If you study the history of Evesham, you'll learn that the original residents settled in a few villages throughout town. Most of those village names will sound familiar - Cropwell, Kresson, Marlton, Evesboro. But there are two villages that will be unfamiliar to most people - Crowfoot and Jacques Bridge. While Crowfoot can be easily located on many early maps, finding Jacques Bridge proves to be more of a challenge.
A decade later, in 1938, however, the Evesham School District determined it would be cheaper to bus the children to the Marlton School than to continue busing them to Berlin. Yearly tuition in Berlin was $2,400 per child, with Evesham paying $1,755 and the state paying the rest. "It is said, that with the proposed improvement of the Kettle Run Road, it will become possible to transport pupils from the Jacques Bridge district to the Marlton school, instead of to Berlin, as heretofore, thereby effecting a considerable saving to local taxpayers. (4)" The repairs to Kettle Run Road were delayed several years, causing the buses to have to take a much longer trip to the Marlton School.
There were 60 children in Jacques Bridge being sent to Berlin at the time, and local residents fought against the change. The Marlton School day began 30 minutes earlier than the Berlin school, and combined with the longer commute (9 miles to Marlton rather than 3 to Berlin) would mean the children would need to wake up an hour earlier. The 'Jacques Bridge Political Club' was formed to protect the interest of Jacques Bridge residents. They attended several School Board meetings and fought against the change.
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| Kresson, Marlton, Evesboro, Cropwell and Crowfoot highlighted. The arrow points to where Jacques Bridge was. Map from 1912. |
Jacques Bridge (also known as Jacque's Bridge, Jake's Bridge and Jack's Bridge) was located in the southern-most part of town, near the Atco/Waterford border. It was frequently referred to as a 'German Settlement' in 1880s news accounts, and many of the names appearing in those newspaper articles were indeed of German origin. Church services were held every other Sunday in German by the Reverend J. Gobel (also spelled Goebel). Curiously, when the settlement was written about in the newspaper, 'Evesham' was rarely mentioned - it was usually referred to as 'Jacques Bridge, near Atco'. Part of the reason for this is because of how dependent upon the railways early settlements were. While the northern end of Evesham had a few train stations on the Philadelphia-Marlton-Medford line, both Crowfoot and Jacques Bridge were closer to the Pennsylvania Railroad's Camden & Atlantic line, with stations in Atco and Bishop's Bridge. When crops were ready to be sold, it was a much easier trip to the Atco station than anywhere else.
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| Northern Evesham was served by rail stops at Cropwell and Marlton. Southern Evesham was closer to stations in Waterford Township. Dark lines incidate rail lines. |
The residents of Jacques Bridge were mostly farmers, harvesting cranberries, strawberries, grapes and peaches, among other crops. The cedar swamps where the cranberries were grown were intentionally flooded in winter, to turn the area into skating ponds for local youth. In 1885, the Pennsylvania Railroad added a crossing platform over the Mullica River to accommodate the Jacques Bridge farmers. (The Mullica River was referred to on some maps as the Pennsauken Creek, the Tuscomusco Creek, the Atsion River, the Little Egg Harbor River and a few other names.) The Mullica River serves as the southern boundary between Evesham and Waterford, as well as between Burlington and Camden Counties.
Life wasn't easy in Jacques Bridge. There was a Typhoid Fever outbreak in 1888, forest fires in 1885 and April 1900, and the 'Hog Cholera' outbreak in nearby Marlton and Medford reached Jacques Bridge in late September of 1886, devastating the local pig population. There was also an outbreak of 'Black Diphtheria' in 1896.
"Black diphtheria has broken out near Atco, NJ and the public school at Jacques Bridge has been ordered closed, to prevent a spread of the contagion among the scholars. Nearly all of the family of Gottlieb Frank are down with it and one death has resulted. A young son of Frank's died on Tuesday. The other members of the family will probably recover. (1) "
That same Gottlieb Frank, who lost a child in 1896 to Black Diphtheria, also died in 1896, after "having the life crushed out of him under the wheels of his own wagon...he was thrown from the wagon...and the wheel of the wagon passed over his neck, dislocating the spinal column and causing instant death." (2)
"Black diphtheria has broken out near Atco, NJ and the public school at Jacques Bridge has been ordered closed, to prevent a spread of the contagion among the scholars. Nearly all of the family of Gottlieb Frank are down with it and one death has resulted. A young son of Frank's died on Tuesday. The other members of the family will probably recover. (1) "
That same Gottlieb Frank, who lost a child in 1896 to Black Diphtheria, also died in 1896, after "having the life crushed out of him under the wheels of his own wagon...he was thrown from the wagon...and the wheel of the wagon passed over his neck, dislocating the spinal column and causing instant death." (2)
Children in Jacques Bridge were educated in a one-room school house that was built in 1876. "The new district, No. 83, Jacques Bridge, has just completed a new house, and although small, it is sufficiently large and comfortable to satisfy all the demands likely to be made upon it for years (3)." (The district number changed from 83 to 88 a few years later.)
