Category: The Bergen 250-250th Anniversary of the Revolutionary War in Bergen County, NJ

‘Church on the Green’ (The First Reformed Church of Hackensack), the Church Cemetery and the Hackensack Green 42 Court Street Hackensack, NJ 07601

“Church on the Green” (The First Reformed Church of Hackensack), the Cemetery and the Hackensack Green

43 Court Street

Hackensack, NJ 07601

Bergen County Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs

(201) 336-7267

(201) 342-7050

http://www.co.bergen.nj.us

https://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Reformed-Dutch-Church-Hackensack/107959952566397

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g46480-d34352436-r1058240159-First_Reformed_Church_of_Hackensack-Hackensack_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

The First Reformed church of Hackensack at 43 Court Street

Due to their national historic significance the church, cemetery and the adjacent Hackensack Green were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The Green dates back to 1696 and is one of the oldest public squares in NJ.

The church and its interesting cemetery.

The inside of the church was visited by General George Washington visited and worshipped here. The church still has the original pews and fixturing. I visited the church for Sunday services which is now run by the Korean Joy Catholic Church. I had a very nice time visiting with the parishioners and the Pastor.

The inside of the church

The inside of the church

The bell tower and gas light fixture

The light fixture

A strategic point during the American Revolution, Hackensack was a small village centered on The Green, a public meeting place where public notices were posted. In the 18th century it was where punishments were inflicted on criminals and where the local militia trained.

The Hackensack Green

The Hackensack Green

General Washington headquartered here in November 1776, while he surveyed the local roads and bridges. On November 20, 1776, he led his army into Hackensack. The army camped on The Green as Washington made the important decision to continue the retreat from overwhelming British and Hessian forces. On March 23, 1780, the British raided Hackensack and burned the courthouse that stood on the Green at that time. Since 1715, a Bergen County courthouse building faced The Green in Hackensack, the County Seat since 1710, making it the historic heart of Bergen County (County of Bergen Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs).

The historic Courthouse of Hackensack, NJ facing the cemetery at the Church.

The Cornerstone

The First Dutch Reformed Church congregation was organized in 1686, the oldest Reformed Dutch congregation in Bergen County and second oldest in NJ. (County of Bergen Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs).

The historic marker outside the church.

The historic marker

The cornerstones of the original church with the names of the ‘First Families’ of Bergen County. The original spelling of the Zabriskie’s, Paulson’s, Haring’s, and Terhune’s are embedded in the history of this church.

The First Families of Bergen County keystones on the Church:

The family keystones

John Paulson keystone

Henry Berry keystone

Albert C. Zabrifky keystone

The stone of Peter Zabrfky

The stone of Jacob Brinckerhoff

The Hackensack Reformed Church graveyard is one of the most famous in the State of New Jersey with many prominent families of Bergen County whose contributions helped shape not just the State of New Jersey but the United States as well. The graveyard contains the graves of many who fought for our freedom in the Revolutionary War.

The front of the church

The back of the graveyard

The historic graveyard

During the first ten years, churchgoers worshiped in a private home outside the limits of modern-day Hackensack. The official name of the congregation was the “Dutch Reformed Church of Ackensack” and comprised thirty-three residents from Hackensack, New Barbadoes and Acquackanonk. All three of these townships made up most of northeastern New Jersey.

Acquackanonk was located in the northern portion of modern Essex County. New Barbadoes was comprised of land west of the Hackensack River, while Ackensack was located to the east. In April of 1696, Captain John Berry (1619-1712), the proprietor of a large portion of land in northeastern New Jersey, donated two and three-quarter acres of his property to the congregation to support their efforts to build the church.

Most of present-day Hackensack at that time was called “New Barbadoes Township” and Hackensack is thought to have gotten its unofficial name when the Church relocated to New Barbadoes and brought the name “Ackensack” with it (Church website).

The historic church and cemetery in the back.

The emergence of the Dutch Reformed Church in America developed from Dutch colonization of New York and New Jersey during the 17th century. Dutch settlement was prominent in these areas before the British took control of the area in the late 1600’s. Still, the Dutch were freely allowed to practice their religion in America, even under British sovereignty. The Hackensack First Reformed Church would become the second oldest Reformed Church in New Jersey and the first in Hackensack. Construction of the church was completed in the latter part of 1696.

The historic cemetery at the church

John Berry’s donation of land was appropriately dubbed, “The Green” and the church soon became known as “The Church on the Green”. The first sermon was preached on November 15th, 1696, based on Psalm 26:8 “Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house and the place where thine honor dwelleth.” Although the first church was largely completed in 1696, the steeple was not built until 1708. The entire structure was rebuilt in 1728 on the same site. These two early church buildings were thought to have been octagonal structures.

The Schuyler Family marker

In 1780, during the Revolutionary War, the British invaded Hackensack. They burned the courthouse and jail and threatened to destroy the Church on the Green, which was located adjacent to the aforementioned buildings. Fortunately, the church was spared. Dutch Colonial architecture with sandstone walls being the prominent feature of the building. Some aspects, especially the arched and pointed windows, appear to have Gothic elements.

The Zabriskie Family plot

The front of the church has three sets of double doors with similarly arched doorways and transom windows. This style was a precursor for many of the Reformed Dutch churches that were eventually build in New Jersey. Although the present-day building dates from 1791, the church was enlarged in 1847 and again in 1847 and again in 1869, thus containing newer elements.

The Demarest Family plot.

The attached cemetery is original to the first building’s construction in the late seventeenth century but during the renovation in 1847, it was also enlarged. The neighboring service house was built in 1867 and was used as a Sunday school, lecture hall and chapel.

