NJ Weekend Happenings: 5/30/15 - 5/31/15

NJ WEEKEND HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

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Saturday, May 30 - Upper Township, Cape May County

26th Annual Strawberry Festival

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The 26th Annual Strawberry Festival will welcome the spring and summer season again this year on Saturday from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm at the Gandy Farmstead in Greenfield, Upper Township, NJ. Rain date Sunday, May 31. Presented by The Historical Preservation Society of Upper Township (HPSUT), this event will help raise funds for the society to maintain the three historic locations around Upper Township that they restored.

The strawberries are still the highlight of this festival, along with enjoyable activities for children and adults alike. The event will feature tours of the colonial farmstead, games, live music, crafters and stands for locals to sell homemade items like honey and jam. The nostalgic backdrop for this event provides the perfect environment for an old fashioned day of fun.

The HPSUT always welcomes new members. Anyone who has an appreciation for the historical integrity of Upper Township is welcome to come by the festival and fill out an application for HPSUT membership. Parking and admission are free. There will be strawberry shortcake and a light lunch available to purchase.

The Gandy Farmstead is located at 26 Tyler Road (Route 616), Greenfield, in Upper Township, NJ. For more information visit www.uppertwphistory.org, e-mail UpperTwpHistory@yahoo.com, or call 609-628-2425 and leave a message.

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Saturday, May 30 - Bergen County

5th Annual Northwest Bergen County History Day

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NJ Weekend Estate Sales: 5/29/15 - 6/1/15

NEW JERSEY WEEKEND ESTATE SALES

Click on each link for more information on the estate sale!

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Opulence and Luxury in West Long Branch: Shadow Lawn

Opulence and Luxury in West Long Branch: Shadow Lawn

Newport, Rhode Island has many large and luxurious mansions, but in West Long Branch, New Jersey, there is not one, but two mansions standing from the early twentieth century on Monmouth University's campus. For the purpose of this article, only Shadow Lawn, now Woodrow Wilson Hall, will be featured. This grand mansion was built in 1929 by Hubert Templeton Parson, president of the F.W. Woolworth Company and stands on the footprint of an earlier wood-frame mansion, which was destroyed by fire in 1927.

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NJ Memorial Day Weekend Historical Happenings: 5/23/15 - 5/25/15

NJ WEEKEND HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

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Saturday, May 23 - Westfield, Union County

Aunt Carrie's Attic Sale

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NJ Weekend Estate Sales: 5/22/15 - 5/24/15

NEW JERSEY WEEKEND ESTATE SALES

Click on each link for more information on the estate sale!

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Beauty in Decay: White Hill Mansion

Beauty in Decay: White Hill Mansion

Normally, historic sites are well-kept structures, restored to their former glory after many years of hard work by countless volunteers. In Fieldsboro, New Jersey, at White Hill Mansion, a large brick homestead set upon a bluff overlooking the Delaware River, their preservation story is still unfolding. A relatively new historic site, only acquired in 1999, this magnificent mansion surrounded by a chain-link fence with its peeling paint and wallpaper, missing and damaged fireplace mantles, and eerily empty rooms, is all the more inviting to the inquisitive visitor. With three floors, plus a full basement, there is a certain draw to this home, which made me not want to leave. There is a hidden beauty in this organized decay - one that allows the mind to wonder about all those who stepped foot into these rooms, the conversations, and the actions that may have taken place here. Although we know the names of owners and some of their guests, it is the unknown - emotions, energy, and conversations - that keeps us asking questions in which the answers may never be known.

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Organization of the Week: Friends of White Hill Mansion

Every Monday, I highlight a non-profit related to history or the arts, a historical society, preservation group or friends group whose main objective is to promote the historical and artistic history of New Jersey and beyond.

