More stories from a Child’s History of Atlantic Highlands, written by the Social Studies Challenge class of Atlantic Highlands elementary school in 1985.
The book is the result of class assignments by teacher Elizabeth K. Clarke. Students in that class were Alissa Deakin, Susie Gaskill, Ryan King, Jeremy Krempert, Jennifer Maddalena, David Millard, Jennifer Pollack, Jared Rutberg, Katherine Steadman, and John Wabisky.
The Gunther House
In 1664 John Bowne settled here and built a home. This really small old house is till here and its driveway is just off Bowne Avenue.
John Bownes granddaughter married Mordecai Lincoln was the great great grandfather of Abraham Lincoln.
The Monmouth Tea Party
You’ve all heard of the Boston Tea Party? Weel, Monmouth County had a ‘tea party’ too. It occurred in April of 1775 right here in Sandy Hook Bay
A ship loaded with tea was on its way to New York. The ship needed a pilot to take her into New York Harbor, but all the pilots refused because of the cargo. The Colonists did not want tea brought into New York. Under cover of darkness, a band of local patriots crept out to the ship, boarded her, and dumped the hateful cargo overboard. They then forced the Captain to turn his ship around and sail back to England.
The Battle of the Navesink
The first skirmish of the Revolution in Monmouth County took place in the hills just south of Atlantic Highlands. A troop of British regulars surprised the local volunteers, led by Captain Scudder. Twenty-five patriots were killed and 72 were captured. They were sent to the awful “Sugar House” prison in New York.
British Retreat
After the Battle of Monmouth, the British troops marched East along Kings Highway and down the hill to Many Mind Creek, where they embarked for New York.
Henry Hudson Spring
In 1609 a Dutch explorer sailed into Sandy Hook Bay. The Indians told him of a wonderful natural spring, a source of clean fresh water. This spring is called Henry Hudson Spring after that explorer. It is as the bottom of the hill on Bayside Drive You can still drink the pure clear water that runs out of our hills.
In the age of the great sailing vessels, all the ships that were sailing from here to the old world would anchor here in our harbor to take on fresh water from this spring for the trip back. Sometimes there were hundreds of ships lying at anchor, awaiting the right wind.
In 1830 a house was built on the hill overlooking the spring. The owner fenced off the ‘water spout’ as it was often called, and charged five cents a barrel for the water. His house was called “The Spout House” and is still there.
In the 1930s, the WPA built a native pea stone wall around the spring. In 1977 the Atlantic Highlands Society cleaned, restored and landscaped the spring.
You can now walk over a little bridge to enjoy a cool drink and a beautiful view.
