South Jersey farming family mourns death of beloved 77-year-old father killed in 'tragic accident'

Burlington County mourns the loss of a well-known farmer after tragic accident

77 year old farmer John Howard Hunter passed away in Cinnaminson NJ after a tragic accident on his farm.

CINNAMINSON, N.J. - A well-known South Jersey farmer has been identified as the victim of a fatal machinery accident on a farm in Cinnaminson. John Howard Hunter, 77, was killed on Sunday at the Hunter's Farm Market on Union Landing Road.

What we know:

John H. Hunter, a seventh-generation farmer of the historic farm, was a widely respected figure in the local agricultural community. His family confirmed his death, and his son, John R. Hunter, spoke about the dangers of farming as a profession. 

"What we do is very dangerous," he said. "We work hard, we work a lot, we put ourselves in situations that aren't great. Why do we do it? Because we love it."

Amy Hunter Zorn, John H. Hunter's daughter, called the incident a "split-second decision in a dangerous way of life." 

"A million things could go wrong here at any given moment. And it did," she said. "It was no one's fault. It was just a tragic accident and it could happen at any time, with anything that any of us do here."

The backstory:

According to a Facebook post by Hunter's Farm Market, the land has been in the Hunter family since 1760, when William Hunter, a 20-year-old from Ireland, settled and began farming a thousand acres.

The farm was originally known as Pompeston Farm, named for its location on the Pompeston Creek. Its proximity to the Delaware River and Philadelphia allowed farmers to transport produce to the city by barge. The history of the farm is even reflected in local roads, as Union Landing Road got its name from the "union" of farmers who built it to access the river landing for their shipments.