Essays on Sussex County and New Jersey Postal History

Len Peck ~ EARLY TRAVEL & MAIL TRANSPORT IN NJIn 1702 when Lord Cornbury, who succeeded Andrew Hamilton as governor of East Jersey,gave Hugh Huddy the exclusive rights to convey goods on this route, the Legislature angrilycondemned the grant as a monopoly. The business of carrying freight on this route, even in this earlydate, must have been substantial to create such a controversy.The next stage to operate on the Northerly route between Trenton and New Brunswick wasestablished in 1734, to run twice a week. Its advertisement offered a major improvement fortravelers, as the wagon “will be fitted up with benches and covered over, so that Passengers may siteasy and dry.”Joseph Borden of Bordentown set up a third stage route in 1740 to run from Amboy Ferry toBordentown. On all of these routes the final leg of the journey was completed by stage-boat whentraveling to Philadelphia or the lower Delaware River. These stage routes also carried mail, bothpublic and private.Fig. 2: An example of stage mail carried from a town without a post office (Mount Holly, NJ) in1797, to Philadelphia. Note the “Care of the Stage” marking lower left.Many communities not located on these major transportation routes across New Jerseycontinued to receive their mail by postrider. While this conjures up the image of the galloping rideron horseback pictured on two U.S. stamps, the truth (in New Jersey at least) was perhaps somewhatdifferent. A description of a New Jersey postrider is preserved in Alvin Harlow’s Old Post Bags, asfollows:A pretty picture dated 1779 is that which Mrs. Eliza Morton Quincy draws in hermemoirs. She was then a child, living at "Baskinridge," as she calls it, in the Jerseys. Thewar had receded from those parts. The British had been driven from Philadelphia, andthough they were still in New York, less than thirty miles from her home, this seemed totrouble the countryside but little:Mr. Martin was an old man who carried the mail between Philadelphia and Morristown,and was called "The Post." He used to wear a blue coat with yellow buttons, a scarlet waistcoat,leathern small clothes, blue yarn stockings and a red wig and cocked hat, which gave him a sortof military appearance. He usually travelled in a sulky but sometimes in a chaise or onVol. 36/No. 135NJPHWhole No. 169 February 200828