Lawnside in Camden County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Peter Mott House
Peter Mott House has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 by the United States Department of the Interior
Erected 2020 by William G. Pomeroy Foundation. (Marker Number 321.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Architecture • Religion & Religious Structures • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and the William G. Pomeroy Foundation series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1994.
Location. 39° 52.038′ N, 75° 2.226′ W. Marker is in Lawnside, New Jersey, in Camden County. It is on Kings Court west of Moore Avenue, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 26 Kings Ct, Lawnside NJ 08045, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in South Jersey and in Greater Philadelphia. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Peter Mott House Underground Railroad Museum (here, next to this marker); Historically Black Borough of Lawnside (approx. 0.2 miles away); Lawnside World War I Memorial (approx. Ό mile away); Roll of Honor (approx. Ό mile away); Jarena Lee (approx. Ό mile away); Mount Peace Cemetery (approx. 0.3 miles away); Barrington Airport (approx. half a mile away); Vietnam War Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Lawnside.
Another marker is no longer nearby. The Story of the Peter Mott House (was a few steps from this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it).
Also see . . . Registration Form for the house.
This form was prepared by Gail Greenberg, County Historian with the Camden County Cultural & Heritage Commission, on September 10, 1993. The statement of architectural significance begins on page 5:
The Peter Mott House located within the King's Court subdivisionAdditionally, its significance to New Jersey's Black history starts on page 8:of the Borough of Lawnside, NJ... is in close proximity to Interstate Route 295, the New Jersey Turnpike and the White Horse Pike. Oriented toward the latter road, it is a small, rectangular, two story wood frame structure, one room deep, with a gable roof, approximately 15' by 40 f in plan. Built in two stages, c.1845 and c.1870, the older section has a full basement with brick and rubble stone masonry foundation walls; the newer section has only a shallow crawl space and brick masonry foundation of unknown depth. The Mott House is the oldest known house in the borough. The older part of the building is on the south; the later one-room addition maintains the lines of the original house. The interior of the house reflects the simplicity of its exterior. The overall building condition is poor but stabilized.Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), June 21, 20262. Plaques interpreting the Peter Mott House
The Peter Mott House is a rare surviving example of a housing type associated with the early development of Lawnside, the only ante-bellum African-American community to later become an incorporated municipality in the State of New Jersey.(Submitted on June 28, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.)
Thehouse was the residence of Peter Mott (c. 1807 ? - 1881) between c. 1844 when he acquired the first of three parcels of land on which it was erected and 1879 when he sold it to Levis Moore; it was here on a tract of land previously owned by Jacob C. White, Sr., a black Philadelphian prominent in the Underground Railroad movement, that, according to impressive circumstantial evidence and oral testimony, Mott and his wife, Elizabeth Ann Thomas, lived and provided sanctuary to runaway slaves. Mott, a free black farmer, also served as a minister at Snow Hill Church. 3 He founded its Sunday School in 1847, becoming the first Superintendent of what is the second oldest African-American Sunday School in the area, organized c. 1792. Today it is known as the Mount Pisgah African Methodist Episocpal Church. The Peter Mott House meets National Register Criterion B for its association with Mott, an important early settler in Snow Hill, Criterion C as a rare example of an ante-bellum black landowner's home in Snow Hill and, Criterion A for a property associated with the Underground Railroad. Forceful circumstantial evidence, and oral traditions within the borough of Lawnside strongly suggest that Mott was involved with Underground Railroad activities and used his home as a "station".
Credits. This page was last revised on June 28, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 28, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 7 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 28, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
