5. Ocean County Rail Trail from page 4 plain sight.â Many people are surprised to learn that a patch of woods near the
Photo Credit: Ocean County Planning Department
Ocean County Rail Trail By Timothy Hart
T
he Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders has embarked on a multiyear program to create a 15.6 mile passive recreation park as part of the national “rails-to-trails” program. This Rail Trail Marker. linear park is already heavily used by thousands of people of all ages for walking, biking, and jogging. The Barnegat Branch Trail (BBT) responds to the growing need for non-organized (often called passive) recreation. The Ocean County Parks and Recreation Department and many local towns have extensive facilities for golf, tennis, and organized sports, especially for youth leagues. In a society where stress and obesity have become epidemics, there is a growing need for places for people to relax in a natural setting close to home where they can get healthy activity. When completed, the BBT will be among the most highly visible and widely used of the many high quality Ocean County parks. The BBT is rapidly becoming a major success in the effort to meet the needs of Ocean County residents. At the same time, the BBT will become the largest and most visited venue for Ocean County historical information because a series of historic signs or markers will be installed about every eight hundred yards at various interesting sites along the BBT. The thousands of daily visitors will be able to stop for a moment and reflect on a piece of Ocean County history. Ironically, thousands more people will see these few signs than the many fine historical museums in Ocean County. In fact, the signs are hoped to direct people to actually visit these museums and environmental venues. Signs will illustrate environmental, railroad oriented, and both specific and general Ocean County history. Each town will have a sign giving a brief historical sketch and the appropriate historic map from the Historical and Biographical Atlas of the New Jersey Coast published by Woolman and Rose of Philadelphia in 1878. Other signs will show specific locations of historic sites such as the CNJ water tower and turntable in Barnegat, the Barnegat Glass Works, Barnegat Park, and the Royal Pines Hotel. The signs, visitor centers, and general atmosphere of the experience should help people find a “sense of place” in their beautiful Ocean County communities. Local stories illustrate national issues such as industrialization, the impact of the car and railroads, and the connection between culture and the environment. In addition, users of the trail should find a sense of historical context, of the then and now. Many elements of the local landscape conceal fascinating locations, what has been called “hidden in Continued on page 5
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Ocean County Rail Trail from page 4
Photo Credit: OCC&HC
Photo Credit: Ocean County Planning Department
plain sight.” Many people are surprised to learn that a patch of woods near their home has concealed a former railroad water tower, turntable, glass factory, entire town, or some other indication of the past uses or abuses of the land. Other signs will show environmental features and treasures such as the swamp pink “hidden” along the banks of streams that cross the trail. Phases one and two (3.1 Local woman enjoys a restful walk on the BBT. miles) have been completed from Burr Street in Barnegat to Wells Mills Road in Waretown. Phase three (2 miles) is nearing completion in Berkeley Township from Cedar Creek to Maryland Avenue. Additional phases are in various stages of funding or planning. The Ocean County Barnegat Branch Rail Trail is constructed on the 15.6 mile right of way and wooden trestle bridges of the abandoned NJ Central Railroad from Toms River to Barnegat. Originally built as the Toms River and Waretown Railroad, later named the Toms River and Barnegat, and finally named the Barnegat Branch of the CNJ, these railroads were built in the national railroad boom of the post Civil War Era and died from many of the same pressures that doomed most short line railroads of the 19th century. In 1981, CNJ auctioned off the abandoned right-of-way between Toms River and Barnegat to a private investor, HAG Holdings, Inc. Sample of proposed Sign. In 2003, Ocean County completed the multi-year effort to acquire the entire Barnegat Branch right-ofway, from Barnegat north through Ocean and Berkeley Townships. This was followed by the receipt of a 12-foot easement through Lacey Township. The development of this right-of-way into a “rails-to-trails” County Park, the Barnegat Branch Trail (BBT), has been a specific goal set forth in the Ocean County Comprehensive Master Plan. For more information visit oceancountyparks.com.
The Barnegat Branch Trail logo was explicitly designed with history in mind: Lady Liberty’s silhouette is reminiscent of the Central Railroad of NJ (CNJ) logo, adopted by the railroad in 1944 to reflect the close proximity of the CNJ terminal in Jersey City to the Statue of Liberty. The BBT logo also includes a ghost locomotive, as well as Ocean County’s most recognizable environmental features.
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Winter 2010