The Van Riper/Kipp Family plot

The Hackensack graveyard

The First Reformed Church of Hackensack

I recently visited both the church and the graveyard of the church which is home to many veterans of both the Revolutionary and Civil War. It is home also to the family plots of ‘Founding Families’ of Bergen County who worshipped at this famous church.

As one of my Team Projects, my students were mapping the cemetery for veterans of the Revolutionary War, many of them buried in the church graveyard. We came to pay our respects.

The Van Buren family plot

The Van Saun family plot

The Westervelt family plot

The Banta family plot

The Brinckerhoff-Terhune family

The Herring family

The Kipp family plot

The Paulson family plot

The Demarest-Doremus family plot

The Zabriskie family

Easter at the First Reformed Church of Hackensack with the Korean Joy Catholic Church:

I visited the church during the Easter Holidays as a invitation by members of the congregation and it was a very nice experience. I found that the service being very inspiring. The service was followed by an Easter Dinner with the congregation and I was very honored to be invited. It was a wonderful time and I really enjoyed the experience. I had never been to a Christian service that was done all in Korean, The Paster was very inspiring and knew how to inspire to the congregation. The whole service was very uplifting. Then members of the congregation invited me to stay for Easter Dinner which was very nice. A combination of classic Easter dishes mixed with traditional Korean specialties. It was one of the most enjoyable Easter’s I had had in a long time.

The beginning of the service

The Historic First Reformed Church of Hackensack pews and stained glass windows. Each one of the stained glass windows were dedicated by a well known “First Family” of Northern New Jersey:

The first floor of the church

The stained glass windows inside the church dedicated by the Ackerman family

The Child’s family windows

Voorhis-Lozier-Moore Windows

The Kraissi family windows

The Van Valen windows

The War years windows

The alter at Easter in the Spring of 2026

The Easter flowers on the alter

After the Easter service was over, I joined the other members of the congregation for dinner. This was a combination of Korean and American foods for the holidays. What a wonderful experience!

Easter Dinner

Easter dinner with the other parishioners

Yam rice cakes for dessert

Layer cake for dessert

Enjoying the service so much, I have returned for Sunday Service a few more times, enjoying the music, the sermons and the comradery. Even though I do not speak Korean, I can follow the inspiring words of Pastor Jung just by emotion and passion in the sermon.

What I like after the service is that after the sermon is over, the congregation joins with the English speaking congregation to have supper, which I think is a nice way for everyone to talk and get to know each other.

Enjoying a recent supper with the rest of the congregation and getting to know the members of the church. Everyone makes you feel so welcome. I think this is really how we celebrate God by joining in and getting to know one another. We have the same traditions in both the Polish and Italian churches I have attended.

Supper with the Congregation

Fish Tofu Soup

Korean specialties for supper

My Team Project from Bergen Community College “Bergen 250: Exploring the Revolutionary War era Cemeteries and Graveyards of Bergen County, NJ”:

The recent tour with my students hosted by members of the church, we were able to see the second floor, take a full tour of the church and graveyard. We got to see parts of the church that you do not see during service plus many of the artifacts the church owns from different eras of the church’s history. The church served as an important part of the American Revolutionary where later members of the same families, both Loyalists and Patriots, broke away from each other and some formed their own churches in other parts of Bergen County. This church still stands as a testament to Bergen County’s religious beginnings.

We toured the inside of the church, the second floor with its historical artifacts and views of the stained glass windows and then toured the historic graveyard where the majority of the Revolutionary War veterans were buried. Our Team covering this graveyard spent of their time walking amongst the tombstones searching for our veterans.

The inside pews

The alter

The view of inside of the church

The Revolutionary War artifacts

My student visit:

Tour of the church

The Team picture in front of the church

Many of the veterans of the American Revolution were buried closest to the church which was the tradition of the time to be buried as close to the church as possible. Their graves were marked by Revolutionary War medallions and American flags.

The Demarest-Voorhis Revolutionary War graves

General Poor’s grave

Albert Romin grave Revolutionary War veteran

The front part of the church by the Hackensack Green was the resting place of many of these heros

Our Team of Student Consultants picture inside the historic graveyard

The churchyard cemetery features simple stone tablets and obelisks that are surrounded by a wrought iron fence. Some notable burials include General Enoch Poor (1736-1780), Colonel and New York Mayor Richard Varick (1753-1831), Congressman George Cassedy (1783-1842) and Congressman Adam Boyd (1746-1835). General Enoch Poor’s burial is especially noteworthy as he served alongside George Washington during the Revolutionary War.

The General Poor statue on the Green

Enoch Poor – Wikipedia

Enoch Poor | New Hampshire Society of the Cincinnati

Plaque on the side of the statue

General Poor’s grave

Additionally, both Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette were in attendance at Poor’s funeral. Enoch Poor’s gravestone reads: “In Memory of the Hon’ble Brigadier General Enoch Poor of the State of New Hampshire who Departed this Life on the 8 day of Sept: 1780 aged 44 years/Washington, Lafayette and a portion of the American army attended the burial of Gen. Poor.

The Team picture in front of General Poor’s grave

In 1824, Lafayette visited this grave and turned away much affected, exclaimed, “Ah, that was one of my Generals!” Poor died in 1780, before the close of the Revolutionary War, so this gravestone is clearly not the original (Church website).

The graveyard at the Dutch Reformed Church

The Reformed Church was nominated to the National Register of Historic Places on April 25, 1983. Included in this nomination was the “Green”, which is one of the oldest public squares in New Jersey. This area encompasses the Churchyard, the cemetery, the church outbuilding and the green area that is adjacent to the Bergen County Courthouse. There are a few monuments that occupy this space, including a statue memorial to General Enoch Poor, which was dedicated in 1904 and the Hackensack War Memorial, which dates to 1924.

