Eagle Manor has a long and colorful history which includes the revolutionary war, the underground railroad, pirates, bootleggers, smugglers, and ghosts. The 10-bedroom, 5,212-square-foot  Manor house was built in 1736, when George Washington was 4 years old. It was constructed by the Sheppard family who settled in Cumberland county in the late 1600’s and have farmed the area ever since. The 1736 date along with the initials of Moses and Mary Sheppard are spelled in the patterned brick on the east gable of main house, which we call the Eagle house today. This is why the estate house was referred to as the “Sheppard Brick House” until the late 1990’s when it became “Eagle Manor”.

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Before the Sheppard’s claimed their land, the Fairfield Township area, in South Jersey, was known to be a safe haven for pirates according to Laural Boney of Fairton. The most well-known were Captain Kidd, Captain Worley, Stede Bonnet and Blackbeard. Blackbeard sailed his crew up along Cohansey river where he felt he was out of sight and untouchable from authorities.

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Blackbeard’s crew built log cabins for the winter on the land that Joseph Sheppard, a cousin to Moses Sheppard, later claimed in 1781. It is said that Blackbeard may have buried some of his treasure in or around the property. He boasted that he buried two dead men next to his riches to act as guardians. By the time Joseph Sheppard came along, Blackbeard and his crew had moved on. Shepard demolished what was left of the shanty cabins and began building his homestead.

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The Eagle Manor estate eventually passed hands from the Sheppards to the Reeves and then to the Mulfords, all prominent families in Cumberland county history. John Reeve was in residence during the Revolutionary War and was also witness to the Tea Burning that occurred just across the Cohansey river in the historic town of Greenwich. The Greenwich Tea Party was one of the six major “tea incidents” in pre-Revolutionary America, the others being Charleston, Annapolis, Princeton and the most famous Boston tea party.

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The Mulfords were in residence during the Civil War. About that time, Thomas R. Sheppard and J.R. Sheppard  the great-grandchildren of Moses and Mary Sheppard were active in the South Jersey branch of the underground railroad which operated from Greenwich, NJ and ferried escaped slaves up the Cohansey river past Eagle Manor to Bridgeton, NJ. The Mulford’s Cohansey ferry and landing at Eagle Manor may have been instrumental in their transit when Greenwich was not safe.

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The property passed into the hands of the Philadelphia zinc mining magnate John Price Wetherill at the open of the 20th century. Wetherill converted the estate to a private country club and simultaneously made the surrounding farm one of the most prominent farms on the east coast with one of the first ice producing facilities in south Jersey. The rich and fashionable were often seen on yachts at the Wetherill warf, but the estate also had a fine tradition of opening the grounds to the general public for touring, education, and general enjoyment.

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Bootlegging thrived along the Cohansey River during prohibition. Rum running boats would often pass the Wetherill Cohansey Club House, as it was called, on their way upriver to Bridgeton. One would imagine those boats would stop at the Club House from time to time. A fully functional private airstrip and hanger were constructed on the estate in the 70’s. Unsubstantiated rumors say it was used to smuggle contraband via airplane.

No old house is without it’s share of ghost stories, and Eagle Manor is no exception. The caretaker in the early 90’s reported that she saw a little girl wearing a blue dress who seemed “friendly and peaceful”.  She also reported seeing a sailor with a blue coat. She saw them in different parts of the house and they appeared to be from different time periods.

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The estate changed owners multiple times after the Wetherills. It was owned by a combination of gentleman farmers and small businessmen. After the 70’s it fell into a state of disrepair. Then in 1995 the estate was purchased by Internet millionaire John Streep who restored the Manor house, boathouse, and warf and built the estate to almost 800 acres. Streep was a great sportsman and lover of the outdoors.

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Streep unfortunately contracted cancer in 2007 and the estate was sold to the New Jersey Green Acres program. Green Acres typically demolishes all structures on their open lands, however the historic significance of the property required special treatment, so the state carved out a 12 acre plot containing the Manor house, boathouse, wharf, and outbuildings for private sale. The remaining acreage was folded into the Dix Wildlife Management Area which surrounds the Eagle Manor estate today.

Come visit us at Eagle Manor and be part of its rich history!