This week, I am featuring the Friends of White Hill Mansion. The Friends of White Hill Mansion are dedicated to the continued preservation and eventual restoration of this architecturally interesting home-turned-restaurant. After being abandoned for a number of years in the 1990s, the organization has worked to clean the house of years of accumulation, coordinated two archaeological digs on the property, developed a preservation plan for the site, and successfully listed the home on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places. The organization hosts events and tours and of the house throughout the year to raise awareness and funding towards their mission.

The Friends of White Hill Mansion rely on memberships, fundraising, and countless volunteers to continue its mission. For more information on programs and special events hosted by the Friends of White Hill Mansion or to become a member or volunteer, please e-mail whitehillinfo@yahoo.com or visit https://sites.google.com/site/whitehillmansion.

If you are a member of a non-profit organization or know of one that you would like to see featured on this site, please let us know in the comments or send an e-mail to kelly@thehistorygirl.com.

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Weekend Historical Happenings: 5/16/15 - 5/17/15

NJ WEEKEND HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

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Saturday, May 16 - Vineland, Cumberland County

Vineland Founder's Day
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NJ Weekend Estate Sales: 5/15/15 - 5/17/15

NEW JERSEY WEEKEND ESTATE SALES

Click on each link for more information on the estate sale!

Find something neat at an estate sale? Let us know!

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"Who was Donald B. Palmer?" Exhibit Opening at Springfield, NJ Library - May 14, 2015

"Who was Donald B. Palmer?" Exhibit Opening at Springfield, NJ Library

Exhibit Open May 14, 2015 - September 30, 2015

In 1983, a collection of eclectic artifacts was bequeathed to the Springfield Free Public Library by a man named Donald B. Palmer. But who was this man, and how did he come to own such an incredible collection of objects? Join us on May 14, 2015 from 5:30 - 7:30pm for the opening reception of the exhibit “Who Was Donald B. Palmer?” curated by Jesse Gordon, Danielle Pace, and Alexandra Simakowicz. The focus of this exhibit will be on the life and accomplishments of Donald B. Palmer, a longtime Springfield resident who was a veteran of World War I, a local philanthropist, and a very active participant in the life of his community. Included in the exhibit will be artifacts dating back to Springfield’s role in the American War of Independence as well as items which date back to the American Civil War.

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The Forgotten Revolution: Reviving Forsaken Locations

The Forgotten Revolution: Reviving Forsaken Locations

Written by Robert A. Mayers

Battlefields, encampments, and sites of many critical events of the Revolutionary War have been lost or neglected by history. Several are right here in New Jersey. These places where patriots fought and died are unmarked, shrouded in mystery, distorted by mythology, and unknown even to local people. After more than two centuries, some of these sites have entirely disappeared while others have languished unnoticed. Some are on private property or have been built over by towns and highways.

Army Movements at the Short Hills, New Jersey, 1777. Courtesy Robert A. Mayers.

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Essex County Anderson Park Travels Back in Time on Victorian Day - May 17, 2015

Essex County Anderson Park Travels Back in Time on Victorian Day
Free, Family-Friendly Activities Celebrate Park’s 110th Anniversary
Sunday, May 17, 2015

Antique high-wheel bicycles, live Dixieland music, Victorian games, a demonstration cricket game, birthday cake, and a tree planting will be part of Victorian Day, a celebration of the 110th anniversary of Essex County Anderson Park, which opened in 1905 as part of the pioneering Essex County Parks System.

The public is invited to this free event on Sunday, May 17th from 12:00 noon to 3:00 pm to sample pastime pleasures as they might have been during 1905 in this Olmsted-designed park, now on the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors are encouraged to spread out a blanket, unpack a picnic, and enjoy a leisurely afternoon. The event is sponsored by Friends of Anderson Park, the Essex County Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs, the Montclair Historical Society, Bike&Walk Montclair, the Northern New Jersey chapter of the Victorian Society, the Montclair Cricket Club, and Studio Montclair.

Members of The Wheelmen riding vintage high-wheel bicycles at an event in 2014. They will be displaying antique bicycles at Victorian Day in Anderson Park on Sunday, May 17. Courtesy The Wheelmen.

