Publications

The South Jersey Culture & History Center publishes works of note pertaining to the South Jersey community. Most are available at Second Time Books in Mount Laurel, through Amazon or Barnes & Noble online, or through direct mailing from the South Jersey & Culture Center.

Stockton's Local History Press

The mission of the South Jersey Culture & History Center at Stockton University is to foster awareness within local communities of the rich cultural and historical heritage of southern New Jersey, to promote the study of this heritage, especially among area students, and to produce publishable materials that provide a lasting and deepened understanding of this heritage.

We republish noteworthy, hard-to-find titles and publish new works by contemporary authors and scholars. SoJourn, our annual journal, presents the studies of local historians. University students enrolled in the SJCHC editing internship assist in editing the books and articles, designing the layouts, and setting type; the directors of the South Jersey Culture & History Center oversee the publication of all titles. Together we proudly maintain Stockton’s local history press.

Our titles fall into several categories, each focused on the history and culture of southern New Jersey. Fair warning, many of our titles could fit in several of the categories below; we have listed each just once.

 

The Pine Barrens

South Jersey Cities and Architecture

Biographies and Memoirs

Literature and Nature Writing

Jewish Farming in South Jersey

 

Don't forget to read about our annual local history journal, SoJourn (link in the nav bar).

 

The Pine Barrens

 

Cover for Pineys

Pineys: The People of the New Jersey Pine Barrens, by Yael Aravah

 

Yael Aravah’s Pineys gives readers a glimpse into the world of the Pine Barrens through beautiful photography and interviews with residents of the Pines. Here is an authentic depiction of Piney culture from those who proudly proclaim themselves New Jersey’s Pineys. 

144 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-24-8. $22.95

Cover of Pine Barrens: Life and Legends

Pine Barrens: Life and Legends, by Tom Kinsella & Paul W. Schopp

Richly illustrated primer on the culture and ecology of the Pine Barrens encompassing everything from itinerant berry picking and cedar mining to jug taverns and folklore. The section on Pine ­Barrens lore reproduces folk tales collected by the renown anthropologist Herbert Halpert in the 1940s.

108 pages, color, paperback.

ISBN: 978-09888731-4-8. $16.95

 

 

Cover of Soggy Ground

Soggy Ground: A Geography of Pine Barrens Wetlands, by Mark Demitroff

Renown local geologist Mark Demitroff explains  how to read and value the unusual wet environment of the New Jersey Pine Barrens. Little known ice age landforms provide critical habitat for plants and animals. Spungs, cripples, blue holes, and savannahs are woven together in a geographic tapestry of interactions between nature and society.

273 pages, illustrated, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-21-7. $39.95

 

Cover of Piney Joe

Adventure with Piney Joe: Exploring the New Jersey Pine Barrens, by William J. Lewis; Illustrations by Shane Tomalinas

Explore the New Jersey Pine Barrens with guide and Piney translator Piney Joe—perhaps the last gnome in the woods. A guide to Pine Barrens plants and culture written for young adults.

187 pages, full color illustrations, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-09-5. $19.95

Cover of No Wild Rivers

No Wild Rivers in South Jersey: An Environmental Biography, by Claude Epstein

Epstein describes the impact that cultural adaption has wrought upon South Jersey’s numerous waterways. No Wild Rivers explains the impact of indigenous peoples and the successive waves of European arrivals on the South Jersey waterways they encountered.

453 pages, illustrated, hardcover.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-07-1. $24.95

 

Cover of Seasons in the Pine Barrens

Seasons in the Pine Barrens, by Miriam S. Moss

From the 1970s to the 1990s, Moss and her husband Sidney spent weekends in their primitive cabin on Rancocas Creek. Moss spent the time observing the natural world. Selections from her journals present eloquent thoughts occasioned while quietly observing life and nature.

