Location: Ewing, Mercer, New Jersey, United States

Surnames/tags: Greene Green
This page is for information on the family homestead called the William Green Farm House.
Contents |
About the Farm House
The Farmhouse was the home of American colonist Judge William Green, a judge in the Court of Common Pleas who was born in Lincolnshire, England in 1671 and died in 1722 in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Judge Green married Joanna "Hannah" Reeder, the daughter of John Reeder and Joanna Burroughs Reeder, who was born in 1699 in Newtown, Long Island, New York. Judge William Green and Hannah settled in the area of Ewing, New Jersey and built the William Green House (Ewing Township, New Jersey), now on the National Historic Register and located on the campus of The College of New Jersey. Despite fund-raising efforts, the old farmhouse near where the troops of George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River once rested during the Revolutionary War, has never been fully restored [1]
Owners
- John Severns owned the earliest sturcture, a log cabin witth a large fire heath.
William Green, ancestor of the families of that name in this region, dissatisfied with some new relation in his father’s family, left his native land, England, at the early age of twenty, and landed at the port of Philadelphia. Soon after, desirous of returning, and finding no vessel about to sail from that port, he went to New York, but not meeting with an opportunity immediately, visited Long Island. He there became acquainted with the family of John Reeder , recently arrived from England, whose sister, or daughter, Joanna, in process of time, he married, and removed to Ewing township, about 1700. He purchased three hundred and forty-five acres of Col. Daniel Coxe , the deed bearing the date 1712, and on it erected the first brick house in the township, which is still standing, having on the west end the date, 1717, and is owned and occupied by his descendent of the fifth generation, Henry Green . His qualities were such as to give him distinction, for he was appointed one of the first judges of Hunterdon county, and from the frequent mention of his name in public affairs and important business transactions, he was evidently a prominent and useful citizen. He died, as is indicated by his antique tombstone in the Ewing church-yard, in 1722. [2]
- Willilam Green Jr and Lydia (Armitage) Green. William, the son of William, was one of the corporators of Trenton First Church (now Ewing) from 1756 to 1764. He married Lydia, daughter of Enoch Armitage, by whom he had four children: Enoch; William, who took ownership of the house; Joanna, the wife of Christopher Howell; and Mary, the wife of Daniel Howell. William died in 1786 at the age of 84, [3]
- William W Green III and Phebe (Moore) Green. William, the son of William, married Phebe, daughter of Samuel Moore and having had children: Enoch, a physician, went South, and died young, at Savannah, Ga.; Elijah, not married, died 1850, aged 68; Samuel; Lydia, married Israel Carle ; Rebecca, married John Welling ; Sarah, died May 28th ,1820, aged 44; and Mary, wife of John Jones . William III died October 30th, 1815, aged 72, [2]
- Samuel Moore and Mary (Perrine) Green. Samuel Green, the son of William, married Mary, daughter of Henry Perrine, of Monmouth, who died November 25th, 1847, aged 52. Their children were: Emily, wife of Henry Bilyeu; William A.; Phebe, wife of Francis Sneed; Henry; Lydia; Sarah, wife of David Jeffries; Hannah, wife of Henry Lanning; Lewis, went to Australia, and there married; and John, married Elizabeth, daughter of William Scudder; has children, Margaret and Sarah. Samuel died April 1st, 1859, at age 68.
- Henry Perrine Green and Virginia (Reeder) Green. Henry P. Green, son of Samuel, married Virginia, daughter of Amos Reeder. Henry P. Green, son of Samuel and Mary (Perrine) Green, was the owner of a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which he cultivated in a most efficient manner. Their children are: William, married Augustine, daughter of William Scudder; Frederic, married Mary Lee; Anna, died in youth; Florence, died in childhood; Henry; and Amos Reeder.
- Lydia Moore
- Jewell Blackwell
- The Trenton State College/TCNJ
Construction
TH home of William Green, Sr. was built near the Delaware River.
A log cabin belonging to John Severns was built on the site prior to 1730, That cabin remained a part of the house until it was demolished down to the foundation during the third building stage. Its original foundation still remains and was encorporated into the third building stage. The house as it presently stands consists of three sections from three different building periods.
