Delsea Region
INDUSTRY AND TRADE - Fishing and boat building have been associated
with the New Jersey coast since the days of the Lenape Indians. By the 1900s,
boat building and other maritime industries were supported by the thriving
oyster trade in the Delaware Bay. Shad, sturgeon, and crab fishing complemented
the shellfish industry.
Cargo and trade ships carried New Jersey agricultural goods to ports up and
down both seacoasts. Today, remnants of 19th and early 20th century maritime
economies can be found in fishing vessels working the Bay and in small industries
found along tidal rivers. Modern examples of traditional trades such as boat
building, still survive. Towns with evocative names like Bivalve and Shellpile
support maritime industries, carrying the past into the present.
AIDS TO NAVIGATION - The Delaware River continues to be a major shipping
channel for ocean-going vessels as well as local trade ships. Varying depths
and channels in the river prompted the industry to develop navigational aids
to guide and direct the increasing number of vessels. Dangerous shoals were
marked with lights to keep ships from running aground. Many lights, such as
the Ship John Shoal Light, though difficult to see from the mainland, are
still used today. Range lights, used in pairs, allowed ships to pinpoint their
location. The Captain would sight along the two lights, one taller than the
other, and by maintaining their alignment, he could be assured that his ship
was in the safe channel.
Tributaries opening into the Delaware Bay spawned small lighthouses for the
many fishing and recreational boats. East
Point Light is one of the few still standing. Its automatic light identifies
the entrance to the Maurice River.
COASTAL DEFENSE - During the Revolutionary War, British and American
fighting ships engaged in a number of skirmishes for control of the Delaware
River. Many coastal communities became involved in the War for Independence-Greenwich
had its own "Tea Party," and Hancock
House State Historic Site at Hancocks Bridge, has been preserved to commemorate
the site of a 1778 massacre of colonial patriots.
The threat of war with Spain led to the 1890s construction of Fort
Mott to protect the port of Philadelphia. Its big guns could be loaded,
fired, and then "disappear" behind the protection of a camouflaged
earthen and concrete wall that blended into the landscape. Enemy ships would
generally never see the weapons firing upon them.
Finn's Point National Cemetery was
designated as a burial ground for Confederate prisoners who died in prison
at Fort Delaware. Approximately 2,400 Confederate and 300 Union soldiers are
buried in the cemetery.
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Cape May & Absecon Regions
INDUSTRY AND TRADE - Tradition holds that on the island of Brigantine
the Lenape Indians used the abundant clam shells to make wampum. Later, during
the 17th century, Cape May's prosperous whaling industry encouraged pioneering
settlers to build year-round communities. Although overhunting of cow whales
ended this profitable venture by the mid-eighteenth century, the communities
remained.
By late eighteenth century, these coastal settlements began to rely on other
forms of commercial enterprise: fishing, farming, cattle, and shipbuilding.
As far inland as Mays Landing and Tuckahoe, boats were built along tidal streams
and floated down to the bay and ocean. New Jersey's plentiful supply of good
lumber supported this fast growing industry.
The population of the Absecon and Cape May regions boomed in the 1850s with
the building of railroads and the development of resort towns, such as Atlantic
City.
AIDS TO NAVIGATION - Lighthouses on the Atlantic coast guided ships
along the busy and often dangerous shoreline. Absecon and Cape May lighthouses
directed ships north to New York City and south to the Delaware Bay for the
journey to Philadelphia. Smaller lighthouses, such as the Hereford
Inlet Lighthouse, warned of shoals (where the water is shallow and difficult
to navigate) and marked the openings to safe passage and harbors.
Sometimes, even lighthouses were unsuccessful in protecting offshore maritime
traffic. By the 1890s, the United States Life Saving Service had constructed
stations along the Atlantic seaboard, with one every 31/2 miles along the
New Jersey coast. These stations contained crews and equipment to rescue shipwreck
victims. Today, the U.S. Coast Guard performs this emergency service. Many
of the 19th century Life Saving Service stations can still be seen, although
some have been converted for use as private homes and offices.
COASTAL DEFENSE - During the Revolutionary War, the secluded inlets
and harbors of the New Jersey coast were often the site of skirmishes between
British and American ships. In Port Republic, a marker commemorates the town
of Chestnut Neck, burned by the British in retaliation for the many privateers
who used its harbor to dart out, surprise, and then plunder British supply
ships.
The strategic importance of Cape May was articulated during WWII when the
Army built a large, concrete gun battery to guard against a possible naval
invasion. The Cape May Canal was constructed to provide Navy ships safe passage
from the Delaware Bay to the ocean without having to face possible danger
from enemy submarines.
