Mr. McGregor's Garden Farm and Deli

 

   Saturday, May 24, 2025: After visiting Johnson's Locus Hall Farm Market earlier that day, I traveled a few miles up Monmouth Road to Mr. McGregor’s Garden Farm Market and Deli, 2816 Monmouth Road, Jobstown (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-723-1200). This market was really low key compared to Johnson's Locust Farm Market, but once inside, they did sell some produce, plenty of baked goods—especially pies, some jarred foods, and packaged foods. Currently, it looked like this place was being renovated, both the farm market and the deli, but I noticed more varieties of food products for sale. To top it off, I found the prices on average to be cheaper than the place I had visited earlier that day. Outside, they offered plenty of flowers for sale. I would recommend taking a look at this market—and don’t be surprised, you may end up buying something here!

   

Johnson's Locust Hall Farm

 

   Saturday, May 24, 2025: A few days ago, I had visited Johnson's Corner Farm. On the date above, I visited another farm that the Johnson family owned: Johnson's Locust Hall Farm,  2691 Monmouth Road, Jobstown (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-353-9000). Compared to the Johnson's Corner Farm, we had to drive down a dirt and gravel road to get to the farm market, and once inside, I noticed that aside from strawberries in season, this store sold no produce! Nevertheless, this store sold jarred products-most of which the staff made from fruits and vegetables grown on this farm, baked goods, and non-edible merchandise: decor for the kitchen, tableware, and dishware. If you wanted produce, however, you had to pick it, or your family joined you in picking it. This place offered hayrides to the fields to pick what was in season. Like the Corner Farm, there were petting areas containing farm animals, but unlike the Medford farm, the farm market didn’t sell ready made foods in salads, sandwiches, dinner entrees, and so forth that you could buy inside and eat outside. They only had a food truck outside selling the usual sandwiches, hot dogs, burgers, etc. that you could eat at the outside tables. Meanwhile, the farm market shared space with a winery that sold wines along with a tasting room for adults. Throughout the year, Johnson's Locust Hall Farm played host to different events, but even though this farm was more low-key compared to the Medford farm, I still found it worthwhile for families to browse, maybe buy, and take a hayride to pick the latest crop. The farm has been around since 1693, but different families owned it in these last few centuries until 2014 when the Johnson family acquired it. 

Medford Mill Shoppes

     Tuesday, May 20, 2025: From farmland to an eclectic-artisan co-op shopping area in a former mill, I saw different kinds of merchandise in what I humorlessly called “artsy-fartsy.” At The Shoppes at Medford Mill, 18 Charles Street, Medford (Burlington County), New Jersey (973-939-1940), over 80 vendors sold things on commission, and each vendor had his or her own cove displaying what was for sale. Some of the merchandise these vendors sold included jewelry, clothing, and household items, as well as collectibles, gourmet snacks, and so on. If you needed gift ideas, this would be the place to look—and maybe buy! (At least this place looked colorful.) Meanwhile, the downtown area of Medford along Main Street also offered its share of shops and eating places. In addition, throughout the year, both the Medford Mill Shoppes and downtown Medford held special sales and events: Some of it was seasonable. Between browsing, and sometimes buying, in both the mill shoppes and along Main Street, Medford, NJ, could make for a full day. 

Johnson's Corner Farm

     Tuesday, May 20, 2025: When I read that Johnson’s Corner Farm, 133 Church Road, Medford, New Jersey (609-654-8643), has been listed as a major attraction in Burlington County, I decided to visit and see for myself. Anyway, I’ve liked visiting farm markets, regardless of whether they were a major attraction or not. At this farm, I could see why: There was something of interest for the whole family! Among the offerings were hayrides to the fields that the family could take to pick the latest crop in season together for the price of a ticket. (If nothing else, children could learn that food doesn’t start at the supermarket.) Another ticket included a chance to feed and pet farm animals; plus, children could be active in the Discovery Barnyard playground where they could pretend to be farmers. For adults without children along, there has been a sizable farm market that sold both edible and non-edible merchandise: produce, jarred foods-both sweet & savory, and baked goods, as well as sandwiches, salads, entrees for dinner, ice cream, candy, etc. In addition, the non-edible items included tableware, decorative stuff for the kitchen, flowers, and so forth. If the weather was good, visitors could eat what food they purchased inside at the picnic tables outside. Throughout the year, Johnson Corner Farm played host to different seasonable events. 

