Category: Historic Sites in New Jersey

Van Bushkirk Burial Ground 45 East Saddle River Road Saddle River, NJ 07458

Van Bushkirk Burial Ground 45 East Saddle River Road Saddle River, NJ 07458

Van Bushkirk Burial Ground

45 East Saddle River Road

Saddle River, NJ 07458

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2160733/edit

Click to access Re-exam_Master_Plan(1).pdf

The Van Bushkirk Burial Ground behind the residence at 45 East Saddle River Road

The Van Bushkirk Burial Ground is part of the history of Saddle River, NJ’s early settlement period. The burial ground has about 40 tombstones that are arched and shaped. These are some of the first residents both of Saddle River and Bergen County, NJ.

The burial ground lies next to a creek off East Saddle River Road and can only be accessed by going through private property of the residents living at 45 East Saddle River Road. Please do not enter without permission of the owner of the home. These pictures were taken with a long distance camera from the street.

The Van Bushkirk Burial Ground at 45 East Saddle River Road

The History of Saddle River:

(from the Saddle River Town website):

In 1675, Lenni Lenape tribal leaders sold a large amount of land on the Eastern side of the Saddle River (known as Werimus) to Albert Zabriskie. In 1708, Zabriskie sold this tract of land to Thomas Van Buskirk. The first house in Saddle River was built by the Van Buskirk family in 1709. The original Van Buskirk homestead still stands at 164 East Saddle River Road across from Borough Hall.

In 1709, the Lenni Lenape sold the land on the west side of the Saddle River to the English as part of the Ramapo Tract. Property on the west side of the Saddle River was acquired from this Tract throughout the 1700’s. The Ackerman Family was the most prolific buyer of these early Saddle River parcels and first settled on the West side of the Saddle River in 1745 when Johannes Ackerman acquired 245 acres.

The graves of George and Margaret Achenbach

Saddle River continued to grow and populate during the 18th century.  Families such as the Van Buskirk’s, the Ackerman’s, the Achenbach’s, the Hopper’s, the Zabriskie’s, the Stilwell’s and the Baldwin’s farmed and developed the area.

The grave of George Achenbach

The first of many Saddle River mills was built in 1714 and the first school was constructed in 1720. Another early 18th century business was the blacksmith shop operated by the Ackerman family. Over the years, these 1st families built the quintessential “Old Dutch Homesteads” from actual sandstone that was found in town.

The Revolutionary War era tombstones

The Revolutionary War was a horrendous time for the residents of Saddle River. The townsfolk had spent the entire 18th century developing the area into a well established community and all growth essentially stopped during the war. Since the Jersey Dutch initially considered the revolution to be an English issue, it was particularly shocking when the fighting came to their backyards. From December 1776 until the end of the war, both American and British forces traveled through Saddle River and many times set up camp in the center of town.

Residents were in constant fear of the British employed Hessian soldiers who would terrorize families by raiding the houses for food and then burning the fields before leaving. Although no major battles took place in Saddle River, there were small skirmishes to fend off raids and the Blue Mill on East Saddle River Road was destroyed. Even George Washington, the future father of our country, passed through Saddle River on multiple occasions and tradition has him staying overnight at the Ackerman Homestead on the East road.

When the Revolutionary War ended, Saddle River residents picked up right where they left off in terms of community and industry development. The Ackerman’s built a Foundry on what is now Waterford Gardens. Tice and Berdan both opened stores in town and the Bulls Head Tavern opened its doors to weary travelers in 1802. Old mills were re-opened and new ones such as Van Riper’s Saw Mill and Basket Factory were established. The post war growth continued for decades and culminated in the 1820s with the construction of the Zion Lutheran Church in 1821 and a new schoolhouse behind the church in 1825.

