LAKEHURST – Residents learned the fascinating story of how the two closely knit communities of Manchester and Lakehurst were formed including their industry, agriculture, environment, recreation areas and the people who made these communities unique.
Librarian Michael Mahoney delved into the history during the latest Lakehurst Historical Society meeting which drew a good-sized crowd to the borough’s community center.
Mahoney has been a librarian for the Ocean County Library system for 16 years, eight of which was at the Manchester branch. The PowerPoint presentation he used had been developed by another librarian and he had modified it in recent years. He started off with the historical figure of Henry Hudson.
A PowerPoint presentation examining the history of Manchester Township (and Lakehurst Borough too) begins during a Lakehurst Historical Society meeting that drew a nice sized crowd at the Lakehurst Community Center. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
Hudson (1565-1611) was a British explorer who worked for the Dutch East India Company. Mahoney noted that, “He discovered the Hudson Bay, Hudson River. He went down all the way to Barnegat Bay. In 1611during his last expedition, he got stuck in ice during the winter in Canda. His crew mutinied on him and placed him and his son and bunch of other people on a boat and he was never heard from again.”
“While that was a treasonous offense, they brought the boat back to England, but no one was ever hung or tarred and feathered for it, so poor Henry Hudson was lost at sea,” Mahoney said.
Later in the presentation he noted that New Jersey had been split into two sections – East and West Jersey – under British control. At one time the governor of New York wanted to take over the state going so far as to send his men to arrest the governor of New Jersey.
Under Queen Ann, New Jersey became a unified state. Ocean County would later break away from Monmouth County in 1850. On April 6, 1855, eight days before President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, “Manchester New Jersey was founded,” Mahoney said.
Mahoney added that in 1897, Lakehurst was founded. It was then known as Manchester Village, where all business was done. Lakehurst became its own town in 1921.
The area was known for farming, brick making and harvesting bog iron. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
“The founder of Manchester is Mr. William Torrey, also known as the king of the pines. He was born in New York in 1798. He married Adeline Biltmore who was the daughter of a rich banker. For some reason her father did not like Mr. Torrey but he left them land in this area – over 7,000 acres – but he didn’t get down here until 1841,” Mahoney told the audience.
“He built the Raritan and Delaware Bay Railroad. The headquarters was in Lakehurst. In 1862 the railroad carried 17,500 Union troops and became New Jersey’s southern railroad in 1869,” the librarian added.
Mahoney noted that the area was very rich in iron production, particularly bog iron. “That was iron that could be taken out of the water using a long wooden sled.” Also noted were grist mills and brick making operations prevalent in the area.
Manchester Township Librarian Michael Mahoney taught some local history at the Lakehurst Historical Society meeting. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
Society President Bernadette Dugan clarified a reference made during the presentation about a former Russian Embassy based in the borough.
“It actually wasn’t an embassy but it did house Russian officers (of a munitions testing site of the Imperial Russian Army circa 1916 prior to the Russian revolution). The structure is still around and is located on Pine and Elm Street,” she said.
While it is often referred to as the site of a former Russian Embassy, this Lakehurst based residence actually wasn’t an embassy but it did house officers of a munitions testing site of the Imperial Russian Army circa 1916 prior to the Russian revolution. It is located on Pine and Elm Street. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
Society Vice President George Oglesby noted that at one time Lakehurst was in consideration to be the county seat due its prominence “and it lost out by one vote to Toms River.”
In many ways it all started with Henry Hudson (1565-1611) and the Dutch East India Company. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
“We were the cat’s meow and Manchester was just a bunch of charcoal pits. If you come to our museum for tours, you’ll learn lots of things like a Jack Nicholson’s father’s connection. There are all sorts of little things you can find out Sundays and Wednesdays from 12:30 to 3 p.m. We’re not just disasters,” Dugan said in reference to the Hindenburg which the borough is known by worldwide.
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