I just drove back from Atlantic City and, boy, is my donkey tired

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by casimendocina

I've been reading a fair few novels set on the east coast of the US and have noticed that there seem to be loads of references to the New Jersey Turnpike. For someone who has not spent any significant time in the States (bar 5 hours in the LA and Miami airports respectively) and only knows one New Yorker, this seems to be full of significance, but I'm missing what it actually is. Could someone enlighten me?

It is a roadmap for the State and people refer to where they are from or going based on exit number. Not worth the time or the aggravation to look.

[richlevy]

There are also two roads besides the Expressway and Turnpike leading from Philadelphia to Atlantic City, the Black Horse Pike and the White Horse Pike. I noticed that neither history mentions the origin of the names.

There's even a book about it.

[xoxoxoBruce]

The White Horse Road or Pike dates to the eighteenth century when it led to the White Horse Tavern and the small hamlet of White Horse on the old Egg Harbor Road. In January 1854, the state legislature incorporated the White Horse Turnpike Company to convert White Horse Road into a toll road. It remained a turnpike until the early part of the twentieth century, when the state purchased the corporation and removed the toll, rendering it free for all to use. In 1922, the state extended the White Horse Pike to Atlantic City to open the resort community to increased automobile traffic.

The origins of the Black Horse Pike can be traced to 1795 when Surveyors working for Old Gloucester County, laid out a new and straight road to replace the meandering Irish Road. The new roadway carried various names including the Newton Road, Chews Landing-Philadelphia Road, Mount Ephraim-Blackwoodtown Road, etc. During 1855, state legislators incorporated the Camden and Blackwoodtown Turnpike Company, authorizing the new corporation to make this highway a toll road. It remained such until 1903, when the state bought the turnpike and removed the toll. People then referred to the highway as "The Blackwood Pike." In 1925, developers promoting new housing subdivisions along the roadway sought to capitalize on the success of similar residential developments along the White Horse Pike, formed an association to rename the "Blackwood Pike" as the "Black Horse Pike" and to extend the road all the way to Atlantic City. Once completed, promoters advertised the Black Horse Pike as "the second 'White Horse Pike' to the shore." And the rest, as they say, is history.

link

[richlevy]

Bruce, you are the king of Internet searches. I spent 10 minutes fact checking and I did not find that link. Thanks.

[xoxoxoBruce]

It may not be true though, that's why I included the link. It's just what some guy on a forum claims, and we know how that goes.