The worn tombstones in the cemetery

History of the Van Bushkirk family in Bergen County during the Revolutionary War:

(From the Bergen County Historical Society website):

Loyalists in Bergen County | Bergen County Historical Society

Loyalists in Bergen County came from all backgrounds, religions and economic classes. At the beginning of the war, a number were officers in the militia, the military force composed of all able-bodied males maintained by each province, and later the states. The lieutenant colonel of the militia was John Zabriskie of New Bridge. Zabriskie understood the sentiments of many of his neighbors, particularly those of Abraham Van Buskirk, whose property was directly across the bridge in Teaneck. Van Buskirk was a surgeon in the militia under Zabriskie, and with whom he served on Bergen County’s Committee of Correspondence, an entity established to keep in touch with other New Jersey counties and the events occurring there.

Van Houten Family Cemetery 108 Delaware Lane Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

Van Houten Family Cemetery 108 Delaware Lane Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

Van Houten Family Cemetery

108 Delaware Lane

Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/1598327/van-houten-family-cemetery

https://www.myheritage.com/names/john_vanhouten

https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/VANHOUTEN

My review on TripAdvisor:

The Van Houton Family Cemetery at 108 Delaware Lane on what was once the family farm

The historic Marker from 1822

The family plot from the entrance of the cemetery

About five generations of Van Houton’s have been buried in this spot, with an impressive list of family members who have served in all the nation’s wars.

From the Revolutionary War up to World War II, the family’s contribution extends not just to Bergen County but our entire country.

The family extends to other older ‘first families’ of Bergen County, such as the Snyder’s, the Demarest’s, DeBuan’s and the Van Ripper’s.

History of the Cemetery:

https://www.interment.net/data/us/nj/bergen/vanhouten/van.htm

(From the research of Richard Hrazanek)

This multi-generational cemetery is still used today by the descendents of John Van Houten, who left the property in his will. The grounds of the cemetery are well maintained. A metal fence around the property could use some minor repairs. Unfortunately a couple of the obelisk markers have fallen off their bases.

In the August 1992 Cemetery Inventory Booklet, published by the Bergen County Department of Parks, Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs, they listed Andrew Schaaf as a contact person for the cemetery, with an address of 749 High Mountain Road, Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417. The same publication mentions that an inventory of the cemetery was done by John Neafie in 1911.

The oldest tombstones in the center

The History of Franklin Lakes:

(From the Franklin Lakes Town website):

https://activerain.com/blogsview/238626/franklin-lakes-new-jersey-history

In the 17th century, Lenape Indians traveled the land we now call Franklin Lakes.  They made winter camp in the “Clove” near Buttermilk Falls and fished in Micharagrape Pond ( now Franklin Lake).

Slowly, the Dutch settlers made their way west from the Hudson River Valley.  In 1701 the East Jersey Proprietors confirmed to Michael Hawden the land around the Pond.  In 1772 Franklin Township was formed and included much of northwestern Bergen County.  Farming was the major occupation of the early inhabitants, mostly Dutch with the names of Van Winkle, Van Houten, Ackerman, Pulisfelt, Van Blarcom, etc.  They built solid farmhouses of sandstone and fieldstone.  Fourteen of these historic homes still stand in our Borough.

Some of the original family member tombstones in the cemetery

Mills sprang up along the creeks: sawmills, gristmills, tanneries and forges.  Daniel Youman’s Grist Mill on Franklin Lake was probably the first business established (it later served as a saw mill and a cider mill).

The 1876 Walker Atlas showed Franklin Lakes had about 100 residences, 5 mills, 1 tannery, 3 schools, 4 blacksmith and wagon shops, 1 church, 2 hotels, 1 store, and 2 railroad depots.

The railroad stations were built in 1869 when the New Jersey Midland Railroad was extended to Oakland.  One station stood at Campgaw on Pulis Avenue, the other at Crystal Lake on High Mountain Road.  Residents used the train for commuting, moving goods and mail.

Around the turn of the century, estate houses and mansions began to appear in the area.  The industrial revolution brought wealth, and many of the wealthy became “gentleman farmers,” sometimes living here only in the summer.  Examples of these houses include the Bartholf-Hughes house on Somerset, the Post-Terhune house on Franklin Lake Road, and the Atterbury-Brockhurst house on Ewing Avenue.

