Camden Streets - Morse Street

Unit Block of Morse Street
	20 Morse Street 1924 Arthur Bailey
	20 Morse Street 1915 William May & Family William & Anna Dowell May Jennie May Frank P. Dowell Sr (father-in-law) Amelia Dowell (mother-in-law) Frank P. Dowell Jr. (brother-in-law) George Dowell (brother-in-law)
	20 Morse Street 1924 Arthur Bailey
	20 Morse Street 1930 William May & Family William & Anna M. Dowell May Myrtle May - Evelyn May William H. May - Anna May Dolores May - Frank May
	20 Morse Street 1932 Edward Marshman Camden Courier-Post June 7, 1932
	20 Morse Street 1938 Samuel V. Collins Camden Courier-Post December 15, 1938
	22 Morse Street 1924 Charles W. Dobson
	24 Morse Street 1924 Mrs. Mary Shaner
	25 Morse Street 1914-1924 Paul G Huber photographer 1924 Edward O. Huber photographer1910s-1924
	25 Morse Street mid 1920s-late 1940s A. Joseph Guarino Family Joseph & Jennie Guarino Dorothy Guarino Lena Guarino Joseph R. Guarino
	26 Morse Street 1913-1921 Mrs. Hester McSurdy & Family widow of Henry McSurdy Hanna McSurdy Daniel McSurdy Philadelphia Inquirer March 5, 1916
	26 Morse Street 1924 Joseph Weaver
Intersection of Morse Street & Watson Street
	27 Morse Street 1914 Frederick Ballinghoff 1924 Harry K. Gray
CHARGES WATCH STOLEN; CIVIL SUIT IS ADVISED The story of how she saw on another woman's wrist a watch which had been stolen from her "hope chest" was told in police court yesterday by Mrs. Mabel Barrett, 1535 Federal Street. Mrs. Barrett appeared as a complaining witness against George Zimmerman 27, of 27 Morse Street, charging him with possession of a stolen wristwatch. The woman said the watch was taken from her trunk and same days later, she saw Mrs. Zimmerman wearing it. Zimmerman admitted his wile has a new watch, but he said he purchased it from a man in Delaware. Judge Pancoast dismissed the complaint and told Mrs. Barrett that she would have to sue in civil court to recover the watch.	27 Morse Street 1933 George Zimmerman Camden Courier-Post June 24, 1933
	28 Morse Street 1924 Alfred Story
	29 Morse Street 1924 John Heise
	30 Morse Street 1924 Roy Chancellor
	31 Morse Street 1924 Edward Conklin
	32 Morse Street 1910 George Osler
	32 Morse Street 1924 Joseph Griffee
	32 Morse Street 1929-1930s Allen Palmer
	33 Morse Street 1924 James Jones
	35 Morse Street 1910 Thomas O'Neil & Family Thomas & Elizabeth O'Neil John J. O'Neil
	35 Morse Street 1924 Harry E. Krumm 1924 Charles Haines
	37 Morse Street 1924 John Sutherland
	39 Morse Street 1924 Edward Melvin
	81 Morse Street 2001-2011 Bernardina Plumey

