Thomas Budd House - Mt. Holly Historic District - Mt. Holly, NJ
N 39° 59.526 W 074° 47.287
18S E 518088 N 4426901
The Thomas Budd House, circa 1744, is the oldest structure in Mount Holly still on its original site. Today it is the home of the Bookery, a local book store. A local sign of history marks the significance of this home.
Waymark Code: WMER2F
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 06/29/2012
Views: 5
The Budd House is the earliest known residence on its original site in Mount Holly. Thomas Budd was a plantation owner and is one of the incorporates of the Mount Holly Library. His son and grandson, Dr. Stacey Budd, both lived in the home. Dr. Budd added a third floor to the structure, but it was removed in 1927. The house is made of brick, faded. There are four small, equally spaced windows up at the top, three over three, in what can be best described as an attic. It seems to be two and a half stories. There are three windows beneath those four, four over four. On the bottom floor are two windows with dark green shutters to the left and right of the second elevation entrance. The entrance is accessed by a few steps which come to a small landing. I also noticed a basement from the two windows flush with the ground with brick arches over the small, narrow windows.
There is a local historic marker located to the left of the front entrance of this beautiful home. The sign is similar to the signs in Moorestown, NJ which serve the same purpose and whose wooden template is probably produced by the same company. I believe the local DAR chapter sells these signs to interested homeowners or at least this is my understanding based on what I read at the town's library located on High Street. These signs in Mount Holly were erected in commemoration of the country's bicentennial celebration. They began hanging them in '75 with many concluded in '76. This one was erected in 1975.
The historic marker reads:
House
of
Thomas Budd
Plantation Owner
Circa 1744
Col. Thomas A. Reynolds Chapter - NSDAR
1975
The building and two others located at this part of town called the Mill Race Village are all contributing structure to the Mount Holly Historic District. The Mill Race Village is part of a large historic restoration/neighborhood preservation project and a haven for entrepreneurs, artisans and professionals alike. This neighborhood is the oldest in Mount Holly and of course contains the oldest houses.
Naturally, a building this old and unique is also a contributing structure to the Mount Holly Historic District. In my never ending quest to document all things contributing, I visited the town library to retrieve the nomination form and narratives for the historic district. The reference desk rewarded me with a very old, crumbling NRHP packet from 1969. Despite what on-line sources would have you believe, there are actually 39 contributing structures and not 36.
From the Nomination Form:
4. THOMAS BUDD HOUSE ....1774 ....20 White Street
Two and one-half story square horse of Flemish bond brick with glazed headers; 2 X 3 bay house; high stone foundation with moulded brick water table; three inside and chimneys over six corner fireplaces; windows originally 12/12; center door entrance with two rooms each side.
The following comes from the book stores website:
The Bookery is a new bookstore in the Mill Race Village, in historic downtown Mount Holly, NJ. We are located in the Thomas Budd House (circa 1744) one of the earliest known residences on its original site in Mount Holly, and according to local lore, is one of the most haunted places in the area. You can come and see our store and the ghosts for yourself during a local ghost tour held every Friday the 13th. Check the Mill Race Village website for more details www.millraceshops.com or www.mainstreetmountholly.com
Thomas Budd was a plantation owner and was one of the incorporates of the Mount Holly library. The house's basement has a tunnel in the corner which was used for the underground railroad. It was a museum for awhile, then it was converted back into a private home. It is now a bookstore known as "The Bookery."
The Thomas Budd house is believed to have been the site where a Hessian soldier was murdered by locals with his own bayonet for killing a little girl during battle. It is believed that his spirit is the one that haunts the house to this very day.
The house is located on White Street, at the intersection of White Street and Church/Charles Street.
Address
The Bookery, LLC
20 White Street
Mount Holly, NJ 08060
(609) 220-4466