Migrant Labor

Farm laborers, date unknown.

Back when West Windsor was an agricultural township, migrant farm laborers were a big, but seasonal, part of the community. Here, we explore their broad history in New Jersey and some local stories.
​
​Written by Christine Kent and Paul Ligeti, 2026.

19th-Century Roots

There have always been individuals who have traveled for work. Back when West Windsor was a farming community, this usually meant farm laborers who lived here only during growing and harvest seasons. Censuses from the mid-1800s onward frequently recorded "laborers" and "boarders" (often Black or Irish) and some of them were presumably transient.[1]

New Jersey was the last Northern state to abolish slavery, in early 1866.[2],[3] As this system finally dissolved, farmers hired more local laborers (likely some of them formerly enslaved) to meet the harvest's intense demands. World War I stymied European immigration (and thus a source of farm labor),[4] but as farming expanded in the early 20th century, so, too, did the state's reliance on laborers moving up the East Coast during the warmer months, including workers from the South, the Caribbean, and Mexico.[5] This coincided with the post-World War I "Great Migration," wherein many African Americans fled the "Jim Crow" South for more perceived financial and cultural opportunity in the North and West.[6] Between 1910 and 1930, New Jersey's Black population grew by 132 percent[7] - many of them presumably seasonal workers.

Mercer Reed & helpers picking potatos off Southfield Rd, ca. 1920s.

Mid-Century Growth

The Great Depression generally slowed permanent northward migration in the 1930s. However, this decade's financial stresses - plus competition from increased mechanization in the South - also boosted seasonal migration to New Jersey.[8],[9] Each spring, workers began as far south as Florida and worked their way northward. Many generally reached New Jersey in the summer, returning south only after the autumn harvest.[10] In 1940, Black migrant workers alone numbered around 10,000, with 4,000 of them employed in fruit and vegetable farms in Mercer, Monmouth, and Middlesex Counties.[11] By the mid-1960s, Latinos - especially Puerto Ricans - had become another significant part of the seasonal workforce.[12]

While many of these workers were single, there were often entire families traveling together as well. In West Windsor, they became a common annual presence. The children went to the local school system (West Windsor's schools were not segregated), swelling class sizes in the early fall.[13] Even at the time of this writing (2026), many residents who grew up in the 1970s and prior recall some of these children as friends they looked forward to seeing every year.[14]

Migrant family driving from North Carolina to Cranbury NJ. From the Library of Congress (click for source).

Living Conditions

​However, life was far from rosy for migrant workers in general. Across the East Coast, they often faced poor living conditions. Farmers frequently provided inadequate housing, clothing and food, and minimal pay for their back-breaking labor working the fields (made even worse by corrupt foremen who kept much of the pay for themselves). Healthcare was also virtually nonexistent, and education was unreliable, with high illiteracy rates among migrants. And laborers of color experienced racism, especially from those who believed they were stealing jobs meant for White citizens.[15],[16]

In 1945, Princeton University held a conference to "form a permanent citizens' organization for improving living and working conditions of migrants."[17] The same year, New Jersey passed the Seasonal Farm Labor Act, which created a Migrant Labor Board and a Bureau of Migrant Labor within the Department of Labor to oversee the welfare of migrant workers and enforce new standards. Labor camps were now required to provide structurally-sound, fire-safe, and vermin-free living conditions. The Act also granted the government inspection powers to ensure compliance.[18]

Farmhand at barn in Bridgeton, NJ, 1942. Click for source.

Investigating Labor

However, while conditions improved somewhat, it did not go far enough, and the living situation of many remained substandard.  One Princeton-area newspaper article from 1952 highlighted the proliferation of child laborers on New Jersey farms.[19] Moreover, in 1960, CBS published a groundbreaking documentary, "Harvest of Shame," presented by acclaimed broadcaster Edward R. Murrow. Airing on Thanksgiving Day, the exposé highlighted the extreme poverty and exploitation of migrant farm workers across East Coast. One especially-relevant segment highlighted housing, sanitation, and food provisions on a farm just a few miles outside of Princeton. An unrelated quote from Murrow at the beginning of the documentary stands out: "One farmer ... said, 'We used to own our slaves. Now we just rent them.'"[20] And in 1961, reporter Dale Wright's award-winning investigative report series, "The Forgotten People," further exposed harsh and exploitative conditions, meager wages, and dismal housing.[21]

Cranbury farmer & Black migrants sacking potatoes, ca. 1940s. From the Newark Public Library.