200 Block of Morse Street
East Side of 200 Block
	Northeast Corner Morse & Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	Northeast Corner Morse & Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	Looking East on Morse Street from Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	Southeast Corner Morse & Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	200 & 202 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
Camden Fire Department RESCUE COMPANY 1 "CITY WIDE" The address, 200 Morse Street for a dwelling in the East Side section of the city, All companies were responding when County Radio called Battalion 2 Mike Di Pascale to advise him that they are receiving numerous calls on this. Battalion 2 arrives to find a 2 story end of the row ordinary dwelling with fire showing on the 1st floor and heavy smoke from the second the Chief immediately declared the "ALL HANDS" binging Battalion 1 Mike Harper into the job. As the heavy snow was falling with 2 to 3 inches already on the ground E-9 stretched their hose to the front to find both doors locked. Shortly after Battalion 2 was notified that this was an occupied structure with apartments on the 1st and 2nd floor, the battalion immediately ordered E-7 which was the FAST team to grab a hydrant and go to the rear while orders for the RESCUE were to force entry to the dwelling, E-6 was immediately dispatched as a back up FAST team. Upon our arrival the RESCUE, 3 Truck and Squad 7 teamed up at the front and rear of the structure to carry out our duties of Forcible Entry, Laddering, Venting and a primary search of the building. The search was negative and the fire knocked down quickly by 9 Engine, no injuries reported. Companies on the job were: E-9, E-11, Sq-7, TL-3, R-1 Battalion 2 with the "ALL HANDS" bringing Battalion 1 and E-6 as the replacement FAST team. As soon as Captain Glassman transmitted the RESCUE COMPANY available, our presence was requested at Cooper Hospital by Car 3 Paul Price to assist L-1 with an elevator rescue. 1 male employee of the hospital was stuck between the 3rd and 4th floors, Rescue 1 assisted L-1 which was already in the process of accessing and removing the employee.	200 Morse Street The Camden Fire Department in Action! January 27, 2004
	204 & 206 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
FUNERAL ON MONDAY FOR MRS. M. V. STAPLES The funeral of Mrs. Mattie Virginia Staples, 67, of 204 Morse Street, mother of 13 children, 12 of whom are living, will be held at 2 p. m. Mon day at the funeral home of James R. Sudler, 60 South Twenty-seventh street. She was the wife of Robert G. Staples, Sr., retired shipbuilder. Mrs. Staples died Thursday after an illness of several months. She was a member of Camden Chapter, No. 35, Order of the Eastern Star, and Grace Baptist Church. Rev. Chris W. Dannenhauer, pastor of Parkside Baptist Church, will conduct the services. Burial will be in Harleigh Cemetery. The body will be on view tomorrow night. Mrs. Staples is survived by 23 grandchildren and the following children: Mrs. H. C. Dunn, Greenville, South Carolina; Mrs. Henry T. Prario, Marshfield Hills, Massachusetts; W. R. Staples, Buffalo, N. Y.; Mrs. William A. Kates, H. G. Staples, E. D. Staples and Robert G. Staples, all of Camden; Lee E. Staples, Baltimore, Maryland; Earl L. Staples, Wildwood; Mrs. W. J. Simpkins, Camden, and Miss Grace Staples, Camden. She also is survived by two sisters, Mrs. Eudora C. Farr and Mrs. A. E. Overman, both of Brooklyn, N.Y	204 Morse Street Martha V. Staples Camden Courier-Post June 17, 1933
HOUSE FURNISHINGS STOLEN A box of house furnishings Nora Eldridge left at the stairway to her new apartment at 204 Morse Street was stolen last night, she told police. The box contained a clock, a painting, photograph holders and frames, two diaries, a hand mirror and brush.	204 Morse Street Nora Edlridge Camden Courier-Post June 19, 1933
	205 Morse Street 1958 William E. Kucker Camden Courier-Post June 21, 1958 Camden Post No. 980, Veterans of Foreign Wars Albert J. Otto Sr. - Grant Street Edward F. Link - York Street Nathan F. Wolpert - Broadway Frank Luczkiewicz - Carman Street William R. Pine - Greenwood Avenue South 6th Street
	206 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Olga Palutz This is probably Ida Paletz Camden Courier-Post February 29, 1936
	206 Morse Street 1938 Modern Swing School Camden Courier-Post February 26, 1938
	206 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built 1947 Clarence W. Hubbs 1947 Edward E. Gaber 1969 Carol Van Arsdale 1980 No Listing
	206 Morse Street Long vacant, this home was badly damaged by fire on August 22, 2008 Camden Firefighters Make Quick Knockdown on 2 Alarm Blaze Story and Photos by Bob Bartosz Shortly after 1:30 p.m. on August 22, 2008, Camden, New Jersey Firefighters were dispatched to the 200 Block of Morse Street, in the East Camden section of the City for a reported dwelling fire. Fire Radio was receiving numerous calls for an heavy involved dwelling. And additional Engine Co. and Battalion Chief was added to the assignment. The first in Units reported that they had a heavy involved dwelling in the middle of the row of vacant and some occupied dwellings. All Companies were going into Service with their heaviest water lines and a 2nd Alarm was quickly sounded and due to the first and second floors being unstable an exterior attack was being made. Companies were able to open up the adjoining exposures and were able to stop the spread of the fire to the rest of the row of dwellings. Ladder Co. 1 and Co. 3 went into Service with Ladder Pipes as fire fighters used numerous 2 1/2 and 1 3/4 inch water lines to knock the fire down. The fire was placed Under Control in 30 minutes as fire fighters remained on the scene overhauling and assisting the Fire Marshal with the investigation. Click Here For More Picture From This Fire
