Category: Pathways of History Tour Morris County NJ

Harding Township Historical Society/Tunis-Ellicks House 16 Village Road New Vernon, NJ 07976

Harding Township Historical Society/Tunis-Ellicks House

16 Village Road

New Vernon, NJ 07976

(973) 272-3661

https://www.hths.org/museum

Open: Special Events and Pathways Tours

Admission: Free but donations are accepted

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g46670-d24085125-r1058924664-Tunis_ellicks_House_Museum-New_Vernon_Morris_County_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

I visited the Tunis-Ellicks House on the Morris County ‘Pathways’ tour of historical sites throughout the County and enjoyed the self-guided tour of this well maintained and displayed home. Unlike many sites I have visited over the years where things are left out and jumbled on tables, the Tunis-Ellicks House offers a look at small family farms from before the Civil War. The displays depict and discuss the life of a farming family in Central New Jersey.

The Tunis-Ellicks House in New Vernon, NJ

The house sign

The house is located in the New Vernon Historic District

The house was located in one of the oldest sections of the community, facing other structures in the historical district of New Vernon, NJ.

The house and front garden from the road

The vegetable garden in the front of house

In front of the house was a large vegetable and fruit garden with a grape arbor for spirits on the side of the house. These items would be jarred and pickled for the winter months or sold at market.

Mission Statement:

(From the Museum website)

The Harding Township Historical Society is a private, not-for-profit corporation founded in 1977 to stimulate interest in the history of Harding Township. The Society shall support, assist in and seek to achieve the preservation of documents, buildings and sites related to Harding Township. It shall also collect, preserve, maintain and interpret original cultural material, which illuminates this history. In addition, The Society is responsible for preserving and maintaining the Tunis-Ellicks House and environs. Through use of its historic site, collections and programs, the society endeavors to document and illustrate the history of Harding Township for present and future generations (Tunis-Ellicks website).

You enter the museum from the back of the house. In the backyard of the home, there were all sorts of activities going on while you could start a self-guided tour of the house.

The back of the Tunis-Ellick’s House

The beautiful view from the back door of the home

The inside of the main part of the museum

The main part of the museum was the newer extension of the home where the living room and dining rooms were located. There were displays on the walls discussing farm life in New Jersey during the late 1700’s and early 1800’s.

The Dining Room section of the house

The workings of the Dining Room

The story of ‘Country Life’ and the gentleman farmer

Pieces of the decor on display

The kitchen area of the older part of the home offers a homey fireplace for cooking and summer storage for jarred and pickled food stuffs for the winter.

The kitchen and storage areas of the home

Pottery collection in the museum

The pottery collection

The kitchen dining and cooking area of the home

The fireplace for cooking, roasting and stewing of foods

The oven for baking breads, cookies and pies and the baking equipment

The Summer storage area for canned and jarred provisions for the winter months and for cooking.

The bathrooms were on the second floor of the home/museum and I got a quick tour of the upstairs bedrooms.

Bedroom One

Bedroom Two

These were not part of the self-guided tour but I was able to see them and how they were decorated.

History of the Harding Township Historical Society:

(From the Museum website)

The Harding Township Historical Society was formed in 1977 to save the circa 1795 Tunis-Ellicks House and restore it as it appeared in the early 19th century. The society discovered an original 18th century hearth and Federal-style mantel and a water-fed cooling room besides the well. Areas of the house were left exposed to showcase the post-and-beam construction. A permanent exhibit on 19th century farming was created as well as space for temporary exhibits.

The Society saved a circa 1870 Tramp House from destruction when the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge was created by having the building moved the Tunis-Ellicks House property. The Harding Township Historical Society maintains an extensive archive containing records, maps, and objects since the colonial era pertaining to the town. The archive is open to researchers, genealogists and the public. Each year we provide an award to a student at the Harding Township School that excels in the subject of history. The Society produces exhibits, lectures, tours, and interactive events to bring history to the public.

I then joined many of the other visitors to hear an historical reading on the patio of the home from a descendant of a Colonial family. He was discussing life in Colonial New Jersey.

The Colonial talks

They also had a table set up for arts and crafts. The volunteers were making corn husk dolls with some of the visitors.

