The population in 1883 he gave as about 700.
The following residents were also listed by him:
An in-depth analysis of the Crosswicks Covered Bridge, provided to me by Thomas Kipphorn /*[email protected]*/ can be found here.
A fellow named "Old John" Bainbridge ran an inn at Crosswicks as early as 1689, selling rum 'on the sly' to the Indians, for which the local authorities shut him down. Later proprietors of the inn were:
| Joseph Douglas | 1776-1882 |
| Benjamin Douglas, son of Joseph | 1802-1804 |
| William McKnight | 1804-1807 |
| John Horsful | 1807-1814 |
| Jacob Renier | 1814-1817 |
| Richard Pearce | 1817-1818 |
| Joshua English | 1822-1824 |
The following news item about Crosswicks appeared in the New Jersey Mirror on 2 May 1861:
Considerable excitement prevailed in Crosswicks, on Monday of last week, in consequence of an attempted murder and suicide. A German shoemaker, named Matthews Blitzer, have some suspicion of his
wife's faithfulness to him, determined to kill her, but fortunately, failed in his purpose. He attacked her while she had a young child in her arms, and tried to stab her with a shoemaker's knife--but its bluntness
and the thickness of her clothing, prevented the accomplishment of the deed. He then drew the knife across her throat and down her breast, making fearful wounds. Holding her infant in one arm, she applied
her apron to her throat to stop the flow of blood, and ran to the nearest neighbor for assistance. Blitzer, immediately after inflicting the wounds upon his wife, cut his own throat, and started across the street,
with his hand upon the wound, the blood streaming frightfully down his body. As he was about entering a house opposite his own dwelling, he fell in the doorway, and died almost instantly. The wounds of the
wife, were considered dangerous at the time, but at the last accounts, her physicians had strong hopes of her recovery. Mrs. Blitzer, we understand, had always borne a reputable character, and the
suspicions of her husband were entirely without foundation.
On Mar 23, 1865 another tragedy was reported in Crosswicks:
SUICIDE.--About two weeks since, a boy named Josiah Mason, committed suicide by hanging himself, near Crosswicks.
The deceased was a mere lad, only twelve years of age, and was hired out by his widowed mother, living in this city,
to Mr. Robert E. Woodward, a highly respectable farmer, residing near Crosswicks, for a term of four years. He was in
the employ of Mr. W. only a few months, during which time, we are assured by his employer, he conducted himself very
properly, always obeying in whatever was required of him. About the time the deed was committed, at his request, he
was allowed to go home for a short time.--Upon leaving home to return to his employer, he remarked that it was the last
time they would see him. The same remark was made to a negro boy upon the farm, but no attention was paid it in either
case. On the morning of the occurrence, he was discovered in the wood-house arranging some horse lines about a beam,
but this also elicited no marked attention. It was supposed afterwards that he was then preparing to hang himself. In
the afternoon he had been missed for more than half an hour, when receiving no answer to his repeated calls, Mr. W. went
into the barn, and there found the unfortunate boy hanging from a beam, his feet about eighteen inches from the floor.
Life was extinct, and Mr. W. did not feel justified in touching the corpse until the proper authorities were present.
The boy had obtained a pair of stout leather reins, and tied one end securely around the beam, while the other was formed
into a noose, which was most effectually arranged. After preparing everything, he must have swung himself off a bench at
the side of the barn. The coroner, being summoned, viewd the body, and deemed it unnecessary to call a jury. The body was
brought to Bordentown and interred the next day. The only reason that can be assigned for the commission of the act, is
the fact that the boy disliked to work, and his mother very properly meant to make him earn his own living, as she is a
poor widow, with a large family, and could not afford to keep him in idleness.
And then another suicide, a year later, in the 12 Apr 1866 edition:
Mr. Aaron Middleton, a highly respected and esteemed citizen of Crosswicks, committed suicide at
that place, on Wednesday afternoon last(presumably a reference to April 4 or April 11, 1866). From
the accounts received, it would appear that the act was a premeditated one. Mr. Middleton visited
Bordentown on Wednesday, and returned home about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. After his return,
Mrs. Middleton left home to attend the funeral of a neighbor--her husband refusing to accompany
her. After her departure he loaded a gun, and seating himself in a chair, fixed the muzzle directly
over the region of the heart, and pulled the trigger by means of a string attached thereto. Death
must have taken place instantly, for the deceased was found sitting in the chair apparently
asleep. Mr. Middleton leaves a wife and three children--two sons and a daughter. One of the sons
is a practicing physician in Philadelphia
On Nov 29 1905, another death is mentioned in that paper from Crosswicks:
The body of Miss Emma R. Atkinson, daughter of the late Jacob Atkinson, who resided at Crosswicks, was found in the water power at Trenton on Sunday morning(presumably a reference to November 26, 1905). Miss Atkinson left her boarding place in Trenton on November 17 and is believed not to have been seen alive after that date. The young woman had suffered from nervous prostration for some time.
It is not known whether she committed suicide of fell into the water power accidentally and was drowned.
The, on Dec 28, 1938, there is another report of suicide at Crosswicks:
Charles Panczer, 54, committed suicide in an outbuilding in the rear of his home on Crosswicks street, Bordentown, on Friday, by hanging himself to a rafter. He was a wire worker in Crescent Mill, in Trenton. His wife, Rose, worried by his absence, went to the building and found his body. Coroner John N. Swartz, of Palmyra, issued a certificate of suicide. Mrs. Panczer said her husband had steady employment and she could offer
no reason why he had ended his life. The pair had resided in Bordentown since last April. They formerly lived in Trenton.
This page last updated on May 17th, 2011