Port Mercer is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
located where the municipal boundaries of
Lawrence Township,
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...
and
West Windsor Township intersect in
Mercer County, in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
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 ...
.
Locality Search
State of New Jersey. Accessed January 9, 2015. It is the location of the historic Port Mercer Canal House
The Port Mercer Canal House is a historic house along the Delaware and Raritan Canal. It is located at 4278 Quakerbridge Road in the Port Mercer section of Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States, near the border of West ...
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 ...
.
Port mercer developed starting in the 1830s with the construction of the Delaware & Raritan Canal. It represents one of West Windsor's historic hamlets, and several mid-1800s residences still populate the community. The hamlet thrived from the 1830s until the mid-late 1800s, when the current Northeast Corridor
The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
rail line relocated from next to the canal to its current position.
In October 2019, the Historical Society of West Windsor published an online museum exploring the history of West Windsor - including Port Mercer.
References
External links
West Windsor History Museum - Port Mercer
Port Mercer Canal House - Lawrence Historical Society
Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
West Windsor, New Jersey
Unincorporated communities in Mercer County, New Jersey
Unincorporated communities in New Jersey
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