The church continues to be a prominent feature of the history of Hackensack through community and self-guided walking tours. In addition to this, there are yearly Memorial Day commemorations, where a wreath is placed over General Enoch Poor’s grave and a tour of the church is provided to the attendees of the celebration.

Surrounding the Green, there are a few other historical buildings:

*The Peter Zabriskie Mansion site at 50 Main Street.

*Archibald Campbell’s Tavern Site at 41 Main Street

*The Hackensack War Memorial

*Site of the Burned Jail

Christmas at the First Reformed Church of Hackensack:

During the holidays, this evergreen serves as the Christmas tree for the City of Hackensack at the historical Green other downtown. The entire Green is decorated for the entire Christmas season and the light display is amazing in the early evenings of December. Santa is on his way!

The Hackensack Town Green

The Christmas tree from downtown

*The Annual Christmas Tree on the Hackensack Town Green

Disclaimer: This information was taken directly from the Bergen County Historical Society pamphlet and the Clio Website on the First Dutch Reformed Church of Hackensack and from visiting downtown Hackensack. Please call the church at (201) 342-7050 for details on visiting it. Please remember this is a resting place.

The Schoolhouse Museum-Ridgewood Historical Society 650 Glen Avenue Ridgewood, NJ 07450

The Schoolhouse Museum-Ridgewood Historical Society

650 Glen Avenue

Ridgewood, NJ 07450

(201) 447-3242

Current Exhibit

Home Page: 2025-2026 Exhibit

RidgewoodHistoricalSociety@Verizon.net

Open: Sunday 2:00pm-4:00pm/Monday-Wednesday Closed/Thursday and Saturday: 1:00pm-3:00pm (please check the websites for changes in the schedule)

Admission: Donation $5.00

TripAdvisor Review:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46772-d10353516-Reviews-Schoolhouse_Museum-Ridgewood_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

The Ridgewood Schoolhouse museum:

The Front of the museum

The historical sign

The historic sign

The front of the building

I have visited this interesting small history museum a few times and they do a wonderful job in presenting their displays with interesting facts catering not just to a local crowd, but anyone interested in history and events.

The one-room schoolhouse, built in 1872, operated as a public school until 1905. It was part of the district school system formed in 1864 or 1865, which was geographically defined rather than by township. It was operated as School District No. 45. When the towns incorporated in 1894, that district system was dissolved, and the school became part of the Ridgewood school district.

The Ridgewood Schoolhouse Museum’s permanent collection

Tradition has it that the original land grant to the Dutch Reformed congregation from Pierre Fauconier and his daughter, Magdalena Valleau, stated that room should always be given upon the church land for a school. We know that a small school building opened in 1785. A second stone school was built in 1820 and eventually replaced by a frame structure in 1845.

Eventually the present schoolhouse was built in 1872 at a cost of $4600.00. It is likely that other schools existed on the church property from the time the church was built in 1735 to 1785, for the consistory assumed responsibility for education and the exact time when that responsibility was handed over to the public is not known.

The large bell summoned children from miles away to school each morning. The original belfry is gone but the bell stands in the entryway. It was used in other schools and a church after the school closed in 1905 but was returned to the historical society in 1977.

The original entry was divided into separate entrances and cloakrooms for boys and girls. The potbelly stove is original as are the windows and the two central lamps. The black boards around the room have been removed except for one behind the teacher’s platform.

There is a recreation of the old schoolhouse when you walk into the museum

When the Historical Society started the museum, the privy building was attached to the main building to provide more display area. In their special display area, they have an exhibition space for farming and a local comedian.

The schoolhouse display

In April 2018, they have a very interesting exhibition call “The Thread of Life” which tells the story of family’s progression in home life from the end of the Civil War until the beginning of the Depression and times changed between the Civil War and WWI. Between the Victorian Era, the sinking if the Titanic and the devastation of WWI, the baby boom of the teens and the ‘Roaring Twenties’ with the stock market built changed the attitudes.

The way of life for an entire generation until the Great Depression put a halt on it. You can see the changes of behavior in the displays of clothes and household decor. It is an interesting display.

A Morning Outfit during the Victorian Age

Union Army outfits and display for the “Civil War” artifacts

They also have an ongoing exhibition of farm equipment and a continuation of their “Farming in Bergen County” exhibition that just closed before this show. This is how farmers of Bergen County produced their crops.

Dutch items in the collection

The Blauvelt, Zabriskie and Haring families are known farming family names in Bergen County and were important in business and politics during the after the Revolutionary War.

The “Farming and Agricultural” display

Also, see their ‘Halloween Cemetery Walk” in my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com” entry “This is Halloween” Day Ninety-Six, October 31, 2017. Don’t miss it this year!

Day Ninety-Six: This is Halloween-MywalkinManhattan.com:

https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/7062

The Cemetery Walks in October are extremely popular

Don’t miss the “Here comes the Brides” exhibition that just opened up in May of 2019. It shows the history of formal wear for weddings along with accessories, menswear, invitations and even cakes toppers.

‘Here comes the Bride’ Exhibition 2019

In July of 2020, as Phase Three of the Opening in the State of New Jersey, the Museum is now open from 2:00pm-4:00pm for viewing with a new exhibition “A” is for Artistry: Celebrating Centuries of Art, Artists & Creativity”. The exhibit is a combination of local donated art and heirlooms from Ridgewood and the surrounding towns.

There are interesting displays of early photography and portrait painting as a way of preserving a persons’ image for the future. The use of oil painting, tin and then photo ‘sittings’ came in vogue as the technology changed.