196 pages, illustrated, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-15-6. $26.00

 

 

Cover of Bungalow Life in the Pines

Bungalow Life in the Jersey Pines, by Fred Winslow Noyes Sr.; collected by Judy Courter

With the stock market crashed of 1929, textile executive Fred Noyes Sr. moved his family to a bungalow along the Mullica River. There he took daily walks,  befriended neighbors, and became the unofficial mayor of Lower Bank. Letters written by Noyes to his niece  in May and June of 1933 provide a window into the daily routine of the Pine Barrens transplant.  Afterword by Judy Courter.

24 pages, pamphlet bound.

ISBN: 978-0- 9976699-6-1. $5.00

 

Cover image for Herbert Payne

Herbert Payne: Last of the Old-Time Charcoal Makers and His Coaling Process, by Ted Gordon

Herbert Payne was among the last of that “elusive and nomadic breed of woodsmen” who practiced charcoal-making in the Pine Barrens. This 1982 essay by the distinguished botanist and historian Ted Gordon describes Payne’s distinctive technique, which combined the best points of the chimney-type pit and the arch-type pit. Republished with Ted’s full-color photographs.

12 pages, pamphlet bound.

ISBN 978-0-9888731-3-1. $5.00

 

South Jersey Cities and Architecture

 

Cover of Patterned Brick Architecture

Patterned Brick Architecture of West New Jersey, by Robert L. Thompson

Architectural historian Robert L. Thompson attempts to answer the vexing question: why is the great preponderance of America’s patterned brick architecture located in the ancient colony of West New Jersey, a  land mass covering roughly half of present-day New Jersey.

xxii + 194 pages, illustrated, hardcover.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-18-7. $49.95

 

 

Cover of Atlantic City

Atlantic City: Its Early & Modern History, by Alexander Barrington Irvine (“Carnesworthe”)

Alexander Barrington Irvine, writing under the pseudonym “Carnesworthe,” gave us the earliest history of Atlantic City (1868). Filled with humor and a faith in free enterprise, the work provides a romantic glimpse into the aspirations of Atlantic City’s backers a mere fourteen years after the trains began running.

95 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-9888731-0-0. $9.95.

Also available in digital format $1.99 (Amazon)

 

 

Cover of Burlington Biographies

Burlington Biographies: A History of Burlington, New Jersey, Told Through the Lives and Times of Its People, by Robert L. Thompson

A monumental history of Burlington City from its founding by radical Quakers. Forty-­seven chapters focus on the lives of prominent residents and city institutions. Lively storytelling and lavish footnotes will please laypersons and specialists alike.

558 pages, illustrated, hardcover.

ISBN: 978-0-988873-9-3. $29.95

Cover of a Local History of Camden

A Local HIstory of Camden, by L. F. Fisler, M.D.

Published in pamphlet form in 1858, Fisler’s work is the first stand-alone history to describe Camden City and its rise from a simple colonial ferry hub to a growing urban center in the 1850s. Fisler provides descriptions of Camden’s local institutions: churches, public buildings, ferries, schools, newspapers, the board of health, water department, and fire companies.

81 pages; paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-23-1. $9.95

 

Biographies and Memoirs 

 

Cover of Early Recollections and Life of Dr. James Still

Early Recollections and Life of Dr. James Still, by James Still

A gifted South Jersey physician, James Still was a son of former slaves, who was self taught in both medical knowledge and practice. He overcame poverty and racial animus to build a large medical practice and become one of the wealthiest men in South Jersey. An outstanding autobiography, first published in 1877.

220 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-9888731-6-2. $14.95

 

Cover of William Still: His Life and Work

William Still: His Life and Work to This Time, by James P. Boyd

 

William Still, James’ younger brother, was known as the Father of the Underground Railroad for his efforts in helping move fugitive enslaved Africans while recording their harrowing stories. A republication of James P. Boyd’s 1886 biography.

211 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-997699-5-4. $14.95

Cover of The Kidnapped and the Ransomed

The Kidnapped and The ­Ransomed, by Kate E. R. Pickard

Subtitled “The Personal Recollections of Peter & Vina Still ­After Forty Years of Slavery,” this is the affecting biography of Peter Still, older brother of James and William, who was enslaved from birth until adulthood, when he was able to purchase his freedom and that of his family.