They also had corn husk doll making as an activity

Then I was able to tour the grounds and visit the ‘Tramp House’ that was used for workers of these farms. This had been moved from the ‘Great Swamp’ to this location. It showed the living conditions of workers on the farm.

Walking on the grounds of the farm

The Wine Arbor on the side of the house

History of the Tunis-Ellicks House:

(From the Museum website)

The Tunis-Ellicks House was built in 1795 when George Mitchell bought it from Michael Pearce, a Minuteman in the Revolutionary War. The deed for 7 acres of land is dated April 22, 1795. Interestingly, the ledgers of Daniel Tunis, who lived down Millbrook Rd and had a store, show that, beginning May 9, 1795, Mitchell bought items consistent with building a house: a load of timber and half a bushel of hair (used for plaster).

In 1838, a local farmer named Silas Tunis bought the farm and his descendants owned the house until 1923. Eva and Lee Ellicks sold the house to the township in 1968. In 1977, the Harding Township Historical Society began to restore the home as it would have appeared in the early 19th century. The house is a post-and-beam East Jersey cottage complete with a cooling room fed by the well outside. The museum features a permanent exhibit entitled A Country Life about the workings of 18th-century farms.

The ‘Tramp House’ for farm workers

The historic sign

The inside of the small living quarters

The farm equipment used in processing crops

History of the Tramp House:

(from the Museum website)

The Tramp House is a simple stone building built about 1870 by the Morris Overseer of the Poor as a place to stay for wandering Civil War veterans searching the countryside for work. By providing a place to stay, farmers protected their barns from accidental fires by the men trying to cook or keep warm. The men would work on the farms in exchange for a safe and warm place to sleep

The house was located in one of the oldest sections of the community, facing other structures in the historical district.

The house and front garden from the road

I really enjoyed visiting the site and got a good view how life on a New Jersey farm was before the Civil War. The museum was very nicely organized and the displays were engaging. The volunteers and docents could not have been nicer and it was a fun afternoon.

Montville Township Museum/Montville Historical Society 6 Taylortown Road Montville, NJ 07045

Montville Township Museum/Montville Historical Society

6 Taylortown Road

Montville, NJ 07045

https://montvillenj.org/426/Montville-Museum

https://www.montvilletwphistoricalsociety.com/museums

https://www.montvilletwphistoricalsociety.com/

Open: The third Sunday of each month 1:00pm-4:00pm

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46639-d27079954-Reviews-Montville_Township_Museum-Montville_Morris_County_New_Jersey.html

The front of the Montville Township Museum at 6 Taylortown Road

The front sign

I stopped at the Morris Township Museum on a busy Sunday afternoon. The museum, housed in a building that once served the community as a school, post office and a government center.

Each of the cases holds all sorts of artifacts that reflects the towns developments and growth. The first case line is filled with fossils found in the area and small artifacts from the Lenape Indians.

The next case was filled with accessories from Victorian objects from jewelry to household items. Lining the walls are objects from the high school, personal family records for people to search on their loved one’s genealogy. The docents are hand from the Historical Society to answer any questions about the museum.

The History of the Building:

(from the museum website)

The building was originally “Old Schoolhouse #10”. It was built in 1867 and occupies the site of a former 1837 school. One of the early superintendents of Morris Canal, Mr. William Hickson , was its builder.

Located at 6 Taylortown Road just down the street from Route 202 is a red brick building with a sign out front proclaiming it the “Montville Township Historical Museum”. Within its walls are articles, pictures, tapes, and memories that will carry you back through the years to times long past.

The front of the museum

About the Building: The building was constructed following the Civil War, in the year 1867. It was one of the first one-room schools in the area. The land was donated by the eastern district superintendent of the then-thriving Morris Canal, one of the many waterways then in existence to help promote trade and travel in America. William Hixson gave the land to the town for public purposes, with the stipulation that it could be reclaimed if used for a purpose with which his family disagreed.

The historic sign of the school

Reconstruction: The building began serving Montville as a one-room school heated by a potbellied stove. It also served as an auxiliary to the local Methodist Church. It became the gathering place for the local temperance league in the 1890s, and was the scene of many temperance meetings in the town.

