Howell Street is located in East Camden. Today, it starts at 20th Street, just east of East State Street, near the bridge that spans the railroad yard. In the past, a few houses stood below State Street. Howell Street runs parallel to the railroad tracks until 27th Street, then continues across 27th to 30th Street. During Camden’s industrial era, several businesses operated along Howell Street, including Nick’s Auto Parts and the Pavonia Ice & Coal Company. Notably, the first Catholic parish in East Camden, St. Joseph Church, was originally located at 25th and Howell Street. That site has since become a ball field.
Homes on Howell Street began to appear by the 1880s. One of the early families, the Grosmicks, remained on the street until the late 1940s and stayed in the neighborhood for years afterward. Other notable families included the Vennells, who lived there into the 1930s, and Lewis Mote, whose family moved toward River Road but continued residing in Camden through the 1960s. Thomas McClintock moved to Howell Street in 1890 and lived there until after 1920. The Tydeman family, including Vaudeville comedian and acrobat — and professional baseball player — Vincent Tydeman, Harold Tydeman, Camden police officer Doug Tydeman, and other family members lived at 2116 Howell Street from the early 1900’s through the 1990’s.
Beyond 27th Street, Howell Street had a different character. Aside from the Grosmick and John Carter families, most of the homes there were rental properties, with residents frequently moving in and out. One such family was that of John S. Dukinfield, a relative of the famous comedian and actor W.C. Fields, born William Claude Dukinfield.
Many homes on Howell Street have been demolished, particularly between 20th and 27th Streets, a process that accelerated during the 1980s as the crack cocaine epidemic devastated the neighborhood. Tragically, at least three residents of Howell Street were either perpetrators or victims of homicide in 2004 alone.
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Howell Street
Howell Street is located in East Camden. Today, it starts at 20th Street, just east of East State Street, near the bridge that spans the railroad yard. In the past, a few houses stood below State Street. Howell Street runs parallel to the railroad tracks until 27th Street, then continues across 27th to 30th Street.…
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Allen Palmer
Allen Palmer was born on April 20, 1891, in the Ellisburg section of Delaware Township (present-day Cherry Hill), New Jersey, to John and Ida Palmer. By 1900, the family had moved to 26 North 21st Street in East Camden. Along with Allen, the family included his siblings William, Howard, George, and Leroy Palmer. An uncle,…
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Vincent Ariel Tydeman
Vincent Ariel Tydeman was born in New Jersey on August 24, 1883, to Edmund and Sarah Tydeman, who emigrated from England to the U.S. in 1878 with their nine children. The Tydemans welcomed another child, Florence, just before the 1880 census. Edmund Tydeman, the eldest son of a Baptist minister and an optician by profession,…
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Fire at 2014 and 2016 Howell Street
May 7, 2012 By Phil Cohen Long vacant and the seen of many fires over the years, the abandoned row-houses comprising 2004, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016 Howell Street were scheduled for demolition in March of 2012. Fires were set in these vacant building twice in March, and on the night of April 9,…
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Children Secure Father’s Release
Camden Post-Telegram – July 18, 1916 Promises to Mend Erring Ways and Heartily Thanks Recorder. Charge Made by Colored Woman Taking into consideration that he had five small children and a wife dependent upon him Recorder Stackhouse this morning released Charles Becker, aged 28 years, of 2936 Howell street, in his own recognizance, after he…
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