Grist Mill Antique Center

      Wednesday, May 7, 2025: Back in April, I visited Haddon Heights Antique Center. On the date above, after seeing Second Time Books earlier, I went to Pemberton (Burlington County), New Jersey, and I stopped into the Grist Mill Antiques Center, Route 616, 127 Hanover Street (609-726-1588). Similar to the Haddon Heights store, this was a dealers’ co-op but larger: 125 dealers compared to 80 in Haddon Heights. Nevertheless, although this store was bigger, I didn’t find it as varied in merchandise as the other store. I did not blame the vendors; however, it seemed that most of the merchandise was glassware. Now I didn’t mind because I enjoyed looking at glassware—and they even had uranium glass! The problem was that some of the aisles were too tight. I feared going through some of them. So I did not. Anyway, I would suggest that if you saw something you liked and might want to buy, but you had second thoughts about navigating in that area, then ask the staff for help. While glassware seemed to dominate the merchandise, this store did sell other stuff in between the glass: toys, jewelry, and accessories, as well as artwork, furniture, and other items including pottery, books, etc. While browsing, words such as “They don’t make that anymore,” crossed my mind often. I also learned that this store had played host to outdoor flea markets at different times of the year. Overall, this place offered plenty of eye candy, but just watch where you are going. 

Second Time Books

 

     Wednesday, May 7, 2025: Because the weather on the date above was nice, I went antiquing. The first place I visited was the area called Rancocas Woods Shopping District in Mount Laurel (Burlington County), New Jersey. Therefore, along Creek Road, roughly between Fleetwood Avenue and Rancocas Boulevard, I noticed more than a dozen different businesses: retail stores, eating places, service businesses, etc. housed in mostly log cabin-styled and other quaint-looking buildings. The bookworm in me stepped into Second Time Books, 114 Creek Road (856-234-9335). Here, I looked at room-upon-room and aisle-upon-aisle of (You guessed it!) books. They sold almost everything from old magazines to leather-bound antique books—and anything in between of different genres and subjects. If you couldn't find anything here, you weren't looking very well. They said that they had over 69,000 titles in stock, and I believed it. Meanwhile, other businesses along Creek Road included retail antique stores, art galleries, furniture, jewelry, clothing, home decor, crafts, and so on. I also glanced at close to six eating places, and in addition, Rancocas Woods played host to events throughout the year: farmers’ markets, car shows, block parties, and so forth. Even if nothing special was going on, it was still interesting to see this shopping district.

Moorestown Mall

     Thursday, May 1, 2025: In 1963, a few years after Cherry Hill Mall opened about three miles away, a new mall opened: Moorestown Mall, 400 New Jersey Route 38, Moorestown (Burlington County), NJ (856-231-4444). This mall always reminded me of a smaller version of Cherry Hill Mall, but in these last few decades, Moorestown Mall has had more ups and downs. Currently, it has been going up, but it needed more tenants to get back to its former glory between 1963 and into the 1990s. In late 1992, the mall had a fire and had to be renovated, but even then, it did get plenty of tenants. Then in the early decades of the 21st century, this mall started to decline, just like many other malls in the USA. Of course, in 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic didn’t help either. Nevertheless, this mall, on the date above, contained about 90 Stores, including a food court, a cinema, and a medical center. Inside, it looked like a typical mall with title floors, fountains, a bit of greenery here and there, and the usual mall stores that have been similar to other malls. If you are in the area, it is worthwhile to take a look. As for me, I’m glad to see one of the few shopping malls making a comeback!     

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. 

