George Leader, professor of archaeology at The College of New Jersey, was the featured speaker at the July 12 meeting of the Ewing Township Historic Preservation Society at the historic Benjamin Temple House.
Leader talked about a recent archaeological dig that took place at the William Green House on the grounds of TCNJ. The historic preservation society and other activists have been working to preserve the structure as a historic landmark.
Leader said that he and his students had discovered some historic artifacts on the site as part of the dig.
The William Green House is listed on the New Jersey and National Registers of historic places. In addition to being architecturally significant, it was the home of many prominent local citizens.
The oldest standing section of the house was built circa 1717 to 1730. That section is a two and a half story brick house featuring Flemish bond brickwork, which is brick laid in a pattern that resembles a checkerboard.
The next section was added to the house circa 1750 to 1790 and added four rooms and a stair hall to accommodate the growing family. The most recent section of the house was added circa 1830 and essentially doubled its size.
The first William Green to live in the house was one of the earliest settlers in Ewing. He came to the area from Newtown, New York around 1700 and was a judge in what was then Hunterdon County.
The Historic Society offers tours of the Benjamin Temple House, which is the organization’s headquarters, on the first Sunday or every month. The house is located on Federal City Road.
