New Germany in America
In 1854, the Camden and Atlantic Railroad opened. On December 14, 1854, a group of prominent German Americans from Philadelphia, including William and Henry Schmoele and Philip Mathias Wolsieffer, incorporated the "Gloucester Farm and Town Association", which purchased approximately 38,000 acres of woodland north of the railroad to serve as a refuge for those being persecuted in the anti-immigrant violence known as the Know-Nothing movement.
The corporation issued stocks at $300 per share; with each share, stockholders would acquire one residential building lot and one farm parcel. The city was marketed heavily in cities containing large German American populations, including Baltimore, Buffalo, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and St. Louis.
Dr. Smith's Sanitarium and Serpentine Creek
Dr. Smith's Sanitarium and Serpentine Creek
Dr. Smith's Sanitarium and Serpentine Creek
Ever swim in a serpentine creek?
In 1905, Dr. Charles Smith built the Neutral Water Health Resort to treat patients with muscle problems. Patients would soak and walk in the serpentine canal to get the benefits of cedar water. The complex had several buildings, including a large sanitarium, sun house, several bath houses, and windmill. The polygonal sun house is the only remaining building. It has 12 sides on the first story, and 8 sides on the second. Today this is the home of the Egg Harbor City Historical Society. Dr. Smith operated the facility until 1921. The main sanitarium building was destroyed by fire c. 1923.
Egg Harbor City Historical Society
Dr. Smith's Sanitarium and Serpentine Creek
Dr. Smith's Sanitarium and Serpentine Creek
A local historical society actively engaged in the preservation and promotion of the history of Egg Harbor City, New Jersey and the surrounding area. The society operates the Roundhouse Museum (located in the sanitarium's original polygonal sun house.
The museum is open on most Wednesdays and Saturdays, 1 to 4 p.m.
Exhibits include textiles, clothing, tools and other important memorabilia from life in Egg Harbor City over the years. An impressive German-settlers exhibit.
Renault Wineries
Renault's Giant Wine Bottles
Renault's Giant Wine Bottles
Renault Winery boasts 158 continuous years of careful cultivation, persistence, and innovation. The founder, Louis Renault, set out to produce champagnes and fine wines to be enjoyed throughout the world.
When the D’Agostino family purchased the Renault Winery in 1919, the country was on the verge of Prohibition. To protect their new investment, they procured a special permit to continue producing wines and tonics for “religious and medicinal purposes”, thanks to their ties to Atlantic County's party boss Enoch “Nucky” Johnson.
From vine to bottle, they honor his legacy and fierce resolve by crafting varietals from his original vines that recognize milestones, gather friends, and celebrate the beauty of timeless agrarian practices. We can visit this and have a wine tasting -- Free Samples!
Renault's Giant Wine Bottles
Renault's Giant Wine Bottles
Renault's Giant Wine Bottles
A few years later, the winery’s new owners embarked on a unique advertising campaign, placing eighty, 24-foot tall concrete bottles across the country to promote their brand. They enlisted the help of Italian artisan Luigi Portaluppi to construct the bottles.
100 years later, only four bottles remain in New Jersey: New Gretna (pictured here), Hammonton, Egg Harbor City and Bayville. Some retain the Renault logo, others advertise local businesses and some have been painted white. They are protected as historic landmarks.