes are on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places.-Houses:* Van Liew-Suydam...
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Somerset County, New Jersey