The Sourlands
Encyclopedia
The Sourlands is a region in the U.S. state of New Jersey
that includes portions of Hunterdon County
, Mercer County
and Somerset County
. It is centered around Sourland Mountain
and comprises parts of Lambertville
, East Amwell
, West Amwell
, Hillsborough
, Hopewell Boro
, Hopewell Township
, Montgomery
. The region is flanked by the Hopewell Fault to the south and Amwell Valley
to the north that runs from Mount Airy to an area just west of Flagtown
and a diabase formation running from Lambertville
to Mount Airy. The Sourland also include a hilly area towards the southwest called Pleasant Valley, with a number of farms. Although much of the Sourlands is not conducive to farming, Pleasant Valley and the slopes on the surrounding ridges have a number of farms. The slopes of the ridge to the north are also home to Unionville Vineyard.
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...
that includes portions of Hunterdon County
Hunterdon County, New Jersey
Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 128,349. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Flemington....
, Mercer County
Mercer County, New Jersey
As of the census of 2000, there were 350,761 people, 125,807 households, and 86,303 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,552 people per square mile . There were 133,280 housing units at an average density of 590 per square mile...
and 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....
. It is centered around Sourland Mountain
Sourland Mountain
Sourland Mountain is a long ridge in central New Jersey, extending from the Delaware River at Lambertville to the western end of Hillsborough Township near the community of Neshanic , through Montgomery Township and into Hopewell Township in Mercer County. It comprises the largest contiguous...
and comprises parts of Lambertville
Lambertville, New Jersey
Lambertville is a city in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 3,906.Lambertville was originally incorporated as a town by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 1, 1849, from portions of West Amwell Township...
, East Amwell
East Amwell Township, New Jersey
-History:During the American Revolutionary War, a small but important skirmish occurred in East Amwell when local militia under Capt. John Schenck ambushed a party of British dragoons near Larison's Corner...
, West Amwell
West Amwell Township, New Jersey
The Delaware River separates West Amwell from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 2,383 people, 949 households, and 696 families residing in the township. The population density was 109.7 people per square mile . There were 984 housing units at an...
, Hillsborough
Hillsborough Township, New Jersey
Hillsborough Township is a Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 38,303....
, Hopewell Boro
Hopewell, New Jersey
Hopewell is a Borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 1,922.Hopewell was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 14, 1891, from portions of Hopewell Township, based on the results of a...
, Hopewell Township
Hopewell Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 17,304. The racial makeup of the township was 86.7% White, 2.1% African American, 0.1% Native American, 8.9% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.5% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races...
, Montgomery
Montgomery Township, New Jersey
Montgomery Township is a Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the township population was 22,254, which represents growth of 27% since 2000 and more than 130% since the 1990 Census population figure of 9,612.Montgomery Township was...
. The region is flanked by the Hopewell Fault to the south and Amwell Valley
Amwell Valley
The Amwell Valley is a small valley in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, between the Hunterdon Plateau and the Sourlands. It comprises Stockton, parts of Delaware Township, West Amwell, East Amwell, Flemington and Raritan Township. The region borders the Delaware River to the west and the South...
to the north that runs from Mount Airy to an area just west of Flagtown
Flagtown, New Jersey
Flagtown is an unincorporated community located within Hillsborough Township, Somerset County in the U.S. state of New Jersey.-History:It was originally called Flagtown Station when the Lehigh Valley Railroad came through, after the nearby Flagtown, which had been corrupted from Flaggtown...
and a diabase formation running from Lambertville
Lambertville, New Jersey
Lambertville is a city in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 3,906.Lambertville was originally incorporated as a town by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 1, 1849, from portions of West Amwell Township...
to Mount Airy. The Sourland also include a hilly area towards the southwest called Pleasant Valley, with a number of farms. Although much of the Sourlands is not conducive to farming, Pleasant Valley and the slopes on the surrounding ridges have a number of farms. The slopes of the ridge to the north are also home to Unionville Vineyard.
