By Julia Train
On the corner of Shore Road and Macarthur Blvd., the Somers Mansion overlooks the Somers Point Circle and Great Egg Harbor Bay.
The three-story historic home, constructed of brick, was built in the early 1720s by Richard Somers, the founder of Somers Point. His family occupied the house for over 200 years.
The building is the oldest in Atlantic County and is even older than the county itself.
For years, the Somers family’s home has sat at that corner untouched, falling apart without being repaired.
In 2018, Greg Sykora, a Somers Point resident who loves the town and its history, decided to do something about it.
“I got tired of looking at the Somers Mansion. It was in total disarray,” he said.
After continuously calling the state of New Jersey and being told there wasn’t money to fix it, Sykora took the problem into his own hands and organized a group to save the building.
That group is known as the Patriots for the Somers Mansion, a 501(c)(3) founded to repair and maintain the centrally located landmark. In addition to being a founder, Sykora’s also the vice president.
In order to raise money to fix up the historic home, the nonprofit holds events that benefit it such as wine tasting, spooky stories at the mansion in October and a summer farmers market.
At many of the events that take place there, Sykora’s cover band, the SSP’s, plays. Merchandise is sold, and the profit is put toward the renovations and maintenance of the site.
During the events, attendees can tour the grounds and learn more about the home’s history.
Because of all the work the charity has put into Somers Mansion, the Patriots for the Somers Mansion eventually were able to be recognized by the state as official “friends of the property” and received a grant.
With that money, the 501(c)(3) was able to establish Somers Point’s farmers markets on Saturdays in the summer.
Vendors then rent out a spot and a portion of the money received through it goes to mansion repairs; this year, the windows were fixed with it.
For the past few Decembers, the nonprofit has hosted a Christmas Mart – basically a winter farmer’s market – for a day in conjunction with local businesses.
Money raised through the nonprofit’s events has been used to paint the exterior, keep the building clean and maintained, landscape, fix the deck around the building and add lights outside.
Behind the mansion, there’s an annex that doesn’t have as much historical significance as the main building, but is also being renovated so it can be used. The bathroom was gutted and replaced, new floors were added, and holes in the hallway were spackled.
As for the future plans of the rear building, the nonprofit plans to merge the two offices within by removing the wall in between. Then, they want to create a classroom environment for meetings and school trips.
Eventually, the goal is to set up an informative historical display about the town and the mansion.
Thanks to the Patriots for the Somers Mansion, a piece of Somers Point history is being preserved for future generations.
Julia is a student at Rider University, majoring in multiplatform journalism with a minor in social media strategies. At school, she writes and is news editor for The Rider News and is the News Director for the radio station, producing news updates. She’ll be graduating in the spring. Connect with her on Instagram @juliatrain