462 pages, index, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-80-4. $18.95

Cover of the Underground Railroad

Underground Rail Road, by William Still

William Still’s Underground Rail Road is filled with daring adventure and breathtaking narratives. Some accounts read like nineteenth-century Tom Clancy spy narratives except that these stories are real, dredged from the dark side of American history. A facsimile of the 1878 revised edition.

842 pages, paperback

ISBN: 978-1-947889-16-3, $32.95

 

Cover of With Eager Hands

With Eager Hands: The Life of Elizabeth Coleman White, by Albertine Senske

Elizabeth Coleman White (1871–1954) was a shining star of New Jersey. With the aid of Frederick V. Coville, she cultivated the modern blueberry. A horticulturist, conservationist, and social advocate, she contributed greatly to improved agricultural practices and social conditions in New Jersey.  Albertine Senske presents the details of Elizabeth’s rich and consequential life with infectious passion.

259 pages, photographs, paperback.

ISBN-13: 978-1-947889-02-6. $15.95

Cover of Beauty is Never Enough

Beauty Is Never Enough, by Elizabeth B. Alton

The memoir of Atlantic County trailblazer Elizabeth B. Alton. Her community service is extensive and praiseworthy, especially her participation in the New Jersey Federation of Women’s Clubs and the establishment of Stockton University. The centerpiece of the work is Alton’s longtime association with the Miss America Pageant, providing a behind the scenes view of the Pageant’s earliest years through the mid 1990s.

463 pages, photographs, index, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-05-7. $19.95

 

Literature and Nature Writing

 

The cover of Seasons

Seasons, by Dallas Lore Sharp

Born in 1870 in Haleyville, Dallas Lore Sharp spent his childhood roaming the woods beside the Cohansey and Maurice Rivers. He became one of the most popular nature writers of his day, seeking to inspire young people to share his appreciation for the glories of the natural world. Sharp wrote with near-mystic appreciation for the most commonplace flora and fauna.

158 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-9888731-1-7. $14.95

 

 

Cover of The Nature of Things

The Nature of Things, by Dallas Lore Sharp

Our second volume of engaging nature essays from Sharp’s The Whole Year Round. Dallas Lore Sharp, born in Haleyville, Cumberland County, New Jersey, was an outstanding essayist writing for young adults in the early twentieth century.

179 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-00-2. $14.95

Cover of Every Day Adventures

Everyday Adventures, by Samuel Scoville Jr.

Twelve essays  describing Scoville’s jaunts into nature. Whether listening to birdsong, searching for hidden nests, or quietly observing natural routines, Scoville describes his surroundings vividly and with considerable wit. He recounts expeditions in the Northeast, including the Pine ­Barrens, and the far north of Canada. 

252 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-9976699-9-2. $14.95

 

 

Cover for The Out of Doors Club

The Out of Doors Club, by Samuel Scoville Jr.

A collection of essays following the adventures of the “Band,” a group of siblings led on imagination-filled hikes by their father. In twenty brief essays, many set in the Pine Barrens, Scoville. reminds readers of simpler times, when the world held fewer cares and nature walks with a parent could be the highlight of a day.

147 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-90-3. $14.95

Cover of Highboy Rings Down the Curtain

Highboy Rings Down the Curtain, by George Agnew Chamberlain

 

The curtain rises on a horse like no other, noble to the end. This novella is Chamberlain's first work set in South Jersey.

47 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-17-0. $8.95

Cover of The Lantern on the Plow

The Lantern on the Plow, by George Agnew Chamberlain

A novel set in southern New Jersey, The Lantern on the Plow follows the trials and the tribulations and the ultimate triumph of the Sherborne family as they struggle to find their  way in a changing landscape.