	208 & 210 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	212 & 214 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	216 & 218 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	220 & 222 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	222 Morse Street 1960-1973 John W. Wytupeck & Family John & Nancy Wytupeck Bob Wytupeck My family owned 222 Morse St from about 1960-1973. I was born in 1962 and have fond memories of a nice neighborhood feeling on Morse Street. All the families knew each other. Kids playing kick-the-can, families on the back porch or in "the alley" facing Marton Pike. Carvel Ice Cream, "Flying A" gas station changed to Getty, The Acme, Panzarottis, and the J & M Bar. Yum Yum vendors on Baird Boulevard were my favorite. I went to Cramer School K- 4th. I remember air-raid drills in 1st grade, Principle Bucannon and the corner penny candy store. My world then was Bank Street to Baird Boulevard and Marlton Pike. I remember "the Projects" (Mcguire Gardens), and big beautiful oak trees down Morse. The roots would raise the sidewalks. We lived on the first floor of 222 and we rented out the second floor. Bob Wytupeck March 2012
	232 & 234 Morse Street There are no 224, 226, 228, or 230 Morse Street addresses Click on Image to Enlarge
	234 Morse Street 1930s Judge Garfield Pancoast & Famiy Garfield & Fannie Pancoast Garfield S. Pancoast Dorothy Pancoast
	1930s Judge Garfield Pancoast & Famiy Garfield & Fannie Pancoast Garfield S. Pancoast Dorothy Pancoast Left: Dorothy Pancoast Camden Courier-Post June 18, 1932
	232, 234, & 236 Morse Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	Rear of 242 to 232 & 222 to 200 236 Morse Street as seen from Marlton Avenue & Baird Boulevard 1931 Click on Image to Enlarge
West Side of 200 Block
	201 & 203 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	205 & 207 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	207 Morse Street Private Bernard Rose Click on Image to Enlarge
	209 & 211 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
Camden Fire Department 9 Engine 3 Truck 2 Battalion The first Box came in at 1827 hrs, for the address of 211 Morse Street bringing E9, E11, E1, L3, L1, B2. The Rescue Co. was not dispatched due to being on another assignment. B2 arrived on location to find a two story ordinary, middle of the row, dwelling, with heavy fire venting from the first floor. B2 struck the all hands Box bringing B1 as the safety officer. E9 arrived and went into service with an 1 3/4 water line . L3 went to work with forcible entry, search and vent. E11 supplied E9 and brought a back up line to the interior. E1 acted as the Fast Team. L1 on location acted as the Rescue Co. and assisted in opening up the rear of the dwelling. Rescue 1 cleared their original assignment and was dispatched to the Box. Companies cleared in 1.5 hrs. No injuries to firefighters or civilians were reported.	211 Morse Street The Camden Fire Department in Action! December 2, 2003
	213 & 215 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	217 & 219 Morse Street 1929 Had Not Been Built Click on Image to Enlarge
	227, 229, 231, 233 Morse Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	227 Morse Street 1950s-1960s Charles Wexlin & Family Charles & Mary J. Wexlin Leehamn Wexlin Mary Jane Wexlin Ellena Rose Wexlin My parents operated the M&H Sweet Shop in the Fifties and sold it in 1960. We grew up on 227 Morse Street. We first lived on 254 Boyd Street. That is my father Charles Wexlin pictured at the register in the M&H. Leehman Wexlin December 14, 2010 http://leehman.smugmug.com
	233 Morse Street Frank Zinni & Family 1947-1969
	235 Morse Street 1933 George W. Garner George W. & Farabell Garner Joan Garner
My family moved to 237 Morse Street from Philadelphia in the year 1936. My older sister Shirley and I went through the Camden school system. Dudley School, Cramer Elementary and Junior High and then to high school, Shirley going to Woodrow Wilson and I going to Camden High. I graduated in 1952. My father Louis worked for his brother Charlie at Camden Storage Battery Company on Haddon Avenue. Moved from Morse Street to 445 Rand Street in 1944 and then to Boyd Street in 1949. Camden was a wonderful city to grow up in. Jay Goldberg April 2011	237 Morse Street 1936-1944 Louis Goldberg & Family Shirley Goldberg Jay Goldberg
I lived at 274 Boyd Street in Camden from sometime in the late 1930's until 1950, when my brother Bernard and I moved to New York City and our father, Jack L. Freedman, moved to Los Angeles. Our mother, Reba, had died in 1945. Previous to that, we had lived at 243 Morse Street for a short period beginning in 1937. Both Bernard and I went to Cramer School and Woodrow Wilson High. I graduated from Wilson in June 1941 as valedictorian; my brother five years later. Bernard now lives in Los Angeles with his wife. They have two daughters and two grandchildren. In 1972 I married Dr. Sheppard Siegal; we separated in 1974 and he died in the '80s. Adele Freedman Siegal June 5, 2010	243 Morse Street 1937-Late 1930s Jack L. Freedman & Family Jack & Reba Freedman Bernard Freedman Adele Freedman
I was born at Cooper hospital in 1946. My parents, Benjamin and Rose Levin brought me home to 246 Morse Street in East Camden where I lived until I went into the Air Force in March of 1966. I graduated from Camden High in 1964. I returned to Camden in Dec 1969 with my wife Theresa and daughter Andrea. We found an apartment at 1 Maple Walk in Fairview. I worked for the post office for 6 months before I went into the service and returned to the post office when I returned to Camden. In February of 1971 we moved to Tucson, AZ where I met my wife while stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB. I've been here ever since. The memories brought back by your website really hit me hard. I've been back to Camden for the CHS 35th and 40th reunions. My brother Mark still lives in Pennsauken. Lee Levin August 7, 2010	246 Morse Street 1940s-1960s Benjamin Levin & Family Benjamin & Rose levin Lee Levin Mark Levin
	246 Morse Street 1941-1968 Harry Cohen & Family Harry & Bessie Cohen Geraldine "Gerri" Cohen D. Leonard "Lenny" Cohen Left: Lenny Cohen & Gerri Cohen January 1948 Gerri Cohen Seinberg's Memories of East Camden
	229 to 253 Morse Street Click on Image to Enlarge
July 2004
	Although the major drug dealers had left Morse Street, By 2003 the 200 block had become infested with squatters, prostitutes, and other undesirable characters. Much of the block was condemned in July of 2004. Click on Image to Enlarge

