Six Mile Run, New Jersey
Encyclopedia
Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey
-Communities of Franklin Township:The following are census-designated places, unincorporated enclaves, and historical communities located within Franklin Township...
.
Historic district on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
defines the Six Mile Run Historic District as roughly bounded by Grouser Road, Amwell Road, Bennetts Lane, New Jersey Route 27, a diagonal line from the bridge at Six Mile Run to South Middlebush Road at Claremont, Butler Road and the Millstone River
Millstone River
The Millstone River is a tributary of the Raritan River in central New Jersey in the United States.The Millstone River begins in western Monmouth County and flows northward through southern Somerset County into the Raritan River at Manville. Almost three quarters of its length is paralleled by...
. It includes a portion of the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
and the Blackwells Mills Canal House
Blackwells Mills Canal House
The Blackwells Mills Canal House is located at Blackwells Mills Road & Canal Road in Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey, USA, on the Delaware and Raritan Canal. Across the canal is Blackwells Mills, New Jersey.-History:...
that are separately listed on the National Register. It contains 149 contributing buildings, 5 contributing sites and 44 contributing structures.
Examples of Six Mile Run Historic District contributing buildings are the three Meadows Foundation
Meadows Foundation
The Meadows Foundation of Somerset County, New Jersey is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1978. It oversaw the restoration of seven historic houses in Somerset. The homes are on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places.-Houses:* Van Liew-Suydam...
maintained properties listed here:
- Van Liew-Suydam HouseVan Liew-Suydam HouseThe Van Liew-Suydam House is located at 280 South Middlebush Road in Somerset, New Jersey. It was built in the 18th century by Peter Van Liew. Joseph Suydam later built the part of the house that is visible today. The newest and largest portion of the house was built in 1875...
, 280 South Middlebush Road. It was built in the 18th century by Peter Van Liew. Joseph Suydam later built the part of the house that is visible today. The newest and largest portion of the house was built in 1875. Although the most recent long term owner of the house was named French, the house has been named after its two initial owners. - Hageman FarmHageman FarmThe Hageman Farm is a historic house located at 209 South Middlebush Road in Somerset, New Jersey. It is a registered historic place of New Jersey.-Hageman family:...
, 209 South Middlebush Road - Wyckoff-Garretson HouseWyckoff-Garretson HouseThe Wyckoff-Garretson House was built in 1730 by Cornelius Wyckoff.-Cornelius Wyckoff:Cornelius Wyckoff was the son of Pieter Claesen Wyckoff. Cornelius wanted to buy farmland, so he moved to Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey in 1701. With seven other prosperous Dutch farmers, they...
, 215 South Middlebush Road
Historic village name
Six Mile Run is the historic name for an unincorporated area within portions of North Brunswick TownshipNorth Brunswick Township, New Jersey
-Demographics:At the 2010 census, there were 40,742 people, 13,635 households and 9,367 families residing in the township. The population density was 3,018.3 per square mile . There were 13,932 housing units at an average density of 1,158.8 per square mile...
and South Brunswick Township
South Brunswick Township, New Jersey
South Brunswick Township is a Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 43,417....
in Middlesex County
Middlesex County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 750,162 people, 265,815 households, and 190,855 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,422 people per square mile . There were 273,637 housing units at an average density of 884 per square mile...
and Franklin Township
Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey
-Communities of Franklin Township:The following are census-designated places, unincorporated enclaves, and historical communities located within Franklin Township...
in Somerset County
Somerset County, New Jersey
Somerset County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In 2010, the population was 323,444. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Somerville....
, in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Route 27 (historically known as Old Road/King's Highway and once part of the Lincoln Highway
Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America.Conceived and promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco, originally through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
system) bisects the village and serves as the dividing line between the two counties. The village name was formally changed from Six Mile Run to Franklin Park
Franklin Park, New Jersey
Franklin Park is an unincorporated area within portions of North Brunswick Township and South Brunswick Township in Middlesex County and Franklin Township in Somerset County, in New Jersey, United States...
on June 25, 1872.
Six Mile Run Reformed Church
In 1710, a congregation of the Dutch Reformed ChurchDutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
(now the Reformed Church in America
Reformed Church in America
The Reformed Church in America is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 170,000 members, with the total declining in recent decades. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1819, it...
) formed the Six Mile Run Reformed Church
Six Mile Run Reformed Church
The Six Mile Run Reformed Church is in Six Mile Run, Franklin Park, New Jersey and takes its name from Six Mile Run, a tributary of the Millstone River that flows through the area....
. The first building was replaced by a new building in 1766 and was later replaced in 1817 by a third structure on the same site. The current building replaced the 1817 church that was destroyed by fire in 1879. The Frelinghuysen Memorial Chapel was added in 1907 and the Fellowship Hall was dedicated in 1958.
Six Mile Run Reservoir
The proposed Six Mile Run Reservoir SiteSix Mile Run Reservoir Site
The Six Mile Run Reservoir Site, part of the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park, is located in Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. It is adjacent to the Delaware and Raritan Canal. It covers . The reservoir plan was to flood the Six Mile Run watershed...
is adjacent to the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
and included a large portion of the Six Mile Run Watershed in central Franklin Township. In 1970, the land for the reservoir was acquired by the State through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is a government agency in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is responsible for managing the state's natural resources and addressing issues related to pollution...
, Division of Water Resources as a future reservoir and recreation area and included many of the properties later listed as contributing to the Six Mile National Register Historic District. The reservoir was never built, and in 1993 administration of the area was transferred to the Division of Parks and Forestry. (see http://www.dandrcanal.com/pdf/6MileRun_HuntingMap.pdf for map showing boundary of reservoir site)
Six Mile Run Reservoir section of the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park
Today the Six Mile Run Reservoir site is maintained as a State Park and includes several trails that are used primarily by mountain bikers, hikers, and horseback riders. It has 8 miles (12.9 km) of twisting single track maintained by JORBAJORBA
The Jersey Off Road Bicycle Association is a mountain biking association in New Jersey, USA, founded in 1999. Their activities include trail maintenance, sustainable trail building, group rides and skills clinics. JORBA is a 501 non-profit organization. JORBA is an affiliated club of the...
. Access to the park can be found at the large parking lot on Canal Road near Blackwells Mills Road, from the parking lot of the private soccer club on Route 27, and from several smaller parking areas on roads that traverse the park. (see http://www.dandrcanal.com/interest.html#sixmile for more information and trail maps, see http://www.dandrcanal.com/pdf/6MileRun_HuntingMap.pdf for parking areas).
Because part of the land at the site was taken out of cultivation 39 years ago, the process of "old field succession" has now yielded up trees and foliage that are unique among state park lands. In the section between Canal Road and South Middlebush Road, there are postings describing the foliage and the natural process. The "Red Dot" hiking trail, which runs between Canal Road and South Middlebush Road, has now been extended from South Middlebush Road up to NJ Rte 27. There is a new White Trail, not fully blazed but very usable, running from a left fork off of Red Dot near South Middlebush Road, to a parking lot off of Jacques Lane.
See also
- Franklin Park, New JerseyFranklin Park, New JerseyFranklin Park is an unincorporated area within portions of North Brunswick Township and South Brunswick Township in Middlesex County and Franklin Township in Somerset County, in New Jersey, United States...
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Somerset County, New Jersey