Historic Community: Grovers Mill

Grovers Mill in 2021. Click to enlarge & download.

Surrounding the crossroads of Cranbury and Clarksville Roads is one of West Windsor's most famous historic communities. This industrial hamlet developed around its 1700s-era mill, which ran until the 1960s. Grovers Mill was thrust into the national spotlight during Orson Welles' infamous 1938 "The War of the Worlds" alien invasion broadcast. Today, although surrounded by more modern suburbs, the community is still identifiable, and most of its original buildings still intact. Explore Grovers Mill and its historical buildings below!

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Historical Overview

The community of Grovers Mill grew up around its namesake mill (the blue-gray building at the intersection of Cranbury and Clarksville Roads), which  was once powered by the flow of the adjacent Bear Brook. Longtime – but uncorroborated - legend posits that the Van Nest family bought much of the area from an indigenous Lëni Lënape woman named “Idah” in the 1600s.[1] The first definite date of European acquisition was 1694, when New Jersey Governor Andrew Hamilton purchased a 5,000 acre tract from the Proprietors of East New Jersey.[2] However, it likely took until the mid-1700s for colonists to settle the Grovers Mill area.

Regardless of original ownership, three of the oldest families here were indeed the Van Nests, Bergens, and Atchleys, who established farms stretching across the landscape. The Van Nest’s longtime estate at 429 Clarksville Road – dubbed “Ladyfair” – likely dates to the mid-1700s,[3],[4],[5] although some sources claim the 1690s.[6] And several others at the heart of the community date to the 1700s and 1800s.[7]

1805 map of Grovers Mill. Click to download.

The mill, which still stands at the crossroads, was constructed by 1759, if not earlier. The Bear Brook was likely also dammed in the mid-1700s to create the adjacent mill pond. Daniel Wolsey was its first known owner[8] and Mahlon Wright bought it by the mid-1760s. At this time, there were actually two mills on the property: a saw-mill and a grist-mill.[9] Over the years, the mill was owned by different families and consequently assumed various names:

1. The Bergens owned the mill from most of the 1770s to 1816 - and thus the area was predominantly known as "Bergen's Mill."[10],[11],[12],[13],[14]
2. Richard and Benjamin Thomas were owners from 1816 to 1837 - and the vicinity was "Thomas Mill" and "Bear Mill."[15],[16],[17],[18],[19]
3. Gottlieb Schwenger was owner from 1837 to 1868 - during which time the area was called "Schwenger's Mill."[20],[21],[22]
4. Finally, in 1868, Joseph H. Grover bought the property – then still containing a grist mill, saw mill, and house. Ever since, the community has been called “Grovers Mill.” [23],[24]

The mill in the late 1800s or early 1900s; viewed from Cranbury Road. Courtesy of the Historical Society of Princeton.

The mill pond was a favorite haunt for locals. A description from Old Princeton’s Neighbors (1939) reads: 

“The pond and its surrounding fields are restful and beautiful. Geese and ducks drift on its surface. An occasional snowy heron or long-legged crane wades along its 
shallows. Bass, pike, perch, sunfish, catfish, and eels make it a delight for the fisherman. Nearby is a profusion of wildflowers in spring and summer. Groves of trees, mostly maple and buttonwood, are alive with birds. Rabbits, coons, possums, skunks, pheasants and an occasional fox or deer tempt the hunter.”[25]

It was this setting that reputedly drew prominent figures and Princeton residents like Grover Cleveland and Woodrow Wilson – both said to be friends of Walter S. Grover - to habitually visit the area.[26] 

Grovers Mill Pond in late 2021.

Grovers Mill had no school, church, general store, or post office, so residents traveled elsewhere for daily needs. This was partially aided by the early-1900s establishment of the “Trenton-New Brunswick Railroad” trolley line, which provided statewide transportation. A trolley station operated nearby at Cranbury and Rabbit Hill Roads for many years.[27] 

The reason that Grovers Mill is still known across the nation is undoubtedly Orson Welles’ October 30, 1938, radio reenactment of H. G. Welles’ science fiction novel “War of the Worlds,” about an alien invasion of earth. This broadcast pegged Grovers Mill as the initial landing site! Starting at 8 PM and continuing for about an hour, this broadcast’s realism was said to have created nationwide panic[28]  and its legacy on West Windsor is undeniable, as you can read about here. 

William Dock (a Grovers Mill local) poses for reporters following the Oct. 30, 1938 "War of the Worlds" broadcast.

​Largely from the 1950s onward, Grovers Mill experienced the same population growth and suburbanization as the rest of West Windsor. First came residential Bolfmar Avenue near the crossroads of Cranbury and Clarksville Roads.[29],[30] In 1962, Van Nest Park was established after the family donated the land to the township.[31] Several years later, ground was broken for the “Old Mill Farms” neighborhood across the street.[32] Now, the intersection of Cranbury and Clarksville Roads is traversed by cars and buses instead of horses and wagons. However, the heart of the community retains several of its original buildings and its mill pond, evoking centuries of community history...

