Little remains of it today, but the “Pompton feeder” was an integral part of the Morris Canal system’s eternal need for water. The feeder was used to supply additional water to the Morris Canal by channeling water from the Pompton River. The feeder was, in fact, a navigable mini-canal that ran nearly five miles south […]
As anyone who has lived in or near the Pequannock valley knows, we get floods from time to time. The convergence of three rivers makes it inevitable whenever there is prolonged and copious rain. I’ll write a post on several infamous floods at some point, but this post is about a flood that took place […]
October 24, 1937 was a bleak day for Pequannock Township. In a matter of hours, the First Dutch Reformed Church, first constructed in 1771, was entirely gutted by an early-morning fire. It took the combined efforts of 70 firemen from six other communities, in addition to Pequannock, to bring it under control. There’s some fascinating video […]
Today, the area where Route 23, Route 46, and Interstate 80 meet is a veritable ‘spaghetti bowl’ of highways, ramps, and overpasses. Decades ago, though, there was just Newark-Pompton Turnpike (Route 23) and Route 6 (today’s Route 46, but it’s been renumbered a lot). In the 1960s, before I-80 came through, this was what the […]
“Dawn’s Rest” was, in the early part of the 20th Century, one of many places that a weary traveler could put up his feet and relax for a spell. Back in the day, Pequannock — in fact, the whole of north Jersey — was tranquil and restful. It offered a respite from busy city life […]
The Oak Ridge Reservoir was constructed in the 1890s to help supply Newark’s burgeoning populace with a supply of fresh water. It was one of several reservoirs in north NJ built at about the same time. (The others are Canistear, Charlotteburg, Clinton, and Echo Lake.) The village of Oak Ridge was, unfortunately, right where the […]
Jefferson Township was once part of the much larger Pequannock Township until 1804. It includes Milton, a name whose origins are apparently lost to time; an area once known as Petersburg (now the Lake Swannanoa area); and parts of Oak Ridge. Like much of northern New Jersey, the area was settled by Europeans in the early […]
These are my primary areas of interest. I’ll add others, no doubt. Bloomingdale NJ Butler NJ Jefferson Twp. (including Milton and Oak Ridge) Newfoundland NJ Pequannock Twp. NJ (Pequannock & Pompton Plains) Pompton — that is, Pompton Lakes & Pompton Twp NJ Riverdale NJ Wayne Twp. NJ West Milford, NJ Miscellany – Other items of […]
I’m a genealogist and local historian. Genealogy leads inevitably, I think, to an interest in where one’s ancestors and relatives lived. To that end, in addition to my family tree, I’ve slowly amassed a lot of info about the towns listed here. Currently I’m the Archivist for the Jefferson Twp Historical Society; the Secretary for […]
I’ve been a local historian for many years. It started as an offshoot of my family history research, because to truly understand how your ancestors lived their lives, you need to know what life was like during their lifetimes. Maps, photos of buildings, newspaper articles, ephemera — it all contributes to the larger picture of […]