Ridges
- Belle Mountain- an isolated trap rock hill between Sourland Mountain and Baldplate Mountain
- Peach Ridge or Rocktown Ridge- runs along Rocktown and Wertsville Roads
- Pennington Mountain- runs roughly from Bell Mountain to Stony Brook
- Pheasant Hill- a ridge running from Harbourton to Skillman southeast of Sourland Mountain
- Sourland MountainSourland MountainSourland Mountain is a long ridge in central New Jersey, extending from the Delaware River at Lambertville to the western end of Hillsborough Township near the community of Neshanic , through Montgomery Township and into Hopewell Township in Mercer County. It comprises the largest contiguous...
- the main ridge in the region runs from Goat Hill on the Delaware to Fort Hans near FlagtownFlagtown, New JerseyFlagtown is an unincorporated community located within Hillsborough Township, Somerset County in the U.S. state of New Jersey.-History:It was originally called Flagtown Station when the Lehigh Valley Railroad came through, after the nearby Flagtown, which had been corrupted from Flaggtown...
Towns and Villages
- HopewellHopewell, New JerseyHopewell is a Borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 1,922.Hopewell was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 14, 1891, from portions of Hopewell Township, based on the results of a...
, sits just below the southern ridge of the Sourlands - LambertvilleLambertville, New JerseyLambertville is a city in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 3,906.Lambertville was originally incorporated as a town by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 1, 1849, from portions of West Amwell Township...
, sits where the Sourlands meet the Delaware. Numerous ferries existed at this spot as Old York RoadOld York RoadOld York Road or King's Highway is a roadway that was built in the 18th century to connect Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with New York City, New York. Through New Jersey it was built along the Raritan "Naraticong Trail"...
avoided crossing Sourland MountainSourland MountainSourland Mountain is a long ridge in central New Jersey, extending from the Delaware River at Lambertville to the western end of Hillsborough Township near the community of Neshanic , through Montgomery Township and into Hopewell Township in Mercer County. It comprises the largest contiguous...
. - Mount Airy, sits along Old York RoadOld York RoadOld York Road or King's Highway is a roadway that was built in the 18th century to connect Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with New York City, New York. Through New Jersey it was built along the Raritan "Naraticong Trail"...
and is still home to the Mt. Airy Church - Wertsville or Wert's Corner, was a village that grew up at the crossroads of Manners Road and LindberghCharles LindberghCharles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
Road and Wertsville Road. It was named after Christopher Werts. The village had a tavern and later a hotel. It also had a church, school, store, post office, wagon shop, shoemaker shop. Peacock's General Store is still running today and is popular with bicyclists.
Former Villages and Hamlets
- Amwell, was a small hamlet, located on a tributary of Back Brook (now near the area between Rocktown Road and Rt. 31).
- Buttonwood Corner, named for the sycamore trees in the area, was located on Cedar Summit (at the corner of Zion and Lindberg Roads). The area extended from Burd Lane ot South Hill Road and included houses, a tavern, the Mountain Grove School and Wyckoff's Peach farm.
- Furman's Corner, named after Samuel Furman, brother-in-law of John Hart, was located at North Hill Road and Werstville Road.
- Harbourton was a village named after John Harbort, whose stone home built in 1768 was used as a store, a hat factory, tavern and post office. Today the house still stands, but is a private residence. The village also had a church, wheelwright, blacksmith shops and a creamery. Johann Peter RockefellerRockefeller familyThe Rockefeller family , the Cleveland family of John D. Rockefeller and his brother William Rockefeller , is an American industrial, banking, and political family of German origin that made one of the world's largest private fortunes in the oil business during the late 19th and early 20th...