	Mayor Gwendolyn Faison operating demolition equipment at Morse Street Demolition Ceremony July 2004 Click on Image to Enlarge
	297 Morse Street 1924 Louis A. Lebig plasterer
	299 Morse Street 1924 John M. Hendrickson builder

301 Block of Morse Street
	297 Morse Street 1947 Julius Dragon
	299 Morse Street 1947 Mrs. Lena Dragon
	301 Morse Street 1924 William Mummaw 1947-1969 Harry Dragon
	303 Morse Street 1924-1847 U.M. Lingenfelter
	305 Morse Street 1924 Frank Malciano 1947 Edward Cross
	305 Morse Street 1956-1970s Edward Rovner & Family Edward & Minnie Rovner Arlene Rovner
	307 Morse Street 1924 Thomas D. Hughes 1947 Robert Ashenfelter
	308 Morse Street 1970 Mrs. Mary Lindsey Virtue Camden Courier-Post April 27, 1970
	309 Morse Street 1924 Clarence Klinzine
	311 Morse Street 1924 William Kane
CALL LETTERS GIVEN RADIO AMATEURS HERE Washington, Feb. 13.—Call letters for the operation of amateur radio stations have been assigned to several residents of Camden, N. J., and nearby communities, the Federal Communications Commission announced. They include: Russell W. Finger, of 312 Morse street, Camden, W3BFH; Robert W. Somers, of 310 Ellis street, Glassboro, W3HHY; Albert J. Wilkinson of 66 Mary street, Bordentown, W3HHZ, and Arthur H. Stead of 1472 Princess avenue, Camden, W3EHU.	312 Morse Street 1938 Russell W. Finger W3BFH Camden Courier-Post February 14, 1938
	312 Morse Street 1924 Vacant 1969 Frank F. Schwartz & Family Frank & Bea Schwartz Tobi Schwartz Mollie Lou Schwartz
	314 Morse Street 1924 Leonard F. Heintze
	315 Morse Street 1955 Camden Window Cleaning Company New Jersey Bell Telephone Yellow Pages Ad Click on Image to Enlarge
	315 Morse Street 1955-1969 Julius Fox & Family Julius & Ida Fox I remember my grandfather and his second wife Ida carefully tending the rose garden they had at 315 Morse Street. It was a brick single building. He rented out the top half and lived on the ground floor. To get to the front door, you had to walk up some steps as there was a small incline to the property. There was a red rail to hold onto as you went up the steps. One of my best friends , Tobi Schwartz, lived across the street at 312 Morse with her family Frank and Bea Schwartz and her sister Molly Lou. It was so much fun to be able to play with my friend and see my grandfather at the same time!
	316 Morse Street 1924 Vacant 2005 Pedro Fuller, Painter
	318 Morse Street 1924 Vacant
	320 Morse Street 1924 Vacant 1930 Mrs. Margaret Petris Camden Courier-Post January 25, 1930 William Burtis William E. Laird William Petris Berwick Street
	321 Morse Street 1923-1957 John Winton Jr. & Family builder John & Viola Steers Winton John Winton III Frank M. Winton Beatrice Winton Camden Courier-Post December 24, 1957
	322 Morse Street 1924 Angelo Costello
	324 Morse Street 1924 James B. Scott
	327 Morse Street 1924-1933 Samuel R. Smith
	327 Morse Street Camden Courier-Post October 11, 1933 Mrs. Samuel Smith Mrs. M. Shaw Morse Street North 28th Street Cramer School
	328-A Morse Street 1947 Not Built early 1950s Edward Rovner & Family Edward & Minnie Rovner Arlene Rovner
	328-B Morse Street 1947 No Listing early 1950s Mr. & Mrs. Hochman