Portraits were the form of imagetry before photography was invented

There was an interesting display of Children’s toys from the handmade farm toys of clay and corn husks to the fancier toys of bisque and cloth when imports and specialty toy stores were created for children’s playthings. They even had a collection of the famous “Punch & Judy Dolls”.

The Punch & Judy Dolls at the “A is for Artistry” exhibition

Children’s playthings over the last two hundred years

Another standout of the exhibition was the display from General Westervelt, a local citizen of Bergen County whose shipping expertise helped the North during the Civil War. His use of navigation and sailing was a detriment to the South and there was a $1000.00 bounty on his head. He died during the Civil War.

The “Object Lessons-Treasures that tell our Stories” exhibition

In 2022, when the Museum reopened after a long closure with COVID, they opened with two exhibitions: One was “Object Lessons-Treasures that tell our stories”, in which household objects, farming equipment and all sorts of artifacts from the pre-Revolution, Revolutionary War and Civil War periods were shown. It showed the progression that life took for families between the Revolutionary War and the beginnings of the Victorian Age.

“American Revolutionary War” display

They had local Dutch family heirlooms such as chests, cabinets, china, clothing and even documents. The average Dutch family kept their family linens, china, silver and bedding in a locked chest as these were valuable family luxuries that needed protection and proper care.

Dutch Chest with family items that were locked up.

There was a “Lincoln display” at the museum. They had a copy of the poster from the night that President Lincoln was assassinated at Ford Theater during the performance of “My American Cousin”. There was a family shot of the Lincoln family and items from the period.

The “Lincoln Display” that showed an original poster from “Our American Cousin” the night Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

The other exhibition was “Toying with the Past: Antique Toys & Games”:

Toying with the Past was an interesting exhibition in that it showed how much toys have developed and changed over the years and how much they have stayed the same. There was a beautiful collection of china and bisque dolls, some that were made as playthings and others used as marketing tools to show women the latest fashions coming out of Europe. The dolls would be dressed in the dressmakers’ newest designs.

The Doll Collection is beautifully displayed

There were older versions of modern board games, everyday items like marbles and Jaxs. There were kitchen-based items that a little girl might be given to improve her domestic skills and there was even an early version of an “Easy Bake Oven”, with an electric oven that could be plugged in and boil water.

The items a young girl would receive to prepare her for homelife

Fancy rocking horses and dolls

Vehicles and Board Games that sparked children’s imagination

More dolls and vehicles over the last 100 years

There was also all sort of toys on wheels and rocking horses that could entertain a grumpy child for hours. They even had a selection of play clothes and school items to show what classroom work was like at the turn of the last century.

Childhood was changing for young people after the Civil War and during the Victorian Age

The Latest Exhibition that was on display in April 2023 was the “History of Hats” that replaced the Toy exhibiton:

Hats from all ages

Men’s hats through the ages

Military Hats

General’s Hat

Ladies bonnets

‘Fashion of the 1880’s’

Special Events and Lectures at the Museum:

Don’t miss their ‘Cemetery Walks’ during the day. I took one recently at the old Dutch Reformed Church and we discussed the history of the church, the location of the old church versus the building of the new one, which is why the cemetery looks the way it does and the locations of the tombstones as well as how time and advancement in carving went from sandstone, which fades and chips over time when to the production of granite and marble for future tombstones.

The Cemetery Walks in Valleau Cemetery across from the museum

The cemetery is filled with names famous and prominent in Bergen County and North Jersey history which includes participation in the wars and the building of Bergen County including the Westervelt’s, Van Riper’s, Haring’s, Zabriskie’s, Terhune’s, Demerest’s, Blauvelt’s and Tice’s families. It is a fascinating place to learn Bergen County history and its development.

The Cemetery Tours that take place the week before Halloween are interesting as well. The paths of the Valleau Cemetery in Ridgewood are lined with candles and you follow the path with the town historian who takes you on a creepy tour of the famous dead residents of Ridgewood. These include prominent athletes, business people and local laborers. You pretty much tour about a third of the cemetery as you move from one tombstone to another met by costumed actors, who they themselves have to sit in the cemetery in the dark waiting for you. That is a horror movie into itself.

The Valleau Cemetery Walk and Lecture

The best part of the tour is you are greeted at the museum with a tour of the museum and a table laden with fresh apple cider and cider doughnuts that make the perfect refreshment on a cool fall evening. Make sure to take the 7:00pm tour when it is dark out and make the reservation well in advance as these tours fill up fast.

Taking the Cemetery Tours is interesting!

Don’t miss their upcoming tours for Halloween, Christmas and their lecture series.

Please check out the museum’s website for all their very original special programming.

The museum’s latest acquisition, a Native American on horseback

For the 2024 Northwest Bergen Historic Coalition Day, I visited the museum again and they were having an exhibition entitled “It’s Personal-100 years of obsolete Everyday Essentials”. It made me feel old when I saw a rotary phone, ink well and some of the other items that were in the exhibit. Some of them were from my generation and I do not consider myself old.

The sign from the “It’s Personal” exhibition.

The entrance to the Ridgewood Schoolhouse Museum for the “It’s Personal” exhibition

The Ridgewood Schoolhouse Museum “It’s Personal” exhibition.

The Ridgewood Schoolhouse Museum “It’s Personal” exhibition.

The Inkwell display at the “It’s Personal” exhibition to be replaced by the modern pen.

The Sewing Kit at the “It’s Personal” exhibition to be replaced by the modern sewing machine than by Ready to Wear clothing.

The Vanity which is still in use depending on the person in the “It’s Personal” exhibition.

The development of the phone and then the change to the modern cell phone in the “It’s Personal” exhibition.

The exhibition was interesting because its takes the modern perspective of the development of objects and their use over the last 100 years and show them with a modern twist on how times continue to change.