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Barnegat Bay Region
INDUSTRY AND TRADE - The Barnegat Bay Sneakbox, a small, shallow draft,
broad-beamed sailing boat, was designed in the 1830s to be easily poled up
into the reeds and camouflaged. Originally used as a duck blind, the design
was so popular that it was adapted and produced in a variety of sizes for
different uses. Examples of the Sneakbox and other boats native to the New
Jersey coast can be found at the Toms River Seaport Society Museum.
Because of the relative abundance of lumber, boat and shipbuilding became
major industries during the 19th century. Today, fishing-both commercial and
sport-is the basis of the region's economy.
AIDS TO NAVIGATION - The Intercoastal Waterway, a series of protected
passages hugging the shoreline, allows small ships to travel the east coast
without being subjected to the perils of the open sea. The north entrance
is located in Manasquan Inlet near Point Pleasant. It follows the Atlantic
shoreline in protected back bays, south to Cape May and into the Delaware
River.
Lighthouses guide ships along the busy and often dangerous mid-Atlantic coast.
Barnegat Lighthouse marked the
entrance to Barnegat Bay and served as a reference point for trans-Atlantic
mariners.
Sometimes, lighthouses were unsuccessful in warning ships of dangerous shoals
and rocky reefs. By the 1890s, the United States Life Saving Service had constructed
stations every 31/2 miles along the New Jersey coast. These stations maintained
crews and equipment to rescue shipwrecked victims. Today, the U.S. Coast Guard
performs these emergency functions. Many of the 19th century Life Saving Service
stations have been converted for use as private homes and offices. An example
of a former Life Saving Service Station can be seen at Island Beach State Park.
COASTAL DEFENSE - During the Revolutionary War, the fledgling United
States supplemented its small navy with privateers. New Jersey's secluded
coves and inlets provided safe haven for many of these privateers who were
encouraged to harass and capture enemy vessels.
Coastal areas were also a source of salt, a crucial commodity widely used
for preserving food. Skirmishes for control of these productive saltworks
occurred frequently during the war.
During WWI, the town of Tuckerton became famous when the U.S. Navy discovered
an 820 foot high radio tower the Germans were building on Mystic Island. President
Woodrow Wilson seized the tower for American use. The tall tower is gone now,
but the concrete building still remains.
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Sandy Hook Region
INDUSTRY & TRADE - Fishing and boat building
have been associated with the coast since the days of the Lenape. From Manasquan
north to Sandy Hook and along the Raritan Bay to Perth Amboy,
fishermen, clammers and oystermen thrived on the ocean’s bounty. The
Bayshore’s modern fishing industry survives with Belford's Seafood CO-OP.
Other commercial fishing fleets, such as Leonardo’s, have dissolved and the docks have evolved into recreational
marinas.
Sailboats and steamships, built in Keyport through the end
of the nineteenth century, are remembered at Keyport's Steamboat Dock Museum.
Trains and steamboats were a common sight along the shore, bringing visitors
to summer homes and playgrounds. Fishing villages had become "resorts,"
and "tourism" was the new industry.
AIDS TO NAVIGATION - Coastal trading and
shipping routes were often hazardous, especially during winter storms. Lighthouses
were constructed as early as the 1700s to warn ships of potential dangers.
The Sandy Hook Light was built in 1764 by New York City merchants to ensure
the safe arrival of their merchandise. It is the oldest continuously operating
lighthouse in the United States. Two lights existed at Navesink Heights as
early as 1828, and were upgraded in 1862 with the construction of Twin Lights.
In spite of the lighthouses, ships would often hit offshore
sandbars, shoals, and other submerged hazards. In 1848, eight small huts were
constructed from Sandy Hook to Long Beach to house small boats and rescue
equipment. These were the nucleus of what would become the United States Life
Saving Service (USLSS). Of the eight, the Spermaceti Cove Lifeboat Station
survives and is on display at Twin Lights State Historic
Site. By the 1890s, stations were located all along
the Atlantic seaboard with one every 3½ miles along the New Jersey coast.
USLSS Station #2, at Spermaceti Cove on Sandy Hook, was built in 1894 and
is now the park visitor center for the Sandy Hook Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area.
COASTAL DEFENSE - Ships sailing the coastal
waterways, carrying trade goods, troops, and provisions, sometimes entered
New Jersey’s ports to load and offload their cargo. Coastal defenses
were built to protect port cities, harbors, and critically located bridges
and rivers. During the American Revolution, the Sandy Hook Light was a military
target for both the American and British forces due to its strategic location
at the entrance to the British occupied New York Harbor. Enclosed masonry
forts became obsolete after the Civil War, so the United States Army built
new fortifications to defend the harbor entrance.
On Sandy Hook, guns were developed that could load, fire,
and "disappear" behind the protection of a camouflaged concrete
wall that blended into the landscape. Unsuspecting ships would never see the
weapons firing upon them. Nike missiles replaced the disappearing guns in
the 1950s as our nation’s first line of defense. Advances in technology
led to the introduction of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, making coastal
defense fortifications and Nike missiles obsolete.
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