Fabled People and Places

The Deserted Village and Enchanted Forest of the Watchung Reservation

There is a place deep in the woods of the Watchung Reservation that is officially known as the Feltville Historic District. Here, down a narrow winding road that leads into the forest you will find a cluster of houses dating back to the mid-19th century, several of which are now long abandoned. The site is known locally as the “Deserted Village,” and he has a many–storied history of promise, failure and even hauntings. Continue reading →

The Cult of Mysterious “Monk’s Castle”

In the late 70s and early 80s rumors of a “Sex and Drugs” cult residing at “Monks Castle” began circulating around Montclair. One resident described the reaction of the community as “panic stricken” in a New York Times article about the cult, which ran under the headline “Guru’s Cult in Castle Troubles Montclair.” Continue reading →

Small Wonders of Midgetville

There is perhaps no more fabled place in our state than the mythical village of Midgetville. Spurred on by tales of this tiny town and its wee inhabitants, Weird NJ has visited at least half a dozen locations rumored to be the home of a colony of these vertically challenged individuals. Continue reading →

Strange Figures of Woodbridge Clay Pits

Several peculiar wooden sculptures that have a mysterious history about them were recently put up for sale at a prestigious New York City auction house. The origins of the “Woodbridge Figurines” are unclear, although the figures themselves are well known amongst … Continue reading →

History and Legends of the Mysterious “Jackson Whites”

Ever since the Revolutionary War there have been stories of a degenerate race of people who live an isolated existence in New Jersey’s Ramapo Mountains. This motley group of social outcasts who had taken refuge in the northeastern hills of the state and inbred to the point of mutation. The group, which has been alleged to be comprised of a mongrel hybrid of renegade Indians, escaped slaves, Hessian mercenary deserters, and West Indian prostitutes, have come to be known as the Jackson Whites. Continue reading →