Garretson Forge & Farm 4-02 River Road Fair Lawn, New Jersey 07410

Garretson Forge & Farm

4-02 River Road

Fair Lawn, New Jersey 07410

(201) 797-1775

http://garretsonfarm.org/

info@garretsonfarm.org

https://www.facebook.com/GarretsonFarm/

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

Hours: Please check the website by season

Fee: Free but donations are accepted

TripAdvisor Review:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46430-d12854166-Reviews-Garretson_Forge_Farm-Fair_Lawn_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

I have been to many special events at the Garretson Forge & Farm over the years, but COVID had put a stop to many of them since 2020. The farm is now back and running beautifully with the help of their roster of volunteers and master gardeners manning the grounds both in the front and back of the homestead.

In previous years when I have visited, I have toured the home visiting the indoor kitchen and display room that is the oldest part of the house which was built in 1719.

The signage in front of the house

The kitchen of the Garretson Forge is from the original structure of the house.

The kitchen

The cooking utensils at the Garretson Forge kitchen

The spinning at the Garretson Forge farm was part of life

The newer part of the house where spinning takes place and where you can see examples of Dutch furniture with chest for clothing and a rope bed, where the expression ‘sleep tight don’t let the bedbugs bite’ comes from. You had to tighten a rope bed with a key to tighten the ropes at night and the mattresses were either made from straw or if you were lucky, goose feathers.

The newer part of the home with the upstairs dormers was built in 1760.

The upstairs is the newest addition to the house

The Upstairs

The Garretson Family tree

Inside the original part of the home is the family tree of the Garretson family who lived in the house for six generations from 1719 to 1972 when the last of the Garretson line, the husband of the wife who was a direct descendant died and the home was bought by a developer. The also have a collection of Presidential signatures that are kept under lock and key at night.

The Presidential Signature Room

The Living Room fireplace is right off the Signature Room

The kitchen in the original 1719 part of the home is decorated with period utensils, herbs and vegetables for drying and all the things you would need to prepare food for the long winter. These things would have been placed in the fruit cellar.

The Herb Garden right off the kitchen

The water pump and herb garden are right in back of the kitchen

Outside the home during the recent Harvest Festival that I attended in October 2022, you can visit all sorts of farming equipment, sleds, and hoes for using on the farm to grow plants.

The barn has herbs drying for the season and foods being stored. This along with farm equipment. These items have been brought from all over Bergen County.

The Fall Festival 2022 on October 9th, 2022

The other barn had period carriages and even a dairy vehicle delivery of milk and eggs to homes. There were items drying out in the barn for basketmaking and even in the back the tombstone of an original member of the family.

The Barn Vehicles

The barn equipment

The backyard of the home is an extensive number of plantings that the Master Gardeners maintain and many of the items grown on the property go to a foodbank in Paterson, NJ. I thought that was a very nice donation to give especially these days. I was able to walk through what was left of the vegetables and fruits that had not either been picked or went through their growing cycle.

Items drying in the barn

Activities at the Harvest Festival included making colonial dishes from original recipes including a roasting ham on the fire, pumpkin pie, chopped vegetables for stew and a stew that was cooking on the fire.

The bounty of Fall in Colonial America

Unfortunately, we were not able to sample these delicious looking items because of a food license but everything looked really good. They had everything laid out on the table as the ladies explained to me how things were cooked back then.

Roasting meats on the fire a traditional way

Here and there were tables of items for sale including snacks, crafts and vintage decorative items for the home. This helps raise money for the maintenance of the house.

There was also a plant sale where items grown on the property were being sold for people’s decorative gardens.

Before I left, the master gardener explained to me that the Chinese Chestnut Tree in the back of the property was a documented tree and was one of the oldest and largest in the State of New Jersey. They are not too sure who planted it years ago.

Their Harvest Festival was a lot of fun and there were lots to do for families with small children. This takes place every October.

In December I took a special tour of the farmhouse during the holiday season when the forge was decorated for the Sinterklaas event and the Christmas holiday season. I was very lucky that the President of the organization gave me a private tour of the house and gardens. The house had been very busy for the Christmas season.

During the time of the Dutch, homes would not have been as decorated for the holidays as they would during the Victorian Age with trees and massive amounts of decorations. Around the time of the Revolutionary War, ‘greens’ would have decorated the home to bring ‘life’ back into the home during the long winter months. So things like pine, holly and mistletoe would have decorated the house.

The front of the house for the holiday season.

The front of the house at Christmas time.

The entrance to the house decorated in bows and garland.

The entrance to the house decked in garland, bows and fruit during the holiday season.

Entering the house from the back door.

The entrance to the back door decked out for the holidays.

The entrance to the historic farmhouse.

During the holiday season, the New Jersey Dutch citizens would celebrate “Sinterklaas”, the Dutch Christmas festival in which Sinterklaas (Santa Claus) would bring good little children toys and sweets. During the first week of December, the farmhouse has the traditional “Dutch Christmas Festival” in which children can visit with Sinterklaas and enjoy music and holiday treats.

The front hallway decorated for the Dutch Festival.

The Dutch Kitchen ready for the holidays.

The kitchen getting ready for the holidays.

The back fireplace during the Christmas holidays.

The main room of the Dutch Farmhouse during the Christmas holidays.

The banister was decorated in garland and bows.

The Spinning Wheel and fireplace during the festivities.

Where Sinterklaas engages the small children at the event.

The stockings and wooden shoes which would have been filled with candy and toys by Sinterklaas for good little girls and boys. The Christmas tree would have come in Victorian times along with the presents in the later part of the 1870’s and 80’s with the rise of Queen Victoria.