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Historical Grovers Mill Landmarks

Click on each of the images below to learn more about some Grovers Mill landmarks! We recommend reading them in order. ​More may be added as research improves.

The Mill, The Barn, and the Millwright's House

Grovers Mill Pond

Ladyfair

The Brain House

The Saltzman House

Old Snedeker Place

The Wiley Farm

Vannest-Slayback House

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Bibliography

1.  “Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ 
   Project.
2.  Hamilton, Andrew, Andrew Browne, David Mundre, James Dundey, L Morris, John Jiniane, Thomas Warne, et al. Ms. Indenture. New Jersey State Archives, 1694. 
   Conveyance of about 4,700 acres (as written in the deed) from the Proprietors of East Jersey to Andrew Hamilton. Found in the New Jersey State Archives - E (EJ): Folio 366 (SSTSE023)
3. “Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ Project.
4. “West Windsor Tax Assessor Address List, 2019.” West Windsor, 2019. List of all residences in West Windsor with dates of construction, according to tax assessor. Sent to the Historical Society by Lorraine Jones and Dawn Moretti. For this specific citation, look at 429 Clarksville Road.
5. “Mercer County Historic Sites Survey: West Windsor Township, Mercer County, NJ.” Princeton, 1988. Conducted by Kinsey & Hand Associates.
6. “The Mill Wright - ‘1690 Country Classic’ - 429 Clarksville Road - Princeton Junction, NJ.” West Windsor, n.d. House tour pamphlet found in the West Windsor History Museum’s archives.​
7. "West Windsor Tax Assessor Address List, 2019.” West Windsor, 2019. List of all residences in West Windsor with dates of construction, according to tax assessor. Sent to the Historical Society by Lorraine Jones and Dawn Moretti.
8. “Public Road Surveys, 1720-1775 (Microfilm).” Trenton, n.d. Accessed February 28, 2022. From the New Jersey State Archive’s Microfilm room. Reel: Deeds and Land Conveyances, 1714-1722; Public Road Surveys, 1720-1775. For this specific citation: Public Road Surveys section, Page 35-36.
9. Wright, Mahlon. “Notice.” Pennsylvania Gazette. October 25, 1764. Mahlon Wright listing the Grovers Mill tract for sale - October 25, 1764
10. Bergen, Jacob G. “To be SOLD.” New York Gazette and Weekly Mercury. August 22, 1774. Jacob G. Bergen listing the Grovers Mill tract for sale - August 22, 1774
11. Bergen, George G., Walker, Joseph. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1805. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 6 Page 173.
12. Bergen, Peter I., Walker, Joseph. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1811. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 8 Page 789.
13. Schwenger, Gottlieb, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1816. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 12 Page 20.
14. "Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ Project
15. Schwenger, Gottlieb, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1816. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 12 Page 20.
16. Thomas, Benjamin, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1816. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 12 Page 18.
17. Thomas, Benjamin, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1819. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 13 Page 737.
18. Schwenger, Gottlieb, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1837. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 32 Page 161.
19. "Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ Project
20. Schwenger, Gottlieb, Thomas, Richard. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1837. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room - Middlesex County Deeds - Middlesex County Deed Book 32 Page 161.
21. Grover, Joseph H., Labaw, John T., Schwenger, Sarah. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1868. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room – Mercer County Deeds - Mercer County Deed Book 73 Page 461.
22. "Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ Project
23. Grover, Joseph H., Labaw, John T., Schwenger, Sarah. Ms. Deed. New Jersey State Archives, 1868. Found in New Jersey State Archives Manuscript Room – Mercer County Deeds - Mercer County Deed Book 73 Page 461.
24. "Grover’s Mills.” Essay. In Old Princeton’s Neighbors. Princeton, NJ: Graphic Arts Press , 1939. Written by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Writers’ Project
25. Ibid.
26. ​Ibid.
27. ​Fry, Elmer W. “Broadside,” 1987. From the Spring/Summer 1987 Broadside. Based on a paper written by Elmer W. Fry in 1976 and from his talk during the Historical Society of West Windsor’s March 1986 meeting​
28. Schwartz, A. Brad. Broadcast Hysteria Orson Welles’s “War of the Worlds” and the Art of Fake News. Minneapolis, MN: HighBridge Audio, 2015.
29. “West Windsor Aerial Photography Composite Map, 1947.” Map. Historical Society of West Windsor - Map Archives. West Windsor, NJ, 1947.
30. "West Windsor Aerial Photography Composite Map, 1953.” Map. Historical Society of West Windsor - Map Archives. West Windsor, NJ, 1953
31. Ms. West Windsor Township Meeting Minutes - August 13, 1962. West Windsor, 1962. Mention of the recent acquisition of Van Nest Park. Minutes located in the Municipal Center
32. "York Designs Homes at Old Mill Farms.” Trenton Evening Times, February 27, 1966.