def #38

def #38 03/02/10

CLOVERDALE FARM COUNTY PARK FIRE INFORMATION

The cause of a structural fire that destroyed the visitors’ center at Cloverdale Farms County Park in Barnegat Township remains under investigation by Ocean County authorities.

The fire was reported around 6:30 p.m., Monday, March 1. No injuries were reported. The visitor’s center, a two-story building that dates back about 100 years was destroyed by the blaze. The building housed park’s department offices on the second floor and displays and information relative to the park’s history on the first floor.

The park will be closed to the public while a cleanup takes place.

Investigating the fire are the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Sheriff’s Department Criminal Investigation Unit, K-9 Unit, Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, and Barnegat Township Police Detective Bureau.

In 2004, Ocean County acquired Cloverdale Farms in Barnegat Township. Katherine Collins, the local cranberry farmer in town, previously owned the farm. Mrs. Collins had lived on the property for over 50 years with her husband William, who passed away in 2000. The property, about 80 acres, had been used as an active cranberry farm since the early 1900s.

There are several historic buildings located on the property including the house where one of Mrs. Collins’ sons resided that dates back over 100 years. Along with a farmhouse, there is a cranberry shed where the cranberries had been sorted and stored before being shipped out for processing. Much of the original equipment and storage bins remain to this day.

Since its acquisition, the County has been in the process of acquiring permits from the State to upgrade the facility and to begin using the property as an active cranberry demonstration farm. Once completed, visitors will be allowed to observe the actual day-to-day operation of the farm from cultivation and growing to the harvesting and sorting of the native cranberries.

Cloverdale Farms is a unique County park, representing both the natural and historic characteristics of the region and will be another wonderful addition to the Ocean County Park system.