Courier-Post - July 21, 2004

City Officials Hoping Eradication of Homes Will Lead to Rebirth of Area
bby KATIE GRASSO

In the driver's seat of a backhoe, Camden Mayor Gwendolyn A. Faison took the first chunk out of 20 dilapidated homes that will be demolished in the area of the city known as "The Alley."

"If you don't have quality of life, you don't have nothing," she said.

Once a notorious open-air drug market operated by now convicted Jose "J.R." Rivera and Luis Figueroa, the alley lies in the 200 block of Boyd and Morse streets and remains lined with boarded brick homes, sprayed with graffiti, that were once a haven for drug dealers and prostitutes.

Enid Gonzales, 45, moved to the alley four months ago and said she has seen drug activity creeping back into the alley.

"Sometimes in the morning I'll come out and see needles on the ground," she said. "I'd rather have trash than that."

She said the demolition will improve quality of life for her two children, but is worried her house will be demolished with the rest of the vacant homes.

"I found out today what was happening," Gonzales said. "If they tear down my house, I'll be homeless."

Gonzales also fears for the homeless who have made the alley their home. Wiley Greene, 40, who lives in one of the abandoned houses, said even though the demolition will leave him without shelter, it will make the area a safer place for resident children.

"This has been needed for a long time," Greene said. "The kids need this - there is only so much the parents can do. "It's the better thing to do."

Charles Grant, 17, has lived in the alley for 11 years and said he found out about the demolition on the morning news.

"It's all right," he said. "I think what they're doing is pretty cool."

