Editing Swedesboro, New Jersey (section)

==History==
[[File:Swedesboro, New Jersey (1912).jpg|thumb|285px|Tomato shipping in Swedesboro, 1912]]
[[File:Schorn Log Cabin.JPG|thumb|285px|[[C. A. Nothnagle Log House]], {{circa|1700}}]]
Originally populated by the [[Lenape]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]], Swedesboro was settled as part of [[New Sweden]] around 1650.<ref>[https://www.thelocal.se/20180306/10-of-the-most-swedish-places-in-the-us "10 of the most Swedish places in the US"], [[The Local]], March 6, 2018. Accessed November 10, 2019. "Swedesboro (New Jersey): Settled back when Sweden was still considered something of a European power in the 1600s, this long-standing New Jersey town features an ode to Swedish construction in [[C. A. Nothnagle Log House]], which is one of the oldest wooden structure in the Americas."</ref> The [[Swedes]] and [[Finnish people|Finns]] were fishermen, hunters and farmers.<ref>[http://www.historicswedesboro.com/about/history/borough-history/ Borough History], Borough of Swedesboro. Accessed November 10, 2019. "This Southern New Jersey town was settled by a small group of Swedes and Finns in the mid-1600s. Mostly, hunters and fishermen, the settlers began farming the area, rich with wood supply and fertile soil, and befriended the Native Leni Lenape as they expanded into New Jersey creeks."</ref>

Swedesboro, initially named Sveaborg by the Swedish settlers, along with [[Bridgeport, New Jersey|Bridgeport]] (Nya Stockholm) and Finns Point (Varkens Kill), was one of only three settlements established in New Jersey as a part of the [[New Sweden]] colony. The oldest extant log cabin in the U.S., [[C. A. Nothnagle Log House]] ({{circa|1640}}) was built by Antti Niilonpoika (Anthony Neilson/Nelson) in Swedesboro.<ref>Staff. [https://archive.today/20120712092657/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courierpostonline/access/1844734571.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+23,+2000&author=&pub=Courier+Post&desc=Log+cabin+in+Greenwich+may+be+oldest+in+country&pqatl=google "Log cabin in Greenwich may be oldest in country"], ''[[Courier-Post]]'', February 23, 2000. Accessed January 26, 2012. "The Nothnagle log cabin in Greenwich, Gloucester County, is believed to be the oldest log cabin in the United States."</ref> It is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]], as is [[Trinity Church (Swedesboro, New Jersey)|Trinity Episcopal "Old Swedes" Church]], which was established as a [[Church of Sweden|Swedish Lutheran Church]] in 1703; the present building dates to 1784.<ref>[http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/nj/Gloucester/state.html New Jersey - Gloucester County], [[National Register of Historic Places]]. Accessed January 26, 2012.</ref>

As a result of the [[Second Northern War]], [[New Sweden]] passed into Dutch hands in 1655. In 1667, the English subsequently annexed the region along the [[Delaware River]] after the [[Second Anglo-Dutch War]]. The English Colonial government needed a road between the communities of [[Burlington, New Jersey|Burlington]] and [[Salem, New Jersey|Salem]] and built the [[New Jersey Route 41|Kings Highway]] in 1691, which opened the southern portion of Gloucester County to more settlers, who were drawn to the area by the fertile sandy soil, prime farmland and vast tracts of oak, birch, maple and pine trees. Originally, the community was called '''Raccoon''' until it was changed to Swedesboro in 1765.<ref name=NYT1976>[[John F. Burns|Burns, John F.]] [https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/29/archives/westchester-weekly-town-prepares-for-a-royal-visit-swedesboro-is.html "Town Prepares For a Royal Visit; Swedesboro Is Preparing For a Royal Visit on April 8"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', February 29, 1976. Accessed July 29, 2013. "Communications enthusiasts that they are, the young Landwehrs are evidently not tuned in to the talk of Swedesboro, which is alive these days with discussion of the forthcoming visit of Carl XVI Gustaf, the 29-year-old bachelor who is King of Sweden.... Known to its founders as Raccoon, Swedesboro had its beginnings in a cluster of log cabins that the first Swedish settlers in America built only 20 years after the first Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock."</ref>

Through the late 1800s, [[Raccoon Creek (New Jersey)|Raccoon Creek]], which runs for {{Convert|22.6|mi}}, was a navigable water route that was naturally deep enough to transport wood and farm produce to [[Philadelphia]] via the Delaware River. The creek was named for the Narraticon Native Americans who lived in the area and gave their name as Raccoon to the first European settlement.<ref>Roncace, Kelly. [https://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/towns/2012/05/whats_in_a_name_raccoon_creek.html "What's in a Name? Raccoon Creek"], NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], May 14, 2012. Accessed February 27, 2023. "One stream that drew the people to it is called Raccoon Creek. The 22.6-mile-long tributary of the Delaware River lies west of Glassboro and flows through Mullica Hill and Swedesboro and eventually empties into the Delaware River just south of the Commodore Barry Bridge.... The word Narraticon means Raccoon, which is where the creek got its name.... One of the first villages was settled around 1641 and was originally called Raccoon."</ref> The [[Mortonson–Van Leer Log Cabin|Van Leer Log Cabin]] was once used as a trading post with Native Americans and later a station for the [[Underground Railroad]] to help slaves escape to [[Free Negro|free negro]] communities.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lepley |first1=Kristin |title=The Charming Small Town In New Jersey That Is Home To One Of The State's Oldest Log Cabins And Churches |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/the-charming-small-town-in-new-jersey-that-is-home-to-one-of-the-states-oldest-log-cabins-and-churches/ar-AA15vmQQ |website=MSN}}</ref>

[[Trinity Church Cemetery, Swedesboro|Trinity Church Cemetery]] is the burial place of [[Governor of New Jersey]] [[Charles C. Stratton]], Congressman [[Benjamin Franklin Howey]], and other notables.<ref>''The Swedes and Finns in New Jersey'' (Federal Writers' Project of WPA. Bayonne, New Jersey: Jersey Printing Company, Inc. 1938)</ref>

[[Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden|Carl XVI Gustaf]], [[King of Sweden]], visited the borough as part of a [[King Carl XVI Gustaf's 1976 visit to the United States|1976 tour of the United States]].<ref name=NYT1976/>