John W. Kuhl

John William Kuhl of Clinton, New Jersey, died on 2 March 2026, in Flemington, NJ. The son of William V.F. Kuhl and Margaret L. Wieland, he was born at home in Three Bridges, NJ on 21 June 1934, grew up there, and graduated from Flemington High School with the class of 1952. In June 1956, he graduated from Penn State University as an ensign in the regular Navy and reported three days later to the USS Wyandot, then preparing to leave for the Antarctic. He first served as a deck officer and next as the navigator. They operated for two years in the Weddell Sea during which they made the first successful penetration of that sea to the base of the Palmer Peninsula, there building Ellsworth Station, a scientific base for the Deep Freeze Operations of the 1950s. The third year was spent on the other side of the Antarctic in the Ross Sea. Resigning his commission for family reasons, he worked for over forty years in commercial agriculture for Agway and its successor, Growmark, as manager of its Bloomsbury NJ fertilizer plant and its Washington NJ farm center.

John was a Hunterdon County resident for his entire life, in Three Bridges until 1962, then to Union Township outside of Pittstown until 2023. He moved to High Bridge in 2023 and to Clinton in 2025. He was a past deacon of the Reformed Church in Three Bridges, a former president of the Three Bridges Volunteer Fire Company and an active driver for the Quakertown Rescue Squad.

History was his passion, enhanced during his time in the Navy, when reading was his pastime. He acquired a special interest in Civil War history and assembled a large New Jersey collection. In 2023, he donated 1600 New Jersey civil war soldier images to the state archives in Trenton. He was a co-founder and former commander of the 15th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry Association (Civil War), a former associate editor of Military Images magazine, a former trustee of the New Jersey Civil Heritage Association, a sixty plus year member and competitive shooter in the North-South Skirmish Association, and a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association. More locally, he was the Secretary of the Hunterdon County Historical Society for thirty years, its Treasurer for an additional ten years, and on its board of trustees since the 1970s. He was the Treasurer of the Hunterdon County Tricentennial organization and has been one of its program presenters on such topics as the county history, the Civil War and the Antarctic. In 1988, he was appointed to the Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission, serving sixteen years before aging out at age eighty. John was the author of several magazine articles and historical society newsletter articles, as well as major portions of two books: History of The Three Bridges Reformed Church, and Hunterdon County in the Civil War. In 2012, he and Michael Gesner coauthored The Kuhl Family of Hunterdon County. With Dr. David Martin, he co-authored Stars Over New Jersey, presenting the illustrated biographies of 285 Civil War army and navy flag officers with New Jersey connections.

John was predeceased by his parents, two brothers (Frank G. in 1978, and Richard A. in 2019) and sister Beverly A. Hobday in 2023. He is survived by sister-in-law Marylane Pannell (wife of brother Richard), niece Justine Hobday (Steven) Carr, niece Kendra Kuhl (Luke Oltrogge), four great-nieces, one great-nephew, several cousins, and longtime friends: Owen Hooley, John and Linda Peterson, Denise Page Hoyt, Beth Rice, Al Fisher, Marcia Karrow, and many others who shared his interest in history.

Interment will take place in the family plot in the cemetery of the Three Bridges Cemetery, 470 Main St., Three Bridges NJ 08887 as John returns to the town that he still called home after more than 60 years away. A graveside service will be held in the cemetery, with a luncheon in the church to follow (date to be determined).  Please check this webpage for further updates and details.

In lieu of flowers, John requested that donations be made to the Hunterdon County Historical Society, 114 Main Street, Flemington, NJ 08822, or to the Three Bridges Reformed Church Cemetery, PO Box 235, Three Bridges, NJ 08887.

Funeral arrangements and cremation services are under the direction of Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main St., Flemington NJ 08822. For further information or to leave an online condolence, please visit www.holcombefisher.com.