According to a Welcome to Wenonah brochure prepared by Roy Duffield Realty:
"Wenonah was incorporated in 1873 by a group of wealthy Philadelphia businessmen. Their vision was to create a small town along the great Mantua Creek that offered serene living amongst stately homes with picture perfect tree-lined streets and easy access to the city. Wenonah would have the attraction of beauty, healthfulness, and high moral and social tone for businessmen of the city who might make their homes here."

Excerpts from "Under Four Flags," Old Gloucester County 1686-1964
by Hazel B. Simpson, Editor, Woodbury, N.J., Board of Chosen Freeholders,
Gloucester County, N.J.; 1965 Page 35 -- WENONAH
Reportedly the name, "Wenonah," is of Native American origin, and signifies "West Wind" . In 1965 it had a population of 2100 people. [NOTE: my thanks to Pamela Cappello for the following information: "The Song of Hiawatha, the 1855 epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Wenonah is detailed as Hiawatha's mother, and daughter to Nokomis. Mudjekeewis, the West Wind, is Hiawatha's father. Further details describe Wenonah as the Lily of the Prairie. Hence, from the original complete text of the poem, it is safe to say that Wenonah does not mean West Wind, but was actually called 'The Lily of the Prairie'. Rather beautiful and befitting a charming borough!" ]
The town of Wenonah was surveyed during the spring of 1871 by the Mantua Land Improvement Company and it was officially incorporated as a borough in April 1883, although it was not officially separated from Deptford Township until 1894. In 1928 additional land was acquired from Deptford Township to increase the area of the township to 1.66 square miles.

In 1902 the Wenonah Military Academy was opened (it was a private military school). In 1873 the Presbyterian Church was started there, followed by the Methodist Church. The Wenonah Volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1888, and borough-controlled water services began in 1912. (The sewer system became property of Wenonah in 1949, and was extended and modernized during 1956-1958).

Warner Lake, under the direction of the Wenonah Playground Assocation, was the former mill pond of the old mill where grist and flour were once ground.

To learn "How and Why This Beautiful Suburban Town Has Grown," use the link below to check out column 2 of the attached scan of the Philadelphia Inquirer for September 14, 1886.