Brick Academy

Last updated
Basking Ridge Classical School
Brick Academy, Basking Ridge, NJ, south view.jpg
The Brick Academy
Location map of Somerset County, New Jersey.svg
Red pog.svg
USA New Jersey location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location15 W. Oak Street
Basking Ridge, New Jersey
Coordinates 40°42′24″N74°33′0″W / 40.70667°N 74.55000°W / 40.70667; -74.55000 Coordinates: 40°42′24″N74°33′0″W / 40.70667°N 74.55000°W / 40.70667; -74.55000
Area0.5 acres (0.20 ha)
Built1809
Architectural style Federal
NRHP reference No. 76001185 [1]
NJRHP No.2467 [2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 21, 1976
Designated NJRHPNovember 25, 1975

Brick Academy is the nickname for a Federal-style brick building built in 1809 to meet the growing needs of the Basking Ridge Classical School located in the Basking Ridge section of Bernards Township, Somerset County, New Jersey. That school existed prior to 1799, at least 10 years before the construction of this building in 1809. The brick building was constructed for the elementary school run by local Presbyterian pastor, Rev. Robert Finley. This was about halfway through Rev. Finley's time at Basking Ridge. During the time he ran the school, attendance grew from fewer than 12 to an average near 25 students, and sometimes as high as 40 students. Students came from near & far, mostly from prominent families. The school was a high end preparatory school for boys who generally continued on to the College of New Jersey, later (in 1896), known as Princeton University. In 1817, Rev. Finley quit Basking Ridge to briefly become president of the University of Georgia in Athens, GA. By 1828, the "Brick Academy" corporation was formed and the building continued use as a private, then public school in 1853, before being used for other purposes.

Contents

The nickname "Brick Academy" is often misused to include students who actually attended the "Basking Ridge Classical School" (prior to 1828). It is also used inappropriately to include students at that school prior to the construction of the brick building, later known as "the Brick Academy". Samuel Southard is frequently cited as having attended the "Brick Academy" in Basking Ridge, however he graduated Princeton in 1804 - fully 5 years prior to the construction of the brick building later known as the Brick Academy.

After many years of service as a private boys' school, the Brick Academy later served as a public school, and then as a meeting hall for several fraternal and benevolent organizations, and the Bernards Township municipal building. (See timeline below.) In 1976 the Township leased the Brick Academy to The Historical Society of the Somerset Hills which uses the historic building for its headquarters and public meetings, and operates a museum, one room schoolhouse for local history, and research room. That organization offers an online virtual tour of the Brick Academy.

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 21, 1976 for its significance in education, philosophy, and religion. [3]

Notable students

Timeline

1795-8 Basking Ridge Classical School founded(?) by Reverend Robert Finley with students boarding locally or with Dr. Finley
1809 Brick Academy is constructed as the home of the Basking Ridge Classical School
1817 Rev Finley leaves NJ and travels to Athens GA to become president of University of Georgia, about a month before his death.
1828 Basking Ridge Brick Academy Company incorporated
1853 School District #12 in Basking Ridge opens in the Brick Academy building as a public school.
1896 College of New Jersey changes name to Princeton University as part of the sesquicentennial celebrations.
1904 The Brick Academy is sold to the Ancient Order of United Workmen (1904-1925) Junior Order of United American Mechanics
1924 Bernards Township, New Jersey rents building for municipal offices
1948 Bernards Township buys building for continued use for municipal offices
1975 Bernards Township government moves to former Astor estate at 1 Collyer Lane
1976 Township leases Brick Academy to The Historical Society of the Somerset Hills
1976 Brick Academy listed on National Register of Historic Places
2008 Dedication and opening of the top floor of the Brick Academy restoration effort. (November 11, 2008)
2009 Brick Academy Bicentennial celebration

See also

Related Research Articles

Bedminster, New Jersey Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States

Bedminster is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 8,165, reflecting a decline of 137 (-1.7%) from the 8,302 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 1,216 (+17.2%) from the 7,086 counted in the 1990 Census.

Bernards Township, New Jersey Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States

Bernards Township is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. The township is a bedroom suburb of New York City in the much larger New York metropolitan area, located within the Raritan Valley region. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 26,652, reflecting an increase of 2,077 (+8.5%) from the 24,575 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 7,376 (+42.9%) from the 17,199 counted in the 1990 Census.

Samuel L. Southard American Senator, Secretary of the Navy, and governor of New Jersey (1787-1842)

Samuel Lewis Southard was a prominent U.S. statesman of the early 19th century, serving as a U.S. Senator, Secretary of the Navy, and the tenth governor of New Jersey. He also served as President pro tempore of the Senate, and was briefly first in the presidential line of succession.

Henry Southard was a United States Representative from the state of New Jersey.

Isaac Southard was an Anti-Jacksonian member of the United States House of Representatives from 1831 to 1833, representing New Jersey at-large.

