Cow Tunnels

Many people have seen this tunnel under the turnpike, in Crosswicks.  Not many know its purpose.  Years ago my curiosity got the best of me and I rode my motorcycle through it, it was one of those deals where once you started you had to go all the way through as it was not wide enough to turn around. When the Turnpike was widened, last year, the tunnel was extended.

I was intrigued as to why it was here, then after some question asking and research I found this was not the only one in New Jersey, there is one under Route 206, near Chester, New Jersey, and another farther south under the Turnpike, there are three under Route 70 and another under The railroad that has been abandoned and is now the Pequest Hiking Trail (near Johnny’s Hot Dog’s).

These are “Cow Tunnels”, The one in Crosswicks was built for the Hendrickson Farm, When the turnpike was built they were an active Dairy Farm, they’re grazing land was divided, with no way for the cows to get there, this made the land unusable, it was up to the turnpike to remedy this, so they built a tunnel for the cows to pass.

One of the ones under Route 70 was for the Engle Farm.