Pride in Our Past & Present
Settled by a group of Scottish Presbyterians beginning in the 1680’s, Matawan was first called New Aberdeen, and then Mount Pleasant. Today, Matawan’s historic town core retains its appeal as a place to live, work, and shop.
Burrowes Mansion Book Now Available
The new edition of The Burrowes Mansion of Matawan New Jersey: and Notations on the History of Monmouth County, Second Edition (2023) by Mary Lou Diecker and Barry C. Orr is now available! The Burrowes Mansion, constructed in 1723, celebrated its 300th Birthday in 2023, and this newly expanded edition of the book commemorates that anniversary. Please visit our “Shop” page to order your copy
Burrowes Mansion 300th Anniversary
On June 3rd and June 4th 2023, the Matawan Historical Society held a historic event honoring the Burrowes Mansion and its 300 years of history. The festivities included a reenactment of the 1778 Mansion raid by the British (see video here), a self-guided walking tour of the Matawan historic district, tours of the Mansion, and many other activities. The anniversary was featured in the Asbury Park Press on June 3rd.
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Take a road trip today (11/17) to the Burrowes Mansion Museum — 94 Main Street, Matawan — and travel through time, discovering its amazing history spanning more than 300 years. The museum is open for tours from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
꧁ 𝓗𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂_𝓪𝓷𝓭_𝓨𝓸𝓾_— _𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓯𝓮𝓬𝓽_𝓽𝓸𝓰𝓮𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻! ꧂
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How much are the tours?
Please consider hoping the Historical Society matawanhistoricalsociety.org/join-or-donate/
No fee at all but donations are accepted
What's In Your Attic?
In May of 2023, Debbie Lloyd had a yard sale at her home located at 167 Main Street, adjacent to the library. This structure was built by wealthy Matawan merchant Daniel Schenck Stilwell (1816-1866) in the early 1860s, and upon his death was purchased by Aaron Longstreet (1805-1894), who vacated his residence at 80 Main to take possession of this larger, newer home. Aaron had married Catherine Van Mater Lloyd (no relation to Debbie) in 1839 and they had three children – youngest Henry (1857-1938) became a leading citizen in the borough and maintained possession of the residence until 1928, when he sold it to Van Winkle Todd, the president of Hansen-Van Winkle-Munning Company.
Todd was a World War I fighter pilot who made the national news in 1918 after being shot down behind enemy lines and was initially missing in action. Debbie’s family purchased the residence from the Todds around 1963 and resided there until last year.
In the attic of the residence, a framed, hand-drawn map of Africa was discovered. Signed “Catherine VM Lloyd”, it can be dated to before her marriage to Aaron Longstreet in 1839 when she was in her teens.
It appears the map was made as a class project at the Matawan Academy on Church Street, making it one of the earliest examples of Matawan “schoolwork” known. It was subsequently obtained by the Matawan Historical Society and is on display at the Burrowes Mansion Museum.
The map gathered dust in 167 Main for over 150 years. There are 300 homes in the Borough that are over 100 years old.
What’s in your attic?
-Mark Chidichimo MHS Genealogist & Board of Directors Member
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Very interesting history .
Pretty cool