Eventually, the Campgaw section became the civic center of our Borough.  In 1922 Franklin Lakes separated from Franklin Township, incorporated, and elected William V. Pulis as its first Mayor. 

Edward May built three lakes and started the Shadow Lake Swim Club, which evolved into Shadow Lakes Estates.  On the other side of the Borough, J. Nevins McBride purchased land around Franklin Lake and began building single-family homes in Urban Farms.

When Route 208 was extended to Oakland in 1959, Franklin Lakes became more accessible, and by 1980 there were more than 8,500 residents.  The completion of Interstate 287 in the early 1990’s stimulated another boom in building.  Today, the population of our Borough is 10,422.

From a sleepy rural community to an affluent metropolitan suburb, Franklin Lakes has changed extensively, continuing to be a desirable place to live and raise families.

The Franklin Lakes Historical Society was created to help preserve our Borough’s rich history, while at the same time looking to the future of our unique community and those who choose to make this their home.

courtesy http://www.franklinlakes.org 

The family still uses the cemetery into the twenty-first century

Part of the cemetery into modern times

Multiple family members are often buried together

The cemetery in modern times

The children of Ralph Van Houten who passed within a few years of one another

The grave of Abraham Van Houton and his wife, Bridget

The front part of the cemetery shows the different branches of the family and when they were buried.

The back part of the cemetery is rather old

The Snyder branch of the family

Another branch of the Van Houten family is buried together here

Members of the Ackerman and Cooper side of the family

Conrad and Elizabeth Van Houten

Jacob and Elizabeth Van Houten

Some of the modern graves of the Van Houten’s and Ackerman sides of the family

Many of these small family plots sit on buffs and have the most amazing views. It is as if the final resting place was to be a place of beauty and contemplation.

Unfortunately the family farm is long gone and the cemetery is now surrounded by McMansions. Talk about progress!

Sturr Family Cemetery 375 Pulis Avenue Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

Sturr Family Cemetery 375 Pulis Avenue Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

Sturr Family Cemetery

375 Pulis Avenue

Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2227047/sturr-family-cemetery

https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/STURR

My review on TripAdvisor:

The Sturr Family Cemetery sits on a bend of the driveway of the Chabad Jewish Center of Northwest Bergen County and is a small cemetery that once sat on the edge of the J.H, Sturr farm.

The Sturr Family Cemetery

The farmhouse of the Sturr Family sits on the lot across the street from the cemetery property. This is located on a small buff on what was the edge of the farm.

The Sturr Family cemetery tombstones

The tombstones of the Courter and Carlouch family members

The grave of William Courter

The only visible tombstones that are left in the cemetery are an Ackerman family member, Anny Ackerman and members of the Courter and the Carlouch family’s (who must have married into the family).

The Ackerman family tombstones (the one to the right was unreadable)

The other tombstones are broken and no one is sure who is buried where in the cemetery.

The History of the Cemetery:

(From Find a Grave website)

The cemetery is located in Franklin Township, Bergen County, New Jersey, on what was once the family farm of J.H. Sturr. As of October 1991 only 6 markers were still remaining.

The Sturr Family Cemetery in full view

History of the House:

(From the Franklin Lakes Municipal Website)

H. Sturr House or Blue Meadow Farm
Built 1860
378 Pulis Avenue, Block 1510, Lot 8
Franklin Lakes, New Jersey 07417 

The Sturr House – also known as Blue Meadow Farm -is a handsome and little altered example of mid 19th century vernacular architecture which incorporates several stylistic elements such as gable returns and frieze area of the early 19th century Greek Revival style. The Borough of Franklin Lakes lists the erection year of the house as 1860. 

The façade of this 2 ½ story house consists of clapboard. The front porch has five bays with square posts and a rectangular entrance door with rectangular sidelights. Two tall 1st story windows are on one side of the porch. A single hitching post with iron rings sits in front of the porch stairs. The building has a frieze area with linear design. Semi-circular headed louvered vents are in all gable ends. The rear of the house has a one story wing.  There is a detached garage to the west side of the house as well as a round frame well. Further west of the house is a stable which has been extensively remodeled and converted into a residence in recent times. The house combined with associated structures is a significant remnant of the large farmsteads which ones dotted the Borough’s landscape prior to the recent suburban housing boom.

