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Woodward & Hageman, History of Burlington and Mercer Counties. 1883
Southampton Township: Villages & Hamlets - Buddtown (pages 423-425)

       Buddtown, a village of about one hundred and fifty inhabitants, is situated in Southampton township, on the “Stop the Jade Creek,” a branch of the Rancocas, midway between the towns of Vincentown and Pemberton, about two and a half miles from each.  Around the town is one of the most fertile farming sections of Burlington County, of which it is partially the center of trade and repairs.

       The earliest record that can be obtained of the place is in a survey made to Daniel Leeds in 1719, which survey is described as being near a saw-mill on “Stop the Jade” owned by Thomas Budd.

       The Thomas Budd whose life and actions were mostly identified with its early history was the oldest son of William Budd (the second), and grandson of William Budd, the immigrant, who landed in Burlington in 1678, and afterwards located near Pemberton. This Thomas Budd married Jemima, the daughter of Philo Leeds, and bought his father-in-law a large tract of land, adjoining what is now called Buddtown, where he settled, lived, and died in 1775, aged sixty-seven years, deeding and willing in severalty to his three sons, Thomas, Isaac, and Joseph, about fifteen hundred acres north and south of Buddtown, lands which he had in part purchased and part located with proprietary rights.

       To his son Isaac he willed the land south and southeast of Buddtown, to his son Joseph he willed the lands to the north of Buddtown, including his homestead farm; to his son Thomas he, in 1773, deeded about three hundred and fifty-three acres northeast of and adjoining his homestead farm, bought of Levi Briggs.  Thomas Budd, Jr., dying in 1776, at the age of thirty-two, in the Continental service, willed his three hundred and fifty-three acres to his brothers Isaac and Joseph.  Joseph afterwards sold his portion to Isaac.  Isaac willed this land to his sons Joseph and Stacy. Joseph’s portion was heired by his daughter Josephine, wife of Henry I Budd, and sold to William E. Taylor and Joseph Heister, by whom it (1882) is now owned.  Stacy’s portion is now owned by his son George. Isaac willed his farms south of Buddtown: first, the part adjoining the town to his son John; the next adjoining farm (southeast) to his son Samuel; the next adjoining farm, to the west of the latter, to his son Isaac, Jr.  John’s portion now mostly belongs to his son, Franklin Budd, Pemberton and Robert C. Taylor (three separate farms).  Samuel’s portion, in two farms, was, and is now, owned by his sons, Francis and Joseph L. Budd.  Joseph’s farm is now owned by J. Marble Hargrove. Isaac, Jr’s., is now owned, in two farms, by his sons, Alfred and Theodore Budd.

       Joseph Budd, upon the death of his brother Thomas, took his place as captain in the provincial service and was promoted to major, and so designated during his lifetime.  When first married he resided on the homestead farm near Buddtown, but soon afterward settled on his plantation at the intersection of Columbus and Vincentown and the South Mount Holly and Pemberton Roads, now owned and occupied by his grandson, John Smalley. Holding many private and public trusts, and owning several farms, inherited from his father and father-in-law, his time was principally occupied in their management and the numerous estates for which he acted as trustee and guardian.

       Dying in 1821, aged sixty-six years, he left his farm where he resided to his daughter, Mrs. Samuel Smalley; a farm northeast of and adjoining Birmingham to his daughter, wife of Rev. Joseph Shippard; to his son Joseph a farm adjoining this, and now owned by Streaker Bodine; to his wife a farm near Bridgeton, in Cumberland County; all his lands north of and adjoining Buddtown, which are now divided into six farms, to his son, Col. Thomas F. Budd.

       On the decease of Thomas F. Budd, in 1849, his two sons, Leander J. and William I Budd, divided the father’s farming land between them, Leander J. taking the two farms on the northwest side if the survey, lying on both sides of Birmingham road, and forty acres adjoining the village of Buddtown; the latter forty acres, now belongs to Dr. James Still’s estate.

