[1] The Mortonson–Van Leer Log Cabin was originally built along the north bank of the Raccoon River by Morton Mortenson, a Swedish-Finnish man who arrived in the Delaware Valley, at that time part of the colony of New Sweden, in May 1654.

The cabin consists of one small room with no windows and a single door and its walls are made of cedar logs and lime mortar caulk.

[2][3] Prior to and during the American Civil War, the Van Leer family used the Log Cabin as a station for the Underground Railroad to help slaves escape to free negro communities.

[4] The Van Leers also built nearby villages for freed slaves and financially supported the Underground Railroad.

[7] Originally located along Raccoon Creek on the Morton Homestead, the cabin was donated to Gloucester County Historical Society by the Schorn family.