New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, United States, on the
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadel ...
. Across the canal is
Blackwells Mills, New Jersey
Blackwells Mills is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in Franklin Township in Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The bridge tender would turn the
swing bridge
A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pi ...
when boats came through, then turn it back to allow
road traffic
Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other Public conveyance, conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation.
Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the roa ...
to cross over the canal. In 1932, the canal closed and the swing bridges were dismantled. The house and the canal were transferred to the state of New Jersey. In 1971 the Blackwells Mills Canal House Association was formed, and they leased the house from the state and began to restore it as a community center, museum, and library. The adjacent
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadel ...
was made a state and national historic site and later became a New Jersey State Park. The house is currently maintained by the Blackwells Mills Canal House Association since 1971.
Sandor Fekete
Sandor Fekete (1879-1970) was the last bridge tender. He was born in
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, emigrating via
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, Belgium to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and joining the Hungarian community in
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
. His son Sandor Fekete II (1906-1983) lived in Princeton and worked as a bridge tender also. Fekete's first job was laying brick and breaking up rocks along the
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadel ...
. Later he was promoted to a supervisor for work boats that made repairs along the canal. He was promoted to foreman of a twenty-eight-man work crew, living in an apartment on Conduct Street in New Brunswick. In 1916 he was promoted to locktender in Griggstown, Somerset County,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, United States.
See also
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Somerset County, New Jersey
List of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Somerset County, New Jersey
__NOTOC__
This is intended to be a complete list of properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Somerset County, New J ...
*
Bridge tender's house
A bridge tender's house is a structure near or upon a moveable bridge from which a bridge tender
A bridge tender operates and maintains a bridge to ensure the safe passage of water traffic and vehicle traffic on the bridge. For a railroad brid ...