, who lived on a farmstead there is buried in a cemetery off of Rocktown-Lambertville Road. - Minnietown, named for Minnie True, was an African American hamlet on Rileyville Road on the south side of Sourland MountainSourland MountainSourland Mountain is a long ridge in central New Jersey, extending from the Delaware River at Lambertville to the western end of Hillsborough Township near the community of Neshanic , through Montgomery Township and into Hopewell Township in Mercer County. It comprises the largest contiguous...
. In the late 19th century, its residents were basketweavers for the Wyckoff Peach Farm. Today Hillbilly Hall Restaurant and Tavern and Minnietown Lane are all that exist there. - Montgomery, was a village named after Richard MontgomeryRichard MontgomeryRichard Montgomery was an Irish-born soldier who first served in the British Army. He later became a brigadier-general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and he is most famous for leading the failed 1775 invasion of Canada.Montgomery was born and raised in Ireland...
at Wertsville and Montgomery Roads. A schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, and post office were here as well as the nearby mill on the Neshanic River (once called Verbryck's after Bernardus Verbryck and later called West's Mill). - Moore's Station, was a hamlet that grew up along the Belvidere Delaware RailroadBelvidere Delaware RailroadThe Belvidere Delaware Railroad, frequently shortened to the "Bel Del", was a railroad running along the eastern shore of the Delaware River from Trenton, New Jersey north via Phillipsburg, New Jersey to Belvidere, New Jersey...
that disappeared with the abandonment of the railroad. - New Market, likely named for the store that once was run there, was home to a tavern and sat to the west of Snydertown on Snydertown Road.. It changed its name to Linvale when it required a post office in 1889, to distinguish it from New Market in PiscatawayPiscataway Township, New JerseyThe township consists of the following historic villages and areas: New Market, known as Quibbletown in the 18th Century, Randolphville, Fieldville and North Stelton...
. Linvale was built near the Malayelick Trail. - Rileyville, named for Patrick Riley (general store and applejack distillery owner), was located on Rileyville Road on the north side of the ridge. A church, a school and a store as well as number of residences existed there in the 19th century
- Rocktown was located near the Indian village, Wishelemensey on the Malayelick Trail. A stone house from 1739 is still standing there today. A school, a tavern and a store all existed there at some point. The village is located along Rocktown Hill Road.
- Snydertown, named after Jacob Snyder, was built around Snyder's grist mill over a tributary of Stony Creek (on Snydertown Road, just off of Linvale Road). A tannery and a two or three other dwellings also existed there.
- Van Lieu's Corner was located on what is now Wertsville Road, just west of Rileyville Road. It was formerly called Quick's Corner and had a tavern, hotel, store and wheelwright shop. Richard Van Lieu, for whom the village was named, married Permelia Quick who was the maternal great great granddaughter of John Hart Permelia's maternal grandfather, Moses Stout, ran the tavern here. Her great grandfater, Jacob Quick, was the namesake of Quick's Corner
- Woodsville was a village on the Brunswick TurnpikeCounty Route 518 (New Jersey)County Route 518 is a county highway in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The highway extends from Route 165 in Lambertville to Lincoln Highway in Franklin Township...
and Marshall's Corner Road. It was named after Joseph Wood, the store proprietor and postmaster of the village. The village had a store, a tavern, a post office, two blacksmith shops, a wheelwright, a school and a doctor. The village shrank over time as the railroads and Rt. 31 were both built away from it. - Zion was a village located at Long Hill Road and Rock Brook. A mill was built along Rock Brook, giving the village the name of Rock Mill and later Rock Mills. The village had numerous houses, a saw-mill, a store, a blacksmith, wheelwright shops and the Boozer School. In 1897, when Rock Mill was to receive a post office, they changed their name to avoid confusion with the nearby Rocky HillRocky Hill, New JerseyRocky Hill is a Borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, named for the Rocky Hill Ridge. It was earlier known as the Devil's Featherbed because it was difficult to travel the rocky terrain by horse and wagon...
. They named it Zion after the Mount Zion Methodist Episcopal Church.