1960s-70s Progress

Nationwide and local efforts to remedy these conditions continued. In 1960, Planned Parenthood Committee of Princeton focused on providing birth control and infertility information to laborers.[22] The same year, the the Princeton YMCA held a public meeting to discuss the plight of migrant children).[23] In 1961, the Council of Community Services held a daycare through the Unitarian Church/Cranbury Center to aid migrant workers living in West Windsor.[24] And the following year, a pilot "Summer Corps" sent college students to migrant camps to provide general assistance.[25]

Through the 1960s and 1970s, various statewide and federal legislation were passed to address the conditions of seasonal agricultural workers.[26],[27] Perhaps most notable was the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker’s Protection Act of 1983, which bolstered enforcement and regulations, and is still in force at the time of this writing (2026).[28]

Edgar Cubberly & helpers picking strawberries, ca. 1950s-60s. From John Ezzo.

Representation & Decline

Acclaimed African American artist Rex Goreleigh (whose longtime "Studio-on-the Canal" was in West Windsor from the 1950s-70s)[29],[30] worked to spotlight the lives of local migrant laborers through his "Migrant Series" paintings.[31],[32] While studying art in New York, Goreleigh associated with famed Mexican painter Diego Rivera.[33],[34],[35],[36],[37],[38] He later taught overseas before landing in Princeton. Professors there, alongside Quaker and Jewish community leaders, convinced him to help start the Princeton Group Arts.[39],[40],[41] At one time, 250 students (including fieldworkers sponsored by grants) studied weekly under Rex and his colleagues.[42]

In the last quarter of the 20th century, West Windsor saw dramatic suburban growth, which replaced most of its longtime farmland. This decline of West Windsor's farming identity, plus increased mechanization, all but eliminated the seasonal agricultural migrant worker cycle from within the township's borders.[43]

Rex Goreleigh's "The Social Hour," 1971, part of his Migrant Series. Click for more.

Migrant Labor Today

However, while migrant farm labor declined in West Windsor long ago, New Jersey, as a whole, still has approximately 25,000 agricultural workers with one third being seasonal.[44] Nurseries, farms, and greenhouses provide the greatest source of their income. Due to an act passed in 2019, the Northeast has the highest pay for farm workers. Still, for the labor involved, it is quite meager: seeing a rise of 80 cents this year to $14.20, lower than the increase for other jobs which will be phased in for farmworkers by 2030.[45] In 2010, the rate was $7.25.[46]​

The migrant population today consists largely of Mexican, Central American-Guatemalan/Honduran, and Haitian communities. These often work with H-2A visas that allow them to come work as long as housing is provided.[47]

​Currently, the farm industry in New Jersey has not made provision for unions to organize in this area.[48] Basics like screens in windows are required while air conditioning is not provided, yet many work over eight hours per day without the usual incentives of overtime pay or health insurance.

Fields at the Grover Farm, 2020. From Paul Ligeti.

Local Migrant Stories

Below are some stories longtime West Windsor-area farmers have of migrant workers on their family farms. Thank you to Christine Kent for documenting most of these memories.

The Grover Farm

In 2013, Amelia Sanders-Johnson, the granddaughter of two migrant laborers who worked  at Grover's Farm, recounted her memories in a newspaper article. Her grandparents, Amelia Beatrice and James Henry Rose, first came up to New Jersey from Virginia in the 1950s, working for Leroy Grover. The Grovers provided several houses for the laborers, and some workers also built a shower house, with building materials supplied by Leroy. When the farming season slowed down, Amelia's grandparents sold secondhand clothing at the Englishtown auction. Beatrice, specifically, also worked as a servant for Corella Bonner in Princeton, and the Coleman family in West Windsor. And James, for his part, was also a builder, and even helped construct Jadwin Gym at Princeton University.[49]

Said Amelia, "I loved living at Grover's Farm ... We would smell the scent of the fresh strawberries in the early spring, and know it was soon time for the baby pheasants to be born ... We ... had a lot of family around us at Grover's Farm. Eventually most of my grandmother's siblings moved into the area and most of their children attended Dutch Neck [school]. My grandparents lived on Grover's farm until the late 1970s..."[50]

Migrant worker and nurse on the Grover Farm (348 Village Rd W), 1972.

The Sanders Farm

Many local farmers can still recall the productive and social coordination they participated in amongst the fieldworkers. In 1928, the Sanders Farm was started by Bob Sander’s grandfather. They harvested up to 200 plants with the help of migrant workers. From May to September, the tomatoes (along with some potatoes) were gathered by Bob, his siblings, and those who would come up from the Carolinas to help. Every year, they would deliver 12 tons of tomatoes to Camden for Campbell’s Soup. Housing was provided rent free with water and electric and even weekend planned square dances. Often, baseball games were organized and played on the fields by Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church.[51]

Sanders truck, circa 1940s.