As we exited the house at the end of the tour, the President took me on a tour of the greenhouse that was attached to the house. This is where all the new plants and saplings were being grown during the winter months.

The Greenhouse is attached to the main house.

The decorated window box just outside the kitchen of the farmhouse.

We passed through the gardens that were now dormant for the holidays but would be sprouting in about four months.

During the Revolutionary War and the take over of the English, Christmas would have meant church services on Christmas Day and a light luncheon in the afternoon. Things like gift giving, entertainment and music would have been later in the 1800’s as the ‘Puritan influence’ would have prevailed at this time with little merriment during the holidays.

After the Civil War and the rise of the Industrial Revolution did Christmas get more elaborate and festivities became more colorful. You see this in different stages of the house. The forge is open for the “Sinterklaas Festival” the first week of December every year.

In the Spring, I attended “Pea Day”, the first planting of the gardens took place in March of 2024. The volunteers were cleaning the beds out and planting the first fruits and vegetables that could survive in the cool weather. It gave us a chance to see how things were planted on the farm during the different seasons.

The front of the Garretson Forge & Farm during the last days of Winter.

The property during the late Winter months.

The daffodils were in full bloom on the property.

Cleaning up the property during the late Winter months.

The volunteers planting the beds during “Pea Day”.

The volunteers planting the beds during “Pea Day”.

The students of Bergen Community College learning about the Garretson Forge.

“Pea Day” gave us a chance to see the property and see how the plantings of the farm were timed with the seasons. It also gave the students a chance to see what the farm looked like and understand its logistics.

The farm on “Pea Day”.

The History of Garretson Forge & Farm:

Garretson Forge & Farm is one of the oldest historic sites in Bergen County, New Jersey. Settled in 1719, this Dutch Colonial homestead was home to six generations of the Garretson family. Their homestead remains a rare surviving example of a simple farming life that was prevalent in the 1700’s and 1800’s. It now functions as a living museum and a working farm, preserving our colonial past and agricultural heritage.

The front of the Garretson Forge on River Road in Fair Lawn, NJ.

The Property:

Located along an old Native American trail, about a mile north of Garretson Lane, is one of the original farms in Slooterdam, owned by the Dutch family of Peter Garretson. Today, more than 300 years later, the trail has come to be known as River Road, Garretson Lane is now called Broadway and Slooterdam has evolved into Fair Lawn, yet the original farmhouse and remaining grounds are still referred to as the Garretson Homestead.

In the 17th century, New Jersey was divided into the Provinces of East and West Jersey by its English proprietors, Lords Berkeley and Carteret. These lands were then sold to a group of Quakers headed by William Penn. By 1692, part of East Jersey, known as the Saddle River Tract, had been divided into large lots, one of which was sold to the Stillwell family.

The Garretson homestead stand on a portion of land that was acquired in 1708 by David Daniellse from the Stillwell family. A copy of the original propriety deed signed by King George of England and the Lenni Lenape Chief, Spotted Tail and granting the land to David Daniellse, is hanging in the homestead. The original property was bounded on the west by the Passaic River and on the east by the Saddle River. Peter Garretson purchased the property from Mr. Daniellse in 1719.

After Peter Garretson’s death, title to the land was passed from one generation to the next. From time-to-time parcels of the tract were sold. The present site consists of 1.84 acres along River Road.

The beauty of the Garretson Forge Farm in the Fall

The Homestead:

The house is an example of Dutch Colonial architecture which is charismatic of Bergen, Passaic and Hudson Counties.

One and one-half stories high and built about 1719 of rubble and undressed stone, the current kitchen wing is considered by most to be the homestead. It features a large open-hearth fireplace typical of Flemish design of the late 1600’s. On a late nineteenth-century photograph of the house, remnants of a brick beehive oven can be seen on the outer wall.

Farming equipment outside the barn

In 1760, the larger section of the house was built using dressed stone. The sandstone blocks were held together with mortar made of river mud mixed with straw and hogs hair. It was under this section that fragments of clay pipes (c1720) were uncovered.

The farmhouse on River Road in Fairlawn, NJ

The Farmhouse

Extensive renovations were made to the house in 1902. The present gambrel roof replaced a steep gable roof; a front door was replaced with a window; an inner stairway to the basement replaced cellar hatches. A large center Victorian stairway to the second floor was also built and the open-hearth fireplaces were enclosed in the Victorian style. A large pillared porch was also added.

An early nineteenth century carriage house still stands on the property along with a large barn and several smaller outbuildings, the oldest of which is a small wooden structure built circa 1800 in the Dutch barn style.

The barn and carriage house

The Garretson Family:

The history of the Garretson family in America began in 1660 with the emigration of Gerrit Gerritse, his wife, Annetje Hermansse and their son, Gerrit from Wageningen, Gelderland (Netherlands). They arrived in New Amsterdam and proceeded to the town of Bergen, where in 1668, Gerrit (Sr) bought from Philip Carteret, eight parcels of land. The family resided in what is now the Communipaw section of Jersey City, where Gerrit died in October of 1696. His wife died on September 7, 1696.

Some of Gerrit Gerritse’s children took the name Van Wagenen, while others retained that of Garretson, from the name of their father. The descendants of Gerrit Gerritse, going by the surname of Garretson, Van Wegenen and Van Wagoner are today numerous throughout Bergen and Hudson Counties.

Mary Garretson’s Tombstone is located in the barn

Peter Garretson, grandson of the elder Gerrit Gerritse, purchased the Slooterdam Patent from David Daniellse in 1719. The house was built shortly afterwards. Six generations of the Garretson family resided on the farm until the death of Mary Garretson Brocker in 1950. Her widower, Feenix Brocker, remained at the homestead and continued farming until 1974.

