Category: Exploring the Island of Manhattan

Stone Harbor Museum 9410 Second Avenue Stone Harbor, NJ 08247

Stone Harbor Museum

9410 Second Avenue

Stone Harbor, NJ 08247

(609) 368-7500

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https://www.facebook.com/stoneharbormuseum/

My review on TripAdvisor”

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46850-d12832764-Reviews-Stone_Harbor_Museum-Stone_Harbor_Cape_May_County_New_Jersey.html

The entrance to the Stone Harbor Museum at 9410 Second Avenue

On a recent trip to the Jersey Shore, I took an long drive down the coastline visiting small historical museums of the shore towns and they gave me an interesting perspective of how these towns were developed from the time of Native American fishing and hunting villages to the advent of railroads and Victorian hotels to the modern development of the town today. Stone Harbor, NJ has had an interesting path since its development in the late 1800’s.

The Stone Harbor Museum display from the Women’s Civic Club of Stone Harbor

The Stone Harbor Museum was founded in 1996 by a group of involved residents who wanted to showcase their town’s history. The current museum was opened in 2016 and has many different exhibitions going on, some permanent and others are seasonal and keep rotating within the museum. When you walk in, the museum is divided by sections and displays of their museum.

The Stone Harbor Museum Historical Window

Leading into the entrance, there was a very interesting exhibit on “9/11” for the Twentieth Anniversary of the event by a Chief from the Stone Harbor Fire Department. It was a series of articles from local and national papers, some artifacts and information on the fire service. It was a very touching reminder of what fire fighters did that horrible day.

The Stone Harbor Fire Department display in 2024 (the 9/11 exhibit closed a year later)

There were many displays on the history of Stone Harbor with the Stone Harbor School System and the Borough of Stone Harbor exhibiting artifacts. Interesting pictures and items of the Stone Harbor Beach Patrol were proudly displayed which I noticed from my many stops at various historical societies on the Jersey Shore is very much a part of the town culture. These teams take their competitions amongst the towns very seriously with events like boating and swimming.

The Stone Harbor Beach Patrol display

There were many pictures of old homes at a time when the town was a Victorian beach resort and people came to the Jersey shore for extended vacations. You could see the progression of the town over a century from a seaside resort to a permanent residential town. The architecture has significantly changed over the years to slightly smaller homes but no less impressive all over the town.

The Stone Harbor Hotels

There were extensive pictures and displays of the importance of the rail system and the role it played in the growth of the area and to all shore communities. Its history pretty much ended with the advent of the Model T and the growth of cars to the Jersey shore. Soon the modern highways made the rail system obsolete.

Ladies at the shore enjoying a ride

Still there are many displays of ‘fun in the sun’ and the growth of beach activities and recreation with the growth of sun bathing, swimming, boating and fishing. People’s leisure time was growing and the Jersey shore filled their time with sun bathing and swimming. The changes of attitude in swimwear have been tremendous especially from the one piece and hats to the modern bikini in just 80 years.

Swimwear at the turn of the last century

There were pictures and artifacts from various shipwrecks off the coast of the town. It showcased the maritime history of the town and of the Jersey shore in general. It showed the importance of the town in a era of trade that is long gone. This shipping lines too became obsolete as rail service replaced them.

The main gallery of the museum

There was a interesting collection of items entitled Church and Faith of all the churches in the town that played such a important role in the social life of the turn of the last century. This was a time before TV, radio, the advent of movies and especially the Internet. This was at time when people’s social life revolved the social life of places of worship.

The Office Display

In the center of the museum there is an extensive library with shelves lined with notebooks full of pictures and historical details neatly bound. This is the records of the town and the citizens who have lived here over the years.

Artifacts from the town

The two big displays right now for kids has been the Taylor Swift, the famous singer, display of items that her family donated to the museum. It seems that she summered here as a child and played in the local clubs. The other was the dinosaur bone display of items found locally in the area and around New Jersey. The museum has a popular scavenger hunt for the kids where they have to find items on display.

