Pomona Hall

Pomona Hall, also called the Joseph Cooper House, is shown in this November 1925 photo shortly after it became the headquarters of the combined Camden City and Camden County Historical Society. Joseph Cooper, Jr., grandson of the first William Cooper, a leader in the colonial assembly, and a fruit tree cultivator, first built one part in 1726 on a 400 acre plantation. His youngest brother Isaac, then Isaac’s son, Marmaduke, inherited the plantation. In 1788 Marmaduke transformed a Quaker style building he inherited into a classic Georgian double pile mansion with balanced fenestration called Pomona Hall. Marmaduke refused to follow the decision of West Jersey Quakers to free their slaves. As a result he was banned from attending Quaker meetings.