Visit Marlboro's Historic Landmarks

Another gem from Marlboro newest historic Facebook page. Barry Jay, administrator of the group Marlboro, New Jersey and a member of the Historical Commission in town, has complied an easy list of the landmarks around town.

Jay and the Historical Commission are in the process of cleaning up all of the signs which mark these properties, which makes it a great time to visit.

Read about Barry's group and how the community can get involved in the conversation.

Marlboro landmarks, as listed and described by Jay:

1. Retreat of the British Army, June 1778
Location: 52 Dutch Lane Road
Significance: Following their defeat at the Battle of Monmouth during the Revolutionary War, the British forces retreated down Dutch Lane Road under the cover of darkness. The troops were subject to heavy sniper fire from the Monmouth Militia as they sought to reach a British fleet anchored off Sandy Hook.

2. Collier Estate, circa 1904
Location: Sisters of the Good Shepherd, Pleasant Valley Road
Significance: “Rest Hill,” an assemblage of many old farmsteads, was purchased for a vacation home by magazine publisher Peter Collier. His son, Robert, was an aviation enthusiast who purchased the first Wright Brothers biplane and housed it at the estate. The porch is a replica of Mt. Vernon. Robert’s widow, Sarah Van Alen, donated the estate in 1927 to the Sisters of the Good Shepherd.

3. Marlboro Hotel, built 1845
Location: Marlboro Fire Company, Main Street and School Road West
Significance: A tavern and inn, owned by John Buck, stood on this site in 1780, in this area once called Buckstown. The Marlboro Hotel was built at this stagecoach stop by Hiriah Smalley and served as a gathering place until 1919. The hotel was demolished in 1996.

4. Addison Hobart House, built 1828
Location: 9 North Main Street
Significance: This was once the home of Addison Hobart, a businessman, teacher, postmaster, and Commissioner of Deeds. Garrett Hobart, his son, lived in this house and later entered politics, ultimately becoming Vice President of the United States in 1896 under William McKinley. Garrett Hobart died in 1899.

5. Old Brick Dutch Reformed Church, established 1699
Location: 490 Route 520
Significance: Founded by Dutch settlers, the present church was erected in 1826 and is the oldest established operative church in Marlboro. The early ministers rowed across from Brooklyn to lead services, which were held in the Dutch language until 1764. The first American-born pastor, Benjamin Dubois, is buried here. An avid American patriot in the struggle for independence, Pastor Dubois took up arms against British incursions.

6. Hortensia, built 1686
Location: Pleasant Valley Road, near Winding Brook
Significance: This was the site of a home built by John Reid, an early settler. As a New Jersey surveyor, Reid drew the dividing line between East and West New Jersey, an early important geographical boundary. The New Jersey Historic Sites Inventory called the site an important farmstead and the home a notable architectural example. It was demolished in the 1990’s. 

7. Old Saint Gabriel’s Church, built 1878
Location: Route 520, in the Bradeveldt section
Significance: The Congregation of St. Gabriel was organized in 1871 and this Victorian Gothic church was erected in 1878. Although a new church and rectory were constructed on Route 79 in 1972, and a parish center in the 1980’s, this building has remained in continuous use.

8. Old Robertsville School, built circa 1822 
Location: Tennent Road and Union Hill Road
Significance: The first school building on this site also was used for Methodist services by the congregation that evolved into the Robertsville Bible Church. The church constructed its own building in 1833. By 1912, the original schoolhouse was replaced with the present building. It is no longer used by students. 

9. Vanderveer House, built circa 1722 
Location: 176 Ryan Road
Significance: Original elements still remain in this Colonial home, which once belonged to Tunis Vanderveer, a large landowner. The house was used as a locating point in drawing the boundaries of Marlborough Township in 1848 when it became independent from Freehold Township

10. The Morganville School, established circa 1850
Location: Route 79, near Beacon Hill Road
Significance: The original three-room schoolhouse, built on land donated by the Morgan family, had fine woodwork and pressed-tin ceilings. Constructing several additions later on, the Marlboro school system used this school from 1915 until the mid-1970’s when it was leased to the Coastal Learning Center.

11. H&L Farm, established circa 1850
Location: 1979 Township Road, Municipal Complex
Significance: A portion of the H&L Farm, which bred prize Black Angus cattle, was donated circa 1975 to Marlboro Township for the site of the Municipal Complex. In 1979, when construction was completed, the Council Chamber and Court Room were housed in the original 1851 barn.

12. Beacon Hill, April 1779
Location: Beacon Hill Road, near Old Farm Road
Significance: This is the second highest point in Monmouth County, where Colonel Asher Holmes was ordered to construct three beacons as part of 23 warning beacons statewide. Used to signal the local Monmouth Militia of British incursions, each pyramid of logs was 18 feet high by 20 feet wide. When filled with brush and lit, the fires could be seen throughout Pleasant Valley.

13. Federal Hall, built circa 1740
Location: 395 Route 520
Significance: This Federal-style house, once owned by the Ely family, resembles a steamboat with a rounded north end. The smokehouse and icehouse remain intact. The building was known as Federal Hall Inn in the first half of the 19th Century and served as a stagecoach stop on the route between New York City and Philadelphia. It is one of a very few houses of this style left in Monmouth County.

14. Dutch Reformed Chapel, built 1869
Location: 21 North Main Street
Significance: A vernacular Victorian building with Romanesque elements, this chapel was used in the winter since the main church on Route 520 in the Bradevelt section had no heat. Several additions were added to the original chapel over time. The bell in the tower tolled until 1969 when the building was sold. The bell is now on the property of the main church.

15. Old Scots Cemetery, established 1692
Location: Gordons Corner Road and Wyncrest Road
Significance: Scottish settlers established a Presbyterian meeting house and cemetery on this site in 1692. John Boyd, the first Presbyterian minister trained in the New World and the first pastor of the church, was buried here in 1708. The church was moved five miles away in 1731 and became Old Tennent Church. In 2001, this cemetery was listed in the National and State Registers of Historic Places.

16. Liberty Grange, built 1865
Location: 22 North Main Street
Significance: This Greek Revival building was the first Baptist meeting room and school in Marlboro. The First Baptist Church held services here until 1939. The site then became one of social gatherings and political events as Liberty Grange #99, a farmers’ association.

17. Topanemus Cemtery, established 1692
Location: Topanemus Road, near Weathervane Way
Significance: Scottish settlers established a Quaker meeting house and cemetery on this site in 1692. St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, now in Freehold, was established here circa 1710. Some gravestones have been removed to St. Peter’s churchyard. Only the burial grounds remain today, among the oldest in Monmouth County.

18. Old Brick Parsonage, built 1871
Location: 34 North Main Street
Significance: The site was sold by William Herbert for $500 to the Old Brick Reformed Church to house the church’s ministers. The parsonage was built in 1871 and served eleven pastors until 1946 when it was sold as a private residence. The building has been carefully restored.