History of the Family:

(From the Franklin Lakes Municipal website)

This Sturr house and the nearby more altered house at 402 Pulis Avenue were duplicate structures and were probably built around the same time by members of the Sturr family. The 19th century Sturr family was descended from Conraedt Sturr who purchased 190 acres of land in this area with John Coeter from Robert Livingston in 1793.

The non-extant homestead and mill was located at present-day 930 Old Mill Road. It is known that Henry Sturr, the son of Conraedt, had a fanning mill at this location in 1850. In a will dated 1852 he bequeathed his property and mill to his grandsons John, Henry, and Daniel (Maria Braun – 1976 page 26 & 27).

The property along Pulis Avenue upon which these houses are situated was probably included in this will since the homes were built around the mid-19th century. Future deed research is recommended to identify the original builder and the construction date of the house (1861: H. Sturr, 1876 Estate of H.M. Sturr). Presently the house is privately owned and occupied.

Beach Haven Library & Museum 219 North Beach Avenue Beach Haven, NJ 08008

Beach Haven Library & Museum 219 North Beach Avenue Beach Haven, NJ 08008

The library at 219 North Beach Haven Avenue

https://www.beachhavenlibrary.org/

https://www.instagram.com/bhpl1924/

My review on TripAdvisor:

The front of the library and museum in the Fall of 2025

The historic sign

I recently visited the Beach Haven Library and Museum in Beach Haven during the holiday season and discovered a historical library with a rich history in both the community and on Long Beach Island.

The museum on the second floor

On the second floor of the library is the history room of the Beach Haven Library that contains a collection of historic artifacts and ledgers from hotels and businesses on the island. Each of the case lines tells a different story of the community from the grand hotels that once lined the shore and have since disappeared to the lives of the families that once called the island home. When I talked with one of the librarians, she told me that estates from the area donate these items to the library and this has established their collection.

The second floor fireplace

The antique kitchen equipment

The second floor of the library has another fireplace where vintage pottery and kitchen items are on display. There are also decorative pieces of pottery lining the shelves.

Historic China inside the Emily Lloyd Wilson Secretarial desk. Her father designed the Baldwin Hotel in Beach Haven.

The historic ledger from the Parry Hotel

The library has another fireplace where extensive collection of hotel ledgers and artifacts.

Letters from Elizabeth Pharo proposing the Library in 1923

Short History of the Library:

(From the library pamphlet)

Mrs. Pharo presented to the library board a proposal to build the library entirely at her own expense. She contacted Philadelphia architect, R. Brognard Okie to design the library. He chose the model of a Pennsylvania Farmhouse. The library was completed in the Fall of 1924. The museum is now over a hundred years old.

The dedication to Elizabeth Pharo, who dedicated the museum.

The Long Beach Island House Guest Ledger and historic items from the historic Bond Hotel

The records of the past resort town Long Beach Island used to be with guests coming from New York City, Philadelphia and beyond.

Historic items from the Tuckerton & Long Beach Building Land and Improvement Association

The Engleside Hotel ledger and items from the hotel

The New Jersey Declaration towards the Declaration of Independence

Historic books and periodicals

The library has an interesting collection of vintage and antique books that have been donated to the collection.

Photo display on historic sites in Beach Haven and pictures of the original library

Some of the pictures are from the old library and the artifacts come from ships ground ashore. The library has a diverse collection of items to view.

The Compass from the historic shipwreck ‘Fortuna’ that wrecked off Ship Bottom in 1910 and historic boat

The second floor museum gallery holds the diverse collection of artifacts

The second floor of the 1928 building

The first floor of the library has all sorts of historical artifacts along the walls

The Holiday Kickoff in 2025:

I visited during the library’s Holiday Open House with games, trivia and activities. There was also live music in the afternoon. It was a way that the library gives back to the community. It was a nice family event with good food and nice conversation with people from the community.

