Built some 25 years before H.B. Smith's arrival in Burlington County , the Greek Revival mansion symbolizes in its buildings and gardens the complexity of its most famous owner.
Edith Vaughn was the last Postmaster in Smithville. We have had conversations with her descendants and would like to share the information we have discovered about Smithville's Post Office and Edith Vaughn.
Smithville Post Office opened in 1866 and within old Westampton Township. In 1820 this location became part of the newly created Eastampton Township. Earlier monikers for this place included Parker's Mills, French's Mills, Shreveville, and Shreveport. In 1866 the year of application for Smithville's Post Office, Robert S. Kille stated the population here as "...200, expect soon to be double that." As stated in the application, the mail would be delivered to Smithville Station on the Burlington County Railroad, one-quarter mile from the post office.
We can speculate where the Post Office was located during the Smith era based on the fact that H.B. Smith was postmaster for 10 years, from October 14, 1868 until January 14, 1879, when William S. Kelly took over. Kelly held the office into the early 1900s. Because these men were officers of the company, we can assume that the Post Office operated out of the company headquarters.
We know that the Post Office was located in Smithville's Company Store on River Street (near Mechanics Hall) when Alfred Johansen was Postmaster (January 9, 1923 through January 23, 1930) . Sometime during 1929 or 1930, Johansen, who was also the manager of the Company Store, was accused of embezzling funds and was fired. When Edith Vaughn was appointed acting Postaster on January 23, 1930 after Johansen was removed she operated the Post Office from the Company Store. However, after only 2 or 3 days, the store burned to the ground, apparently in a fire started by Johansen to cover up any evidence of his crime. At that point the Post Office was moved across the bridge to the corner of the Smith Company Office Building, adjacent to the entry gate to the factory complex, where it remained until it closed in 1964.
During the tenure of Edith Vaughn as Postmaster, the Postal Service required that the Smith family provide a home for her in the village. This was a common requirement of the Postal System, but the Vaughn's were not given free room and board -- they had to pay rent just as other residents of the village. The Smiths provided the home at the south-west corner of Maple Avenue. In those days, the address was listed as 13 Maple Avenue, although it shows on an old Shreveville map as # 37. For years, county literature has referred to the home as #34 Maple Avenue. For the present, we have inaugurated a search of documents to definitively pin down the address. Meanwhile, you will see it mainly referred to as #34 Maple -- pending a final determination by the Parks Department. Today this is the only house remaining on Maple Avenue and it has been selected for restoration to serve as the new Visitors' Center at Smithville.
Note: The information on Edith Vaughn has been provided by Eleanor Dunker, grandaughter of Edith Vaughn. Eleanor's daughter, Meredith Melendez is a member of the Board of Directors of the Smithville Conservancy.
The restoration of this historic building (c. 1840) preserves a last remnant of the upper village back street of the pre-Smith era at Smithville. When H.B. Smith purchased the property in 1865, there were three rows of workers' houses in the upper village. In 1870, Smith replaced the homes on Park Avenue with the structures now there. He tore down most of the houses on the south side of Maple Avenue to provide larger yards for the new homes on Park Avenue. Only #34 remains of the dozen or so homes on Maple Ave. in 1840. It will soon become the new Smithville Park Visitor Center.
Smithville Postmasters:
December 7, 1866 - John Segine
December 21, 1866 - Robert S. Kille
May 1, 1867 - Post Office Discontinued
June 17, 1867 - Post Office Re-Established
June 17, 1867 - James Logan
October 14, 1868 - Hezekiah B. Smith
January 14, 1879 - William S. Kelly
September 29, 1882 - Post Office Discontinued (Rescinded)
September 30, 1882 - Post Office Re-established
September 30, 1882 - William S. Kelly
October 25, 1916 - Charles G. Hatcher
February 20, 1922 - Robert Clyde (acting)
April 7, 1922 - Edith Vaughn
January 9, 1923 - Alfred Johansen
January 23, 1930 - Edith Vaughn (acting)
January 28, 1930 - Edith Vaughn
June 5, 1964 - Post Office Discontinued - Service to Mount Holly
(Official Post Office historical information from "The Post Towns of Burlington County New Jersey" by John W. Edge - 2008 )