       William I. Budd took the farms on the east and south of the survey.  William I Budd dying in 1856 without male heirs, his brother and executor Leander J. Budd, sold the homestead farm to John F. Budd, the farm south of it to William Hoit, the farm west of the last to Pemberton Taylor, he to James Marble.  John F. Budd afterwards sold his to Edmund Prickett; he to William E. Taylor; he to Henry I. Budd; he to Thomas Reeves; he to Isaiah P. Goldy; he to William Pope, by whom it is now owned. William Hoit sold his to William H. Doran, who now owns it. James Marble’s descended to his son-in-law, Josephus Sooy, by whom it is now owned.  Leander J. Budd dying in 1864, left his farm to his widow, Rebecca L. Budd, and children, – Henry I., Rebecca A., and Mary F., by whom it is now owned, but occupied by Peter Ellis, husband of Rebecca A. Budd Ellis and J. Goldy Montgomery. Absalom Edmund owns the farm to the east of and adjoining the town.  This farm descended to him from his father, Thomas Edmund, who bought it of Samuel Dobbins about 1826. From 1826 to 1845 the land adjoining and southwest of the town belonged to Thomas Gaskill.  From him it descended to his son, Israel Gaskill, now owned by John H. Worrell and Somerfield Budd. South and southeast of the town, James Asay owned the farm Pemberton Taylor now owns, and Thomas Dolton, then James Atkinson the next farm south, now owned by Robert C. Taylor. At this early day, 1826, Isaac Lee also owned twenty acres adjoining and west of Dolton’s.  Still farther south, the adjoining farms to the ones above mentioned are the Isaiah Goldy farm, George Gaskill, Joseph Bennett, John Cox, Asa Rogers’ heirs, and Benjamin and Lewis Atkinson farms.  Beyond these and over the Rancocas comes in the pine region, with but little farming land, except an occasional oasis in the midst of a sandy desert.

       A large and fertile body of land from half to one mile east and northeast of Buddtown was owned and occupied at an early day by Judge Joseph Earl, and from him descended in severalty to his sons, Richard W., Franklin W., and Taunton Earl. Richard’s daughter Gertrude now owns her father’s farm, which is occupied by her and her husband, Henry Lippincott.

       Franklin W. Earl and his sons, Frank, Joshua, and Charles, own and occupy their father’s and uncle Taunton’s land, Taunton dying without children.

       Directly west and north of the Thomas Budd survey is a large body of land owned at an early day by Jacob Lamb, which descended to his daughters, Mrs. Dr. Lott, Mrs. John Cox, Mrs. Abraham Eayre, and Mrs. Benjamin Cox in severalty. The same farms are now owned in the same order by John Gleason, Benjamin D. Haines, L.J. Budd’s estates, and John Butterworth. Still west of this survey was a large estate, first owned and occupied by James Wills, and extended from the north Rancocas Creek south to “Stop the Jade” Creek, now divided into four large farms, now (1882) owned respectively by Joseph and Samuel Butterworth, Samuel Davis’ estate, Ann Elizabeth and Isabella Renaud, granddaughters of James Wills (the original proprietor).  Southwest of the last is Job Butterworth’s farm, first owned by John Hollinshead, then by his daughter, who married David Peacock, an active and intelligent farmer, who invented the first iron plow, and made the first extensive application of green marl sand, a valuable fertilizer that underlies all this section, is the source of its surpassing fertility, and is by the thousands of tons transported both by rail and wagon long distances to less favored localities. 

       The old mill having gone into decay, Isaac and Joseph Budd owning each the lands, Joseph on the north and Isaac on the south side of “Stop the Jade” stream, entered into a partnership, Joseph one-third and Isaac two-thirds, a build a new saw mill, at or near the site of the old one, about 1780. 

       This saw-mill was owned and operated by the heirs of Isaac and Joseph Budd until 1870, when on account of the timber supply giving out the mill was abandoned, and the side of the pond has now become a fertile meadow. 

