A Ghost Walk to Discovery
By Melissa Phillips, IACCP®, Chief Compliance Officer
Once I get interested in something, I dig in and try to find out every little thing I can about it – some may call it obsession (I prefer “intensively inquisitive”, personally). Local history – figuring out what used to be, how old structures are, who lived there – has always been a passion of mine. So, when we moved into our office in Mullica Hill, I was thrilled to discover that the front portion of our building was actually an old farmhouse, and I made it my
mission to find out its age and history.
I attended this year’s Mullica Hill Ghost Walk for the first time (very cool event, I might add). After the tour we walked through the Harrison Township Historical Society’s museum, and as luck would have it, I met a member who knew volumes about the property – he told me it was one of many farms belonging to the Folwell family, and this ended up being the key I needed to unlock more clues.
When I got home that night, a quick Google search led me to a book called The Folwell Family of Mullica Hill and it was delivered to my doorstep a day later. I was thrilled to see that our building was not only pictured but mentioned many times – it was known as the Hazelton Folwell Farm (the farm’s buildings and fields are now Ella Harris Recreation Park) and was owned by a man named Stacy Hazelton, who was born in Mullica Hill in 1789 and
appears to have acquired the land around 1834 from one of Mullica Hill’s earliest settlers, Enoch Allen.
The farm was willed to his daughter and son in law, Lydia and Charles Folwell, after his death in 1874, and shortly after sold to John W. Hazelton, one of Stacy’s sons.
The only mystery remaining is the age of the house itself – so far, I haven’t been able to pinpoint exactly when it might have been built. The historical society agrees with my guess that it’s 19th century, but I also think it was moved at some point since it has cinder block basement foundation walls, which didn’t become widely used until after 1930.
So, the quest continues! If I learn more, I’ll share in a future newsletter. I just hope Mr. Hazelton is pleased that we’re now calling his home ours (so far, no signs to the contrary). And safe to say the Harrison Township Historical Society has gained a new member.
To see more articles from our Fall 2026 newsletter, please click here.