Burlington County Herald - Mt. Holly Historic District - Mount Holly, NJ - NRHP Historic Districts - Contributing Buildings on Waymarking.com

This house/office is a good representation of this historic district and is fairly typical of what can be seen here. The building was bought by the local community college. They also bought other historic buildings on this street for their college. There is a bronze tablet attached to the brick on the left edge which bears the name of the newspaper which used to be headquartered here. There are bulk windows in the front of this building which makes me think perhaps it was originally built as an office and not a house.

The Burlington County Herald or Mount Holly Herald was published weekly in Mount Holly, Burlington County, NJ, under a long series of titles from circa 1826 -1962. The longest of the titles was the Mount Holly Herald. The title Burlington County Herald was utilized twice during the long publication life of the Mount Holly Herald.  The weekly newspaper, published in Mount Holly, Burlington County, NJ, was first published as the Burlington County Herald from 1832 to 1844.  In 1844, it was retitled Burlngton County Herald and General Advertiser.  The second use of the title, Burlington County Herald, began on July 19, 1962 and lasted until April 1, 1982, when the newspaper itself ceased publication altogether.

Despite the fact that the Herald was a weekly newspaper, the newspaper offered significant coverage of Mount Holly news and society. Social columns were included for many Burlington County towns in the county, as well as extensive listings of marriage announcements and death notices. The Herald reported detailed coverage of the Burlington County court cases and legal proceedings, including trial narratives, verdicts, jury lists, Orphan Court decisions, divorces, and other legal notices (e.g. notices of sales and estate settlements). In addition, it offered brief coverage of world news, but published lengthy articles and editorials on national, state and local Burlington County politics with a Democratic slant. During the U.S. Civil War and Spanish-American War, WWI, and subsequent military actions (including the establishment of Fort Dix), the Herald published news columns on local troops from all branches of the military. SOURCE

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:
20. BURLINGTON COUNTY HERALD ....1820 ....17 High Street
Two and one-half story center block house with added wing; high stone and brick foundation; common bond brick; 6/6 windows, flanked by paneled shutters; two interior chimneys; gabled roof with round roof dormers and box cornice with dentils; original center hall house; remodeled for business use by Mr. G. Edwin Brumbaugh, A.I.A.

There is a local historic marker located on the far left side of this brick building. 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. It reads:

Office

Of

Dr. William Risdon

Dentist

Circa.....1820

Col. Thomas L. Reynolds Chapter NSDAR

Address
17 High Street
Mill Race Village
Mount Holly, NJ 08060