The new Taylor Swift display on the years she vacationed here

The Taylor Swift exhibition

The Dinosaur Display

The Dinosaur display

The Dinosaur display

The one thing I liked about the museum is that it does not overwhelm you when you are visiting. The exhibits are detailed but compact. You learn a lot about the town with enough information and artifacts but you can still enjoy the display in about twenty minutes to about a half hour. The whole museum takes about an hour to two hours to visit maybe more if you are really enjoying yourself.

The staff could not have been nicer and take such pride in the museum. The afternoon I visited the museum one of the long time residents who volunteers at the museum was able to share her knowledge of the town. For a small town, it is chockful of interesting history.

The Maps display

The Stone Harbor Museum History:

(from their website and pamphlets)

The Mission:

To acquire, preserve, display, celebrate and promote archival and artifact items relevant to the development of our unique cultural heritage and to delight, inspire and educate the present and future generations about the story of Stone Harbor, NJ.

The Vision:

To be inviting, informative and innovative community resource that is recognized and respected as the place for exploring and celebrating rich cultural heritage of Stone Harbor, NJ.

The Restaurant display

Titanic Memorial Lighthouse Pearl Street/South Street Seaport New York, NY 10038

Titanic Memorial Lighthouse

Pearl Street/South Street Seaport

New York, NY 10038

(212) 830-7700

https://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=585

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic_Memorial_(New_York_City)

Open: Sunday-Saturday 24 Hours

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60763-d7738946-Reviews-Titanic_Memorial_Park-New_York_City_New_York.html

The Titanic Memorial Lighthouse

I have been to the South Street Seaport dozens of times over the years and can’t believe that I never noticed this memorial dedicated to those lost in the Titanic disaster. I was visiting the Seaport recently after finishing another walk down the length of Broadway for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com” and was walking past the Seaport on my way to Chinatown. Something about it this time caught my attention and I stopped to look at the dedication of this small lighthouse.

It was really touching to see that the people from the 1912 disaster were not forgotten in New York City, its ultimate destination. This was the work of Molly Brown, the ‘Unsinkable Molly Brown’ from the movie. She wanted to be sure that the people who survived were never forgotten. The small lighthouse structure sits at the entrance to the main part of the seaport on an island just off the cobblestone walkway into the complex.

The Memorial plaque on the lighthouse

The tower that it was originally placed a top of the Seamen’s Church Institute Building and it was put up for sale and demolished in 1965 and the small lighthouse memorial was donated to the South Street Seaport Museum. It was placed in its current location in 1976 (Friends of the Lighthouse).

The little lighthouse is a touching reminder of Manhattan’s connection to the event over 100 years ago. Try not to miss it when you are visiting the Seaport.

The history of the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse:

(This is from the Friends of the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse website)

On April 15th, 1913, one year after the sinking of the Titanic, the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse and Time Ball, mounted atop the Seamen’s Church Institute, were dedicated to honor the passengers, officers and crew who perished in the tragedy. The dedicatory service opened with a hymn and prayer and then Rt. Rev. David h Greer, Bishop of New York, read the following lines of dedication:

“To the glory of Almighty God and in loving memory of those passengers, officers and crew who lost their lives in the foundering of the steamship, Titanic, on April 15, 1912, I, David Hummell Greer, Bishop of New York and president of the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York, do solemnly dedicate the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse Tower. As its light by night shall guide pilgrims and seafaring men from every clime into this port, so may they follow Him who is the Light of Life across the waves of this troublesome world to everlasting life and looking at noon toward this place to note the time of day, may they remember that our days pass as the swift ships and in view of the shortness and uncertainty of human life, strive to fulfill their duty well as the beat preparation for Eternity. Amen.”

The Titanic Memorial Lighthouse exhibited a fixed green light that could be seen throughout New York harbor and down as far as Sandy Hook. Five minutes before noon each day, a time ball would be hoisted to the top of a steel rod mounted atop the lighthouse and dropped at the stroke of twelve as indicated over the wires from Washington DC. According to The Lookout, the magazine of the Seamen’s Church Institute, the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse would be a much needed daily reminder for ‘in a busy, carless city the average person so soon forgets’.

