JOIN US and DONATE to STOP QuickChek from destroying historic buildings! And STOP Lacey from selling public property bequeathed to the residents of Forked River.

The Worden House and the Charles A. Smith Memorial Community Hall are at HIGH risk of demolition. Your donation will support the legal battle opposing the sale of these two historic buildings, which have been the center of Lacey’s bustling social and educational history and the center of events for generations. Each building has a unique history: The Community Hall and land were a gift of Gilded Age philanthropist and Freeholder, Charles Arthur Smith, who in 1918 bequeathed the sum of $15,000, in trust, for a community hall to be erected in his name for the residents of Forked River. In 1934 The Charles A. Smith Memorial Association conveyed the deed for one dollar ($1.00) to the Township of Lacey with an official Resolution that included conditions of the transfer. The Worden House, was built in 1850 by Jacob A. Vaughn, for his son, who survived ten months in Andersonville Civil War prison camp. In 1890, Benjamin Burd Worden, the Forked River station master and telegraph officer, bought it and lived there for 50 years. In 1982, The Worden House was donated to Lacey Township and was moved to its current location next to the Charles A. Smith Community Hall, to become part of the planned historic district of Forked River.

In 2005, The Worden House was a part of the historic structure inventory of Ocean County and listed it as having “HIGH” remaining historic fabric. Dorothy P. Guzzo, then Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer, State of NJ, DEP, Natural and Historic Resources, Historic Preservation Office, wrote: “The Worden House… is 'ELIGIBLE' for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places."

Your donation is greatly appreciated.