Mauricetown Historical Society
35th Candlelight House Tour

December 13, 2025

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Historical Society Museums

The Captain Edward Compton House, the home of the Mauricetown Historical Society, was built in 1864 by local carpenters, Griffith Prichard and Samuel Cobb. Reflective of the Mauricetown of the 1860’s, home to many sea captains and others who worked on the water and had access to materials not available locally, it was built in the Italianate style with porches on the front and side, eight-sided columns supporting a heavily-bracketed cornice, long tall windows on the front facade, and a cast iron and wirework fence. A southern enclosed porch led to a cook house which no longer stands but has been replicated a few feet away in extraordinary detail based upon photos and the dimensions of the foundation of the original cook house which still stands. The house remained in the Compton family until 1887 when the Captain’s widow sold the property. When the Historical Society purchased the property in 1984, it was in serious disrepair. A dedicated group of Mauricetown residents organized the Mauricetown Historical Society and set about the task of restoring the property to its original beauty and majesty.

The Historical Society added to its Mauricetown history when it purchased the Abraham and Ann Hoy House, a stack house built in 1830. When the Hoy House was scheduled for demolition, the Society moved it from its original Mauricetown location to their property in the center of town. The Hoy House, too, has been restored.

Today these houses are museums. Compton House exhibits include displays of tools and other artifacts of the seafaring industry that supported the town’s growth including artifacts of the Lenni Lenape who lived in the region in earlier times. Hand sewn clothing and quilts are found in the master bedroom with its Civil War era furniture and furnishings. In the children’s room, toys, dolls, books, a school desk, and photos provide a peek at the life of a child in the mid to late 19th Century . The elegant parlor with ornate ceilings and rich wall paper holds a piano and an organ as well as furnishings of the times. There are display cases of historical objects in the meeting room which help tell the story of Mauricetown, and there is a library which holds genealogical records as well as other materials related to the history of the town and the area. A cast iron stove dominates the cook house where members cook for special occasions including the house tour. A working fireplace in the Hoy House kitchen was used for cooking and to warm the building and the water needed to do laundry with the washboard in the wash tub. Simple furnishings in the kitchen, the living room, and the bedroom with its rope bed complete the Hoy House.

From the simplicity of the 1830’s stack house to the grandeur of the 1864 mansion, the story of Mauricetown is presented in these restorations.