The Seamen’s Church Institute was established in 1834 and had announced plans for its new twelve story headquarters at South Street and Coenties Slip in Lower Manhattan several years before the loss of the Titanic. The Flemish style building was meant to reflect new York’s Dutch origins and was to be crowned by a tower whose beacon would welcome incoming seamen. The cornerstone for the building was laid one day after the sinking of the Titanic and a week later the institute announced the lighthouse atop their building would be a memorial to the victims of the tragedy.

Betsy Ross House 239 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19106

Betsy Ross House

239 Arch Street

Philadelphia, PA 19106

(215) 619-4026

Betsy Ross House

Admission: Adults $7.00/Children-Seniors-Military $6.00/Audio Tour Add $2.00-Please check Website

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60795-d144052-r793537657-Betsy_Ross_House-Philadelphia_Pennsylvania.html?m=19905

The Betsy Ross House Museum at 239 Arch Street

I visited the Betsy Ross House Museum when touring the small museums of Old Town Philadelphia. What an interesting historical site. You felt like you were invited into Betsy Ross’s house by Betsy Ross herself.

Betsy Ross was an upholsterer and ran her business dealings from the front of the house where her small showroom and workroom were located to the street level. Many people in Philadelphia had this work arrangement where the business was in the front of the home and then living quarters were in the back or up above.

In the showroom area, an actress playing Betsy Ross, was there answering all our questions and she was very interesting. When she had been approached to design and create the flag, she had never made a flag before. The actress explained that she had to keep making flags ‘under the wraps’ so that Loyalist would not shut the business down during the war. Her business pretty much was shut down during the War years as people did not have the money or time for her work. I really felt like I was talking to the real person in that time.

The tour will only take about an hour but you will learn so much about business and living arrangements in homes at that time and of the family who lived there. I never knew much about Betsy Ross herself and her husbands and children from different marriages. So you will learn a lot about the family themselves and the lives that she lived with each of them.

It is an interesting tour if you have interest in the American Flag origins and the Revolutionary War.

The History of the Betsy Ross House Museum:

The building at 239 Arch Street, now known as the Betsy Ross House, was built over 250 years ago. The front portion of the house was built around 1740 with the stair hall (or piazza) and the rear section added 10 to 20 years later. The structure is a variation of a ‘bandbox’ or ‘trinity’ style home, with one room on each floor and a winding staircase stretching from the cellar to the upper floors.

The building’s front façade, with a large window on the first floor to display merchandise and it proximity to the Delaware River, made it an ideal location for a business. The house served as both a business and a residence for many different shopkeepers and artisans for more than 150 years. The first floor front room was used as the workshop and showroom. The business owner and his or her family lived in the rest of the home.

The sitting room recreation

When you enter the house, you will be able to visit all the rooms of the house and the kitchen area on the lower level. The interesting part of this self guided tour is that you learn that the house was not owned by Betsy Ross or any of her three husbands. They rented the rooms out from a widow who owned the house at the time and that there had been other people living at the home at the time. Each of the rooms were rented and lived in by other family members.

In each of the upstairs rooms, there are recreations of what the family living arrangements were and how they were decorated. The bedrooms were furnished with vintage furniture of the time and items used in every day life.

A period bedroom in the house

The house and museum is broken up into different sections. When you walk into the museum complex, you will get to visit a very patriotic gift shop stocked with Revolutionary War memorabilia. Out side the gift shop is the formal gardens and the courtyard which is a nice place to relax and enjoy the weather.

The courtyard of the house

The role of Betsy Ross during the Revolutionary War

The story of the flags creation

George Washington had done personal work with the Ross’s before the war

When she became a flag maker

The historic marker on the house

The courtyard of the home

Historic Marker One

Historic Marker Two

Historic Marker Three

The Parlor area where Betsy Ross would have met her clients

The recreation of the parlor area

What the meeting would have looked like

Another look at the parlor

The story of the creation of the flag

A view of the upstairs bedrooms

The house was a rented space for the Ross family

A better view of the upstairs bedroom

The Betsy Ross bedroom with a recreation of the flag

The bedroom where the flag was created

At the end of the tour we could talk to Betsy Ross herself and ask her questions about her life and her business. The actress who played Betsy asked all our questions in historic terms and to contemporary living. She was able to talk to us on her career and family and her visit from General Washington. She continued working until she was 76 years old.