       In 1850, Thomas F. Budd (son of Joseph) built across the road from the present blacksmith-shop a large steam (grain and lumber) mills.  These mills were managed several years by his son William I. Budd , but proving unprofitable were sold by his executor, Leander J. Budd, to William C. Norton, who failing to make them pay, sold the machinery, dismantled the building, moved it away, and converted it into a farm-house.

       The first school, in a log building, was started in 1780, on land donated by Joseph Budd, where the present public school building now stands.

       The Methodist Episcopal Church was built in 1854, on lands given by Isaac Budd.  The trustees were Benajah Antrim, John F. Budd, Samuel K. Budd, Benjamin Atkinson, and Joshua Bolton.  There has been no settled pastor, the church having always been under the jurisdiction of the Pemberton charge.

       The first house built was built for the sawyer, and located about where the barn of Franklin Budd now stands. 

       The first blacksmith- and wheelwright-shops were erected on the site of the present hay-scales at the same time the mill was rebuilt.

       The first store was started by Samuel Dobbins in 1815, in a little brick building between the present dwellings of Franklin Budd and Mrs. William Budd.  John Campbell followed as the second store-keeper in the same place. 

       John F. Budd first enlarged his residence into a large frame building; then in 1826, opened a hotel, afterwards a store.  This later was conducted as a store by Aaron Early; now is owned and occupied as a residence by Mrs. William Budd and her son Michael.

       John S. Budd, son of John F. Budd, now occupies the large brick store opposite to his late father’s residence, which was first built and occupied by Isaac Dobbins in 1826.  He was followed by James Stiles, Joseph Wills, Asa Wills, William Heulings, Joseph F. Rowand, John B. Taylor, William H. Budd, John S. Budd, in succession.

       Later, or about 1860, a store adjoining the Methodist Church was started and carried on by Reuben Stratton.

       The first hotel was kept by Thomas Green, then by Job Davis, followed by Jacob Naylor in 1826, who united the trade of cooper with hotel-keeping, and died in 1845.  The hotel was then sold to John B. Taylor, then to Israel Gaskill.  He willed the same to Job H. Gaskill, his brother, now owned by Thomas Bozarth. Robert Davidson followed Job Naylor as proprietor. Then Adin Sine for eight years, then J. Marble Hargrove, Thomas Feake, Adin Sine and Thomas Bozarth.

       The house where Benjamin Shinn now lives was built by Isaac Budd for his slave Ishmael.  Two of Ishmael’s children, Ishmael and Beulah were left by Isaac Budd, Sr., to his wife Ann Budd until they arrived at the age of twenty-one years, when they were to be manumitted. Ishmael had a later son, which he named Freeborn as he was born after the law was passed fixing the time for all children of slaves to be born free.  This Freeborn died a few years ago, aged one hundred and six years.

       Isaac Lee, Samuel Hargrove, James Asay, and Robert Taylor were among the early residents of Buddtown, and were men of marked individuality.

       Isaac Budd also carried on the business of brick-making in connection with farming.  The old clay holes, partly redeemed into farming land, remain as a testimony to the early business of the place.

       Although much of the property in and surrounding the town has passed into other hands, a large part is stilled owned by the heirs of Isaac and Joseph Budd, from whom the village first took the name of Buddtown.  The principal property-holders of the place in 1882 are John S. Budd, Franklin Budd, Henry I. Budd, Dr. James Still’s estate, Pemberton and Robert C. Taylor, Mrs. William Budd, Michael Budd, Thomas Bozarth, John H. Worrell, Benjamin Chambers, Absalom Edmund, David Taylor, Kenneth Britton estate, Job Dunfrey, Joseph Budden, John Rose, William Cranmer, Josephus Sooy, and William H. Doran, a justice of the peace.

       There is a tradition extant that “Stop the Jade” Creek derived its name from persons chasing a wild horse down the stream, called out in the excitement of the chase “Stop the Jade! Stop the Jade!” Jade being an ancient name for horse.