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Lost Haddonfiled: Hadrosaurus foulkii

One of the oldest dinosaur skeletons ever found was discovered in Haddonfield by the owner of several homes featured in this week's historical pictures.

 
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Birdwood, the Hopkins House at 519 Hopkins Lane, which still stands today. provided
Photos (4)

Photos

Birdwood, the Hopkins House at 519 Hopkins Lane, which still stands today.
"The Haddon Mill was erected by John Estaugh Hopkins in 1789, five years before he built Birdwood," according to 'Lost Haddonfield.' "Today, even the ruins of the mill are gone, but Birdwood still stands."
"In the two centuries prior to the construction of the present Borough Hall, two different houses stood at 242 Kings Highway East," according 'Lost Haddonfield.' "Each house was occupied by a person of historical importance. The first was occupied by Stephen Munson Day, head master of Haddonfield Friends School from 1802 to 1812. In about 1863, the Day house was replaced by the house in this picture. It was owned by renowned paleontologist, Edward Drinker Cope."
"The old town hall was built in 1854 at 15 Haddon Avenue," according to 'Lost Haddonfield.'  "The old town hall is, however, primarily associated with Haddonfield Fire Company No. 1, which was its sole occupant after 1928. It was razed in 1951 to make way for a new firehouse, which still stands on the site today."

"These photos relate to Haddonfield as the starting place of the Dinosaur Wars between Edward Drinker Cope of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia—whose house was torn down to build the current Haddonfield Borough Hall at 242 Kings Highway East—and O.C. Marsh of Yale University who visited Cope in Haddonfield," according to Katherine Mansfield Tassini of the Historical Society of Haddonfield.

"Cope took Marsh to the areas in South Jersey where marl diggers were unearthing early fossils. After Marsh left, Cope stopped getting specimens from the local diggers—he found out that Marsh had paid them to send them to him at Yale instead. The PBS show on American Experience called Dinosaur Wars is a wonderful explanation of the entire episode and talks about the Haddonfield visit.

"Also in these pictures are the old Town Hall which stood in Cope’s time and the Hopkins house, Birdwood, and the Hopkins family Mill which were located on the farm property where the Hadrosaurus foulkii was discovered."

These photos are from the archives of the Historical Society of Haddonfield.

Related Topics: Historical photos, History, Vintage Photos, and old pictures

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