Capt. John Jeffries Burial Marker: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox nrhp |
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| name = Jeffries, Capt. John, Burial Marker |
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| nrhp_type = |
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| image = Capt. John Jeffries Burial Marker-01.jpg |
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| caption = Captain John Jeffries monument in the Scullville Bible Church cemetery September 5, 2012 |
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| location= Scullville Bible Church Cemetery, NJ Rte. 559, [[Somers Point, New Jersey]] |
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| lat_degrees = 39 |
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| lat_minutes = 20 |
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| lat_seconds = 55.88 |
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| lat_direction = N |
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| long_degrees = 74 |
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| long_minutes = 39 |
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| long_seconds = 39.12 |
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| long_direction = W |
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| coord_display = inline,title |
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| locmapin = USA New Jersey Atlantic County |
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| built = 1887 |
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| architect = |
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| architecture = |
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| added = June 14, 1984 |
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| area = |
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| governing_body = Private |
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| refnum = 84002511<ref name="nrhp">{{cite web | title=National Register of Historic Places | url=http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreghome.do?searchtype=natreghome | publisher=NRHP | work=Searchable database |accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> |
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| designated_other1_name = New Jersey Register of Historic Places |
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| designated_other1_abbr = NJRHP |
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| designated_other1_link = New Jersey Register of Historic Places |
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| designated_other1_date = May 1, 1984 |
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| designated_other1_number = 414<ref name=NJRHP>{{cite web | title=New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Atlantic County | url=http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/atlantic.pdf | publisher=NJ DEP - Historic Preservation Office | page=3 | date=June 4, 2012 | accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> |
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| designated_other1_num_position = bottom |
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| designated_other1_color = #ffc94b |
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}} |
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'''Capt. John Jeffries Burial Marker''' is an historic burial monument in the cemetery at '''Scullville Bible Church''', [[Somers Point, New Jersey]]. It was built in 1887 and added to both the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1984. |
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Capt. Jeffries (1829-1887) is known for his association with the ship ''Twenty One Friends'', which, following an incident at sea, floated without crew across the [[Atlantic Ocean]] for two years before being claimed and returned to service. |
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==The Monument== |
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[[File:Capt._John_Jeffries_Burial_Marker-03.jpg|thumb|left|Inscription on Capt. John Jeffries Burial Marker|Inscription on Capt. John Jeffries Burial Marker featuring the schooner “Twenty One Friends”.<ref name=HPOSurvey />]] |
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The Capt. John Jeffries burial marker is approximately {{convert|15|ft|m}} tall and the largest marker in the Scullville Bible Church cemetery. The church was built in 1866 and, at the time of his death, was named ''Palestine Bible Protestant Church''. The monument is made of marble and stands on a square brick base approximately {{convert|4|ft|m}} on each side. It is located in the Jeffries family plot behind the church, surrounded by other local-area family plots, many of which also date back to the [[19th century]]. The square center section features an inscription, and above that a [[Relief|bas-relief]] engraving of the ship associated with Jeffries—and the source of his historical fame—the ''Twenty One Friends''.<ref name=HPOSurvey>{{cite journal|last=Gearren|first=Joan|title=Survey of Cultural Resources of the Historic Era in the Watersheds of the Great Egg Harbor and Tuckahoe Rivers|journal=NJ Office of Cultural and Environmental Services, Historic Preservation Section|year=1981|issue=#108-30|url=http://www.nj.gov/dep/opra/|work=Obtained via Open Public Records Act, October 2, 2012}}</ref> Another smaller section above bears the initials “J.J.” and a draped urn is carved at the top of the monument. The center inscription reads: |
