St. James Episcopal Church in Edison, NJ
UPDATE
Photos from the public archaeology weekend
The ASNJ is holding a two-day volunteer dig on the weekend of November 12-13 next to the St. James Episcopal Church in Edison Township, Middlesex County. The Church is located at 2136 Woodbridge Avenue and parking is available behind the church on Germantown Avenue, next to a public park. The society is conducting a research study in two areas of town land to look for the remains of a mid-19th-century school house and a 17th-century town house. We have been graciously allowed to do archaeology on the property by Edison Township. Funding has been provided by the Edison Greenways Group and the Middlesex County Office of Arts and History, both of which have been engaged in a multi-year study of the property surrounding the church, which was created as a town green in the late 17th century, to look for evidence of municipal buildings, such as a town house, an ammunition magazine, a jail, and a school house. The ASNJ has been involved in prior studies of the property that yielded evidence of early 19th-century and pre-Contact period Native American land use.
The society welcomes current members who are interested in volunteering. Up to six (6) volunteers can participate for each time slot. Two time slots are offered each day: the first from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm and the second from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Afternoon site tours will be provided on November 13 from 1:00 to 3:30 pm to discuss the history of the town green and the Piscatawaytown Burial Ground. Volunteers can help dig 1.5-foot square test pits to expose buried foundation remains, screen soils to recover artifacts, and document deposits.
A volunteer sign up link is provided for those interested in helping and having fun.
ASNJ Dig Volunteer Sign Up (November 12-13), Saint James Episcopal Church, Edison, NJ
View the advertisement PDF here
Please direct questions to asofnj@gmail.com.
Piscatawaytown School House
Building Episodes
Piscatawaytown School 1937 MEHS 2022
1695: School or Town House Erected as a Log Building.
1800: 1st School House was Abandoned. New (2nd) School House Erected a Greater Distance from the Public Road, 30 yards from the Southern Extremity of the Present Parish House.
6/19/1835: Tornado Destroyed the 2nd School House.
1837: 3rd School House was Erected. The School House was a Two-Story Building with Classes for Boys on the First Floor and Classes for Girls on the Second Floor.
1852: 3rd School House was Enlarged. Female Teacher Hired and a Female Department Started.
1871: Repairs Made.
1875: Extensive Repairs Made.
12/15/1892: 3rd School House was Destroyed by a Fire Set by 14-Year Old William French.
1893: 4th School House Contracted to be Built as a 25-foot by 35-foot Building.
1914: Building to be Used as a Town Hall and Abandon its Use as a School.
1923: Building also used as a Police Department.
Circa 1937: Back Shed Addition Constructed.
1940s: Building No Longer Used as a Police Department.
1969: 4th School House Damaged by Fire.
1971: Repairs Made.
1980s: Building Used as a Town Meeting Place and as the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School.
1986: Building Used by the Edison Township Historical Society.
12/1986: Building Heavily Damaged by Fire and Razed.
