Gloucester City (Gloucestertown)

Identifier
NJS-PLC-00289
Place Type
City, Town, or Village
Alternate Name
Gloucestertown
Gloucester Point
Union
Description
Gloucester City is a municipality located on the Delaware River in Camden County, New Jersey. It has its historical roots in an early colonial settlement known as Gloucestertown or the Town of Gloucester. In historical documents, the city's name is variously spelled Gloucester, Glocester, Glouster, or Gloster, and the waterfront area is sometimes referred to as Gloucester Point. Prior to the establishment of Camden County in 1844, the city was part of Gloucester County. The city is not to be confused with the related, but separate, Gloucester Township.

Gloucestertown was founded in 1685. The town was located on the Delaware River, between Newton Creek and Big Timber Creek. The following year, 1686, a county court was established at Gloucestertown, making it the county seat of the newly-formed Gloucester County. In 1695, the rural area extending inland from Gloucestertown was designated Gloucester Township, a separate administrative unit. While Gloucestertown occupied a small territory along the Delaware River, the rural Gloucester Township was much larger and extended for about 22 miles inland (about halfway from the Delaware River to the Atlantic Ocean). At this time, Gloucester Township occupied approximately half of the territory that is known as Camden County today.

In 1734, there was an attempt to merge Gloucestertown and Gloucester Township together as the "Precinct of Gloucester." This attempt was short-lived, and by 1739 the two municipalities were separated again. In the process of breaking apart the Precinct of Gloucester, the boundaries of Gloucestertown were reconfigured, and the town annexed considerable territory that formerly belonged to the rural Gloucester Township. As a result of this annexation, the territory of Gloucestertown stretched all the way to the area where the New Jersey Turnpike is located now. From 1739 until the mid-19th century, Gloucestertown included the territory that is now occupied by the following communities: Gloucester City, Brooklawn, Mount Ephraim, Bellmawr, part of Haddon Heights, and part of Barrington. Thus, researchers tracing the history of slavery in these surrounding communities should review records filed under Gloucestertown/Gloucester City.

After the American Revolution, Gloucestertown lost its status as the county seat. The county courthouse in Gloucestertown burned down in 1786, and a new courthouse was built in Woodbury the following year, making Woodbury the new county seat.

In the 19th century, Gloucestertown underwent several name and boundary changes. This began in 1831, when the town's name was changed from Gloucestertown to Union. Simultaneously with this name change, the town annexed more territory from the westernmost part of the rural Gloucester Township. For 24 years from 1831 to 1855, Union's southeastern boundary was Evesham Road, meaning that the territory of modern-day Runnemede, Lawnside, and most of Magnolia were part of Union during this time. At this point in its history, the municipality reached its largest size, but it would soon begin to shrink.

In 1844, Camden County split off from Gloucester County, and Union was now officially part of Camden County. Then in 1855, Union shrank significantly when the majority of its territory was taken to form Centre Township (Centre Township is now defunct after it splintered into many smaller boroughs). Only the downtown core along the Delaware River now remained in Union. Thirteen years later, in 1868, the name Union was retired, and the historical name of Gloucester was restored to this riverfront area, which was reincorporated as Gloucester City. Gloucester City expanded somewhat in the 1920s by annexing a small portion of the territory it had previously lost to Centre Township; however, Gloucester City remains significantly smaller today than it was in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Locality
Gloucester City
County (Modern)
Camden County
County (Historical)
Gloucester County
State or Province
New Jersey
Country
United States of America
Related Place
Gloucester Township
Latitude
39.89966017461269
Longitude
-75.12439375820315
References

John P. Snyder, The Story of New Jersey’s Civil Boundaries, 1606–1968 (Trenton, Bureau of Geology and Topography, 1969; New Jersey Geological Survey, 2004), p. 106.

"Gloucestertown Township, New Jersey," Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloucestertown_Township,_New_Jersey.

"Union Township, Camden County, New Jersey," Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Township,_Camden_County,_New_Jersey.
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloucester_City,_New_Jersey
Record Contributor
Jesse Bayker
Kemy Rodriguez
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