North Arlington’s mine-dweller report (1897)

The room inside the mine

The Purcell Register’s February 4, 1897 roundup reported that North Arlington mayor George Baylis had explored old mine passages after hearing that someone lived there. It described a refuge more than two hundred feet inside, with a floor covered in Brussels carpet, cooking equipment, stored food and a fire still in the stove. The occupant was absent when Baylis arrived. Purcell Register, February 4, 1897, page 2.

The account contrasted earlier stories from frightened children with more recent adult reports. Cemetery superintendent James Sickles reportedly described a bearded man of about forty whose clothes were held together with cords. His avoidance of strangers became grounds for suspicion in the article, but did not establish why he lived there. Purcell Register, February 4, 1897, page 2.

What the accusation leaves open

Baylis reportedly recognized provisions as his missing property and intended to pursue a theft charge if the man could be caught. The clipping establishes that an accusation circulated, not a conviction or a verified identity. Its furnished-room detail also makes this a report of human shelter, despite the “wild man” label. North Arlington is outside the Pine Barrens; the connection is the regional newspaper tradition. Purcell Register, February 4, 1897, page 2.

Original newspaper page