Bedminster,NJ blog

Friday, September 21, 2007

bedminster old building Slave Cemetery


Bedminster officials weigh their options
In 1988 on Thursday Jan 7th The Bernardsville News reported.. Lamington houses slave resting place. Slave burial ground exist in Bedminster.
Now called either Lamington Black Cemetery or Cowperthwaite African - American Burial Ground. located Route 523 Lamington..LAMINGTON BLACK CEMETERY
Now we are Once again at the crossroads, as to what to do with our by-gone history of the township of Bedminster.
The property in question is the site of the old municipal building on hillside ave. I have to admit it is an ugly building, even though in it day according to records found at the Bedminster Clarance Dillion Library.( The Evaluation of Structures In the Bedminster Village) The Building was complete in 1936 at a cost of about 15,500, This building was described in The Plainsfield Courier News as " The finest Municipally owned township head- quarters in Somerset county".. It continues... Historic maps show a cemetery, referred to in 1881 as having been "used years ago for the burial of colored people who were slaves." (located approx between the building and hillside Ave.)
Another record shows. The property 'Was owned by James Dow and his wife, They are the parents of Mrs. George Poulson of main St. The slave cemetery in the front yard. The Mellick's family slaves were buried here. The stones were still standing in 1910.
The township bought the land from one of the Dows---maybe Dave. One of the Dows committed suicide in the barn--- hung himself before WWII-- maybe Ellis Dow's Uncle. (AH)'

Moving Bodies is not new to Bedminster In 1998 The Bernardsville News reported the moving of head stones Of German Lutherans That Settled in the early 1700's They built A log Church called The Im Gegerge (on the mountain). 'When The Toll Brothers, The Developers, Of the Hills Development found dozens of buried remains, the builders
exhumed them and relocated them to a single grave in the Presbyterian Church in Pluckermin , The Headstones where moved to the Oldwick Lutheran Church.somersethill historical Society Historians are hoping the original headstones will be placed at a single grave at Pluckermin.'

SO What to do??? Do we make a memorial site for the Mellick's family Slaves on the property of the Old Municipal Building site..and exhume the remains placing them in a the Lamington Black cemetery with a head stone of the names of Mellick's Family Slaves?
I don't know.. Could the land be cursed?? After all The Uncle did hang himself. I'm Sure the workers of The old building have some stories tell.. I guess that would be up to Weird NJ. to investigate,weird nj