“The Cranberry Bog Would Serve as Lawn”: The Blueberry Birthplace at Whitesbog Village

When people think of the New Jersey Pine Barrens, they often picture the Jersey Devil, endless sand roads, and stunted pine trees. But hidden within this 1.1-million-acre forest is a site of global agricultural importance.

This is Whitesbog Village in Browns Mills, NJ.

Once a bustling “company town,” this village was the largest cranberry farm in New Jersey. But its true claim to fame is blue, not red. It was here, in 1916, that Elizabeth Coleman White did what scientists said was impossible: she cultivated the very first commercial blueberry.

The Cranberry King

Before there were blueberries, there were cranberries. The village was developed by Joseph Josiah (J.J.) White, a visionary farmer.

• The Beginning: In the mid-19th century, White married Mary Fenwick, the daughter of a local cranberry grower. Together, they became a power couple of agriculture. They even wrote the industry-standard book Cranberry Culture—he wrote the text, she drew the technical illustrations.
• The Empire: By 1912, J.J. White Inc. controlled over 3,000 acres, making it the largest cranberry farm in the state.

The Blueberry Queen

J.J.’s daughter, Elizabeth Coleman White, was not content to sit on the sidelines. She worked in the family business and eventually revolutionized it.

In the early 1900s, blueberries were considered wild, unmanageable fruit that couldn’t be farmed. Elizabeth disagreed.

• The Partnership: She teamed up with USDA botanist Frederick Coville.
• The Method: Elizabeth knew she couldn’t find the best bushes alone, so she enlisted the locals. She paid “Pineys” (local woodsmen) to hunt down wild blueberry bushes with the largest, sweetest fruit. She named the bushes after their finders (the “Rubel” bush, named after Rube Leek, is still a famous variety).
• The Result: In 1916, they successfully cultivated the first crop. Every blueberry you buy in a grocery store today owes its lineage to the work done in these fields.

Life in a Company Town

Whitesbog was a self-sufficient world. Between 1890 and 1925, the village bustled with 600 seasonal workers. It had its own general store, post office, school, and pay office.

Suningive (The Boss’s House): Elizabeth White’s home, named Suningive, has been beautifully restored.

• The View: Unlike wealthy estate owners who hid the “work” from view, Elizabeth built her house directly facing the agricultural fields. As she famously said, “The cranberry bog would serve as lawn.”
• The Function: The house wasn’t just a residence; the ground floor served as the farm’s office and a medical infirmary where Elizabeth (who had nursing training) treated injured workers.

The “Sears” Lab: One of the most unique buildings is the Cranberry Substation (c. 1918). It looks like a custom cottage, but it is actually a Sears, Roebuck & Co. kit house (the “Sunburst” model). It was used as a laboratory to study fruit diseases.

The Lost Villages: While the main village survives, the segregated seasonal worker camps—named Rome and Florence to make the Italian immigrant laborers feel at home—were demolished in the 1960s. Today, only the foundations remain in the woods, ghostly reminders of the people who built the White family’s fortune.

If You Visit

Whitesbog is part of Brendan Byrne State Forest and is open year-round from sunrise to sunset.

• Location: 120 W Whites Bogs Rd #34, Browns Mills, NJ 08015.
• The General Store: Open on weekends, this is the heart of the village. You can buy jams, honey, and old-fashioned candy.
• The Trails: You can hike or drive along the sandy causeways between the bogs.
• Events: The village hosts the massive Blueberry Festival in the summer and the Cranberry Harvest in the fall, which are the best times to see the farm in action.

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For More Information

• Whitesbog Preservation Trust (www.whitesbog.org)