Down in the Wilds of New Jersey

This post is partly about a spooky topic, but not too spooky, so I think it is still okay for after Halloween.  At the risk of sounding weird…when I was young, I read one book over and over – and now I own it – The Jersey Devil by James F. McCloy.  The newer editions look a bit different than the original edition I was used to, with a lurid red cover and a black drawing of the devil.  I never really believed there was a Jersey Devil, but was fascinated reading about the many sightings and new stories.  Because of reading this book, I grew up equally fascinated by the Pine Barrens, where the Jersey Devil was born.  If there was the possibility of a devil lurking down there, who knows what else was hidden by all those trees?  And “Barrens” always sounded mysterious to me.

Since that time, I have been to the Pine Barrens many times.  I enjoy seeing the small towns tucked away in the trees and walking the numerous trails in the state parks and forests.  The mystery has stayed with me.  Sand roads disappear into the forest and you wonder where they go.  On Route 206, you pass by strands of dead trees in bogs covered with water lilies.   

All this background leads up to my finally, FINALLY, visiting the supposed “birthplace” of the Jersey Devil, Leeds Point.  I have always wanted to go there and see what it looks like.

After driving for about an hour and a half, trying to hit mainly backroads through the Pines, I am getting close.  The road approaching the Leeds Point area is anything but scary, although it was bit confusing to my navigation app.  You pass right by Historic Smithville, a “village” of relocated southern New Jersey historic buildings that have been converted into shops and eateries.  It is a nice place to shop and stroll, full of families.  The opposite of feeling like the Jersey Devil is right around the corner.

Getting back into the supernatural groove - across Route 9, right near Smithville, is the Emmaus United Methodist Church and cemetery.  There is a large sign informing passersby that the 54 German immigrants who died in the 1854 wreck of the Powhatan are buried there (read more about the Powhatan and other wrecks along the coast in New Jersey Shipwrecks: 350 Years in the Graveyard of the Atlantic by Margaret Thomas Buckholz and The Deadly Shipwrecks of the Powhattan & New Era on the Jersey Shore by Captain Robert F. Bennett electronically through hoopla/eLibraryNJ).  Almost there!

Continuing to travel down East Moss Mill Road brings you straight into Leeds Point.  LEEDS POINT!!!  The houses get fewer, the road gets narrower and less maintained.  The sides of the road change from trees to high grass interspersed with water.  The ocean is not far away, but there is no beach.  Looking back down the coast, you can see the casinos and hotels of Atlantic City in the distance.  It has a desolate feel - like the road is the only place you know you will not sink into an unseen pool.  Exactly what I was hoping for in a devil’s birthplace!  To top it all off, there is a restaurant at the end of the road – the Oyster Creek Inn.  A good reward after the long drive.

It might seem a bit anticlimactic based on how excited I was to go, but the trip was worth it.  Seeing new places and learning more about that area of New Jersey and its history made the journey a lot of fun.  Next time, I want to see some ghost towns! 

If you would like to put together your own slighty-spooky trip to the Pine Barrens, the Mercer County Library System has many books to help you on your way –

Discovering New Jersey’s Pine Barrens by Cathy Antener
New Jersey Ghost Towns: Uncovering the Hidden Past by Patricia A. Martinelli
Ghost Towns and Other Quirky Places in the New Jersey Pine Barrens by Barbara Solem-Stull
The Secret History of the Jersey Devil : How Quakers, Hucksters, and Benjamin Franklin Created a Monster by Brian Regal
Hiking New Jersey by Paul E. DeCoste

-- Andrea at the Hopewell Branch