Department of Environmental Protection

New Jersey State Park Service

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Somers Mansion Historic Site Overview

The mansion and surrounding city bear the name of the family who owned and occupied the house for over 200 years. 

Somers Mansion, a three-story home constructed of brick in the Flemish bond pattern, sits overlooking the Great Egg Harbor Bay at Somers Point. The mansion, built by the early 1720s by Richard Somers, is considered to be the oldest existing house in Atlantic County, predating the county itself. The Mansion collection includes locally-made quilts and woven coverlets, many early samplers and furnishings including pieces used by the Somers family in the 18th Century.  

In the late 1600s, the property which surrounds the Somers Mansion was acquired by John Somers who operated a ferry service across Great Egg Harbor Bay to Cape May. He referred to it as Somers Plantation and Somers Ferry and the surrounding settlement, the oldest in what became Atlantic County, became Somers Point in the mid-18th century. His son Richard, first of the family to be born in New Jersey, built what is now referred to as the mansion by 1726. That year the local Society of Friends (Quakers) used the home for a meeting and memorialized it in their minutes, making that the earliest recorded date of the home’s existence.  

By the end of the 19th century, the mansion’s architecture had been added to and changed to reflect a Victorian style. The house remained in the Somers Family until 1937 when it was deeded by Florence Hayday Brooks and Lulu Hayday Smith, daughters of Hannah Hayday Somers, to The Atlantic County Historical Society for the purpose of creating a permanent memorial to the Somers family. In 1941, it was transferred to the State of New Jersey, dedicated on September 26, 1942, and in the early 1940s was restored to its colonial appearance as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project. Laborers for the WPA both renovated the surviving furnishings and conducted historical restoration, including the elimination of rooms and architectural details dating to the 19th century. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and is now a State Historic Site.  

Facilities for People with Disabilities
We encourage people with disabilities who require special considerations to contact the historic site / park at the phone number listed in the general information on the home page of the historic site / park. The staff will assist with arrangements. Text telephone (TT) users, please call the NJ Relay Services at (800) 852-7899.
 
For the Comfort and Enjoyment of All
This historic site / park is part of the NJ State Park system and your cooperation with the following will help ensure the survival of the museum collections, historic structures & features and surrounding property for the enjoyment and education of future generations!

  • Keep your historic site / park and surrounding property clean and green! Protect this site by taking your trash with you. Whatever you carry into the site, plan on carrying it out too. Bring a bag or two for trash, recycling and cleaning up after your pet. There are no trash receptacles at this site. Thank you!
  • No Smoking on NJ State Park Service Property. Pursuant to N.J.P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-56)
  • Alcoholic beverages are not permitted at state historic sites [ N.J.A.C. 7:2-2.6]
  • The collection or removal of any object from State Park property is prohibited without written permission from the Superintendent.
  • Use of metal detecting devices on or unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) on or over the property is not permitted without a special use permit (SUP) from the State historic site / park.
  • Commercial photography is not permitted on the property without a special use permit (SUP) from the historic site / park.
  • Interior photography, videotaping or audio taping are not permitted in the historic structure / visitor center / museum, except by prior written permission and for educational purposes only.
  • Non-commercial photography is permitted on the property (outside), but please help preserve the historic site / park and any surrounding property by not attaching anything to, climbing or sitting on historic structures and features or disturbing any plants, wild or cultivated. Photography may not interfere with other visitors to the historic site / park or impede site operations.
  • Food and beverages; pets/animals, except for service animals, are not permitted in the historic structure / visitor center / museum.
  • Please refrain from touching objects/furnishings in and building components of historic structures and museums, except where invited to do so by staff.

Please contact this historic site / park with specific inquiries about any of these restrictions, as there may be some variations at this specific historic site / park.

 

Related Links

Belleplain State Forest
Corsons Inlet State Park

General

Phone Number
609-972-2212

Address
1000 Shore Road
Somers Point, NJ 08244

Historic Site Hours

Please call the site for hours of operation. 

Park Fees

Entrance Fee

Admission is free, program fees may apply. 

Other Related Fees
Map / Directions

GPS Coordinates
39.30969, -74.59792