HISTORICALLY SPEAKING From the New Jersey Historical Society's C. R. Hutchinson papers, the story of the Anthony Woodward, an early owner of property south of Doctors Creek to Arneytown. The street now known as Church Street, is mentioned as a "drift road" at a very early date. Then it began to be called "the Trenton Road," and later, when Thomas Paine became famous as "the author hero of the Revolution," it became "Paine Street," by which name it was generally designated in old deeds for many years; but after Paine, in 1795, published his "Age of Reason," (written in a French prison and under the shadow of the guillotine), the name came into disrepute, and was eventually abandoned. When I was a boy the different parts of the village were commonly mentioned as follows: East Main Street was "uptown" and westerly to the bridge was "down town," and beyond the bridge was "on the hill," while Church Street, which is a comparatively recent design ation, was generally spoken of as "down the lane." This street was originally located as it now is from Main Street, a distance of 200 yards or more to a point about opposite the present Hamilton Street, where it turned southwesterly on an elbow, 66 feet, and thence along the line of Nathan Robins's 28½ acres, N37oW10,15; and N32oW 10 chains to Indian Run, which it crossed a short distance below were is now Thomas Patterson's shops. January 19, 1808, "Sarah Newell, administratix of Elisha Newell, deceased," released to John Imlay Esqr. all the lots belonging to the estate of said Elisha Newell lying on the west side of Paine Street, in Allentown" and said Imlay released to the heirs of said Newell those on the easterly side of said street. The premises were described in part as follows: "All that certain piece or parcel of land in Allentown, on the west side of the road or street which leads from Main Street in Allentown to Trenton, which said road or street was altered and relaid on the twenty ninth day of October, seventeen hundred and ninety three, and is called Paine Street." All that part of Allentown lying on the northerly side of Doctors Creek is included in the three conveyances from Robert Burnet, viz: The 110 acres which he sold to Nathan Allen October 24, 1706; the 47 acres he sold to Robert Killam March 30, 1708 and the tract which in 1706, he sold to Aaron Robins. An account of all these having now been given, there is still to be disposed of that part of the town lying on the southerly side of said creek, which I will now proceed to do. July 23, 1697, The Proprietors of East New Jersey granted to "Anthony Woodward, of Nottingham, in the Countie of Burlington, &c. yeoman, All that tract of Land in the Countie of Monmouth, on the southside of Doctors Creeke, containing after allowance for barrens &c. 300 acres: Beginning 35 chaines below the bridge on the Post Road by the sayd creek and runing South 60 chaines to the old Shrewsbury Path: Thence East along the sayd Path, 68 chaines more or less, to the corner of Isaac Watson's Land, the be bought of John Johnston: Thence NE by N along sayd Watson's line, 25 chains more or less, to the sayd creek: Thence down the streams thereof to where it began," &c. The westerly line of this tract, running due south from Doctors Creek, appears to cross the West Main Street west of the house built by George H. Vanderbeek and now (in 1913) owned by Harrison G. Wright and east of John P. Nelson's house, [following correction was subsequently added: Woodward's westerly line crossed the York Road where is now the line between Josiah S. Robbins and the dwelling of Mrs. Linda H. Beatty, near and east of the Yardville Road]; thence across his farm to a corner of the old Shrewsbury Path; thence easterly along said path to the westerly corner of Enoch Wilson's farm (then Isaac Watson), and along the line of that farm to Doctors Creek, &c. Anthony Woodward was the first ancestor of the family of that name in New Jersey. He was born near "Ashford in the water," Derbyshire, England, in 1657. Twelfth month 22, 1682, when his sister Alice was married to Edward Booth, in Ashford Friends Meeting, Anthony Woodward, Samuel and John Bunting, and John, Samuel and Joan Sykes, signed their certificate as witnesses. Soon after this Anthony came to America; first to Long Island, and thence to New Jersey where he is found in 1686 among his old friends the Foulkes's, Bunting's, Sykes's. and others who came from the same neighborhood. He brought with him from Long Island a certificate of removal to Chesterfield Monthly Meeting which g ave a good account of him. Twelfth month 14, 1686, he married in Chesterfield Meeting, Hannah, daughter of Thomas Foulkes, who, in 1684, took up a 320 acre tract on a part of which the present village of Crosswicks is located, and who, in 1688, conveyed to him by deed of gift, a tract of land containing 200 acres, said to have been near Crosswicks. In 1689 he was the owner of a larger tract, containing perhaps 350 or 400 acres, situate on the northerly side of Crosswicks Creek, below Extonville, in Nottingham Township. He was taxed in Nottingham in 1692 and 1695. February 7, 1698, "William Dockwra, of London, Mercant, by John Reid of ye province of East Jersey, his attorney," conveyed to Anthony Woodward of ye said province, yeoman, for L380, "All that tract of Land lying on the westerly side of Crosswicks Creek or River in ye County of Monmouth, &c: Beginning where ye line of partition between ye two provinces of East and West Jersey crosseth ye sd Creek or River, & runing along ye sd line of partition, N by W3o,5' more westerly, 416 chaines more or less, until ye sd line cross ye sd Creek or River again: Thence up ye streame of ye sd River or Creek to ye place where it began; ye greatest breadth along Burlington old Path being about 120 chaines. Bounded westerly by ye sd line of partition & on all other sides by said Crosswicks Creek or River: Containing, after allowance for barrens & swamps, 2500 acres." January 8, 1700, Anthony Woodward sold to Benjamin Borden, all that part of this tract lying south of Blue Grass Run (a small stream rising near and northeast of Arneytown) for L 200, excepting two chains in width on the southerly side of said run. His residence was on the farm now belonging to the estate of Budd S. Woodward, deceased. This farm, which at the time of his death in 1729, at the age of 72 years, contained 400 acres, remained in the family for several generations, and the present owners are also descendants. The original buildings were on a part of old Burlington Path which has long been closed; and the dwelling stood a few feet southeasterly or southerly from the present brick dwelling on that farm. It was destroyed by fire about 1750. Historically Speaking is a regular column presented by John Fabiano, president of the Allentown-Upper Freehold Historical Society. 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