Meeting Betsy herself while she talked about her life

The Kitchen and Laundry area of the house:

The kitchen area was for family cooking and was stocked with items that would have been in day to day process of preparing meals.

The Kitchen tour

Kitchen and bath equipment

The job of a Laundress

The role of the household

Cooking in the household

Betsy Ross’s life in business

The kitchen equipment

The kitchen area of the house

By the late 19th century, most of the other colonial era buildings that once stood on this block of Arch Street, had been torn down and replaced with large industrial buildings and warehouses. Many people feared that Betsy’s home would meet the same fate.

In 1898, a group of concerned citizens established the American Flag House and Betsy Ross Memorial Association to raise money to purchase the house from the Munds, the people who resided there, to restore it and open it as a public museum in honor of Betsy Ross and the first American Flag.

Charles Weisgerber was one of the founding members of the Memorial Association. In 1892, he painted Birth of Out Nation’s Flag, a 9′ x 12′ painting that depicts Betsy Ross presenting the first American flog to George Washington, Robert Morris and George Ross.

To raise money to purchase the house, members of the American Flag House and Betsy Ross Memorial Association sold lifetime memberships to the organization for 10 cents. Each donor received a membership certification imprinted with an image of Birth of Our Nation’s Flag. Individuals were encouraged to form ‘clubs’ of thirty members. The person who formed the club would receive a ten-color chromolithograph of the Weisgerber painting, suitable for framing, in addition to certificates for each club member.

Weisgerber moved his family into the upstairs floor of the home in 1898 and immediately opened two rooms to the public. The first floor front room was a souvenir shop and the room in the back of the house where the meeting between Betsy Ross and the Flag Committee was said to have occurred, was open for visitors to view.

The courtyard of the home when you leave the house

The grave of Betsy Ross

The historic marker outside the home

The Restoration of the Betsy Ross House:

The American Flag Hose and the Betsy Ross Memorial Association wanted to protect the house from fire and other dangers. They purchased the two properties on the west side of the house in 1929, in hopes of creating a civil garden. When the Great Depression hit, tourism and donations to the house slowed and much of the work on house and courtyard were delayed.

In 1937, structural changes and general wear and tear on the house led to the dire need for restoration work. A. Atwater Kent, a Philadelphia radio mogul, offered to pay up to $25,000 for the restoration of the house. Historical architect, Richardson Brognard Okie was commissioned to do the work.

Under Okie, the house’s original architectural elements were spared wherever possible. When the original components could not be reused, materials were obtained from demolished homes from the same period. A small structure containing a boiler room and a restroom was constructed in back of the original house with Revolutionary War era bricks.

In the historic house, three hidden fireplaces were uncovered, the front stairway and dormer were replaced and the door leading from the kitchen to the back of the house was restored. The most notable change, however, was to the front of the house. The doorway in the front of the building was moved from the western to the eastern corner and a new window was installed. Construction was completed and all eight rooms of the house were open to the public on Flag Day, June 14th, 1937.

By the 1940’s, the Betsy Ross House began to look like the place we recognize today but the Association’s work was not complete. A. Atwater Kent worked with the Association to pay off its final debts on the property. The entire property, including the historic house and courtyard was given to the City of Philadelphia in 1941.

In 1965, an annex building was added to the property and in 1974, the courtyard was renovated and the fountain was added. Two years later, the remains of Betsy Ross and her third husband, John Claypoole were moved from Mount Moriah Cemetery in Yeadon, PA to the garden on the west side of the Betsy Ross House courtyard.

In 1965, a private non-profit organization, Historic Philadelphia Inc. began leasing the property from the City of Philadelphia and continues to manage the site. The Betsy Ross House remains dedicated to its mission of preserving the historic site and interpreting the life of Betsy Ross, a working class, 18th Century tradeswoman. Visitors can view six period rooms, including the only interpretation of an 18th century upholstery shop in the country. The rooms are furnished with period antiques, 18th century reproductions and objects that belonged to Betsy Ross and her family. Highlights of the collection include Betsy Ross’s walnut chest on chest, her Chippendale chair, her eyeglasses and her bible.