Councilman Frank Moran spoke with Greene and offered to help him find temporary housing. Moran also said residents of the alley will be relocated, but discussions about when that will happen have not begun.

"If it's a matter of eminent domain, they will be entitled to benefits," Moran said.

Remembering a time when it was safe to ride his bike down the alley, Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi said the long-needed demolition is another step toward Camden's "renaissance."

"It's been a long time coming," Sarubbi said. "But there has to be economic revitalization to complete the cycle."

New Jersey Attorney General Peter Harvey was at the site and said people should not have to live in conditions brought about by the alley.

"Tearing down these 20 structures represents a physical renovation," he said. "There needs to be a human renovation as well to stop the violence."

Faison said the demolition will be complete by July 31.

Amid the yells of encouragement as Faison began the demolition, Camden resident Robin Perkins, 49, called it the "downfall of desolation."

"This is a city of great things," Perkins said. "It is a city bolstering with hope and we're finally getting answers to our hope."

Perkins, a member of the East Side Civic Association Inc., has lived in the city her entire life and said the alley used to be a part of her family's Sunday walk.

"This used to be a place of such affluence," Perkins said. "Now residents can have a different quality of life which they so deserve."

Philadelphia Inquirer - Jul. 21, 2004

Many Cheer Troubled Block's Demise
By Sam Wood
Inquirer Staff Writer

A 79-year-old woman in a flower-print dress clambered into the cab of a backhoe yesterday morning and fired up the big machine's engine. With her right hand, Camden Mayor Gwendolyn Faison pulled on a lever that lifted the machine's shovel high into the air.

With jaws open wide, the apparatus rolled forward, and Faison lowered the boom on the back wall of a row house in the middle of the most notorious block in East Camden. Bricks and cinder blocks splintered, and a shower of dust fell from the shovel. The mayor flashed a broad smile as a cheer erupted among neighbors, city and state officials.

The Alley - once home to the city's biggest open-air drug market - was coming down. More than 20 houses on Boyd and Morse Streets will be demolished during the next week.

"Thank God the day has finally come," Faison said. "Let this show that we do not take our ball and bats and go home. Oh, no. We take our bats and go out and raise hell."

In 1998, city and state agencies shut down the drug market, which operated with near impunity for almost a decade, led by gang leaders Jose Luis "J.R." Rivera and Luis "Tun Tun" Figueroa. The drug empire had tentacles that reached to organized crime and City Hall. In the shuttering of the Alley, 98 people were arrested, one suspect was killed, and three police officers were wounded.

"Today was a long time coming," said Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi, who grew up on Eutaw Street two blocks away. "What we see here today is as real as it is symbolic."

The St. Joseph's Carpenter Society, which is devoted to improving housing in Camden, hopes to build 38 two-story townhouses on the site. Property lines will be redrawn to eliminate the alley between the two rows of homes, said William Whelan, the nonprofit group's executive director.

Bernice Arrington, who has lived in the neighborhood for 35 years, said that in 1969 the block was beautiful and safe. In the mid-'70s, she said, drug dealers, prostitutes and chop shops began to operate out of the row houses along the alley.

"I don't know what happened," Arrington said. "It was sudden."

The large-scale police raids of the late '90s were not enough to completely stop the trafficking of flesh and narcotics in the Alley, and prostitutes and drug dealers had begun to repopulate the derelict buildings in recent months.

Last week, most of the Alley's tenants were notified that the buildings defining their turf soon would begin to fall. One man, however, did not get the word until yesterday morning.

"It's a pain...," said Wiley Green, who had been living for the last month in the basement of an abandoned building three doors from where Faison began demolition work. "I don't know where I'm going to go. Now I've got to find me a nice place to stay."

Green, 40, was released last month from South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton, N.J., after serving a sentence for dealing drugs. He said the Alley had been quiet during his stay and believed four or five other men were being displaced by the demolition.

"No one comes by here anymore," he said.

Camden Courier-Post - July 20, 2008

Camden site to get 42 houses

By DEBORAH HIRSCH
Courier-Post Staff

Fifteen years ago, an area known as "The Alley" between Morse and Boyd streets in East Camden was home to one of the city's largest open-air drug markets.