The oldest section of the home adjoined the cabin previously on the site. Originally, it was a two-and-a-half story brick structure, one room deep, with a divided basement, a single room on the first floor, and two rooms above. Although this portion of the building has been dated back as far as 1717, it seems unlikely that it was constructed so quickly after William acquired the land. 1730 is a more likely date of construction. [4]
The second section is located behind the 1730’s section, and it consists of two rooms and a stair hall on the first floor, with two rooms above. It is built of mud, horse hair and plaster and over lumber with hand-made nails, There is no record of when it was built, but the materials used and construction techniques indicate between 1750 and 1790. A date towards the latter part of this period is more likely, since the door panels made for this section indicate the post-Revolutionary era. [4]
Building the third addition almost doubled the size of the house. It is made of brick set in a common bond with seven rows between headers. There are circular saw marks on much of the interior lath which indicates it was built after 1830. It is possible the construction was done after Samuel Green purchased the property in 1833 or Henry P. Green in 1848. [4]
Image:Http://www.williamgreenhouse.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/GreenHouse1920s-1024x614.jpg |
The farmhouse as it appeared in the 1920s |
Preservation and Restoration
The William Green Farm House has been listed on the New Jersey and national Registers of Historic Places since the 1970's, It is a significant example of colonial farmhouse architecture. This historic treasure, dating from c.1730, is located on the campus of The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) in Ewing Township, NJ. Not having the resources necessary to restore the structure, TCNJ funded a stabilization project in 2007 to ensure that no further deterioration occured while they attempted to raise the funds for restoration. For several years the Friends of the William Green Farm House, in partnership with TCNJ, were raising funds for a full restoration so the house can be used as an alumni house with a museum.
IN 2012, plans were made to restore the farmhouse and turn it into an alumni house, Many state universities have historic buildings integrated into their campus including but not limited to: Rider University, Monmouth University, and Princeton University. These buildings are renovated to preserve an important part of the college and the community history. The estimate was prepared as well as a work timeline, and the Friends of the William Green Farmhouse agreed to fundraise contingent upon a letter of support. Unfortunately, when Mr. Greg Caiola [5] passed away, his successor, John Donahue [6] decided to renege on the plans. [7]
Unfortunately, the college later announced they would not sanction use or help restore or maintain the house, despite the fact that they own the property. In 2015, the house was placed on New Jersey Preservation's list of 10 Most Endangered Historic Sites. [8]
The Friends of the Farmhouse
The Friends of the William Green Farmhouse is a non-profit group dedicated to the saving of the William Green Farmhouse on the campus of the College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey. The goal of this group is to preserve a record of the farmhouse' past, raise awareness for the uncertain future of the stucture, to stabilize and secure the farmhouse from future damage, and pottentially raise enough funding to convince the College of New Jersey Campus to restore the building. [7]
Sources
- ↑ "The Greene Ancestry" on Wikivisually.com, [1], accessed 17 Oct 2021.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cooley, Eli, Early Settlers in Trenton and Ewing New Jersey, W.S.Sharp Publishing, Trenton, NJ, 1883; p. 78+.
- ↑ Friends of the William Green Farmhouse, (http://www.williamgreenhouse.org/about-the-house/past-owners-of-the-wm-green-house/) Past Owners of the Farmhouse, Friends of the William Green Farmhouse website, accessed 3 June 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Friends of the William Green Farmhouse, (http://www.williamgreenhouse.org/about-the-house/phases-of-construction/) Phases of Construction, Friends of the William Green Farmhouse website, accessed 3 June 2021.
- ↑ https://obits.nj.com/obituaries/trenton/obituary.aspx?n=gregory-caiola&pid=168875783&fhid=28321
- ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-p-donohue
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Friends of the William Green Farmhouse, (https://www.facebook.com/WilliamGreenFarmHouseTCNJ/) a social group on Facebook.com; accessed 3 June 2021.
- ↑ Mulvaney, Nicole, website (https://www.nj.com/mercer/2015/05/njs_10_most_endangered_historic_sites_for_2015.html), citing N.J.'s 10 most endangered historic sites for 2015, True New Jersey - NJ.com; accessed 3 June 2021.
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