Burlington County Farm Fair

      Thursday, July 18, 2024: After being a bit disappointed to learn that Camden County, New Jersey, wasn’t going to have a county fair for 2024, I decided to go to the Burlington County Farm Fair, 1960 Jacksonville-Jobstown Road, Columbus, NJ (609-784-8389). (It was located in the same place as the NJ Renaissance Faire back in May.) Anyway, back in 2012, I had been to the Warren County, NJ, Farmers’ Fair, and I was aware that their fair had been voted a few times as the best county fair in NJ. Therefore, I didn’t try comparing Burlington County’s Fair to it. Nevertheless, I did enjoy my few hours in Burlington County’s fair, and yes, it was smaller than Warren County’s Fair, but I would recommend seeing Burlington County’s fair—once. Of course, if you have been the kind of person who enjoyed nighttime entertainment at these kinds of fairs such as rodeos, musical events, amusement rides, and so forth, as well as seeing exhibits, you could easily have spent the whole day here. I mainly attended to see the many exhibits in different tents, and outside I saw a tractor parade and a wood carver carve decoy ducks. Inside the tents, I noticed many exhibits of animals: cows, goats, and sheep, as well as rabbits, alpacas, chickens, and a few other critters. Other tents displayed plants, produce, eggs, crafts—especially quilts, artworks, and other items too numerous to mention. I also observed that many of these exhibits of animals, plants, and other things had been the work of the local 4H Club and the Future Farmers of America. Meanwhile, the fair provided plenty of activities for children as well. Finally, to round out the fair, many vendors sold a plethora of merchandise, other vendors sold food, and I glanced at groups promoting their causes. If nothing else, I got entertained and educated at the same time!   

New Jersey Renaissance Faire

        Sunday, May 19, 2024: I have been to renaissance fairs in Pennsylvania and New York, but this was my first time visiting the New Jersey Renaissance Faire, 1990 Jacksonville-Jobstown Road, Columbus (Burlington County) (888-864-8222). I’m glad that I arrived early because I did get to park closer to the main gate. Nevertheless, I still had to walk a bit to get to that gate. (Wear your most comfortable shoes.) Along the way, a few musicians sang. Nevertheless, it wasn’t so good when they sang too close to the ticket office, and I had trouble hearing what the ticket seller was saying to me! By the way, if you wanted a receipt for you ticket and you didn’t have a smart phone, you had to give your email to the ticket seller and he or she would send the receipt by way to your computer. (You mean they can’t write up a receipt?) Once I entered the gate, I learned that they didn’t sell maps of the grounds, let alone give maps. (I’m sure they could afford to print some and even sell them for a reasonable charge. If you don’t have a smart phone, try to print a copy or two from their website) Instead, certain areas of the fair displayed marquee signs of the fair grounds and the entertainment schedule. In addition, almost everything was in the sun, except for a few eating and performing pavilions. (Bring an umbrella or wear some sunblock lotion.) Despite these short comings, I did enjoy what I saw: several vendors selling food & drinks, clothing, games, and gifts. The fair provided six stages and different kinds of outside entertainment in the form of music, comedy, and circus acts, as well as jousting, a human chess game, and archery. I also noticed axe throwing and animal displays: a steer pretending to be a cow and a horse with a unicorn horn on it as well as falcons and hawks. Other activities included a few craft people showing how they made their artworks, children’s games, and wearing costumes. Meanwhile, the staff wore a chainmail butterfly pin so that the public could tell them from the others wearing costumes. A few of those costumes looked like clothing worn in the 1500s, but many people wore fantasy costumes, especially a lot of people dressed as fairies. In the afternoon, the fair had a costume contest. Overall, I did enjoy my time here browsing at the vendors’ tents and seeing some of the entertainment, but I thought there were more things to see and do at the PA and NY ren fairs. On the other hand, it was worth visiting--once. (Be warned: You will hear plenty of fake British accents.)                   

