1807 - Surrogate's Office and Collector's Office - Mt. Holly, NJ
N 39° 59.784 W 074° 47.330
18S E 518026 N 4427379
This is one of the smallest government buildings you might ever find. The building is a single room structure painted to resemble the historic 18th century courthouse to the left of it. The date can be found under the gable on the left side.
Waymark Code: WMER92
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 06/30/2012
Views: 2
The date of this building, 1807, can be found on the upper left or south side of the building, under the eaves in black numbers which has probably been repainted several times over the lat two hundred years. The date is in side a semi-circle, in a pediment type of area, with dentils above it. The building itself is rather small but there is beauty in its simplicity and eloquence in its COlonial/Georgian architecture. Fortunately, the American Guide Series and the NRHP provide decent descriptions, much better than I could.
I. The COUNTY BUILDINGS, Main St. between Garden and Union Sts., are grouped as a unit with the large COURTHOUSE, erected 1796, in the center and the smaller SURROGATE'S OFFICE and ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, built in 1807, on either side. The courthouse in particular is an outstanding example of Georgian Colonial design adapted to a public building. It is a two-story, yellow brick structure, with white trim, green shutters, and a well-proportioned tower. The entrance is lighted by a Colonial lantern; over the great oak door is the coat of arms of New Jersey in granite, and a graceful fanlight. The surrogate's office and the administration building are both one-story structures of brick, painted yellow, with green shutters and white trim. --- New Jersey, a Guide to Its Present and Past, 1939; page 293
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 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:
15. SURROGATE'S OFFICE AND COLLECTOR'S OFFICE ....1807 ....High Street
Two identical one story rectangular offices constructed of Flemish bond brick with moulded brick water tables over brick foundations; one bay entrance porch on each; keystones over 9/9 windows, flanked by paneled shutters; gable roof over box cornices with carved and shaped dentils with moulded architrave frieze same as court house; full length return under gable at sides of buildings from front to back.
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