Goodspeed Histories: The Vandolah Farm
The family with the longest history in Sandy Ridge.
The Vandolahs of Sandy Ridge (GoodspeedHistories.com) and Cyrus Vandolah, Jr., last of the Vandolahs (GoodspeedHistories.com)
I had thought this would be the conclusion of the Sandy Ridge series, but no—things keep popping up. For instance,
While doing my research, I came upon a photo I had published long ago in an article titled Going Going Gone. I got it from Paul Kurzenberger, who told me it stood at the corner of Route 523 and Covered Bridge Road, but that it had been torn down. At the time, I knew very little about that area, so I did not pursue it.
After writing about Sandy Ridge for a couple months now, I felt the time had come to pin down who built that old house. And in the process worked out another of the very earliest land purchases here. So that will be published in a couple weeks.
And after that?
The next big project will be the Wolverton tract north of Rosemont. It includes properties along Route 519 up to the Kingwood Township line as well as properties on the west side of Upper Creek Road. I am especially curious about the first divisions of the original 1665-acre tract.
But I’ve got another loose end—a small family cemetery some distance east of Headquarters, identified as the Taylor-Jones burying ground and located near the old Moore Cemetery, which I wrote about some time ago. I should have written about this cemetery at the same time, but put it off because I wasn’t sure where it was located. Bob Leith solved that problem for me, so I’m now working on a follow-up article.
The Delaware Township Historical Advisory Committee has been working hard to preserve the Moore Cemetery, a task which is made necessary by the fact that in deeds for adjacent properties, the cemetery was always excepted, leaving the question of ownership unsettled. The DTHAC is working to get title accepted by Delaware Township so that it will no longer be an orphan property. Should the same be done for the tiny Taylor-Jones burying ground? It also was usually excepted out of deeds for adjacent properties. But fortunately, owners on both sides have accepted responsibility for the cemetery.
That’s enough for now. Be sure to check in with “Hunterdon 300th (https://goodspeedhistories.us