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''Capt. John Jeffries. Born Nov. 15, 1829. Died March 17th 1887. A member of the [[Knights_of_Pythias|K. of P.]]'' |
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==The Jeffries of Great Egg Harbor== |
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The Jeffries family can trace its [[genealogy]] back to [[18th-century]] [[Europe]]an settlers of [[Rhode Island]].<ref name=Jeffryes>{{cite book|last=Bennett|first=J. H.|title=The Jeffryes of Great Egg Harbor|year=1964}} cited in {{cite book|last=Nickles|first=Ann and J. H. Bennett|title=Sketches of Egg Harbor Township: Scullville|year=1964|publisher=Laureate Press, Inc.|location=Egg Harbor City, NJ|url=http://www.eht.com/history/Sketches/scullville/index.htm|accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> John Jeffries Sr. (1735-1810) from [[Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey|Egg Harbor]] earned a [[pension]] for his service during the [[American Revolutionary War]].<ref name=ARW-census>{{cite web|title=1840 Census of Pensioners and Revolutionary War Soldiers, Atlantic County, NJ|url=http://www.newhorizonsgenealogicalservices.com/1840-census-of-pensioners-nj-atlantic.htm|accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref><ref name=GEHTHS>{{cite web|last=Sheridan|first=June|title=Email RFI response from GEHTHS librarian|publisher=Greate Egg Harbour Township Historical Society Museum and Library|date=September 7, 2012}}</ref> The family owned land where Patcong Creek empties into [[Great Egg Harbor River]], and it was here they built a two-storey plantation house.<ref name=Sketches-Scullville>{{cite book|last=Nickles|first=Ann and J. H. Bennett|title=Sketches of Egg Harbor Township: Scullville|year=1964|publisher=Laureate Press, Inc.|location=Egg Harbor City, NJ|url=http://www.eht.com/history/Sketches/scullville/index.htm|accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> The area became known as '''Jeffries Landing''' and was an active port as well as later becoming a popular destination area for bathers.<ref name=Sketches-Scullville /> |
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The settlement that formed inland, north of Jeffries Landing, came to be called '''Jeffers''', also named after the family.<ref name=USTopoMap>{{cite web | title=USGS Topographical Map of NJ | url=http://historical.mytopo.com/getImage.asp?fname=gegg90sw.jpg&state=NJ | publisher=U.S. Geological Survey | date=1885 | accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> In the early 1900s, Jeffers was renamed [[Scullville, New Jersey|Scullville]], honoring a different family, the Sculls.<ref name=NJTowns>{{cite book|last=Martinelli|first=Patricia A.|title=New Jersey Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past|year=2012|publisher=Stackpole Books|isbn=0811709108|pages=66}}</ref> Currently, where Patcong Creek meets Great Egg Harbor River is still called Jeffries Landing. |
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John Sr. and his wife, Judiah, had three sons, one of whom was John Jeffries Jr. (1789-1834).<ref name=Jeffryes /><ref name=Sketches-Scullville /> In 1819 John Jeffries Jr. was named [[wharf]] master at Jeffries Landing, responsible for collecting the wharfage of 30 cents per day to dock there.<ref name=Sketches-Scullville /> In 1829, John Jr.’s wife, Isabell, gave birth to John III (1829-1887), who would grow up to become a [[sea captain]].<ref name=Sketches-Scullville /><ref name=NJTowns /> |
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Capt. John Jeffries III later lived along [[English Creek]], upstream from Jeffries Landing along the Great Egg Harbor River.<ref name=Sketches-Scullville /> He was married to Hannah Barrett Jeffries.<ref name=Jeffryes /><ref name=Sketches-Scullville /> |
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===Variations of the name=== |
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The family name can be seen spelled different ways; Jeffries, Jeffryes, Jeffrys and Jeffers appear with interchangeability although all reasonably refer to the same family.<ref name=Ashton /> Some evidence of this can be found within the penned family plot in Scullville (Palestine) Bible Church cemetery. On one side of the Captain, his wife Hannah “Jeffers” is buried and on the other side, his young son Samuel J. “Jeffers”. In between stands the monument to Capt. John “Jeffries”. |
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==Shipbuilding along Great Egg Harbor River== |
