Pittsgrove Township, NJ

Pittsgrove Township

Is a township in Salem County, NJ. Pittsgrove Township borders Upper Pittsgrove Township and Elmer Borough as well as Cumberland County and Gloucester County. Several communities in the township – Alliance, Brotmanville and Norma – were established for Jewish refugees from Poland and Russia. German POWs were interred here during World War II.

Pittsgrove Township is home to Parvin State Forest, a 1,000+ acre track of land located in the pine barrens. In addition to the pines, the forest boasts over 50 types of trees, 60+ variations of woody shrubs and 17 fern and club mosses. Parvin State Forest is known as a place to bird-watch with over 172 species of birds. The area is abundant with dogwood, laurel, holly and azalea.

Approximately 15,000 years ago, this land was a barren, ice-covered tundra; however, as the glaciers that had extended as far south as central New Jersey slowing receded, the land became a habitable forest, supporting wildlife and early native man. A thousand years ago, the ancestors of the Lenape Indians hunted and fished in the stream known today as Muddy Run, a stream that feeds Parvin Lake.

The Lenape held these lands until John Fenwick 1676 purchased what is now known as Salem and Cumberland Counties. Parvin Lake is a manmade lake that was built in 1783 when a dam was built on the Muddy Run to power a saw mill. Lumber from the mill was used to construct many buildings in that area. What is now Parvin State Park was eventually sold to Elemuel Parvin in 1796 and bears his name.

The land remained in the family for many years until it was eventually sold to a man named Smith who created recreational facilities in the area around the lake. Smith’s son inherited the property in the 1920’s and borrowed $35,000 against the Park to invest in the stock market. When the market crashed, Smith was forced to sell off the land and the State purchased the 918 acreas of land and a 108 acre lake in 1930. On September 12, 1931, the property was dedicated as Parvin State Park.

From 1933 to 1941, Parvin State Forest served as home for the Civilian Conservation Corps, a summer camp for the children of displaced Japanese Americans in 1943, a POW camp for German prisoners in 1944 and temporary housing for the Kalmycks who fled their homelands in Eastern Europe in 1951. From the park’s early history, there are still remains of ancient American Indian encampments, both temporary and permanent.

For more information about Pittsgrove Township, please visit: http://www.pittsgrovetownship.com