Shongum, New Jersey

Shongum Lake and Club

The Shongum Club (then called the Shongum Lake Club) is located on Shongum Road at Shongum Lake and was founded in 1879 by prominent gentlemen from the Dover-Morristown area, as a gathering place for men who liked to hunt and fish. The club was dedicated to recreational activities and the clubhouse was leased from the Cutler family of Morristown. The clubhouse was probably built as early as 1853 and is still standing today.

Shongum Lake had a reputation for having an abundance of black bass and small mouth bass, perch, pickerel, blue gills and crappies. The lake is not a natural one, and was created in 1758 by Robert Young, who had purchased the land from William Penn to operate an iron forge. The Den Brook was dammed up to create a “lake” which was fed with a constant supply of "the purest water". In 1884, the club had 50 members, the initiation fee was $25.00, and yearly dues were $10.00. The guest register was quite impressive containing the names of many very wealthy men and prominent politicians. There were congressmen, senators, educators including the president of Rutgers University and even presidents who visited Shongum.

During the depression, membership dropped and the Cutler family sold the club building after it had been in the family for 100 years. It became the property of Benjamin Bragman and was used as a dwelling. In 1974 it was acquired by the Shongum Lake Property Owners Association and is used once again for club functions and private parties.

References

References

1. {{cite gnis. 0880568. Shongum. 2012-09-24
2. [http://www.state.nj.us/infobank/localnames.txt Locality Search], State of [[New Jersey]]. Accessed June 9, 2016.
3. [http://www.shongumlake.org/ Shongum Lake Property Owners Association]. Accessed January 13, 2017.
4. [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~njmorris/general_info/indian.htm Indian Place Names in New Jersey]. Accessed January 13, 2017.
5. [http://www.newjerseyhills.com/a-brief-history-of-the-shongum-club/article_d7f0dc42-a134-52ae-b010-7d90a0c970d7.html A brief history of the Shongum Club]. Accessed January 13, 2017.