Small cache container hidden behind the memorial at the site.
In 1688 this land was deeded to the Vandyke Family by King George III. It remained in the Vandyke Family until 1957 when it was purchased by William Pulda. The farmhouse was built in 1713 by Simon Van Dyke, whose ancestor Jan Thomassen Van Dyke immigrated to New Amsterdam from Holland in 1652. The house and carriage house still stand today and are being preserved by the Eastern Villages Association.
After many years and many organizations contributing the house and 200 acres of farmland and woods have been preserved. The cache is located in Van Dyke Farm
As it was common on farms, even in New Jersey, The Vandyke family owned slaves. However, the slaves and family lived together, and the original slave quarters are still intact over the farmhouses kitchen.
On the property is the family cemetery, which includes the graves of Revolutionary War soldier John Van Dyke and his family. There is also an unmarked slave cemetery. The slave cemetery is located near the family plot. Arthur Vandyke and other family members recall wood markers in the slave cemetery, but they have long since disappeared. Vandyke family members believes that when the road was widened the graveyard was covered by an earthen roadway overpass ramp in the early 1980’s. It is unlikely that the graves were not disturbed, but covered with 8 feet of earth.
Records indicate slaves once worked the land and a bill of sale found inside the family home confirms the 1813 purchase of a slave name Amy, by the Petti family for $150. It is believed that Amy had five children, four have been documents by the family Alfred (born July 19, 1823), Rose (born September 17, 1825), Sylvester (born June 7, 1827) and Herman (born June 22, 1829. It is believe that Amy and possibly some of her children are buried here.
This cache is certified Central Jersey!
