Vintage Rendition of inside the Sunburst House

Whitesbog Village, an early 20th-century company town and agricultural community which is part of Brendan T. Byrne State Forest and is listed on both... more

by Debra Fedchin

Title

Vintage Rendition of inside the Sunburst House

Artist

Debra Fedchin

Medium

Photograph

Description

Whitesbog Village, an early 20th-century company town and agricultural community which is part of Brendan T. Byrne State Forest and is listed on both the National and State Registers of Historic Sites. Whitesbog includes the village and the surrounding 3,000 acres of cranberry bogs, blueberry fields, reservoirs, sugar sand roads, and Pine Barrens forests.

This small house was once the New Jersey Agriculture Experimental Cranberry Substation. The Research Substation is presented as a 1920s window into the scientific efforts that occurred during the infancy of the cranberry and blueberry industries in New Jersey and is located in Whitesbog village.

This structure is a Sears catalogue home called the “Sunburst,” built in 1918. This explains the differences between this building and the many others of the Village. It is a single-level dwelling whose structural frame pattern is divided into panels, doors, windows, and porch screens.

It was erected as the first cranberry sub-station in the state and was maintained by a special appropriation of the state legislature. Under the direction of entomologist Charles C. Beckwith, the substation’s initial focus was the study of insects injurious to cranberries. In 1927 the substation’s functions were transferred to a larger facility in Pemberton. After 1927, workers of J. J. White, Inc. occupied the bungalow until it fell into disrepair.

In 2008, the Whitesbog Preservation Trust completely restored the Substation to its original appearance with funds granted by The 1772 Foundation. Today visitors are welcome to view the Cranberry Substation “window exhibits” daily from dawn to dusk, when Whitesbog Village is open to the public. The scheduled Village Tours include a guided tour of this museum.. Living History Events explaining the research done in the Substation.

Today, the Trust maintains copies of the historic records for research and provides educational exhibits about the fascinating events and discoveries that unfolded here.

In 2008, the Whitesbog Preservation Trust completely restored the Substation to its original appearance with funds granted by The 1772 Foundation. Today visitors are welcome to view the Cranberry Substation “window exhibits” daily from dawn to dusk, when Whitesbog Village is open to the public. The scheduled Village Tours include a guid

Uploaded

November 20th, 2015