Robert Finley

Robert Finley was an American clergyman and educator who is known as one of the founders of the American Colonization Society, which established the colony of Liberia in West Africa as a place for free American Blacks.

Basking Ridge, New Jersey Unincorporated community in New Jersey, United States

Basking Ridge is an unincorporated community located within Bernards Township in the Somerset Hills region of Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the population for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) 07920 was 26,747.

The Bernards Township School District is a comprehensive community public school district, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Bernards Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States.

Ridge High School High school in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States

Ridge High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Bernards Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of the Bernards Township School District. Ridge High School opened in September 1961, ending a relationship under which students from the district had been sent to Bernardsville High School dating back to 1948.

West Nottingham Academy is an independent co-ed school serves both boarding and day students in grades 9-12. It was founded in 1744 by the Presbyterian preacher Samuel Finley, who later became President of The College of New Jersey. The 124-acre (0.50 km2), tree-lined campus is located in Colora, Cecil County, Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay – an hour and a half south of Philadelphia and twenty minutes north of Baltimore.

Lyons station New Jersey Transit rail station

Lyons is a New Jersey Transit station in Basking Ridge, New Jersey along the Gladstone Branch of the Morris & Essex Lines. The station serves south Basking Ridge as well as the Hills and Liberty Corner.

Somerset Hills

The Somerset Hills is known as the northern region of Somerset County located in the U.S. state of New Jersey and includes the municipalities of Bedminster, Bernardsville, Bernards Township, Far Hills, Peapack & Gladstone. The Morris County communities of the Chesters and the Mendhams are sometimes considered part of the Somerset Hills.

Samuel Finley

The Rev. Samuel Finley was an evangelical preacher and academic. He founded the West Nottingham Academy, and was the fifth president and an original trustee of the College of New Jersey from 1761 until 1766.

Cold Spring Presbyterian Church United States historic place

The Cold Spring Presbyterian Church (www.coldspringchurch.com) is home to a congregation of worship and mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and West Jersey Presbytery that began in 1714, and continues to believe that everyone deserves to experience God's love in relevant and authentic ways. The thriving faith community began a community-focused transformational initiative in 2016. Cold Spring Presbyterian Church delivers spiritual resources and experiences that are centered in God’s love and proclaim the abundant life through Jesus Christ to make greater Cape May a better place through worship, activities, events, and other ministries.

Old Queens United States historic place

Old Queens is the oldest extant building at Rutgers University and is the symbolic heart of the university's campus in New Brunswick in Middlesex County, New Jersey in the United States. Rutgers, the Eighth-oldest college in the United States, was founded in 1766 during the American colonial period as Queen's College. Queen's College was named for Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the daughter of a German duke who became the queen consort of British king George III. Old Queens is located on a six-acre hilltop city block bounded by Somerset Street, Hamilton Street, College Avenue and George Street that was previously an apple orchard. Donated to the college in 1807 by James Parker, Jr., this city block become known the Queen's Campus and is the historic core of the university. Because of this, by metonymy, the name "Old Queens" came to be used as a reference to Rutgers College and is often invoked as an allusive reference to the university or to its administration.

Charles Muir Campbell was a Scottish businessman in early Princeton, New Jersey, an early pioneer farmer in Illinois, and he spent the remainder of his life in Springfield, Illinois, where he was a justice of the peace. While in New Jersey, he was one of the initial subscribers to the American Colonization Society.

Presbyterian Church in Basking Ridge United States historic place

The Presbyterian Church in Basking Ridge is a historic church at 1 E. Oak Street in the Basking Ridge section of Bernards Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. Its churchyard held the Old Oak Tree of Basking Ridge, estimated to be 600 years old, until 2017.

Queens Campus, Rutgers University United States historic place

The Queens Campus or Old Queens Campus is a historic section of the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey in New Brunswick, New Jersey, in the United States.

Lord Stirling Manor Site United States historic place

The Lord Stirling Manor Site is a historic site located at 96 Lord Stirling Road, in the Basking Ridge section of Bernards Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. It was the property of the American General William Alexander, Lord Stirling. It is now part of Lord Stirling Park. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 22, 1978. An archaeological excavation sponsored by Somerset County Parks unearthed thousands artifacts dating from Lord Stirling's occupation through the 20th century. The site is currently occupied by a 1920s Montgomery Ward mail order house that was situated on the foundation of the original structure.

Historical Society Somerset Hills (THSSH) is a historical organization in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. It was founded in 1928 as the Historical Society of Basking Ridge.

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ↑ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Somerset County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office. April 5, 2013. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 16, 2013.
  3. ↑ Rozewski, Richard (September 27, 1974). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Basking Ridge Classical School". National Park Service. With one accompanying photo
  4. ↑ Samuel Lewis Southard profile, United States Congress. Accessed July 29, 2007.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.