The gardens of the front the museum

The historical collection of the museum

The history of the property:

(from the Museum website)

Entrance: Today, as you enter the museum, you walk into an entrance foyer. Probably once used to hold the boots and coats of school children, it is now an entrance hallway. The door to the main room is straight ahead, and upon entering, you step into history.

Building Uses: Forty-four years after being erected, it changed from a school to the center of political activities as the town hall. It was the town hall until 1939, when it became the town’s post office. It served as such until 1961, when a post office was constructed close by (Taylortown Road and Route 202).

Making it a Museum: After the postmen moved out of the building, the township considered selling the property to a business concern but the original Hixson agreement was recalled, and the building remained unused – until the celebration of New Jersey’s 300th Anniversary.

At that time, a Tercentenary committee was founded in the Township to help celebrate the anniversary and the Committee decided to make the establishment of a museum its main project. Armed with donations from local residents, committee members renovated the building and reopened it in 1963 as a museum.

The inside of the museum

The part of the canal that exists around the museum

Around the corner from the museum is the corner from where the Morris Canal lock was located which was on display at the museum.$

The area around where the Morris Canal was located

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_Canal

https://www.morriscanalgreenway.org/

Morris Canal

I traveled further down the road to see what is left as the canal that has since grown over. Before railroads and cars, the canal system is where goods and services from the interior of the state to the cities such as New York City and Newark.

The sign marking the site of the canal and the lock system

The lock location

The grown over canal system

It is an interesting museum whose artifacts represent the three communities in Montville township.

Denville Museum Diamond Spring Road Denville, NJ 07834

Denville Museum

Diamond Spring Road

Denville, NJ 07834

(973) 625-1165

https://www.denvillemuseum.org/

https://www.facebook.com/denvillehistoricalsociety/

Open: Sunday 10:00am-2:00pm/Monday-Saturday Closed

Admission: Free

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g46392-d33235821-r1010531601-Denville_Museum-Denville_Morris_County_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

The front of the Denville Museum at Diamond Spring Road

The front sign for the Denville Museum

The beautiful stained glass sign outside

The front sign of the museum

The front gallery of the museum

The back part of the front gallery of the museum

The Denville Museum is an interesting and beautifully organized museum in Downtown Denville, NJ that tells the history of Denville and the surrounding communities. The collection starts with a collection of Native American artifacts and Revolutionary era household objects.

The early foundation of the Denville community is displayed in the front case

The Native American artifacts in the collection

The museum has an extensive amount of artifacts from the progression of the area from the Native Americans to the Dutch settlers who then populated the area leading to the progression of modern farming and commercial trade in the area.

The farming display with many items from the Ayres Farm

My blog on the Ayres Farm:

The Ayres/Knuth Farm Foundation 25 Cooper Street Denville, NJ 07834

Artifacts from the Ayres Farm

Children’s items from both the Ayres Farm and from the community including a handmade cradle

Farm equipment and home furnishings and portraits of Ayres family members

Items from the Ayres Farm

As the community entered the post-Revolutionary War era to the Civil War era, the area entered both its agricultural and industrial boom period.

Artifacts from the Civil War and post war commercial era. Many of the artifacts are an early example of companies that still exist today.

Civil War era items of residents of the community

Presidential items from the Civil War period of both President’s Lincoln and Davis

Commercial items and tombstone etchings of the period

The manufactures of commercial products of that era. Many of these items are early examples from the modern Nabisco company. These were some of the original tea biscuit containers.

The exhibition of World War One artifacts on display

School and town events

The town parades and artifacts from the town

The display of town merchant items

The creation of and growth of trade on the Morris Canal that once ran through the town is on display as well with pictures and artifacts.

The Morris Canal display and some school house artifacts as well

More town artifacts

The order of St. Francis once had a building with a school here and as the order died out, they sold the building in town

These are some of the artifacts from that time

Some more of the artifacts from St. Francis

A display on the old Denville Theater

Another Ayres Family display

Historical items from the town

Military items from the community

More Military items

More Military items from the War years

The last display I admired before I left for the afternoon was the Denville Shack display on a popular restaurant that was once in town. These popular restaurants used the dot the sides of local highways from the early 1960’s through the early 1980’s.

