was there ever an Armwell, Essex County, New Jersey? [closed]

Question

Greetings.

I came across a record that is confounding me in New Jersey, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1643-1890 on Ancestry.com.

• Name: Benjamin Vanaman
• State: NJ
• County: Essex County
• Township: Armwell
• Year: 1793
• Record Type: June Tax List
• Database: NJ Tax Lists Index 1772-1822

The only evidence I can find that such a place existed are pages which reference this database, or at least appear to be referencing it w/respect to this 1793 tax list.

One hit was to a page which reads, "Thomas [Godown] appears on the Hunterdon County tax rolls during the years 1780-1789. A Thomas appears in the June Tax List for the year 1793. The county is listed as Essex and the town is listed as Armwell. A Thomas appears in the 1830 census in Amwell Township page 315."

Is this database mistaking Amwell, Hunterdon, New Jersey for a place called Armwell in Essex County? Or was Armwell some very briefly defined place in Essex County where people from Amwell vacationed in 1793, and which existed just long enough to have a tax list in 1793?

Thanks in advance,

Daphne

Answer 1

There is no Armwell in New Jersey.  The best source to answer questions about New Jersey location names is The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries, which was compiled by the State. There is a digitized copy available here; the index starts on page 281.  https://dspace.njstatelib.org//handle/10929/21587

As for Benjamin, Ancestry's tax list database is based on several sources, including Norton, James S. New Jersey in 1793: An Abstract and Index to the 1793 Militia Census of the State of New Jersey. (Salt Lake City, Utah, 1973)

I pulled a copy and found Benjamin listed in the Amwell Mililtia on page 179. 

If anyone reading is curious about NJ tax and militia lists beyond what's in Ancestry, take a look at Using Ratables for New Jersey Genealogy.

If anyone needs help with these sorts of records, you are welcome to contact the State Library for assistance.

Answer 2

There's an Amwell Township in New Jersey.  It was established in 1708 and was in Hunterdon County. Are Hunterdon and Essex near each other?

Comments

Thanks, yes, there's an Amwell and its been in Hunterdon since Hunterdon was created in 1714. The last time Hunterdon Co. and Essex Co. shared a border was 1741, in which year Somerset was enlarged and thus came between the two. See Maps of New Jersey, where one can browse through county formations from year to year.

Given this tax list was over 50 years after Somerset was inserted between Hunterdon and Essex, it seems like there shouldn't have been much confusion.

Yet, since I've asked my question, I've found Benjamin Vanaman on a 1792 militia list for Amwell in Hunterdon, again suggesting the database is just populated with the wrong town/county name.