Dealers and prostitutes conducted their business in vacant buildings there. Police officers were shot during raids, one officer left paralyzed from the bullet to his chest.

Now, this same spot is slated to be the site of 42 new homes.

This month, the city planning board gave Saint Joseph's Carpenter Society approval to move forward with a redevelopment project that's been nearly eight years in the making. A state grant is expected to cover roughly half of the estimated $10 million cost. The rest will come from the sale of the homes. If the grant gets a final go-ahead in the next month, executive director Pilar Hogan Closkey said, construction could begin before the end of the year.

Closkey's local nonprofit has been rehabilitating homes here and there throughout the eastern part of the city since 1985.

"We target the worst blocks for total redevelopment," she said, carefully stepping over shards of broken glass in one of the lots along the alley. "This is a perfect spot to come in and do it correctly."

Long-time residents said The Alley's notoriety as one of the most dangerous places in the city began in the late 1970s.

By the late-1980s, a violent network of street gangs, suppliers and drug dealers led by Jose Luis "J.R." Rivera had taken control of the block bordered by Morse, Bank, Boyd and Baird streets.

Police said the dealers used the T-shaped alley to their advantage, stationing look-outs at all three entrances to warn of approaching police. Buyers could then exit in whichever direction was clear.

Police raided "The Alley" several times in the 1990s. In February 1998, city and state agencies arrested 98 people in a sting operation that left one suspect dead and three police officers wounded. One of them, Lt. Leroy Palmer, was paralyzed after being shot in the chest.

Shortly after that, Rivera was arrested and his drug ring was shut down.

But some neighbors said the area around "The Alley" continued to be a hotspot for illegal activity.

Closkey said the society started to rehabilitate two buildings there in 2000, but constant theft forced the group to stop. Each day, she said, workers arrived to find the boarded-up buildings broken into, a new bathtub or chunks of fresh drywall already stolen.

So the group changed its focus to rehabilitating vacant homes in the 15-block area west of Baird Boulevard to the Pennsauken border. The strategy, Closkey said, was to shore up the rest of the neighborhood in hopes that this would make it easier to tackle the worst part.

A major improvement came in July 2004 when the city razed 20 vacant buildings along "The Alley."

"Once we took down the homes everybody in the neighborhood reported to us that the crime had really dissipated," said Angel Osorio, community justice coordinator for the Camden County Prosecutor's office. "We know that there's an end in sight now."

Closkey said the timing is right now that her group has finished about 60 home renovations to the west of "The Alley" and the McGuire Gardens public housing development has been completed to the east.

Before construction on the homes begins, though, the entire neighborhood will get infrastructure upgrades. With a $3 million economic recovery board grant, the Cooper's Ferry Development Association will install new sewer lines, storm water drainage, sidewalks with lighting, trees and better retention walls for homeowners at no cost to them. Work could start in a little over a month.

The homes will be built on existing property lines in two phases.

The three-bedroom houses will have two and a half bathrooms, basements with a bonus room, a one-car garage and a front porch. With state subsidies, the house can be sold for $125,000 to $145,000, about half the construction cost, Hogan Closkey said. She estimated that it would take two to three years for all 42 units to be finished.

In addition to the new homes, she said, the society expects to continue purchasing and rehabilitating about 30 more homes in the area.

Neighbors Julia Jones and Bernice Arrington have seen the rise and fall of drug traffic since they moved into their homes on Baird Boulevard more than 30 years ago.

"It's still going on, but it's not like it was before," Arrington said. "You're going to see some little action, but I wish it was no action. Maybe bringing in new homes there, hopefully it would change some things. I hope it improves out here to make my property look better."

Jones said she's praying that the project will "change the neighborhood completely."

"This neighborhood does have a bad reputation but it comes from some of the people that live around here. If those people get a chance to move into a new home and make their children behave it may make a difference in their lives. In our lives, too."

Closkey said she's confident that building nice homes in "The Alley" will drive away crime as long as there's a collaborative effort with the police.

