Springdale Farm Market

     Friday, March 28, 2025: Many years ago, Cherry Hill Township, Camden County, New Jersey, had been called Delaware Township. Then on November 7, 1961, the residents voted to change the name. Before then, in the early 20th century, and as late as 1931, Delaware Township had as many as 82 farms. Nowadays, only Springdale Farm remained. I stopped by recently and did plenty of browsing, and I also did some shopping. Of course this farm market: Springdale Farm Market, 1638 Springdale Road (856-424-8674), has been in business for over 75 years. In addition, it was not some simple produce stand! Instead, this market provided rows and rows of fruits & vegetables, a bakery selling many kinds of baked goods, as well as other foods: jarred food, both sweet and savory, other packaged foods, etc. Both inside the building and outside, I noticed potted flowers, hanging baskets of flowers, and other plants such as herbs & spices. This store also sold garden equipment, outdoor furniture, and kitchenware—almost any thing to do with your kitchen and garden. From late Spring through December, this place played host to different events for the family, and private events that included hayrides. Therefore, if you would like to see what Cherry Hill looked like before it became a built up edge city/sprawling suburb, stop by this farm market, and shop locally. You won’t be sorry, and you might be buying stuff for yourself and your kitchen or garden. 

Clementon Historical Commission

     Wednesday, March 19, 2025: I grew up in Clementon,(Camden County) New Jersey. If you read the entry in this blog called “Early Childhood Places,” I mentioned living in Clementon from 1956 to ‘74. As a child and later, a teen, I remembered the building that I visited on the date above as the former borough hall, library, and police station. Currently it has been the headquarters of the Clementon Historical Commission and included a small museum: Clementon Historical Commission, 195 Gibbsboro Road (856-783-0284). I meant to visit this museum someday, and when I learned that the Commission had been planning to have an open house to celebrate Clementon’s 100th anniversary (1925-2025), I felt this would be as good a time as ever to see the museum. Once inside, I looked at pictures, texts, and exhibit items that presented Clementon’s past: from American Indian arrowheads to items on display from the past 100 years. Of course, I became nostalgic looking at anything to do with the 1960s and early ‘70s! Overall, it is a small museum, but I found it worthwhile to see and reminisce.   

Camden County Historical Society

     Wednesday, March 12, 2025: In the past, I’ve been to different county historical society museums, except for the one in my own county. (Shame on me!) Nevertheless, on the date above, I couldn’t say that anymore because I visited the Camden County, New Jersey, Historical Society Museum, 1900 Park Boulevard, Camden, NJ (856-964-3333). Once inside, a very friendly and enthusiastic tour guide took us around the different sections on two floors of this museum and the adjoining Pomona Hall. Right away, I noticed the historical and genealogical research library. Then our guide took us to an area about African-American history, and it especially covered the subject about the enslaved people who lived in Pomona Hall in the 1700s. This led to a tour of Pomona Hall, a house that the Cooper Family first build in 1726. Years later in the 1780s, the Cooper Family extended and expanded the house. Our guide showed us five rooms and a hallway that the staff furnished to the way it might have looked in the 1780s. Later, back in the museum building, our guide let us observe the exhibit areas on the one floor: 1) a Camden (city) History Mural; 2) Lenape, “We’re Still Here; and 3) the American Revolution. On another floor, we saw Made in Camden. This section displayed tools for trades and domestic work from the 1700s, and it also showcased the industries that were once in Camden, including the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and Campbell’s Soup. Another area presented the Camden Music Hall of Fame. Overall, via pictures, exhibit items, and texts, I learned much about Camden’s past. The only problem I had was that most of the museum covered Camden city and very little about the rest of Camden County. Anyway, I still recommend seeing this museum and getting to know more about the history of this county seat.

Dutch Wagon Amish Farmers Market

     Friday, January 24, 2025: I have been to different Amish markets in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in these last few years, but on the date above, I visited an Amish market in Burlington County, NJ that I have never been to before: Dutch Wagon Amish Farmers Market, 109 Route 70, Medford (609-654-1414). As we pulled in to park, I notice several storage sheds (At last. A house I can afford. HA! HA!), outdoor wooden furniture, playground structures, and small outdoor structures for containing small farm animals. Nevertheless, because it was cold outside, I only glanced around before moving inside the main building. Here, I browsed, and sometimes bought, different kinds of foods, much of it sold by the Amish: fresh meats, lunch meats, and baked goods, as well as salads, jarred foods, fried & barbecued poultry, candies, etc. Toward the back of the building, I saw a cafe with a limited menu. While this market looked smaller compared to the Amish markets I’ve seen elsewhere, the aisles were tight because Dutch Wagon was packed with many kinds of edible merchandise. In fact, during better weather, this location would make a good stop for buying picnic foods on the way to the NJ Pine Lands or the NJ Shore.