The Deserted Village, Union County, New Jersey

The Deserted Village in the Watchung Reservation was a winter refuge for the Lenni -Lenape tribe long before European settlers came there in the early 18th century. Known as the Blue Brook Valley, a powder mill located there supplied the American Revolutionary War. Some of the settlers stayed in the valley to build a saw mill which became a prosperous lumber business. In 1845, the mill was purchased by David Felt, a New York City printer, who expanded the operation to include making paper, as well as binding and printing books. The area became known as "Feltville." Mr. Felt ruled his town with a strong dictatorial style - (i.e., insisting that his employees both attend church and get to sleep by 9:00 pm.)  Mr. Felt ruled the town for fifteen years. Felt sold his holdings in 1860 and left the area.The village gradually declined and was acquired in 1945 by the Union County Park Commission. The valley is now referred to as the "Deserted Village".  

- Matthew Taylor

Mill Hand Cottage in the Deserted Village

Related sources and websites:

'Berkeley Heights, N.J. : a local government school and community study.'

League of Women Voters (1)
 
Flickr slideshow of portions of 'Berkeley Heights, N.J.: a local government school and community study'  http://www.flickr.com/photos/berkeleyheightsnj/sets/72157633159485292/

'Our Town Berkeley Heights by the League of Women Voters' 1963 (2-3)

The Deserted Village, Union County website  http://ucnj.org/community/parks-community-renewal/parks-facilities/activities/the-deserted-village/

The Deserted Village by Dr. Arthur L. Johnson, a digitized pamphlet from Mountainside Public Library (also available in Berkeley Heights Public Library's New Jersey Reference Collection) http://www.mountainsidelibrary.org/HistoryFiles/DesertedVillageJohnson.pdf

 Our Tribal History, the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape website http://www.nanticoke-lenape.info/history.htm