Ten Days in New Jersey - My Home State

Smithville Dam
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10/19-28/2001

Drove into New Jersey this morning and ended up in Clarksboro which is fairly close to Philadelphia only on the Jersey side of the Delaware River. I was born in Camden, NJ which is close by and grew up in Ewansville and Mt. Holly. I still have a number of cousins here and two aunts.

On Monday we drove into Mt. Holly to visit my childhood memories. The old part of town hasn’t changed that much – different store fronts but much as it was. We enjoyed a fantastic Italian sub (just as I remember) at a local deli – it was wonderful. We drove into Smithville, a very small town where I attended school from Kindergarten to 5th grade in a three room schoolhouse. Much of the town has been made into an historical area around the ruins of a model industrial village built by Hizikiah and Agnes Smith in 1865. The Rancocas Creek runs through the town and is a place I spent most of my childhood swimming in and canoeing on. The Smith mansion is still there and has being refurbished. My schoolhouse is still there but is now a courthouse. We went inside and not much had changed structurally – it was very nostalgic. The Methodist Church I attended there is also still standing and functioning as a church. Smithville Pond is where I ice skated as a kid. Ewansville, where my childhood home stood is completely different. It was originally a summer resort where city folks came to enjoy the swimming and fishing. All the homes are gone now – replaced by trailers. I could hardly recognize it.

Judi by the Rancocas Creek
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Tuesday we drove to Atlantic City. I remember going there and strolling on the Boardwalk with my folks. The beaches were huge and you could walk out into the ocean a long way with the water barely above your knees. What a change! The beach has been eroded away and looks totally different. The huge casinos are everywhere. The Steel Pier was a great place to visit – now it is an ugly amusement park. I was very disappointed with the changes here.

Wednesday we went to Philadelphia and visited the Historical Area. It was a wonderful experience and we tried to cover as much as we could. This is an area you can easily walk. We visited Independence Hall, Ben Franklin Square, the Franklin Museum, Franklin’s grave, Liberty Bell Center, Penn’s Landing and more. The city has done a wonderful job preserving this birthplace of American history. Having recently watched “John Adams” on HBO, it really came to life.

More Boardwalk - Atlantic City
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Thursday was a beautiful day and we played golf at a local course in Woodbury. It was very enjoyable and, believe it or not, we still remembered how to hit the ball.

Saturday evening we drove to Egg Harbor and had a wonderful dinner at Tre Figlio Restaurant (great Italian food) with my New Jersey cousins. It was quite a reunion and particularly special. I left New Jersey when I was 13 and when Mike and I were here 6 years ago we reconnected with my cousin Marilyn and her husband Ray, Bev and her husband Jack, Ronnie and his wife Judy, and Dee and her Mom – my Aunt Edna. This time we saw them all (except Judy who was working) again plus my cousin Ernie and his wife Diane and his sister, my cousin Carol. I hadn’t seen Ernie and Carol for over 52 years. We had a great time (I’m sure to the ado of the other restaurant patrons). It is so wonderful to spend time with those who remember your childhood places and people. I loved every minute of it and Mike did too.

The Taj - Atlantic City
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On Sunday Mike took me on a drive into Camden to see the duplex where my Grandparents and my Aunt and Uncle lived. Camden is really run down and it was unbelievable to see what has happened to the neighborhood. We did find the place but it was depressing.

Mike’s brother Bill and his wife Nancy (who live in Cupertino) came to Pennsylvania this week to visit their son Tom and his wife Cindy who live in Churchville (north of Philadelphia). On Monday we went to visit all of them. Before heading north we drove to the Jersey Riverside to see where the Battleship New Jersey is docked and to enjoy the view of the Philadelphia skyline. To get there we had to drive directly through downtown Camden. It was really scary – a total slum. My brother and his wife use to have an apartment on Broadway and I couldn’t believe what has become of it. Then we drove into Philly and saw a few more sights. The drive from downtown to Tom & Cindy’s took us directly through more of the terrible slums of the city. I don’t know how any child born there has any possibility of getting out. It was a real eye opener. Tom and Cindy live in a beautiful community and have a huge home. We had a thoroughly wonderful time visiting with everyone and Cindy fixed us a great dinner and we celebrated Mike's 80th birthday which is on the 29th of October. We spent the night there so we would have more time together. On Tuesday morning it started snowing like I’ve never seen. It was almost a white out and covered everything. We weren’t sure we would get home because the roads were very slushy and people were skidding all over the place. Finally, about 3PM the snow turned to rain and the rain melted enough of the snow so that we could leave. Once we got to the Interstate the roads were not icy and we made it home OK. It was quite an experience and extremely rare to have snow here this early in the year.

Driving into Philadelphia
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Tomorrow we head to the DC area for a week.