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The banks of Great Egg Harbor River, from [[Mays Landing, New Jersey|Mays Landing]] to Somers Point, were an ideal environment for [[shipbuilding]] in the century following the American Revolutionary War due to natural resources in the area.<ref name=Sketches-Shipbuilding>{{cite book|last=Crane|first=Richard Roberts|title=Sketches of Egg Harbor Township: Shipbuilding Along the Great Egg Harbor River|year=1964|publisher=Laureate Press, Inc.|location=Egg Harbor City, NJ|url=http://www.eht.com/history/Sketches/shipbuilding/index.htm|accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref> These resources included lumber from [[pine]], [[oak]], and [[Juniperus virginiana|cedar]] as well as [[bog ore]].<ref name=Sketches-EnglishCreek>{{cite book|last=Nickles|first=Ann and Margaret Hart|title=Sketches of Egg Harbor Township: English Creek|year=1964|publisher=Laureate Press, Inc.|location=Egg Harbor City, NJ|url=http://www.eht.com/history/Sketches/englishcreek/index.htm|accessdate=October 1, 2012}}</ref><ref name=NJGazetteer>{{cite book|last=Gordon|first=Thomas|title=A Gazetteer of the State of New Jersey|year=1834|publisher=Daniel Fenton|location=Philadelphia|pages=95, 132, 135, 175, 263}}</ref> The waterways were deep enough for ships up to 2000 tons (1,800 MT).<ref name=Sketches-Shipbuilding /><ref name=NJGazetteer /> [[Saw mill|Sawmills]] and [[blast furnace]]s were available in the area.<ref name=Sketches-Shipbuilding /><ref name=Sketches-EnglishCreek /><ref name=NJGazetteer /> What was not used to build ships was exported in their [[Hold (ship)|holds]].<ref name=Sketches-Shipbuilding /><ref name=Sketches-EnglishCreek /><ref name=NJGazetteer /> One [[shipwright]] during this time was '''Capt. Samuel Gaskill''' of Mays Landing.<ref name=Sketches-Shipbuilding /><ref name=Gordinier>{{cite journal|last=Gordinier|first=Glenn S.|title=Maritime Enterprise in New Jersey: Great Egg Harbor During the Nineteenth Century|journal=New Jersey History|volume=xcvii|issue=2|pages=104-117}}</ref> |
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===The ''Twenty One Friends''=== |
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In 1872, Capt. Gaskill built a three-masted (tern) [[schooner]] for Capt. Jeffries.<ref name=Ashton>{{cite journal|last=Ashton|first=Charles|title=NRHP Nomination Form|journal=Library of the Atlantic Heritage Center|year=May 21, 1982}}</ref><ref name=Gordinier /> The ship was financed by a group of 21 [[Philadelphia]] [[Quakers]] and consequently named the ''Twenty One Friends''.<ref name=Ashton /><ref name=ACHC>{{cite web|title=Museum exhibits|publisher=Atlantic Heritage Center Museum and Library|accessdate=September 7, 2012}}</ref> |
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In 1885, returning to Philadelphia with a full load of lumber from [[Brunswick, Georgia]], the ''Twenty One Friends'' was rammed by the ''John D. May'' off the coast of [[Cape Hatteras]]. Capt. Jeffries removed his crew and abandoned the vessel. The ship and cargo were left to the mercy of the sea.<ref name=HPOSurvey /><ref name=Ashton /><ref name=ACHC /> |
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Capt. Jeffries’ concern for the safety of his men was appropriate; however, the Gaskill-made ship proved itself to be more seaworthy than expected. After the collision, the [[ghost ship]] was sighted on both sides of the Atlantic over the next two years.<ref name=HPOSurvey /><ref name=Ashton /><ref name=ACHC /> It finally came ashore in [[Ireland]], where its cargo was salvaged and it was employed as a fishing vessel.<ref name=Ashton /><ref name=ACHC /> The ''Twenty One Friends'' remained in service until 1914.<ref name=Ashton /><ref name=ACHC /> |
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==Historical significance== |
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The Jeffries monument represents not only the life of a sea captain from the Great Egg Harbor River, but also an industry along that river during the 19th century.<ref name=Ashton /> There are few remaining relics from the marine and shipbuilding industries that mark this region's history during that time.<ref name=Ashton /><ref name=Gordinier /><ref name=ACHC /> |
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In addition, the monument has been singled out for its intricate carvings, which helped achieve its [[National Register of Historic Places|NRHP]] status.<ref name=HPOSurvey /> |
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==See also== |
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* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Atlantic County, New Jersey]] |
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* [[National Historic Preservation Act]] |
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==References== |
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{{reflist|2}} |
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==External links== |
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* {{Find a Grave|96584747}} |
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{{National Register of Historic Places}} |
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{{NRHP in Atlantic County, New Jersey}} |
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[[Category:Cemeteries in Atlantic County, New Jersey]] |
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[[Category:Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey]] |
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[[Category:Nautical lore]] |
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