The display from the Denville Shack

Some of the items from the old restaurant plus other artifacts

Some other town artifacts with a set of armor that was found in town.

The Denville Museum was a delight to visit. It was loaded with interesting displays and town artifacts that not only talk about the founding of the town but how it has come into its own as a modern town and a bedroom community of New York City.

There’s a lot to experience here.

Dover Area Historical Society/Dr. Condict House 55 West Blackwell Street Dover, NJ 07801

Dover Area Historical Society/Dr. Condict House

55 West Blackwell Street

Dover, NJ 07801

(973) 361-3525

https://www.dovernjhistory.org/

https://www.facebook.com/p/Dover-Area-Historical-Society-100064333946339/

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46397-d27043890-Reviews-Dover_Area_Historical_Society-Dover_Morris_County_New_Jersey.html

The Dover Area Historical Society at 55 West Blackwell Street

I visited the museum on a private tour during Memorial Day and got to see all three floors of the former doctor’s home, Dr. Condict, whose practice was once on the first floor of the home.

Several rooms in the house on the second and third floors of the old home were going through renovations when I was visiting or exhibitions were going to be remounted, so the museum was in transition when I visited.

The first floor of the museum was dedicated to the town history with exhibitions of the Army/Navy members of the community for Memorial Day.

There was an exhibit of the historical buildings that line the downtown area and the neighborhood surrounding the downtown.

There were pictures of local leaders of the past and an exhibition by local painter, Bea Cook

Artist Bea Cook’s biography

The collection of the art from the artist on what Dover, NJ looked like during the early part of the last century. She gives a creative look at the day to day life of people whose lives started to change after the opening of the Morris Canal and affluence started to take hold in this former farming community.

A painting of Downtown Dover in the 1800’s

Local leaders and the former Mayor of Dover

The former foyer by the front door of the house held a local uniform and pictures lines the walls of what the downtown looked like in the late 1800’s to the 1920’s.

The display for Memorial Day Weekend in May 2025

The Grandfather clock in the foyer with its beautiful celestial details.

The foyer and the stairs leading to the second floor are lined with photos of Dover through the last 100 years.

Photos of former businesses that once lined the downtown area

The upstairs galleries are lined with pictures on the growth of the town with the opening of the Morris Canal and the moving of crops and consumer goods from the rural areas to the cities like New York City and Newark.

The main gallery on the second floor of the history of the growth of the community is organized with pictures and artifacts of the era.

The growth of the community with the coming of the canal

The second floor galleries are filled with items displaying the rapidly changing community. As the more products were being sold to the cities, that affluence translated living in this area of the state.

The changes of the town with the opening of the canal and immigration to the area.

The second floor Library of town records and community information was being organized when I visited.

The history of the Dover Fire Department was on display on the second floor

https://www.dover.nj.us/cn/webpage.cfm?tpid=3460

The history of the Dover Police Department was also on display

https://www.dover.nj.us/cn/webpage.cfm?tpid=2386

Local organizations artifacts on display on the second floor

The second floor also displayed Dr.Condent’s daughter’s room and memorabilia from her life in this house.

Family artifacts on display in Dr. Condict daughter, Dorothy’s old bedroom

The display of Dorothy Condict Rogers bedroom in her former home

https://www.newspapers.com/article/rutland-daily-herald-obituary-for-doroth/42052305/

Family items in the bedroom

On the third floor of the home, there are two rooms under renovation, one of which will be dedicated to the growing Hispanic population of the current community and their contributions to the town.

The other room right now is dedicated to the high school marching band and many artifacts from over the years.

High school history and pictures

History of the area

The Dover Area Historical Society:

As I headed back down, I read the history of the town and of the Dover Area Historical Society.

The history of the Society

More town artifacts on the first floor

The History of the Dover Area Historical Society:

(From the Dover Area Historical Society website)

The Dover Area Historical Society had its origin on May 4, 1966 when Mr. Willy Pederson called a special meeting at town hall for any citizens interested in local history. Fifteen people were at the first meeting and from this nucleus the society was born. The society was incorporated as a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization named the Dover Historical Association. The name was changed to the Dover Area Historical Society in 1967.

