Tags: Cumberland County, Ghost Town, Ruins

Probably one of the least visited and least known ghost towns in southern New Jersey, Fries Mill can be found in the Manumuskin River Preserve. The “official” way to get to it involves a 1.25 mile hike, though it seems there’s a way for ATV’s and dirt bikes to get there as well (both of which are illegal in the preserve; be responsible and just hike to it).

I had a book signing in Vineland one weekend, and I knew it would be the only time for a long time I’d be in the area. So I woke up about 4 hours earlier than planned and hoped I’d have time to both hike the 2.5 mile round trip and find the ghost town. I had some trouble finding the beginning of the trail but I managed. I pretty much jogged the first half mile or so, trying to buy myself as much time as I could. About 20 minutes into my trek I came across this:

A fireplace right along the water. I would find out this was a bit of a distance away from anything else. Before hunting down the rest of the town, I made a small side trip to see a place known as the Blue Lagoon, which was only a few hundred feet through the woods.

Unlike the Blue Hole, this was actually blue. Well, after the first few feet anyway. I heard some ATV’s across the water so I hurried back through the woods so they wouldn’t come over my way.

Back on the path, I finally came across even more ruins of Fries Mill. I found the remains of 2 buildings this time, right next to each other.

Here’s a tip. See that spiky plant in the corner there? If you ever come across one of these while hiking, chances are good you’re near a ghost town or ruins of some sort.

Farther up the trail is a sign that gives some information on the town and has a map of its layout. Across from the sign are your run-of-the-mill cellar holes.

Popularity: 23% [?]

Tags: Disaster, Historical, Military, Monument, Ocean County

I would like to thank the Lakehurst Naval Air Station, especially Larry Lyford, for granting me access to the monument.

Many people know what the Hindenburg is, but not many are aware the disaster occurred right in Lakehurst. On May 6, 1937, the Hindenburg, an 804 foot long zeppelin, burst into flames and came crashing down to the ground. Many of the passengers and crew died. The cause is still debated, but somehow the hydrogen-filled airship caught and in about half a minute was destroyed.

Today, there is a small blimp-shaped monument with a plaque in its center. The memorial is where the Hindenburg touched down that day. A good distance behind it is a huge hangar that housed the Hindenburg twice.

I first saw the Hindenburg crash site in 1992 when I was at an air show that the base used to hold annually. I went in the hangar too. Today, the field where the air show used to be held is overgrown.

Popularity: 62% [?]

Tags: Cemetery, Gloucester County

After finding the Olde Stone House Village and doing some research, I found out nearby Bunker Hill Presbyterian is home to the smallest registered graveyard in the state. It has only 4 graves, 3 of which have stones. 2 were just about unreadable; one was faint but the name and some information were fairly easy to see. I don’t know where exactly the 4th grave is or why it’s unmarked.

Bunker Hill Presbyterian has a history of moving around. The original church is actually one of the Village’s buildings. The newer incarnation of the church was also moved from its original location, about a block away. The cemetery is still in its original place, next to the manse. The manse is now a private residence. The property is almost on top of the graves; as you can see, a small garden is less than 2 feet from the cemetery. The driveway leading to the graves horseshoes around to the house next door.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Tags: Abandoned, Cumberland County, Military, Ruins

I had heard that bunkers of some sort could be found hidden in the woods near the Millville Airport. At first this made no sense to me, since Millville is a good distance away from both the bay & ocean. I kept hearing about them though and even had seen a photo, so I knew that something was there and I had to find whatever it was.
It took 2 tries, but I finally found an entrance. The woods across from the airport are a wildlife management area, so for much of the year all the gated entrances are closed. I managed to find a small trail that wasn’t gated.
About a third of a mile down the trail, I found a tiny, one room bunker to my left. It was probably smaller than my bedroom.

To the right was another identical bunker. Following the trail down, I found more. In all there are 6 small bunkers along the path.

Even farther down we came across an abandoned building. It was bigger than the bunkers but still relatively small. Nothing of note was inside.

So what was this place? Turns out these woods, along with the airport property across the street, were once part of the Millville Army Airfield, which was only around for a few years during World War II. After the war, the field was considered excessive to the army’s needs and given back to the town. Part was used for the current airport, and some became the wildlife management area.
Recently, bombs have been showing up in the woods as development pursues in the area.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Tags: Abandoned, Military, Ruins, Somerset County, Tower

Fair amount of photos. Go walk your dog. Or cat. Or ferret.

This was somewhat of an accidental find. We learned of an unused water tower with a geocache on top of it. Somehow Bill from LostinJersey found out an entire abandoned depot was not far from it as well. We decided to explore the depot area before going to the water tower.

Our goal far off in the distance.

At the time, we didn’t know what the place was or how long it had been abandoned. It turns out it’s the Belle Mead General Depot and it was abandoned sometime in the 1960’s. Mercury was stored here as well and according to some sources is currently leaking into the ground.

There weren’t too many buildings – one big one and a couple little ones. The area was huge and we did a good amount of walking. There are also several torn up rail lines.

Most of the buildings were far in the back.

Ah, finally…..the water tower.

The ascension.

The depot from the top of the tower…

Popularity: 18% [?]

Tags: Historical, Mercer County, Monument

Most people have heard of the “War of the Worlds” broadcast that caused the nation to panic back on October 30, 1938. Millions of people heard the live broadcast, performed by Orson Welles, describing Martians first landing and beginning their invasion in Grover’s Mill, and sadly many really believed the world was being invaded by aliens.

The monument is located in a small park – Van Nest Park – and pictures Mr. Welles, a UFO, and a family listening to the radio, terrified.

Popularity: 6% [?]