Chatsworth, New Jersey

      Sunday, October 22, 2023: Even though I have visited the New Jersey Pinelands for much of my life, I had never been to Chatsworth, NJ. According to the author of the 1968 book, The Pine Barrens, John McPhee called Chatsworth “the capital of the Pines.” I read the book a few times, and one of the chapters covered Chatsworth and especially Buzby’s General Store, 3959 Main Street (Route 563) (609-894-9529). If you arrived in this town at any other time of the year, aside from the traffic on Main Street, Chatsworth would be a quiet town, and the place to go to would be Buzby’s. (Nowadays, new owners run this place, and it’s mainly a restaurant, but they do sell a few food items for retail on the side.) On the other hand, during the third weekend in October, however, it would be a different story! That’s when the largest cranberry festival in NJ happened: Chatsworth Cranberry Festival. Even though we arrived around opening time, already several blocks along the street where free parking was allowed were filled. Therefore, we found it worthwhile to pay the $10 to park at certain parking lots (car parks) located much closer to the festival. Anyhow, I did plenty of walking, and I also observed that most of the vendors were similar to those I’ve seen at different flea markets. Nevertheless, I noticed that some vendors sold cranberries and products made from cranberries, and other vendor tents displayed arts & crafts. If you were pressed for time, I would suggest looking at the sales tables in front of the Whitehorse Inn, the headquarters of the group running this festival. Here, they sold several cranberry products: jars of food, baked goods, and ice cream, as well as commemorative festival items of shirts, aprons, and tote bags. Overall, I found this event was definitely worth visiting once. (Believe me, this area is surrounded by cranberry bogs.)          

Burlington County Farmers' Market

      Saturday, September 9, 2023: I’ve still been a sucker for farmers’ markets. The date above found me browsing and sometimes buying from around 40 vendors at the Burlington County Farmers Market located in the Burlington County Agricultural Center, 500 Centerton Road, Moorestown, New Jersey (856-642-3850). From May through November, this market operated, rain or shine, containing vendors selling produce, prepared foods, and baked goods, as well as meats, dairy, and non-edible goods such as flowers and arts & crafts. Nearby, a band played, and the kind of music you heard depended on the date you were there. When I was there, I listened to a classic rock band. It was also tomato day, and I saw some signs giving different facts about tomatoes, and several vendors were selling them. One vendor was selling tomatoes grown from farms that used to sell to Campbell’s Soup when they still had a factory in Camden, NJ. (Nowadays, Campbell’s moved their factory elsewhere, but the headquarters is still in Camden.) I also noticed other tomatoes that the vendor told me had been grown from Burpee Seeds. Then, I bought some tomatoes that the vendor said I could eat as a snack. Now I have not been a big fan of raw tomatoes; I could take or leave them. I preferred tomatoes cooked in many ways, and I liked tomato products and sauces. Anyway, once home, I took a bite of one, and the vendor was right. It did taste good! Overall, this outing made for a pleasant day.

Columbus Farmers' Market

      Thursday, August 19, 2021: I liked farmers’ markets, even though I didn’t usually buy much there, but I do buy a few items whenever I’m at a farm market or farmers’ market. On the date above, I visited the Delaware Valley’s oldest and largest flea & farmers’ market: Columbus Farmers’ Market, 2919 Route 206, Columbus (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-267-0400). At first glance, I could see that they were not kidding: This place was huge. Inside, this market contained over 65 retail stores divided into six color-coded sections. Here, the retail stores sold many kinds of merchandise: foods, toys, and cosmetics, as well as different services, jewelry, clothing, home furnishing & interiors, electronics, luggage, etc. Other businesses included restaurants, an arcade, pet supplies, outdoor furnishings, and an Amish section. (This was my favorite section.) The Amish area had a restaurant, and they sold many kinds of foods and some crafts. As if that weren’t enough, on some days there were outdoor vendors selling their share of food and non-food items—usually at bargain prices. Another area called Produce Row, sold many different foods in addition to produce and flowers. Nearby was a gardening area, a farm equipment area, and a pallet supply company, as well as an area selling sheds, a self-storage area, and a Goodwill store. Whew! Meanwhile the only complaint I had was the lack of shopping carts. Other farmers’ markets provided them, and it helped when one was buying several items and didn’t wish to carry all of them through the market. An added bonus would be something to rest on as one’s feet and legs got tired walking through such a large shopping area. In the meantime, somebody could bring a folding shopping cart, but he or she couldn’t lean on it.    