The Tindall Farm

Lois Tindall Stuller recalls her work on her father's farm (off South Mill Road) where she started as a young girl with her twin brother carrying out milk buckets and filling potato sacks. Because of a seven year drought, the family expanded into dairy as there was no irrigation. Her father later sold the cattle portion as the last Dairy Farm of Mercer County. Before that, her grandfather homogenized the milk at Hamilton Square. Alfalfa and grains were grown there for the dairy.[52]

Lois remembers lining up early along with the migrant workers so she could be assigned her potato row which her father allowed her to do to make extra money. Never was there a concern for safety or a “need to lock any doors.” She’d work early hours to pick out the rocks as a grader or to make sure the potatoes were picked before the hot sun got to them and turned them an inedible green. Health inspectors came regularly to check the two houses put up in the back of the farm. The seasonal workers considered these accommodations quite nice compared to their usual places down south. Lois remembers the children coming and one in particular, Cherry Mae, was in her class every year for the month of September before moving on with her family.[53]​

Aerial of Tindall farm off Southfield Rd. From John W. Tindall and S. Majorie Tindall.

The Appelget Farm

Another local resident and West Windsor volunteer fireman for 65 yrs, is Charles Appelget. He remembers his family working alongside the migrant workers from central Florida. Many arrived around July and stayed through mid September. They would gather potatoes at the Appelget Farm. His grandfather had built houses on the farm. These had rooms for single workers as well as family quarters. Showers were installed and a kitchen as well with a designated cook. These families would come up and work through Virginia, New Jersey and then up to the apple farms in Pennsylvania. Charles said it was very family oriented and remembers playing with the children as a kid.[54]

Road sign, 2024. From Paul Ligeti.

The West Farm

Helen West Major likewise remembers the inclusive farming community from her time on her dad’s small farm in what was then Clarksville. The farm hauled its tomatoes down to Trenton  and Camden for its ketchup manufacturing. She says the majority of workers originally came locally in the 1940s but once World War II brought more factories into the area, a crew leader would find regular help down south. She remembers that man became a close friend to the family and had his own land as an oyster farmer during the time he did not travel north. Houses were built also on the property which had bunk beds and housed eight men. She does remember there were Friday night celebrations when payday hit and brought some rowdiness. Mostly, they were treated well and worked accordingly. Her dad, Eden West, was on the board of education for 30 years as well as a tax assessor but maintained the farm on Quakerbridge Rd/Rt 1 until Lockheed Martinn bought the land.[55]

Hallett-West farmhouse, 1934.