The Holiday Open House

The fireplace was going when I was talking to the librarians

It was a very nice family event where patrons families could relax, have something to eat and play games with their children. The Liberians could not have been more friendly and engaging with the public.

The Children’s Room had a holiday challenge

The museum is a rare gem tucked not just on the second floor but along the shelves and tables of the entire historic library giving visitors a chance to see all these historic artifacts mixed in with the library book collection.

The History of the Beach Haven Library:

(from the library website)

Attempts to establish a library in Beach Haven had begun as early as the 1880’s with a gift of books for the town’s children by Dr. Edward Williams. Williams, along with Charles Parry of the Parry House and the Baldwin Hotel, was a partner in the Baldwin Locomotive Works. The library collection was first housed in the home of Samuel Copperthwaite on Engleside Avenue. It was later moved into one of the Sunday School rooms of the Kynett Methodist Church, which had been built in 1890.

After the old Quaker Meeting House was donated to the town by Walter Pharo, the Reverend Alexander Corson of the Methodist Church began work, with the help of his wife, to turn the former Meeting House into a viable library. By the time they left in 1908, it was well on its way.

In 1923, Walter’s widow, Elizabeth Pharo, presented the library’s board of trustees with a proposal to build, entirely at her own expense, a new library for the town. It would be sited two blocks away from the Methodist church on a corner lot which she owned at Third Street and Beach Avenue. The library would be dedicated to the memory of her husband’s parents, Archelaus Ridgway Pharo and Louisa Willits Pharo–the founders of Beach Haven–as well as to her late husband Walter. 

Mrs. Pharo contracted R. Brognard Okie, one of Philadelphia’s finest architects, to design the new library. He chose as his model a Pennsylvania farmhouse–not an early lifesaving station, as some believed. Unlike a traditional farmhouse, however, it would be constructed entirely of brick and steel and include several stunning features: three working fireplaces, a vaulted ceiling, and an interior balcony encircling the first floor.

Tons of concrete were poured and steel girders for the new, two-story structure were already up by the spring of 1924 on the southeast corner of Beach Avenue at Third Street. Okie moved to Beach Haven to supervise every step of the construction, which was all done by local builder Floyd Cranmer. Ten railcar loads of bricks were used to build the solid outer walls and it was soon evident that the town was to have the finest library on the New Jersey coast.

As the library neared completion in the late fall of 1924, its beauty was already drawing praise. Every window in the structure was framed with long shutters of pale green, which gleamed against the white brick exterior. A sweeping, multi-dormered black roof added a grace seldom seen in a public building. Surrounded by a low, white picket fence and later, a well-kept green lawn, it added an incomparable dignity to what, in that time period, was the town’s main street, Beach Avenue.

There are two large colonial-style working fireplaces on the first floor. One is in the main room and the other is behind it in the long back room on the ocean side of the library. Today this room houses the Mystery collection and its solid, ten-foot table makes it useful as a meeting room. In the early years, however, it served a different function–it was designated as the men’s reading room, and there male patrons could sit in large comfortable chairs to read magazines and newspapers. It was well lit by two tall French windows and it opened out onto the screened porch on the north side.

The main reading room with its vaulted ceiling is encircled with a balcony reached by a spiral stone staircase, its steps topped with thick slabs of slate. The balcony flooring is of oak, as are all of the spindles in the railings. The upstairs walls are lined with books. One great window on the west side rises ten feet to the ceiling. The rest are all set into dormers. On the east wall behind the upstairs balcony there is a door where one may step down into a well-furnished little museum with high, beamed ceilings and a huge stone fireplace. It is filled with old hotel registers, deeds, diaries, photographs and other mementos of Beach Haven’s vibrant history.

The Beach Haven Public Library is a prime architectural treasure on Long Beach Island and a direct link to a colorful past that is the town’s most precious heritage. Mrs. Elizabeth Pharo’s gift to the town, itself now almost 100 years old, is as stunning as the day it was built. The taxpayers who support it are proud of its status as the only independent library in Ocean County and have chosen to keep it that way.