By 1883, there were 41 school-age children in the district, but only 20 children were actually registered for school, and the average daily attendance was only 9.
In 1928, the decision was made to close the school. At the time, there were 35 children in the school. The Evesham School District made arrangements to bus those children to schools in Berlin, as it was more cost effective than to bus them to distant Evesham schools.
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| Jacques Bridge one room school house - Photo courtesy of John Flack Jr |
By 1883, there were 41 school-age children in the district, but only 20 children were actually registered for school, and the average daily attendance was only 9.
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| Source: History of Burlington and Mercer Counties, 1883. |
In 1928, the decision was made to close the school. At the time, there were 35 children in the school. The Evesham School District made arrangements to bus those children to schools in Berlin, as it was more cost effective than to bus them to distant Evesham schools.
A decade later, in 1938, however, the Evesham School District determined it would be cheaper to bus the children to the Marlton School than to continue busing them to Berlin. Yearly tuition in Berlin was $2,400 per child, with Evesham paying $1,755 and the state paying the rest. "It is said, that with the proposed improvement of the Kettle Run Road, it will become possible to transport pupils from the Jacques Bridge district to the Marlton school, instead of to Berlin, as heretofore, thereby effecting a considerable saving to local taxpayers. (4)" The repairs to Kettle Run Road were delayed several years, causing the buses to have to take a much longer trip to the Marlton School.
There were 60 children in Jacques Bridge being sent to Berlin at the time, and local residents fought against the change. The Marlton School day began 30 minutes earlier than the Berlin school, and combined with the longer commute (9 miles to Marlton rather than 3 to Berlin) would mean the children would need to wake up an hour earlier. The 'Jacques Bridge Political Club' was formed to protect the interest of Jacques Bridge residents. They attended several School Board meetings and fought against the change.
Eventually the measure was put to the voters of Evesham, and amid allegations of dishonesty, the town voted overwhelmingly to bus the children to the new Marlton School, by a vote of 166 to 49.
Beulah Church opened in Jacques Bridge in 1929, though it only lasted a few years there before it moved to Berlin.
After the mid 1940s, 'Jacques Bridge' was no longer mentioned in the newspaper, aside from a few classified ads and obituaries. The only exception to that was in 1958, after Evesham properties were reassessed and taxes were increased, it was claimed by local residents that taxes in the Jacques Bridge section went up more than in other areas, and the residents planned to file tax appeals.
So where was Jacques Bridge? According to "Open Space and Recreation Plan for the Township of Evesham", published in December 2012 by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, "Jacques Bridge is bordered by the Mullica River, Mill Road, and Kettle Run Road."
I have been unable to determine who Jacques is and why a bridge was named after him. I don't feel so bad however, after reading an article called "Inside Historian William Farr's 40 Year Quest to Get It Right", the article notes:
"Down on the upper reaches of the Mullica River at Atco," he said, "there is a place and a bridge called 'Jacques Bridge.' In documents it is spelled many ways. But look as I might, I have not been able to find out who Jacques was or how the place came to take his name." (5)
I drove around the area looking for any historical markers, signs or plaques, but I didn't find any. If you know of any, let me know. I'll end this blog with a few headlines from the era. The times were different then, and unusual things made the news. I'll start it off with my favorite Evesham headline ever.
"Eight valuable pear trees belonging to Henry Treat, a fruit farmer living near Jacque's Bridge, were cut down by some miscreant a few nights ago. No one can form the slightest idea who the vandal is for Mr Treat has not an enemy in the world, and the only explanation that can be offered for the act is that of pure cussedness" - Camden Daily Courier 2/1/1886
"A large party of young ladies and gentlemen from Berlin and Atco visited the pond at Jacque's Bridge on Tuesday night and skated by moonlight until midnight. A mammoth bonfire kindled on the middle of the shore line provided a grateful head for the merry party" - Camden Daily Courier 1/5/1887
"Evesham Township Board Hires - Charles Wynocker was appointed bus driver of the Jacques' Bridge bus on his bid of $2.75 per day." - Evening Courier, Camden NJ, 8/20/1932
"A horse belonging to Gottlieb Frank was injured a few days ago by striking a stump while ploughing new ground" - Camden Daily Courier, 6/6/1887
"A pig belonging to Peter Webb of Jacques Bridge was killed by lightning" - Camden Daily Courier 7/31/1886
UPDATE 1/8/2019
While writing this blog, I found it very frustrating that I could find no evidence of Jacques Bridge on any old maps. Turns out, I should be looking at new maps. On the official Burlington County map that the State of NJ uses, Jacques Bridge is indeed on there.