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Gloucester County Historical Society's Headquarters 250th Birthday Celebration - May 16, 2015

Gloucester Co. Historical Society's Headquarters 250th Birthday Celebration
Time Capsule Event
May 16, 2015

The Gloucester County Historical Society will be commemorating the 250th birthday of its museum house – the Hunter Lawrence Jessup House, with a Time Capsule event on Saturday, May 16, 2015 at 11:00 am. The house was built in 1765, and has had many distinguished residents, including Captain James Lawrence of “Don’t Give Up the Ship” fame (still the motto of the US Navy) in the War of 1812, and Reverend Andrew Hunter, tea burner and chaplain of the Revolutionary War era and husband of Mary Stockton, daughter of Richard Stockton, signer of the Declaration of Independence. The Time Capsule ceremony will take place on our grounds and include entertainment from the Woodbury High School band and light refreshments, followed by an optional free tour of the historic house. Free parking is available. Rain date Sunday, May 17.

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"The Forgotten Revolution" May 2015 Giveaway

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Weekend Historical Happenings: 5/9/15 - 5/10/15

NJ WEEKEND HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

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Saturday, May 9 - Manalapan, Monmouth County

11th Annual Spirit of the Jerseys State History Fair

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NJ Weekend Estate Sales: 5/8/15 - 5/10/15

NEW JERSEY WEEKEND ESTATE SALES

Click on each link for more information on the estate sale!

Find something neat at an estate sale? Let us know!

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The Raid on Spell Hall: Nathanael Greene Homestead - Rhode Island - May 16 - 17, 2015

The Raid on Spell Hall: Nathanael Greene Homestead
Saturday - Sunday, May 16 - 17, 2015

On Saturday and Sunday, May 16 and 17, attend the 3rd Annual Battle for the Nathanael Greene Homestead Reenactment and Encampment. This annual fundraising event commemorates the 239th Rhode Island Independence Day and the 140th Anniversary of Greene’s Promotion from Private to Maj. General.

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Step Back in Time at Lyndhurst's Little Red Schoolhouse

Step Back in Time at Lyndhurst's Little Red Schoolhouse

Along Riverside Avenue in Lyndhurst, New Jersey are three historic structures listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. Each site is connected to early education in what is today the Township of Lyndhurst. Two of the structures help tell the narrative of the third, the River Road School, or Little Red Schoolhouse, a quintessential one-room schoolhouse topped by a cupola and bell.

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Spirit of the Jerseys State History Fair - May 9, 2015

Spirit of the Jerseys State History Fair - New Location
Saturday, May 9, 2015

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Organization of the Week: Lyndhurst Historical Society

Every Monday, I highlight a non-profit related to history or the arts, a historical society, preservation group or friends group whose main objective is to promote the historical and artistic history of New Jersey and beyond.

This week, I am featuring the Lyndhurst Historical Society. The Lyndhurst Historical Society was founded in 1984 and is dedicated to the preservation of local historic sites and the promotion of community pride. One of the organization's first projects was to restore the "Little Red Schoolhouse" and establish a museum for the local community. Their hard work paid off and the museum opened in 1993. The Society hosts changing exhibits throughout the year and opens the museum twice a month. One of the Society's biggest fundraisers is an appraisal fair held in early May.

The Lyndhurst Historical Society relies on memberships, fundraising, and countless volunteers to continue its mission. For more information on programs and special events hosted by the Lyndhurst Historical Society or to become a member or volunteer, please call 201-804-2513 or visit www.lyndhursthistoricalsociety.org.

If you are a member of a non-profit organization or know of one that you would like to see featured on this site, please let us know in the comments or send an e-mail to kelly@thehistorygirl.com.

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Weekend Historical Happenings: 5/2/15 - 5/3/15

NJ WEEKEND HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

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Friday - Sunday, May 1 - 3 - Princeton, Mercer County

Morven in May

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