South Amboy Genealogical and Historical Resources
South Amboy Citizen |
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South Amboy Times |
St. Mary's (Cardinal McCarrick High School) |
South Amboy High School |
Family Tales @ dowdell library
Did you ever wonder about your distant relatives?
HeritageQuest provides an extensive collection of resource materials for tracing family history and American culture. Genealogists can now use this powerful online library, with original page images for all documents, from the convenience of home or office provided by the Sadie Pope Dowdell Library. So, shake up the family tree and delve into the past! Just enter your library card number to begin.
New Jersey Digital Highway – Selected Archives from the Sadie Pope Dowdell Public Library
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CITY OF SOUTH AMBOY HISTORICAL TIMELINE |
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| 1640 | Dutch fisherman started village 6 houses South Amboy was originally known as Redman's Ferry | ||
| 1798 | Incorporated as a township | ||
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1808 | First store opened - owned by Samuel Gordon | |
| 1831 | Colonel John Stevens brought his steam engine "John Bull" to Camden Amboy Railroad and ran it's first train over the entire line | ||
| 1832 | First lawyer in town Charles Moore | ||
| 1844 | First post office was established with Charles Perrine as post master | ||
| 1850 | Christ Church Parish was established | ||
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1851 | St. Mary Catholic Church established | |
| 1852 | Swan Hill Pottery was established | ||
| 1865 | First Presbyterian Church organized - Rev. G. C. Bush | ||
| 1868 | St. Mary School was established by Sisters of Mercy | ||
| Thomas Joseph Scully, an American Democratic Party politician who represented New Jersey's 3rd congressional district from 1911 to 1921 is born in South Amboy. | |||
| 1872 | First Baptist Church organized - Rev. Thomas S. Snow (2nd Street) | ||
| 1880 | Great Beds Lighthouse was built | ||
| 1882 | The Citizen - Local newspaper started | ||
| 1888 | Borough of South Amboy was formed with Cornelius McGonigle as first mayor | ||
| 1889 | Knights of Pythias Lodge founded - City's oldest fraternal organization | ||
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1890 | Biggest fire raged destroying the entire block of wooden houses on the east side of Broadway which brought about the the organizing of the first fire house - On May 31 1890 - Independence Engine and Hose Company and Enterprise Hook and Ladder Co. | |
| 1890 | Protection Engine Company established | ||
| 1895 | Sacred Heart Catholic Church established | ||
| 1885 | Sacred Heart School was established | ||
| 1896 | Governor Harold G. Hoffman was born in South Amboy | ||
| 1904 | Mechanicsville Hose Company was formed | ||
| 1908 | City of South Amboy Charter granted - Doctor Tregonowan, Mayor | ||
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1911 | South Amboy native Thomas J. Scully elected as a Democrat to the 62nd United States Congress and to the four succeeding Congresses. | |
| 1912 | Woman's Club was formed | ||
| New Jersey's first air mail flight - South Amboy to Perth Amboy - Pilot O. G. Simmons passenger Mayor Fred Garretson | |||
| 1914 | South Amboy Public Library was established | ||
| 1917 | Congregation Beth Israel Mordecai Formed - Lasted approx. 1 year | ||
| 1918 | Mogan Explosion - Gillespie Shell Loading Plant at Morgan blew up | ||
| 1919 | First public high school was erected | ||
| 1921 | Progressive Fire Company was formed | ||
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1924 | South Amboy Hospital was built | |
| 1925 | Harold G. Hoffman becomes Mayor | ||
| 1927 |
Victory Bridge was built linking Perth Amboy to South Amboy | ||
| 1930 | John McKeon, former Major League Baseball manager born in South Amboy. | ||
| Major League Baseball stars Johnny and Eddie O'Brien(twins) are born in South Amboy. | |||
| 1931 | First Aid Squad was formed | ||
| 1932 | New York Yankee, Alfred Aloysius "Allie" Clark born in South Amboy | ||
| 1933 | Benjamin Franklin Howell, American Republican Party politician who represented New Jersey's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1895 to 1911 interred in Christ Cemetery | ||
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1950 | 4 munitions barges exploded in Raritan Bay off S. Amboy coast | |
| 1953 | Gregory Ralph "Greg" Evigan known for the television series "B. J. and the Bear" and "My Two Dads" born in South Amboy | ||
| South Amboy natives Johnny and Eddie O'Brien became the first twins in major league history to play for the same team in the same game. | |||
| 1954 | Harold G. Hoffman died | ||
| 1972 | Re-dedication of the South Amboy Public Library to Sadie Pope Dowdell Public Library | ||