From the very beginning, a museum location would be a problem. Two different store front locations were tried in the downtown, but abandon a short time later. The Johnson Storage Building on East Blackwell Street, the second oldest building in Dover at the time, dating back to before the Civil War, was being considered when Dover General Hospital offered the Bonnieview Estate located next to the hospital.

The Bonnieview mansion was built in 1876 for Alpheus Beemer and his wife Margaret. Mr. Beemer established a silk mill and Hurd Park and was the founder of the Nation Union Bank of Dover. Upon his death, the widow sold the property to Edwin Ross in 1885, a descendant of Betsy Ross, designer of the American Flag.

In the early part of the 20th century, Bonnieview becamse the popular Pine Terrance Inn, a gracious country retreat visited by such notables as President Grover Cleveland, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and well known personalities of the day. With the onset of Prohibition, the estate was sold to Harry Schwarz who later sold it to Dover General Hospital.

The historical society moved into the mansion house on June 18, 1970 with a 10-year lease with the hospital. Just one year into the lease and after over $30,000 in repairs and renovations, the hospital terminated the agreement and ordered the building be vacated in three months. For the next 27-years, the historical society would remain homeless, hosting its monthly meetings in various churches and meeting halls around town.

In 2004, the First Memorial Presbyterian Church of Dover was trying to decide the fate of the old doctor’s house, known as the “church house” at 55 W. Blackwell Street. Knowing the historical society had been actively seeking a museum, the church offered to site to the organization for a 25-year period provided the group pay for all expenses of operating the house and performed repairs and renovations bringing the house up to town standards.

Today, many of our programs meet at 7:00 pm the museum house the third Tuesday of each month and some programs, including walking tours and other events meet on other days at appropriate times. Our trustees and officers usually hold a business meeting at the museum on the third Wednesday of each month. The museum house is open to the public for self guided tours from 6:30 to 8:00 pm on the evenings when the monthly business meetings are held. Check our calendar for scheduled meetings and events by clicking on “Calendar” in the black strip under the header on this page and follow the links. Anyone wishing to become a member or wanting further information can call the society at 973-361-3525. Please leave a message and we will return your call.

It was an interesting tour of the Society, with each floor covering a different aspect of the history and growth of the town. You can see how the area changed from a sleepy farming community to a bustling town with the coming of the canal system to even more changes with the automobile, the World Wars and immigration to both the country and to the community. Several displays are being worked on so there will be more to experience and see when you visit in the future.

Walking Downtown Dover, NJ:

After touring the museum, I walked Downtown Dover, NJ and got to see all the wonderful stores and restaurants to visit. It really is a beautiful downtown area.

The current downtown with the historical society in the background to the right.

After I toured the museum and the grounds, I walked Downtown Dover. There are a lot of interesting Colombian and Mexican restaurants that line the Main Street of Dover.

I stopped at Pan Pizza Bakery at 27 East Blackwell Street for some lunch. What a wonderful selection of hot and cold items to choose from.

Pan Pizza Bakery at 27 East Blackwell Street

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pan%20Pizza%20Bakery/111568472216530/#

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Restaurant_Review-g46397-d27154615-Reviews-Pan_Pizza_Bakery-Dover_Morris_County_New_Jersey.html?m=69573

I ordered a Chicken and Potato Empanada, a Mango jelly doughnut and a Papas Rellanes, a Chicken and Potato dumpling. Everything was delicious. There is a wonderful selection of baked items to choose from.

My lunch that afternoon, the Empanada, the Papas Rellanes and the sugary Mango doughnut

The Chicken Empanada

These were really good

The Chicken and Potato Papas Rellenes

These were a meal onto themselves

The Mango doughtnut

The Mango doughnut was sweet and sugary

The selection is excellent and the prices are very fair

After a trip to the Dover Area Historical Society, I highly recommend a trip to the Pan Pizza Bakery for a snack. Then continue your walk around town. There are so many different shops and restaurants to experience in this vibrant and quirky downtown.

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