Chesterfield, New Jersey Explained

Chesterfield, New Jersey
Settlement Type:Unincorporated community
Pushpin Map:USA New Jersey Burlington County#USA New Jersey#USA
Pushpin Label:Chesterfield
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Burlington
Subdivision Type3:Township
Subdivision Name3:Chesterfield
Coordinates:40.115°N -74.6394°W
Blank Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank Info:875404[1]
Unit Pref:imperial

Chesterfield, originally known as Recklesstown, is an unincorporated community located around the intersection of County Route 528 (Bordentown-Chesterfield Road, Chesterfield-Arneytown Road) and County Route 677 (Chesterfield-Georgetown Road) in Chesterfield Township of Burlington County, New Jersey.[1] [2]

History

In the 1830s, the village had a store, hotel, church, and post office. The village was originally named after Joseph Reckless, who had bought a mill here in 1712.[3] His grandsons, Anthony and Robert, served in the American Revolutionary War. The name of the community was changed to Chesterfield in 1888 by congressman Anthony Bullock. The oldest part of the Recklesstown Tavern, now the Chesterfield Inn, was built . The tavern was expanded in 1774.

Historic district

Recklesstown Historic District
Nrhp Type:HD
Nocat:yes
Architecture:Late Victorian, Georgian
Added:August 19, 1975
Refnum:75001125
Designated Other1 Name:New Jersey Register of Historic Places
Designated Other1 Abbr:NJRHP
Designated Other1 Link:New Jersey Register of Historic Places
Designated Other1 Date:May 8, 1975
Designated Other1 Number:781[4]
Designated Other1 Num Position:bottom
Designated Other1 Color:
  1. ffc94b

The Recklesstown Historic District is a 200acres historic district encompassing the village. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 19, 1975, for its significance in agriculture, religion, and transportation. The district includes 49 contributing buildings. The Kessler House is a two and one-half story brick building built . The Chesterfield Baptist Church was built in 1848 and features Greek Doric columns. Across the street is the Clayton House, once the church rectory, now a florist.[5]

Notable people

See also

Notes and References

  1. Variant name: Recklesstown
  2. Web site: Locality Search . State of New Jersey.
  3. Book: Woodward . E. M. . Hageman. John F. . History of Burlington and Mercer Counties, New Jersey, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Their Pioneers and Prominent Men . 1883 . 287–288 . Recklesstown . https://archive.org/details/historyofburling01wood/page/287/ . Everts & Peck . Philadelphia.
  4. Web site: New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Burlington County . New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office . 5 . September 29, 2022 . listed as the Recklesstown Historic District (Village of Chesterfield).
  5. Web site: [{{NRHP url|id=75001125}} National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Recklesstown ]. National Park Service. John . Winters . April 1975 . With