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Bibliography

1. Federal Censuses of West Windsor Township from 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880. Copies of these censuses are held in the digital archives of the Historical Society of West Windsor.
2. U.S. Constitution. amend. XIII.
3. Williams, Lorraine. “New Jersey, The Last Northern State to End Slavery.” New Jersey Historical Commission. Accessed April 13, 2025. https://nj.gov/state/historical/his-2021-juneteenth.shtml#:~:text=Slavery’s%20final%20legal%20death%20in,to%20slavery%20in%20the%20state.
4. “Immigration and the Great War.” National Parks Service. Accessed February 13, 2026. https://www.nps.gov/articles/immigration-and-the-great-war.htm. 
5. Wright, Giles R. Afro-Americans in New Jersey. Trenton, New Jersey: New Jersey Historical Commission, Department of State, 1988. 
6. “Unit 9: WWI and the Great Migration, 1915-1920.” New Jersey State Library. Accessed February 13, 2026. https://www.njstatelib.org/research_library/new_jersey_resources/highlights/african_american_history_curriculum/unit_9_world_war_i/. 
7. PBS LearningMedia. “The Great Migration: New Jersey: Then and Now.” PBS LearningMedia. Accessed February 14, 2026. https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/great-migration-new-jersey-video/new-jersey-then-and-now/. 
8. “Unit 11 1930s: The Great Depression.” New Jersey State Library. Accessed February 13, 2026. https://www.njstatelib.org/research_library/new_jersey_resources/highlights/african_american_history_curriculum/unit_11_great_depression/#:~:text=The%20Agricultural%20Assistance%20Agency’s%20crop,associated%20with%20the%20Great%20Depression. ​
9. Wright, Giles R. Afro-Americans in New Jersey. Trenton, New Jersey: New Jersey Historical Commission, Department of State, 1988. 
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid.
12. Ibid.
13. White, Carey C. “Broadside,” 1987. "Broadside" was a newsletter published by the Historical Society of West Windsor from 1983 to 2003.
14. Multiple personal conversations between Paul Ligeti and several dozen long-time residents, conducted between 2018 and 2026.
15. Harvest of shame. United States, United States: CBS, New Video Group, 1960. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/1960-harvest-of-shame/.
16. Wright, Giles R. Afro-Americans in New Jersey. Trenton, New Jersey: New Jersey Historical Commission, Department of State, 1988. 
17. “Research Sections Sponsor Conference on Migratory Labor.” The Princeton Bulletin, June 20, 1945. ​
18. New Jersey. Seasonal Farm Labor Act. Laws of New Jersey (1945), c. 71, p. 350, s. 1. N.J.S.A. 34:9A-1 et seq. ​
19. "Child Labor on Farms Still Major Obstacle." Princeton Herald. January 26, 1952.
20. Harvest of shame. United States, United States: CBS, New Video Group, 1960. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/1960-harvest-of-shame/.
21. Wright, Dale. "The Forgotten People." Series of articles. New York World-Telegram and Sun, October 10–24, 1961.
22. "Donations Sought." Town Topics. November 20, 1960.
23. "Council Discusses Community Needs." Princeton Herald. November 30, 1960.
24. "Meeting to Be Held to Organize Volunteers For Work with Migrants at Cranbury Center." Princeton Herald. June 16, 1961.
25. "Experiment in Migratory Worker Corps." Princeton Herald. July 11, 1962.
26. Seasonal Farm Labor Act, N.J. Stat. Ann. § 34:9A-1 to 34:9A-41 (West 1967).
27. Migrant Health Act of 1962, Pub. L. No. 87-692, 76 Stat. 592 (1962).​
28. Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, Pub. L. No. 97-470, 96 Stat. 2583 (1983).
29. Buscombe, Roya, Buscombe, William, Goreleigh, Estelle, Goreleigh, Rex. “Indenture.” West Windsor, 1955. Located in the Mercer County Clerk's Office, Mercer County Deed Book 1331, Page 273.
30. "Courses at Studio-On-Canal." Princeton Herald. January 4, 1956.
31. “Rex Goreleigh.” The Johnson Collection, LLC. Accessed September 29, 2024. https://thejohnsoncollection.org/rex-goreleigh/.
32. "Goreleigh to Exhibit." Town Topics. April 17, 1969.
33. Nassau Presbyterian Church. (n.d.). Nassau Presbyterian Church graveyard - also known as the "Princeton Cemetery." Princeton. Princeton Cemetery graveyard gravestones, which often list birth dates, death dates, and ages of those buried there.
34. Bulletin of Research in the Humanities. Vol. 84. Readex Books. 1981. p. 200 – via Google Books.
35. “Rex Goreleigh, Artist Born.” African American Registry, September 2, 2024. https://aaregistry.org/story/rex-goreleigh-displayed-a-talent-on-canvas/.
36. "Artist-Poet a Bell-Hop and Cook." Harlem-Bronx Journal. April 25, 1930.
37. “Rex Goreleigh, Artist Born.” African American Registry, September 2, 2024. https://aaregistry.org/story/rex-goreleigh-displayed-a-talent-on-canvas/.
38. Ibid.
39. “Rex Goreleigh.” The Johnson Collection, LLC. Accessed September 29, 2024. https://thejohnsoncollection.org/rex-goreleigh/.
40. "Topics of the Town - Miscellany." Town Topics. February 2, 1947.
41. "Organization Formed to Promote Arts Here." Princeton Herald. August 16, 1946.
42. Dube, Irene. “Harlem Renaissance Artist Paved the Way for Arts Education in Princeton.” Princeton Magazine. June 21, 2024. 
43. Multiple personal conversations between Paul Ligeti and several dozen long-time residents, conducted between 2018 and 2026.
44. Dept. of Labor. New Jersey’s 2024 Agricultural Industrial Sector. June, 2024.​
45. Biryukov, N. “New Jersey’s Minimum Wage to Rise to $15.92.” New Jersey Monitor. December 31, 2025.
46. New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development. 2024.​
47. Warren, M. & Yi, Karen. “Climate Change and NJ Agriculture.” NJ Spotlight News. September 28, 2023.
48. Warren, M. & Yi, Karen. “Climate Change and NJ Agriculture.” NJ Spotlight News. September 28, 2023.​
49. "Recalling Migrant Workers at Grover Farm." The News. February 15, 2013.
50. ​Ibid.
    
51. Sanders, Bob. Interview. January 25, 2026.
52. Stuller, Lois. Interview. February 7, 2026.
53. Ibid.
54. Appleget, Charles. Interview. February 8, 2026.
55. West-Major, Helen. Interview. February 7, 2026.​​