Whitesbog

      Tuesday, August 17, 2021: Compared to Roebling, New Jersey, Whitesbog Historic Village, 120 West Whitesbog Road, #34, Browns Mills (Burlington County), NJ (609-893-4646), was a much smaller company town. In this rural community, growing cranberries and blueberries were its biggest industries. In 1916, Elizabeth White and Dr. Frederick A. Coville developed the first cultivated blueberry here. At the time, Whitesbog was already the largest cranberry farm in NJ. In addition, the White Family built this company town from 1890 to 1925, and provided workers’ houses, a general store, and a school, as well as an office, processing buildings, and storage buildings. Currently, this village has been part of Brendan T. Byrne State Forest, and many of the buildings still stand: the general store, a gallery, an interpretive cottage, a barrel factory, and a cranberry & blueberry museum. In another area, I saw blueberry fields; a cranberry processing substation; and Suningive, Elizabeth White’s house. All of this on 3,000 acres! Because of covid-19, only the general store has been opened on certain Saturdays, and this place has started running special events again. Nevertheless, we did stop by, took pictures, and drove through the village. In time, I’m sure they will open the other buildings in the village and extend the opening days for the general store.      

Burlington Lyceum

      Sunday, August 15, 2021: This was a shorter visit compared to the day before because this museum in the Burlington County seat was a smaller museum: Burlington County Lyceum of History and Natural Sciences, 307 High Street, Mount Holly, New Jersey (609-845-3513). In this 1830s mansion, I saw four rooms. The first room’s interior looked similar to the way it might have looked when the original owners, the Langstaff Family, lived there. This room displayed a formal Victorian-styled parlor. Anyway, the next room covered the history of how important the Rancocas River was to the economy of that area via texts, pictures, and exhibit items. Another room displayed the natural history of the area. Here, I saw mastodon bones, and other items, texts, and pictures explaining more about the very distance past of Burlington County and its more recent flora & fauna. The last room was a book & gift shop, and a staff member nearby could answer questions. It wasn’t a long visit, but it was worthwhile! Meanwhile, Mount Holly’s downtown had many shops in quaint-looking buildings from the past few centuries. Combined with this museum, it could be a lively few hours.  

Roebling Museum

      Saturday, August 14, 2021: For years I would ride the RiverLine to and from Trenton, New Jersey, and along the way, one of the train stops was in Roebling, NJ. Outside the window, I would see large objects of metal in a large grassy area. Recently, I learned that this grassy field once held several buildings which functioned as the Kinkora Steelworks, once owned by the Roebling family. Around 2010, the building that was once the entrance building to the steelworks became a museum: Roebling Museum, 100 Second Avenue, Roebling, (Burlington County) NJ (609-499-7200). When I arrived, I saw a 15-minute film presentation about the Roebling Family, especially about John Roebling who invented steel cables. He started a factory for making these cables in Pennsylvania, and he later moved the factory to Trenton, NJ. When he decided to make his own steel for the cables, he needed more space. Therefore, he bought some potato and peach farms south of Trenton, cleared the land, built the steelworks, and the surrounding town. From the early 20th century, Roebling, NJ, was a company town for the workers at the steelworks. The Roebling family sold the steelworks in the 1950s, and the factory closed in 1974. Because the grounds became toxic, the Environmental Protection Agency torn down the metal works buildings—except for the entrance building, and cleared the grounds. Anyway, in this museum, in different rooms, I learned via exhibit items, pictures, and texts more about the Roebling family, their employees, everyday life in Roebling for about the first three-quarters of the 20th century, and how the Roeblings and Kinkora Steelworks contributed to many technologies. After seeing this museum, I’ll never look at Roebling the same way again! The factory in gone, but the town lives on.      