338 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-19-4. $19.95

Cover of A Trip to Mars

A Trip to Mars, by Charles K. Landis

Charles K. Landis, founder of Vineland and Sea Isle City, wrote this previously unpublished foray into science fiction c. 1876. The title alternates between thrilling storytelling and thinly veiled commentary on the social ills of Earth. Intrepid travelers journey to Mars, explore its geography, confront terrifying monsters, and encounter the ancient culture and philosophy of Martians.  

136 pages, paperback.

ISBN: 978-0-9888731-5-5. $14.95

 

 

Cover of Canoeing the Delaware

Canoeing the Delaware, by J. Wallace Hoff and John Boyle O'Reilly

J. Wallace Hoff and John Boyle O’Reilly record the events of two separate canoe trips down the Delaware River in the 1890s. With engaging detail and wit, each describes the waterway, its river towns, and the inhabitants along the way. Enjoy the camaraderie of friends measuring their skill against the challenges of an untamed river.

203 pages; paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-28-6. $16.95

 

Jewish Farming in South Jersey

 

Cover of Migdal Zophim

Migdal Zophim & Farming in the Jewish Colonies of South Jersey, by Moses Klein and others

A republication pairing Moses Klein’s 1889 essay collection Migdal Zophim with contemporary reports on life in the colonies of Alliance, Rosenhayn, and Carmel from 1882 to 1907.

xxiv + 266 pages, illustrated, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-9478898-9-7. $19.95

 

Cover of Stainsby

The Jewish Colonies of South Jersey, by William Stainsby

A 1901 report by the Bureau of Statistics of New Jersey offers a contemporaries look at life in the Jewish colonies of Alliance, Rosenhayn, Carmel, and Woodbine in the decades after their founding by refugees escaping the pogroms of Eastern Europe.

53 pages, photographs, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-94-1. $9.95

 

 

Cover Adventures in Idealism

Adventures in Idealism: The Life of Professor H. L. Sabsovich, Founder of Woodbine, New Jersey, by ­Katharine Sabsovich

The 1922 biography of H. L. Sabsovich (1861–1915), the founder of Woodbine, New Jersey, and champion of Jewish farming in America.

289 pages, photographs, index, paperback.

ISBN-13: 978-1-947889-06-4. $15.95

Cover Back to the Land

Back to the Land: Alliance Colony to the Ozarks in Four Generations, by Ruth Weinstein

 

Weinstein’s beautiful memoir, which details life among the early settlers of the Alliance Colony, is informed by her own experience as a homesteader in the Ozarks, where she has lived for forty-five years on forty acres in Searcy County, Arkansas.

225 pages, photographs, paperback.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-98-9. $16.95

 

 

Cover of Bluma: A Farmer's Daughter

A Farmer’s Daughter: Bluma, by Bluma Bayuk Rappoport Purmell and Felice Lewis Rovner

Farm girl, nurse, nursing home operator, wife of a prison doctor, world traveler, award winning painter, speaker, and the oldest living descendant of the founders of Alliance, New Jersey, Bluma Bayuk Rappoport Purmell, tells an exciting story that spans over a century.

xvi + 301 pages, illustrated, hardcover.

ISBN: 978-1-947889-12-5. $29.95

Cover Growing American

Growing American: The Alliance Agricultural Colony in South Jersey, by Tom Kinsella

A readable introduction to the ­Alliance Colony, the first successful Jewish farming community in the United States. Kinsella describes the origins of the colony in 1882 and relates stories of its development into the neighboring villages of Norma, Alliance, and Brotmanville.

111 pages, color, index, paperback.

ISBN: 13: 978-1-947889-08-8. $26.95

 

 

Cover of Bibliography of South Jersey poetry

Free download: Collecting South Jersey: A Bibliography of South Jersey Poetry by Stephanie Allen

 

If your bookstore would like to stock  our excellent titles, reach out to learn about our wholesale pricing. For more information, please contact Tom Kinsella at Thomas.Kinsella@stockton.edu. We’ll be happy to provide pricing and send along copies of these titles. 

Information can also be obtained by standard mail. Please address queries to the address below:

Tom Kinsella
ARHU/Stockton University
101 Vera King Farris Drive
Galloway, NJ 08205