The people of the Pine Barrens have often gotten a bad rap. They live in a place much-loved by Weird New Jersey magazine. But the Pineys were just rural, agricultural families who were stigmatized for being 'other'.

Now, if I'd realized that I was going to do this blog, I'd have taken better photos...but since I didn't, why don't I just show you some of the photos, and labels you can actually read:

Full original label: In the 1800s, families called Pineys lived off the land in the Pine Barrens. They depended on the berry business for income, but most also farmed, hunted & gathered moss for florists.

Elizabeth C White developed the highbush blueberry at Whitesbog, NJ. Cranberries & blueberries are native fruits adapted to the conditions of the Pine Barrens.

Since I couldn't use actual berries in these jars, I made ceramic berries, which were added later.

Colliers’ made charcoal (needed for furnaces) in mounds of sand and turf using the native pine from vast Pinelands forests. Collier's Mills was named for these charcoal burners.The last pit in Ocean County was extinguished in 1976.

George Crummel, d. 1964, a collier in Jenkins Neck, was the great-grandson of a Leni Lenapechief….or a man named Charles Cromwell

Left: Dr James Still, (1812-1885) the "Black Doctor of the Pines,” used the healing powers of native South Jersey plants.  Right: In 1877, he published “Early recollections & Life of Dr. James Still”  Along with the photo of Dr Still, I canned some of the native plants. 

The Wheaton Glass Company (now Wheaton Industries) has lots of historical info and images  online, which was very helpful.

By gluing sand to the tops of some jars, I was able to leave the bottoms empty, visually suggesting the aquifer. The jars read "The Conhasey Aquifer lies under the Pinelands". 

So now that you've sen some of what was in the jars, the next post will take a closer look at the jars.