Bass River

     Tuesday, August 10, 2021: On his day I felt a bit of nostalgia because I visited a place where my parents used to take my brothers and me camping in the 1960s and ‘70s: Bass River State Forest, 762 Stage Road, Bass River Township (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-296-1114). This was NJ’s first state forest, founded in 1905, In 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built most of the structures here, built the roads, planted many of the trees, and so forth. As a child in the 1960s and a teen in the ‘70s, I would sleep in the tent or a soft-top tent-trailer at the camp ground. Or in colder weather, I also slept in their shelters and cabins. In the summer, I would swim in Lake Absegami, go fishing & crabbing in areas near Bass River State Forest, and hike some of the trails in this park. On some nights, a park ranger near the nature center would present a slideshow about the flora, fauna, and history of this area. Those were my memories of this place! On this day, I stopped into the park office where I saw an exhibit case showing items pictures, and texts about the CCC. This place also offered plenty of free literature about this place, the NJ Pinelands, and other nearby attractions. Afterward, we drove to the main beach area and ate a picnic lunch while looking at the lake and the rest of the local scenery. Later, we drove around the different camp areas, and I noticed some changes, but for the most part, it looked like I remembered it in the late 1960s and early ‘70s.   

Pinelands Visitor Center

      Monday, August 9, 2021: The Pinelands Visitor Center, 17 Pemberton Road, Southampton (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-859-8860), has been a good place to learn about the NJ Pinelands and what it has to offer in recreation, history, and nature! Inside this 1853 farmhouse, the visitor center contained a room with books and items for sale having to do with the local area and NJ in general. Along one of the walls, I saw pictures and texts explaining the flora, fauna, history, and ecology of the Pinelands of NJ. In addition, a very helpful staff member could give advice and answer questions. Meanwhile, this center offered plenty of free literature about this area. Outside, I saw a big red barn that somebody built in the 1930s and could be rented for special occasions. I also noticed the plants and gardens on the grounds, and a nearby farm grew vegetables organically. The Pinelands are a unique part of NJ, and this is the best place to visit first to appreciate better what you would plan to see in the area.     

Smithville Mansion

     Thursday, August 5, 2021: I have never been to this Smithville. (Not to be confused with the Smithville in Atlantic County. This Smithville is in Burlington County, New Jersey.) Anyway, Historic Smithville Park, 803 Smithville Road, Easthampton, NJ (609-265-5858), didn’t contain shops. Instead, I toured the Smithville Mansion, a mansion that the brother Jonathan and Samuel Shreve build in 1840. They also built a factory nearby that made thread and printed cotton. They called their workers’ village Shreveville. In the 1850s, they went bankrupt and the village was vacant until 1865 when Hezekiah Smith bought the grounds and renamed the village Smithville. Smith lived here until he died in 1887. On the mansion tour, my guide showed me two floors worth of Victorian interiors and furnishing for a wealthy family as she told us stories about the Smiths. Another area of the mansion, The Annex, mostly stayed unrestored with white walls inside the rooms and displays of artworks painted by local artists. This too, proved interesting! The rest of the area contained a workers’ village with a worker’s house, school house, and other buildings. As for the rest of the park, there was a playground for children, a picnic area, and hiking trails.      

Air Victory Museum

      Wednesday, August 4, 2021: For a different change of pace, I entered the Air Victory Museum, 68 Stacy Haines Road, Lumberton (Burlington County), New Jersey (609-267-4488). Located inside of a hanger at the South Jersey Regional Airport, this place exhibited a plethora of model-scaled military aircraft from World War I through the Viet Nam War. Also on display were dioramas of combat events that involved aircraft both on the ground and in the air. In addition, hanging from the ceiling above and located on the floor were full-sized aircraft, and more model-scale-sized military aircraft. Other exhibits showed aircraft engines, military uniforms, and flight simulators, as well as pictures, texts, and news clippings covering events in air and space. The staff were very helpful on answering questions about the exhibits. Overall, it was an educating and enlightening experience!