"Once we put people actually in the neighborhood, that'll make a huge difference in terms of eyes on the street," she said. "Because there's no longer that one vacant lot, it's not that easy place to go."

Despite the neighborhood's history, Osorio said she thinks the new homes will be in high demand.

"All we need is a couple of people willing to take the gamble," she said. "It'll begin to spread and you'll see a different area."

100 Block of Morse Street
	Looking South from Berwick Street February 14, 1951 Click on Image to Enlarge
	PLAT Showing proposed site Project No. N.J.10-4 Camden, N.J. Peter J. McGuire Gardens February 14, 1951 Click on Image to Enlarge
	Morse & Bank Streets Click on Image to Enlarge
	191 Morse Street Morse & Bank Streets July 2004 Click on Image to Enlarge
	Looking West on Bank Street from alongside 201 Morse Street February 14, 1951 Click on Image to Enlarge
	191 Morse Street Morse & Bank Streets July 2004 Click on Image to Enlarge
	Looking North from Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge
	Looking North from Bank Street Click on Image to Enlarge

300 Block of Morse Street
	344 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s Melvin Morria & Family Melvin & Evelyn Morris
	346 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s A. Lowenthal & Family
	347 Morse Street 1924 Harry S. Glover Jr.
	347 Morse Street 1950s-1960s Winfield S. Myers Jr. & Family Camden Fire Department Winfield S. & Elizabeth L. Myers
	351 Morse Street 1924 Vacant
	351 Morse Street 1950s-1970s Biaggio P. Ardire
	356 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s Joseph Levin & Family 1955 Mirror Craft 1955 New Jersey Bell Telephone Yellow Pages Ad
	357 Morse Street 1924 Frank Husa
	360 Morse Street 1954 Michael A. Rocanella
	365 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s Morris Detofsky & Family
	367Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s-1970s E.P. DiDio & Family
	369 Morse Street Built after 1947 Late 1940s-1950s S. Beilowitz & Family
	371 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s Pollack Family
	372 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s W.F. Kuder
	376 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s Ellis Myeroff & Family
	378 Morse Street Built after 1947 1950s-1970s M. Shultzberg & Family
	396 Morse Street 1924 C.L. Heidelbaugh
	397 Morse Street Photo taken around 1928 Click on Image to Enlarge

400 Block of Morse Street Click in Images to Enlarge
	402 Morse Street 1924 Andrew Luffberry
	403 Morse Street 1924 Joseph A. Grady
	412 Morse Street Camden Courier-Post October 8, 1947 DUPLEX HOME, offered to veterans by Baird Boulevard Homes, Inc., Twenty- seventh Street and Marlton Pike, is shown above. The sample home, at 412 Morse Street, is open for inspection. Twenty of the first 23 available for sale, have been sold, the company reports.
	415 Morse Street 1924 Frank H. Schaefer 1932 Harold Gondolf
	416 Morse Street 1951 Howard Murphy Camden Courier-Post August 4, 1951
	416 Morse Street 1966 Samuel Berelman Camden Courier-Post August 16, 1963 Emerson Tschupp Ferry Avenue Payton's Place Raymond Payton Joan Payton
	423 Morse Street 1924 Thomas C. Comerford 1930 Harry C. Kreher
	423 Morse Street 1940s-1950s Mrs. Anna Munro & Family
	426 Morse Street Late 1950s-1970s Alfred D. Nigro
	427 Morse Street 1924 William Johnson
BIRTH Mr. and Mrs. Elwood Riess of 430 Morse Street, announce the birth of a baby boy Matthew Joseph born Dec. 20 at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital.	435 Morse Street 1970-1971 Elwood Riess & Family Camden County Record December 31, 1970
	435 Morse Street 1924 Frank H. Johnson

200 Block of Morse Street Camden Courier-Post - January 28, 1928 227 to 253 Morse Street
	New Development Near Baird Boulevard

The above photos show views of the Spanish-type bungalows on Morse Street, near Baird boulevard. Thirty attractive homes surrounded by terraced lawns, and shrubbery are being constructed on this street, newly paved, in one of the newest developments in the city.