BOOKS RELATED TO BURLINGTON COUNTY

"SHAMONG" by George Flemming

Local Historian, George Flemming, of Southampton, author of the well-received book, "Brotherton," has contributed another book to the history library of Burlington County which pictorially records the story of Shamong and Indian Mills.

Shamong Township, incorporated in 1852, was originally a part of Evesham Township. It is one of many communities that make up the Pinelands National Reserve. Shamong is a Native American word meaning place of the horn or place of many deer. From 1758 until 1802, 3,284 acres of the township were home to the first and only Native American reservation in New Jersey. Prominent citizens of old Shamong included John B. Gardner, former mayor of Atlantic City, Civil War veteran, and United States congressman. James Still, the famed black doctor of the Pines, was born in Shamong in 1812, and his younger brother, William Still, is celebrated as the father of the Underground Railroad.

This 128 page book is a part of the "Images of America" series published by Arcadia Publishers. The photographs in Shamong provide a visual reminder of the past and celebrate the history of this community, which remains a vibrant rural and residential area.

In addition to being available on line, the book can be purchased at the Shamong Diner on Route 206 at the entrance to the community of Indian Mills at the corner of Willow Grove Road, just north of Atsion.

"PARALLEL COMMUNITIES" - NEW BOOK BY MOUNT HOLLY'S DENNIS RIZZO ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD IN SOUTHERN N.J.

Parallel Communities: The Underground Railroad in South Jersey
Dennis Rizzo
For slaves escaping on the Underground Railroad, names like Springtown and Snow Hill promised sanctuary and salvation. Under the pressures of racial prejudice, free blacks, runaway slaves and even many Native Americans formed island communities on the periphery of South Jersey towns. Dennis Rizzo validates their role in the preservation of tradition, definition of extended family and creation of a social bond between diverse peoples; together they formed parallel communities based on, but independent of, the larger towns and villages familiar to us all.

OTHER BOOKS HIGHLIGHT LOCAL HISTORY: Pine Barrens' Ghost Towns, Vincentown, Brotherton. Click here for reviews

BLUE COMET VIDEO Filmmaker Robert A. Emmons has produced a documentary on the Blue Comet, the fabled train which travelled from New York to Atlantic City through Burlington County's pinelands and suffered its ultimate demise after leaving the tracks near Chatsworth in 1939. Click on "Headlines and Happenings" to learn more.