"Preserve, restore, and teach to instill a true understanding of history."
DR. JAMES STILL HISTORIC OFFICE SITE AND EDUCATION CENTER
Welcome to the virtual presence of the Dr. James Still Historic Office Site Association (DJSHOSA). My name is Samuel C. Still III and I am a second Great Grandnephew of Dr. James Still. My second Great Grandfather was Dr. Still’s older brother, Samuel Still, the first freeborn child of Levin and Sidney (a.k.a. Charity) Still. I am currently the Executive Director for DJSHOSA. DJSHOSA is the NJ DEP Official Friends Group for the Dr. James Still Historic Office Site (DJSHOS).
It has been my pleasure and a labor of love to volunteer at the DJSHOS. Our volunteers are very passionate about the life and the legacy of Dr. James Still. Dr. Still was a very unique individual who endured many barriers in life, including poverty and prejudice. He persevered to overcome many obstacles and became a physician, an entrepreneur, and an author. The real estate he acquired during his life made him the third largest landowner in the county of Burlington County, NJ during the nineteenth century.
In 2006, the State of New Jersey purchased the DJSEC site with good intentions to restore Dr. Still’s historic office. DJSHOS site falls under the auspices of the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). Unfortunately, with changing political winds and occasional natural disasters, the State’s focus on the office building, and allocated funding, diminished over time. Since the inception the Medford Historical Society (MHS) became an “Officially Recognized Friends Group” (ORFO) by the NJDEP and essentially the caretakers of the DJSHOS. Always with the intent that one day the Oversight Committee would be able to form a their own non-profit 501(c)(3). In 2020 the Oversight Committee formed the Dr. James Still Historic Office Site Association, Inc.
In December of 2013 MHS within the MHS, a core group of volunteers assembled, known affectionately as the Dr. Still Oversight Committee (DSOC). In 2016, I was appointed Executive Director of the DJSHOS in an effort to focus on key objectives, including to bring organizational structure to the committee; obtain a fully executed ORFO agreement with the NJDEP; raise public awareness of the DJSEC, and establish more effective communications with the NJDEP. The passage of time has been a factor in accomplishing some of those objectives; e.g., obtaining the executed ORFO agreement; but it was finally achieved. We have also sought to increase public awareness of the DJSEC through public presentations, local elementary school visits, opening of the Dr. Still Nature Walk, bi-annual meetings with the NJDEP, and two consecutive years of summer archaeological field schools. That year has also witnessed some changes at the NJDEP Division of Parks and Forestry with the appointment of Olivia Carpenter Glenn as director. The volunteers and I look forward to establishing a working relationship with Olivia and her staff. She brought a set of fresh ideas and new vision to the NJDEP Division of Parks and Forestry. Olivia has since moved on but we appreciated her guidance and involvement while during her tenure.
As a result of the work accomplished to date, we stayed focused and optimistic on the tremendous tasks and opportunities that lies ahead of us. We recognize that developing this important historic site will require more than State funding; so we also seek private and corporate donations. Over the next year, it will be our task, working with the NJDEP, to develop a Master Interpretive Site Plan for DJSEC. This Master Interpretive Site Plan is a prerequisite for soliciting private and corporate donations.
In December of 2019, the MHS Board of Trustees agreed and voted upon that the Oversight Committee form an independent organization and seek to become the licensee entity of the Dr. James Still Historic Office Site. We have formed the Dr. James Still Historic Office Site Association Inc. We are a designated IRS 501 (c)(3). Since that time we have continued to expand our community involvement with health and wellness programming, presentations on Dr. Still, and other programs. We continue to perform site improvements with the assistance of NJ DEP. We are looking forward to the future.
Update 2024
We have worked with NJ DEP in the planning of the restoration of Dr. James Still's 1855 medical office. We are pleased that NJ DEP has the funding to restore his office. This year NJ DEP is scheduled to begin the actual restoration. It is our responsibility to plan and develop the interpretation of the office. We are diligently working to provide a well developed interpretation of Dr. Still life.
So we invite you to participate in our future events and we are always seeking new volunteers at the center.
For history,
Samuel C. Still III
March 6, 2024