| 1979 | B. J. and the Bear (television series), starring South Amboy native Greg Evigan premieres | ||
| 1984 | "Purple Rose of Cairo" (movie) written and directed by Woody Allen was filmed at the Raritan Diner starring Mia Farrow, Jeff Daniels & Danny Aiello | ||
| 1987 | John T. O'Leary elected Mayor | ||
| My Two Dads (television series), starring South Amboy native Greg Evigan premieres | |||
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1991 | South Amboy Sayreville Times - Local newspaper started | |
| 1993 | Amboy Beacon - Local newspaper started | ||
| 1998 | Raritan Bay Waterfront Park opens | ||
| 1999 | "Coyote Ugly" (movie) starring Piper Perabo & John Goodman was filmed | ||
| South Amboy native Jack McKeon was named National League Manager of the Year | |||
| 2002 | South Amboy Neighborhood Preservation (SAND) Program Started | ||
| Seastreak Ferry Service started | |||
| South Amboy Business Association founded. | |||
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2003 | South Amboy native Jack McKeon wins the World Series as manager of the Florida Marlins and named National League Manager of the Year | |
| 2004 | Train Station Addition opened on Broadway | ||
| Commissioner Susan Bass Levin designates the City of South Amboy to the Main Street Program | |||
| 2005 | B. Judith Lecki Bridge dedication (Raritan Bay Waterfront park) | ||
| 2006 | Railroad crossing dedication/ Newcomb-Admaecs Crossing O'Leary Blvd/Broadway | ||
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2009 | Dedication of Memorial to Army Sgt. First Class Benjamin Sebban | |
| Dowdell Library Foundation established | |||
| 2010 | YMCA & Senior Center opening | ||
| “Mercy” (television series) episode " I Did Kill You, Didn't I?" filmed | |||
| “Crackers” (movie) staring Vincent D'Onofrio filmed | |||
| Fred Henry elected Mayor | |||
| 2011 | South Amboy native Jack McKeon takes over as manager of the Florida Marlins at age 80, becoming the second oldest manager in major league history. | ||
| 1950 Pennsylvania Railroad Explosion Marker dedicated. | |||
| 2012 | 100th Anniversary of the first air mail flight- July 4, 1912 | ||
| Superstorm Sandy devastates South Amboy/East Coast | |||
| 2013 | 125th Anniversary of Amboy National Bank | ||
| Camden & Amboy Railroad Marker dedicated | |||
| 2014 | 125th Anniversary of the South Amboy Fire Department | ||
| 100th Anniversary of the Sadie Pope Dowdell Library | |||
| World Trade Center Memorial dedicated | |||
| Mayor Fred Henry re-elected | |||
| 2015 | First Air Mail Delivery in NJ Marker dedicated | ||
| Fire destroys C-Town (Foodtown) Grocery Store | |||
| Sinkhole on Gordon Street | |||
| 2016 | Terra Cotta Works Marker dedicated | ||
| RollerMagic Roller Skating Rink's roof collapsed | |||
| 2017 | RollerMagic Roller Skating Rink re-opens | ||
| 2018 | Mayor Fred Henry re-elected | ||
| Woodmont Cove Ribbon Cutting | |||
| 2019 | History of the "City of South Amboy" Marker dedicated | ||
| South Amboy Historical Society Gallery dedication | |||
| Veterans Memorial Signs dedicated | |||
| 2020 | Covid-19 Pandemic shuts down New Jersey (USA) | ||
| 2021 | City reopens after COVID Pandemic | ||
| Shoregate fire displaces residents | |||
| 2022 | "Eileen" movie starring Anne Hathaway filmed at Lagoda's Tavern on Broadway | ||
| First phase of Station Bay Apartments begins leasing Ferry Terminal Project groundbreaking Veterans Plaza (on Bordentown Avenue) groundbreaking and dedication Allie Clark Sports Complex Baseball Field renovation and dedication Woodmont Industrial Partners Warehouse groundbreaking Mayor Fred Henry re-elected |
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| 2023 | 225th Anniversary of South Amboy Township Osprey platform installed at SA Waterworks Mural unveiled at Raritan Bay Waterfront Park Canadian wildfires smoke produced worst air quality ever seen in NJ Ferry service to New York begins |
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| 2024 | 100th Anniversary of South Amboy Memorial Hospital | ||
Dowdell Library is Looking for South Amboy MemorabiliaThe Library would like to borrow the community’s photos, media, documents and memorabilia to scan; the material would be returned within minutes. If residents wish to donate these items, originals will be preserved using professional archival storage materials. This project will continue the preservation of South Amboy’s history within the library's temperature controlled, historical collection. Earlier phases of the project digitized the library's newspaper collection and South Amboy high school yearbooks, which are available for viewing. So, please help preserve South Amboy’s heritage! Contact us at 732.721.6060 or comments@dowdell.org
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Historical Local Newspapers
1777-1963
1765-1970
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1883-1922
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