Natural Features
- Baldplate Mountain offers vistas of the Delaware River and Pennsylvania
- Devil's Half Acre, a large boulder field with talus caves. It can be reached through the Sourland Mountain Preserve by taking the northernmost trail 3/4 of the way up and then heading about 1/2 mile to the north/northwest
- Fort Hans, a rock shelter on 3M3M3M Company , formerly known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation based in Maplewood, Minnesota, United States....
property, was named for Hans Van Pelt, a pacifist who refused to fight in the Revolutionary War. It was later written on maps as Fort Haunts and Fort House. The shelter was also used by John SullivanJohn SullivanJohn Sullivan was the third son of Irish immigrants, a United States general in the Revolutionary War, a delegate in the Continental Congress and a United States federal judge....
when camped at Clover Hill in Amwell ValleyAmwell ValleyThe Amwell Valley is a small valley in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, between the Hunterdon Plateau and the Sourlands. It comprises Stockton, parts of Delaware Township, West Amwell, East Amwell, Flemington and Raritan Township. The region borders the Delaware River to the west and the South... - Hart's Cave, a pile of boulders that John Hart supposedly fled to from the British. The site is just west of Buttonwood Corner, just north of Highfields (on private property)
- Knitting Betty Rock, Zion Road, East Amwell- two slabs of rock on which a woman named Betty waited for her husband, a Revolutionary War Soldier, while knitting
- Roaring Rock, Hillsborough, an area full of boulders where Roaring Brook passes underneath
- Three Brothers (Pero's Hill- Pero the Hermit), Rileyville and Mountain Church Roads, East Amwell- three boulders sitting side by side atop a rock. The legend is that three men wishing to overcome the devil were turned into stone
Historic Sites
- Cat Tail Brook Bridge- Stone bridge built in 1825 on Montgomery Road
- Highfields (Charles LindberghCharles LindberghCharles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
Estate)- Lindbergh Road, East Amwell - Howell Living History Farm- a Mercer CountyMercer County, New JerseyAs of the census of 2000, there were 350,761 people, 125,807 households, and 86,303 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,552 people per square mile . There were 133,280 housing units at an average density of 590 per square mile...
historical site in Pleasant Valley that also offers horse-drawn tours of the Pleasant Valley Rural Historic District. - Hunt House- 595 Province Line Road, Bulit by Colonel Joseph Stout and later owned by John Price Hunt, the house was a meeting place for George WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and his officers. - Old Rocks Church- 260 Mount Airy-Habourton Road, church built in 1843
Trails and Recreation Areas
- Amwell Lake WMA- an WMA in Hopewell Township
- Belle Mountain- formerly a ski area, the area is still used by sledders in the winter
- Cedar Ridge Trail- 2 miles (3.2 km) trail in Hopewell Township
- Eames Preserve- 1.6 miles (2.6 km) loop trail in Hopewell Township
- Hunterdon Sourland Mountain Reservation- a small tract in East Amwell with four hiking trails
- Laport Reserve- an easy loop trail in East Amwell
- Nayfield Preserve- 1.5 miles (2.4 km) loop trail in Hopewell Township
- Northern Stony Brook Greenway/McBurney Woods- an area in East Amwell and Hopewell Township consisting of four trails: The Picnic Rock Trail (Green), Blue Trail, Yellow Trail and Orange Trail
- Sourlands Foothills Trail- 1 miles (1.6 km) trail in Hopewell Township.
- Sourland Mountain PreserveSourland Mountain PreserveThe Sourland Mountain Preserve is located in Hillsborough and Montgomery townships, Somerset County, New Jersey.The main feature of the preserve is the Ridge Trail [white squares], suitable for hiking and off-road biking...
- a large tract of land on the Sourland Ridge with numerous hiking trails. - Ted Stiles Preserve at Baldplate Mountain- 1800 acres (7.3 km²) preserve in Hopewell Township with numerous hiking trails