Horse plays long, valued part in borough's history
Allentown to hold first-ever equine parade on Sept. 16
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer

This stagecoach passed through Allentown in 1907 on the route that the borough's Mane Street Horse Parade will take on Sept. 16.

ALLENTOWN - In organizing a parade, one local resident learned the powerful part the horse has played in the area's history.

In celebration of Allentown's 300th anniversary and Upper Freehold's Community Day, and in recognition of New Jersey's Day of the Horse, Allentown has organized an all-horse parade called the "Mane" Street Horse Parade, which will take place at 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 16. Local equestrians will ride, drive or walk their horses throughout the borough.

"Over 100 horses will be joining us on the 16th," said Richard Osborn, an Upper Freehold resident who organized the parade. "This can be one of the most unique nonmotorized parades in the U.S. We expect to attract many spectators from New Jersey and beyond."

Osborn recently interviewed longtime area residents to collect information about the history of the horse in the Upper Freehold area.

Allentown

From the interviews and other research, Osborn learned that the farmers surrounding Allentown used to bring their grain to the old mill by horse-drawn wagon.

While the farmers' grain was being processed, they would give their horses a break by pasturing them across Doctors Creek up on the hill at a community pasture, according to the information Osborn collected.

He also discovered that a blacksmith shop used to stand where the parking lot for the Pete Sensi Park is now located in downtown Allentown. While the farmers were in town, their horses' feet could be trimmed at the shop and the horses' shoes fitted, according to Osborn.

"Appropriate that Kevin McMinn, a current farrier, is also one of our parade organizers," Osborn said.

Through his research, Osborn also learned that in the winter, many farmers in the area did not have the capability of handling the amount of hay needed to keep their work horses fed over the winter. So, in the late fall, after harvest was over, a horse drive was conducted starting in Freehold at the old livestock auction. Local farmers were given a date to have their horses at an intersection on Monmouth Road (Route 537) so they could have them sent to the Helis Stock Farm in Jobstown where for a fee the horses would be wintered over, according to Osborn.

Osborn learned that a second horse

drive would take place in the spring when the farmers could retrieve their stock from the herd to have them for a new year's worth of work.

While researching old newspaper articles, Osborn also found out that William Cafferty established a carriage factory in Allentown in 1855.

Other horse-related businesses in town included the Livery Stables, which were located behind the Allentown Hotel. At that time, the hotel was known as the Cunningham Hotel and a stagecoach stop.

The horse parade will pass many of these landmarks including 62 N. Main St., which was a property formerly owned by the Merillat Frost family and the last land in Allentown to keep horses.

According to Osborn's research, Mrs. Frost was a breeder of Welsh ponies and in 1982 was recognized by the N.J. Equine Advisory Board as New Jersey's Horseman of the Year.

Although there are no longer horse farms in the borough, Upper Freehold still has quite a few in addition to some equestrian centers. In 1983, the Horse Park of New Jersey opened in the township. Last year, the park was home to the final round of selection for the U.S. Olympic Team just prior to the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

"Trustees of the Horse Park will be riding in our Mane Street Parade," Osborn said.

Osborn was also happy to find out that the Mane Street Parade will actually travel on part of an old stagecoach route through Allentown.

"How cool is this?" Osborn said.

Osborn discovered that a stagecoach run that started in Freehold used to make stops at various businesses in the village that continue to operate today. Part of the stagecoach's route is still known as Stagecoach Road in neighboring Millstone, he said.

On its route, the stagecoach would stop at the Clarksburg Inn in Millstone; the Happy Apple Inn in the Imlaystown section of Upper Freehold; Di Mattia's Restau-rant and Lounge, which used to be the Allentown Hotel; and the Yardville Inn, of Hamilton Township, before riding off to Trenton.

The parade will travel by the former Allentown Hotel, which is on Main Street in downtown Allentown.

"Allentown has a long and valued horse history," Osborn said.

The parade organizers want locals to share in the area's history and help celebrate the horse by participating in or watching the Mane Street Parade, which will take a three-mile loop around Allentown.

"This is an opportunity for equestrians to come and show off their horses and their unique interests," Osborn said. "Parade spectators will be treated to a really unusual parade."

Osborn said riders and carriage drivers will dress in costumes or in manners that represent various horse sports, breeds and activities.

"Not only cowboys, but also knights and maidens, doctors in their buggies, foxhunters, prospectors with their mules, sidesaddle riders, beer wagons, farm vendors, circus wagons, marathon carriages and cavalry units are a few of the expected parade participants," he said.

The day will begin with a house tour in Allentown from 10 a.m. to noon. At noon, a short ceremony celebrating the horse will take place.

After the parade, visitors are invited to neighboring Byron Johnson Park to help celebrate Upper Freehold's Community Day.

For more information, call Rich Osborn at (609) 758-3706 or e-mail him at richosborn@yahoo.com.