Chesterfield, originally known as Recklesstown, is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
located around the intersection of
County Route 528 (Bordentown-Chesterfield Road, Chesterfield-Arneytown Road) and
County Route 677 (Chesterfield-Georgetown Road) in
Chesterfield Township of
Burlington County, New Jersey
Burlington County is a county in the South Jersey region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The county is the largest by land area in New Jersey and ranks second behind neighboring Ocean County in total area. Its county seat is Mount Holly.< ...
.
History
In the 1830s, the village had a store, hotel, church, and post office. The village was originally named after Joseph Reckless, who had bought a mill here in 1712.American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
. The name of the community was changed to Chesterfield in 1888 by congressman Anthony Bullock. The oldest part of the Recklesstown Tavern, now the Chesterfield Inn, was built . The tavern was expanded in 1774.
Historic district
The Recklesstown Historic District is a historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...
encompassing the village. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
on August 19, 1975, for its significance in agriculture, religion, and transportation. The district includes 49 contributing buildings
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...
. The Kessler House is a two and one-half story brick building built . The Chesterfield Baptist Church was built in 1848 and features Greek Doric columns. Across the street is the Clayton House, once the church rectory, now a florist.[ With ]
File:Baptist Church, Chesterfield, NJ.jpg, Chestefield Baptist Church
File:307 Bordentown Chesterfield Road, Chesterfield, NJ.jpg, Clayton House
Notable people
* Charles Newbold (1764–1835), blacksmith, invented the first one piece cast iron plow, patented in 1797
See also
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Burlington County, New Jersey
* List of turnpikes in New Jersey
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Chesterfield Township, New Jersey
Unincorporated communities in Burlington County, New Jersey
Unincorporated communities in New Jersey