Update 11/17/2019
I found Jacques Bridge on another map, this one dates from 1900.
(1) New York Times, reprinted from the Philadelphia Times, 2/23/1896
(2) Camden Daily Telegram, 12/15/1896
(3) Documents of the One Hundred and First Legislature of the State of New Jersey, 1877
(4) Courier Post, 7/23/1936
(5) http://historiccamdencounty.com/ccnews53.shtml
Beulah Church opened in Jacques Bridge in 1929, though it only lasted a few years there before it moved to Berlin.
After the mid 1940s, 'Jacques Bridge' was no longer mentioned in the newspaper, aside from a few classified ads and obituaries. The only exception to that was in 1958, after Evesham properties were reassessed and taxes were increased, it was claimed by local residents that taxes in the Jacques Bridge section went up more than in other areas, and the residents planned to file tax appeals.
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| The bridge of Jacques Bridge would have been here. This is, literally, A View From Evesham into Waterford |
So where was Jacques Bridge? According to "Open Space and Recreation Plan for the Township of Evesham", published in December 2012 by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, "Jacques Bridge is bordered by the Mullica River, Mill Road, and Kettle Run Road."
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| Jacques Bridge bordered by the river (dotted line), Kettle Run Rd and Mill Rd, contains a lot of farmland, even today |
I have been unable to determine who Jacques is and why a bridge was named after him. I don't feel so bad however, after reading an article called "Inside Historian William Farr's 40 Year Quest to Get It Right", the article notes:
"Down on the upper reaches of the Mullica River at Atco," he said, "there is a place and a bridge called 'Jacques Bridge.' In documents it is spelled many ways. But look as I might, I have not been able to find out who Jacques was or how the place came to take his name." (5)
I drove around the area looking for any historical markers, signs or plaques, but I didn't find any. If you know of any, let me know. I'll end this blog with a few headlines from the era. The times were different then, and unusual things made the news. I'll start it off with my favorite Evesham headline ever.
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| The Evening Courier, Camden NJ 4/19/1945. While not noted in this article, this was to be a 'garbage fed' piggery. |
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| Mangled By A Hog - Wyoming Democrat, Tunkhannock, PA - 11/13/1885 |
"Eight valuable pear trees belonging to Henry Treat, a fruit farmer living near Jacque's Bridge, were cut down by some miscreant a few nights ago. No one can form the slightest idea who the vandal is for Mr Treat has not an enemy in the world, and the only explanation that can be offered for the act is that of pure cussedness" - Camden Daily Courier 2/1/1886
"A large party of young ladies and gentlemen from Berlin and Atco visited the pond at Jacque's Bridge on Tuesday night and skated by moonlight until midnight. A mammoth bonfire kindled on the middle of the shore line provided a grateful head for the merry party" - Camden Daily Courier 1/5/1887
"Evesham Township Board Hires - Charles Wynocker was appointed bus driver of the Jacques' Bridge bus on his bid of $2.75 per day." - Evening Courier, Camden NJ, 8/20/1932
"A horse belonging to Gottlieb Frank was injured a few days ago by striking a stump while ploughing new ground" - Camden Daily Courier, 6/6/1887
"A pig belonging to Peter Webb of Jacques Bridge was killed by lightning" - Camden Daily Courier 7/31/1886
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| Evening Courier - 7/9/1928 |
While writing this blog, I found it very frustrating that I could find no evidence of Jacques Bridge on any old maps. Turns out, I should be looking at new maps. On the official Burlington County map that the State of NJ uses, Jacques Bridge is indeed on there.
Update 11/17/2019
I found Jacques Bridge on another map, this one dates from 1900.
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(1) New York Times, reprinted from the Philadelphia Times, 2/23/1896
(2) Camden Daily Telegram, 12/15/1896
(3) Documents of the One Hundred and First Legislature of the State of New Jersey, 1877
(4) Courier Post, 7/23/1936
(5) http://historiccamdencounty.com/ccnews53.shtml