Joseph Sharp (c. 1709–1776)The Pennsylvania magazine of history and biography, Volume 20 By Historical Society of Pennsylvania, p. 134 was an early settler of New Jersey, landowner, supporter of education, iron manufacturer and industrialist. His flour mill provided flour to American troops in the War of 1812.

Influence on education

Joseph Sharp authorized the first school in present-day Sussex County to be built on his land as early as 1799.https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:oUpdOzdXlzMJ:www.hamburgschool.com/docs/Hamburg_History/Hamburg%2520School.pdf+joseph+sharp+AND+new+jersey+hamburg&hl=en&gl=us&sig=AHIEtbQx1Bfh3ORawQ_OyT9CudLiGB-TYg A subsequent school was built in the place of the first school, again, on Sharp's land. Later, in 1823, New Jersey Governor

Daniel Haines Daniel Haines (January 6, 1801 – January 26, 1877) was an American politician, jurist and lawyer. He was the 14th governor of New Jersey. Early life Haines was born in New York City, the nephew of Governor Aaron Ogden. He graduated from The ...

purchased land from the Sharp family to erect another school.

Sharpsboro Ironworks

In 1768, Joseph Sharp erected a forge and furnace called the "Sharpsboro Iron Works",
on the Wallkill River. The village around the Sharp Iron Works became known as Sharpsborough, and then Hamburg.Joseph Sharp's Iron Works
. Sussex County. Retrieved 21 October 2011. The village was originally named Wallings after an original settler, Joseph Wallings Sr. Due to the expensive nature of the venture and competing forges, Sharp abandoned the property in 1774. Stephen Ford used the Sharp Iron Works to secretly produce cannonballs for the British during the American Revolution. After reclaiming the property, Joseph Sharp Jr. built the stone grist mill in 1808.Joseph Sharp's Iron Works Marker
The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Sharp's mill provided the flour for the American troops of the War of 1812. The mill continued to serve the needs of the agricultural community of Sussex County. Present day Hamburg, in Sussex County, was called Sharpsboro until 1795.

Landowner

Sharp was a landowner and, after a group of investors led by William Penn and previously the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

, owned the land where the present day Wallkill Golf Club is located.

Historical Marker

In 2004, the Board of Chosen Freeholders and Historic Marker Committee of Sussex County erected an historical marker for Joseph Sharp, located at 41° 8.789' N, 74° 34.638' W. Marker is in

Hamburg, New Jersey Hamburg is a borough in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the borough's population was 3,266, a decline of 11 (-0.3%) from the 2010 census count of 3,277,Sussex County, on Gingerbread Castle Road.

Religion

Joseph's father,

Isaac Sharp Isaac Sharp (1681–1735) was an early New Jersey settler, politician, judge and Colonel of the militia. Early life and family Born January 13, 1681, in Dublin, Ireland, Isaac Sharp was the eldest surviving son of Quaker Anthony Sharp and Ann Cr ...

, was a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

and there is reference to his being a member of the

Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

.Full text of "History and genealogy of Fenwick's colony, New Jersey"
Archive.org. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Joseph was also Quaker and there is reference to the schoolhouse built on his property having Quaker characteristics. Joseph's grandfather,

Anthony Sharp Dennis Anthony John Sharp (16 June 1915 – 23 July 1984) was an English actor, writer and director. Stage career Anthony Sharp was a graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) and made his stage debut in February 1938 ...

, was the noted Dublin Quaker.

Family

Joseph Sharp married Mary Coleman,TSHA Press
Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 21 October 2011. and is the father of Margaret Sharp Brown and father-in-law of

Abia Brown Abia Brown (1743 – 1785) served as a Deputy to the Provincial Congress of New Jersey in 1775 (at Trenton) and 1776 (at New Brunswick). As Deputy to the Provincial Congress of New Jersey, Abia Brown represented Sussex County, New Jersey along with ...

. Joseph Sharp is the maternal grandfather of

Mary Brown Austin Mary Brown Austin (1768–1824) had dramatic influence on early Texas history. Perhaps her most important contribution to history is writing a letter to her son, Stephen, two days before the death of her husband, Moses Austin, imploring Stephen F. ...

, who was the mother of Stephen F. Austin and

Emily Austin Perry Emily Austin Bryan Perry (June 22, 1795 – 1851) was the sister of Stephen F. Austin and an early settler of Texas. She was an heir to Austin's estate when he died in 1836. She achieved significant political, economic and social status as a woma ...

, and

James Elijah Brown Austin James Elijah Brown Austin (October 3, 1803 – August 14, 1829) was an American settler and brother of empresario Stephen F. Austin, "The Father of Texas." Counted also as one of the Old Three Hundred, he is listed in Spanish and Mexican reco ...

, and also the wife of Moses Austin. Joseph Sharp's great-grandchildren include

Guy Morrison Bryan Guy Morrison Bryan (January 12, 1821June 4, 1901) was a U.S. Representative from Texas. Biography Bryan was born in Herculaneum in the Missouri Territory on January 12, 1821. His family moved to the Mexican State of Texas in 1831, and settled ...

Stephen Samuel Perry Stephen Samuel Perry (1825–1874) was an American early settler and pioneer of the state of Texas. He had managed the Peach Point Plantation, and he is credited with amassing and preserving significant historical manuscripts related to Texas histo ...

, William Joel Bryan, and

Moses Austin Bryan Moses Austin Bryan (September 25, 1817 – March 16, 1895) was an early settler of Texas. Moses served as Secretary for his uncle, Stephen F. Austin. Family His mother was Emily Austin Perry and his father was James Bryan. Born in Herculaneum, M ...

. Accordingly, early settlers of Texas are traced back to an early settler of New Jersey, and even further, to the landholder family "Sharp" of Saxony from as far back as the 13th century. Joseph's father was

, and his grandfather was

(prominent merchant of Ireland, a follower of

George Fox George Fox (July 1624 – 13 January 1691) was an English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends. The son of a Leicestershire weaver, he lived in times of social upheaval and ...

, and influential in the Quaker migration to the United States, and these Sharps were descendants of the Tetbury clan with wills demonstrating this chain going back to 1500 and the Sharp clan going back before wills to the 13th century in Saxony.The Sharp Family Line
. Members.core.com. Retrieved 21 October 2011. Anthony Sharp died in 1707 and is buried in the ancient Friends Burial Ground, Dublin.