The Gardens:

Originally a homestead farm, subsistence and market crops were grown from the early 1700’s through the early 1970’s by the Garretson family.

The back of the house

Today, the gardens at Garretson continue an agricultural tradition. A variety of heirloom vegetables, all open-pollinated are grown in the kitchen garden using organic and sustainable practices. Produce in season is donated to a local emergency food pantry. An extensive herb garden contains over 75 types of medicinal and culinary herbs that were grown in the seventeen and eighteen hundreds.

The Garretson farm gardens behind the house are tended to by the master gardeners.

Garretson’s Butterfly Garden provides host plants and nectar sources for many different kinds of butterflies. Since 2005, Garretson has been certified by Monarch Watch as a Monarch Waystation (monarch habitat).

The Children’s Garden at Garretson abounds in spring ephemeral wildflowers, bulbs and ferns. In the heat of summer its offers a welcome place to sit in the shade. Gardeners have been restoring native plants to this woodland area.

The garden sheds behind the house

Many of the garden volunteers are Rutgers-trained Master Gardeners who have done their community service at Garretson and who give back to the community and Bergen County Master Gardener Program by training new gardeners at Garretson.

The gardens at the Garretson Forge farms behind the house

Garretson Forge and Farm Restoration Inc.:

The Garretson property was sold in 1974 to a private builder for residential value, community members became interested in acquiring the property for preservation. This led to the founding of the Garretson Forge and Farm Restoration Inc. in 1974 for the purpose of raising funds for the purchase. Through the efforts of the organization, the community at large and government agencies, the necessary funds were raised for the acquisition of the property.

GFFR Inc. continued to raise funds to maintain the site and to restore the kitchen to its eighteenth-century design. Money was also used to purchase artifacts and articles related to Garretson history.

The open kitchen at the Garretson Farm

In 1977, ownership of the property was accepted by the Freeholders of Bergen County. Now a county historical site, the Garretson homestead continues to be administered by the members of Garretson Forge and Farm Restoration Inc.

GFFR Inc. is a volunteer organization whose mission is to preserve and maintain the Garretson homestead, keeping it open to the public; to educate the greater community about local and state history; to foster environmentally sustainable agricultural practices and biodiversity.

Programs and Special Events:

Throughout the year, Garretson Forge and Farm offers.

Living history events:

*The Spring Festival celebrating colonial life and crafts in the 1700’s.

*The Fall Festival celebrating the harvest and the 1800’s farm.

Fall Festival 2022

Civil War Activities at the Garretson Forge

Civil War activities at the Fall Festival

Spinning wool and cloth making at the Fall Festival

*Dutch Christmas presenting a traditional Dutch celebration with the homestead decorated in Victorian style.

The house decorated for the Sinterklaas and Christmas festivals.

The house decorated for the Christmas holidays.

Educational Programs:

The Map and Signature galleries

*School Tours

Children’s toys at the Garretson Forge

*Open House and garden tours

*Lectures on the environment and on local history.

The Signature and Map Collection at Garretson Forge

*The Master Gardener Program

*Organic/sustainable gardening

*Garden and craft workshops

*The annual Butterfly Festival for families.

Community Service Programs:

*Eagle Scout Projects

*Community Seed Bank

*Seasonal produce donations to local food banks.

For more information on events, please check out the website:

http://www.garretsonfarm.org or on Facebook: Garretson Farm

http://www.co.bergen.nj.us

The Bergen County Division of Cultural & Historic Affairs received an operating support grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State.

Disclaimer: This information is taken directly from the pamphlet from the Garretson Forge & Farm. For more information on the site, please call the above numbers or email them.

In the Spring Semester of 2023, my Introduction to Business class at Bergen Community College in Paramus, NJ created a project to promote the Garretson Forge & Farm for Destination Tourism. It was an extensive project creating new programs, new advertising and promoting the site with commercials and walking tours.

Here is the project:

Here is the blog on the project:

https://mywalkinmanhattan.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=45239&action=edit

The Project “Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. presents “Touring at the Bergen County Historical Society”:

https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/40413

I think a lot of these historical sites do not get the attention they deserve and with the 250 Anniversary of the Revolutionary War happening in two years, these wonderful sites needed to be showcased. They needed to dusted off, revamped and a fresh perspective was needed to tell their story. This is where the project for the “The Bergen 250: Tourism at the Garretson Forge & Farm” came from.

The project “Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. presents “Bergen 250-Touring the Garretson Forge & Farm”:

BCC-Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. Bergen 250 The Garretson Forge & Farm Download

That and the tour the former President gave me during the holiday season when I begged to see the Christmas decorations for the Sinterklaas celebrations were still up. I needed pictures for my blog, “VisitingaMuseum.com” and “MywalkinManhattan.com”.

My blog on Touring the Garretson Forge & Farm on VisitingaMuseum.com:

https://wordpress.com/post/visitingamuseum.com/1448

When I toured the home during the holidays, I approached them on using the home as a future project and she seemed to like the idea. This is where the partnership for the project came from.

Our first visit to the site was on “Pea Day” in March 2024 for an extra credit assignment to start the project off so that the students could see the grounds and experience the farm and its attributes.

Visiting the Garretson Forge & Farm in Fair Lawn, NJ for “Pea Day”

Visiting the farm house and gardens on “Pea Day”

The volunteers planting at the Garretson Forge & Farm on “Pea Day”.

Observing the Master Gardeners and Volunteers on “Pea Day”.

The students coming in on their day off to attend “Pea Day”

Everyone took turns getting their hands dirty on “Pea Day”

We also had a special field trip to the Garretson Forge & Farm on class day so that everyone could tour the farm and the farmhouse. Outside “Pea Day”, it was the first time anyone in my class had ever visited the site.