(Betsy Ross House Museum website/Wiki/Pamphlet)

The historic district of ‘Old Town’

Firemen’s Hall Museum 147 North Second Street Philadelphia, PA 19106

Firemen’s Hall Museum

147 North Second Street

Philadelphia, PA 19106

(215) 923-1438

https://www.facebook.com/firemanshall/

Open: Sunday & Monday Closed/Tuesday-Saturday 10:00am-4:00pm

Admission: Free but donations are appreciated

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60795-d146195-r793538286-Fireman_s_Hall-Philadelphia_Pennsylvania.html?m=19905

Firemen’s Hall at 146 North Second Street

When touring around Old Town Philadelphia, I came across the Fireman’s Hall Museum dedicated to the Philadelphia Fire Department and its history and place in the City of Philadelphia. What I found interesting about the museum is the detail that the museum has on the history of fire fighting not just in the City of Philadelphia but in the United States. The City of Philadelphia is the birthplace of the volunteer fire company and where Benjamin Franklin started the first fire company.

The entrance

You can see the development of the fire service from the early bucket brigades where neighbors helped neighbors by keeping buckets of water in front of their houses in case of a fire. You can see the actual buckets that were used as well as the early fire markers that were attached to homes to recognize who was covered by fire insurance and where the fire fighters would go when a fire broke out.

Walking through the fire house downstairs, you can see how the fire equipment developed from the early horse drawn pumpers and ladder carts, to the decorative hose beds, to the early steam engines to the turn of the last century beginnings of the motorized cars.

The advancement of the steam equipment in the fire service

Information on the Firemen’s Hall Museum:

The Firemen’s Hall Museum presents and preserves the history of firefighting in Philadelphia, paying tribute to its firefighters, both paid and volunteer through the museum’s exhibits, public programs and award ceremonies:

*Play our ‘when to call 9-1-1’ game.

*Inspect the first-class collection of hand drawn, horse drawn and motorized apparatus.

*Take the opportunity to ‘steer’ a fireboat.

*View models of early equipment, hand tools, fire markers and other firefighting memorabilia.

*Reflect upon our memorial exhibits.

*Hear discussion on the former segregation of the Philadelphia Fire Department and its history.

*See the 9/11 display

The museum occupies a restored fire house built in 1902 and contains one of the premier collections of fire apparatus, firefighting tools, uniforms, photographs, prints and fire masks. The museum interprets the history of firefighting in Philadelphia through its collections. Explore 18th century hand drawn engines, 19th century horse drawn steamers and motorized apparatus of the 20th century.

The decorative hose beds that were used for parades

Philadelphia is the birthplace of the first volunteer fire companies in the United States and Patriot Benjamin Franklin founded the first volunteer fire company, The Union Fire Company in 1736.

Firefighter Benjamin Franklin

The second floor gallery

The second floor displays old equipment, the development of bunker gear and the helmets and the advancement of fire fighting equipment from the fire ax to the halogen tool. There are all sorts of fire markers from the history of the old fire insurance companies, a recreation of a fire chief’s office and pictures of old fires and how they were fought around the City of Philadelphia.

The historical marker to the fire house where the museum is located

Firefighting artifacts as you enter the second floor

The second floor gallery

The second floor gallery

The Firefighter stained glass window

The old fashioned pumper

Old fashioned hose bed

Good Will Firehouse marker

Firehouse bell

Water equipment

Rescue equipment

Benjamin Franklin Fire Department history

Memories of the Great Parade

The artifacts of the ‘Great Parade’

The ‘Tale of Three Cities’ parade

Old fashioned Hand Engine

The sign for the Hand Engine

Fire Medallions for the home and business

Fire Medallions

Flat A

Flat A sign

Chief Office display

The second floor meeting rooms and sleeping quarters

Chief’s Office artifacts

Chief’s office display

Water Rescue display

The history of famous fires in Philadelphia

The patch board of all the Philadelphia companies

Old fashioned Pumper on the main level

The museum is also manned by members of the Philadelphia Fire Department and many members visit the museum when they are off duty to explain things and talk about the fire service in the City.

The museum is free to tour but donations are accepted and needed to maintain this wonderful museum that supports the City of Philadelphia’s fire service.