September 25, 2024
History of Jugtown
Clifford Zink
Historian and Preservationist specializing in architectural, industrial and landscape history
History of Jugtown
Clifford Zink
Historian and Preservationist specializing in architectural, industrial and landscape history
Clifford Zink and Shirley Satterfield, introducer
Minutes of the Third Meeting of the 83rd Year
George Bustin, Old Guard president, called the meeting to order and presided. Frances Slade led the invocation. Sandra Shapiro read the minutes of the prior September 18 meeting, substituting for Kathryn Trenner. Attendance at Springdale Country Club was 100. There were two signed-in guests: Dorothy Plohn (guest of Charles Plohn) and Gwen Feder (guest of Teri Lemischka). President Bustin advised members that 75% of the members had paid their annual dues, which are due by October 15. Treasurer David Long was in attendance to accept remaining payments.
Shirley Satterfield introduced the speaker, Clifford Zink. The title of his talk was “History of Jugtown.” Mr. Zink is an architectural historian and preservationist with an M.S. degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. He has written eight books, six of which have received awards. One notable book in many Princeton homes may be his The Princeton Eating Clubs (2017).
Mr. Zink launched his talk via the theme of “the fog of history,” which he described as the challenge of piecing together historical events from only partial documentation, selected artifacts, and renovated buildings. For the presentation, Mr. Zink used a progression of historical maps of the Princeton area. He began with a 1690 map of downtown Princetown comprising the original deeds, which depicts long, narrow plots running from a main road (Nassau Street) down to water access, primarily Stony Brook, per the European tradition. All the original owners were Quakers, holding family names like Stockton, Horner, and FitzRandolph. The vertical plot boundaries notably became Harrison Street, Washington Street, and Alexander Street today. Nassau Street was a road stretching from Trenton to Amboy.
Jugtown is the area at the intersection of Nassau Street and Harrison Street. From a 1781 map by Berthier focusing on the Jugtown area, eighteenth century houses are present on all four corners, including the Michael Graves house. Also present in the area were two quarries that produced the Lockatong argillite stone used in the area masonry buildings (visible examples are on the Princeton University 185 Nassau Street building and Firestone Library). In addition, there were clay deposits, potteries (from which the area got its name), tanneries, and a bakery noted on the map. The Jugtown area was originally part of West Windsor Township, but was merged into Princeton Borough around 1850. Near this corner Evelyn College for Women existed for about a decade (1887-1897) on Evelyn Place.
One historical item of note that Mr. Zink discussed was the manumission of slaves in the late 1700’s – 1850’s era. Some Princeton households had one or a few house slaves, and Zink found historical evidence of voluntary manumission or of sales between households. Often, they were females around fifty years old, who may have outlived their “value.”
Mr. Zink also identified some of the early Jugtown area buildings that became the original Princeton eating clubs, such as Colonial, Campus, and Quadrangle in the 1880’s-1890’s era. All were eventually replaced by larger buildings along Prospect Avenue.
The Jugtown area has survived due to being declared a national and local historic district in the 1980s. Pressure from developers exists to this day which will require ongoing compromise.
Respectively submitted,
Julianne Elward-Berry
Shirley Satterfield introduced the speaker, Clifford Zink. The title of his talk was “History of Jugtown.” Mr. Zink is an architectural historian and preservationist with an M.S. degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. He has written eight books, six of which have received awards. One notable book in many Princeton homes may be his The Princeton Eating Clubs (2017).
Mr. Zink launched his talk via the theme of “the fog of history,” which he described as the challenge of piecing together historical events from only partial documentation, selected artifacts, and renovated buildings. For the presentation, Mr. Zink used a progression of historical maps of the Princeton area. He began with a 1690 map of downtown Princetown comprising the original deeds, which depicts long, narrow plots running from a main road (Nassau Street) down to water access, primarily Stony Brook, per the European tradition. All the original owners were Quakers, holding family names like Stockton, Horner, and FitzRandolph. The vertical plot boundaries notably became Harrison Street, Washington Street, and Alexander Street today. Nassau Street was a road stretching from Trenton to Amboy.
Jugtown is the area at the intersection of Nassau Street and Harrison Street. From a 1781 map by Berthier focusing on the Jugtown area, eighteenth century houses are present on all four corners, including the Michael Graves house. Also present in the area were two quarries that produced the Lockatong argillite stone used in the area masonry buildings (visible examples are on the Princeton University 185 Nassau Street building and Firestone Library). In addition, there were clay deposits, potteries (from which the area got its name), tanneries, and a bakery noted on the map. The Jugtown area was originally part of West Windsor Township, but was merged into Princeton Borough around 1850. Near this corner Evelyn College for Women existed for about a decade (1887-1897) on Evelyn Place.
One historical item of note that Mr. Zink discussed was the manumission of slaves in the late 1700’s – 1850’s era. Some Princeton households had one or a few house slaves, and Zink found historical evidence of voluntary manumission or of sales between households. Often, they were females around fifty years old, who may have outlived their “value.”
Mr. Zink also identified some of the early Jugtown area buildings that became the original Princeton eating clubs, such as Colonial, Campus, and Quadrangle in the 1880’s-1890’s era. All were eventually replaced by larger buildings along Prospect Avenue.
The Jugtown area has survived due to being declared a national and local historic district in the 1980s. Pressure from developers exists to this day which will require ongoing compromise.
Respectively submitted,
Julianne Elward-Berry