The Garretson Forge & Farm:

https://www.garretsonfarm.org

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46430-d12854166-Reviews-Garretson_Forge_Farm-Fair_Lawn_New_Jersey.html

My review on VisitingaMuseum.com:

Garretson Forge & Farm 4-02 River Road Fair Lawn, New Jersey 07410

We started the tour on a rather gloomy night. We had just had a rain storm but that did not stop our visit. Our whole class attended the trip (it is a mandatory part of both the project and the class) and it was a interesting tour for all of us.

Our host was the President of the Friends group that helps raise money for the site. We started the tour after the rain storm with a trip through the barns to see some of the old farm equipment. The were some interesting artifacts that included farm plows and horse drawn articles to carriages and sleds.

Then we toured the gardens where the volunteers had just finished the plantings of the summer fruits and vegetables. The President explained that the fruits and vegetables that were grown here were donated to a soup kitchen in Paterson. I thought this was a great idea.

Then were toured the farmhouse, which I had just been to for a private tour during the holidays. The kitchen was set up for a harvest meal now and I explained to some of the students how food was cooked back then in the hearth.

Then we toured the small museum and looked at the family tree, where generations of Garretson’s had lived. Our last stop on the tour of the farmhouse was the main living room where the Sinterklass event was held and many of the talks on domestic life on the farm.

This is where we concluded the tour and many students asked questions about life at that period of time. After the tour was over, I took the students out to dinner as part of their Team Building. It is important for the students to get to know one another.

Our tour of the grounds, the barns and life on the farm.

Discussing the expression “Sleep tight don’t let the bed bugs bite” and where it came from.

The second floor had been added on years later.

Discussing the furnishings and how the farmhouse ran as a farm and a home.

Continuing our discussion of life on the farm.

Talking about life on the farm.

The Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. tour of the site.

Our group shot with President of the Garretson Forge & Farm April Barth.

After the tour was over, I took my class to Bella Vita Pizzeria in Fair Lawn, NJ for their first Corporate dinner and Team building exercise. The dinner was wonderful, and the pizza was excellent. It really warmed us up after a cold night of touring and the students seemed to enjoy getting to know each other over a hot pizza dinner.

Bella Vita Pizzeria at 1761 River Rd A, Fair Lawn, NJ 07410:

https://www.bellavitaitalianrestaurant.com

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g46430-d1114260-Reviews-Bella_Vita_Italian_Restaurant-Fair_Lawn_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

Dining together after the tour:

My Teams dining together at a “Corporate” pizza dinner.

The company Team dining together that night.

The aspect of dining together is an important part of the Team Building exercise and you can tell by the pictures that my students enjoyed it.

The next few weeks were preparing the project for the presentation. We had a visit from Vivian Davis, who I had known for years from working in the Division of Disability Services when she was one of our speakers. She now was running the “Bergen 250: The 250th Anniversary of the Revolutionary War in Bergen County” and we had incorporated part of this in the project. I had given her a copy of the project and she came into the class to discuss what she was planning and the significance of the Revolutionary War had on the towns in Bergen County. It was a real history lesson on some of the towns in Bergen County and some of the historical homes and sites in Bergen County.

The Bergen 250 Program:

Front Page

This project was a bit more intense than my morning class. While they designed the rigors of the Bergen Room Bistro, my evening class was putting together an entire game plan of Revolutionary War events for the ‘Bergen 250’.

I had the students working on an Independence Day event, a Children’s Walking tour of the property, a Mid Summer dinner with a Revolutionary War themed dinner, a continuation of the Sinterklaas event that would extend visiting the decorations in the house another two weekends and then a new Digital Marketing campaign for the site with a commercials and posters.

The night of the presentation on April 24th, it all came to life. The students each showed the PowerPoints with their ideas, menus and commercials to promote the site. They really had some interesting ideas.

PowerPoints:

Team One:

Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. Garretson Forge Team One PowerPoint Download

Team Two:

bergecco-parc-consulting-inc.-garretson-forge-team-three-powerpoint Download

Team Three:

bergecco-parc-consulting-inc.-garretson-forge-team-two-powerpoint Download

Commercials:

Team One:

Team Two:

The Promotional Tour Video

The Children’s Walking Tour Video

Team Three:

Promotional Tour

The Children’s Walking Tour Video:

The full Presentation of the student consultant’s work on The Garretson Forge & Farm:

The complete video of the Presentation.

The new website for “Bergen 250″: The Garretson Forge & Farm”:

https://tfischer90.wixsite.com/bergecco-parc-consul

Finishing the evening with my Student Consultants was great. The students were so excited to finish and I have to admit it was quite the journey for me too. It was a lot of work (and money) to pull this event off but it went by well. The Board of the Garretson Forge & Farm really seemed to enjoy it and asked lots of questions.

Vivian Davis, who is running the “Bergen 250″ asked the most important question of the night, if I was to run all of these events, would your age group come?” This got the students thinking and one said, “We are a busy group with college and work. If you want our age group to come, you are going to have to cater to things we like.” I thought that was fair and gave her something to think about as well.

We then took our Board picture. I am always so proud of my Student Executive Consultants. They come dressed for work.

The Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. “Bergen 250″: Garretson Forge & Farm” Executive Team.

I want to thank my President of the Team Project, President TJ Fischer and SVP of Operations Camila Alvarado and the entire Team of Vice-Presidents, Team Leaders and Team Members for tackling this very difficult and very detailed job of promoting this wonderful historical site with such detail.

The questions on the project were excellent and direct and audience was very impressed by how thorough the project was done that evening. To all my Student Consultants, you did an excellent job!

Great Work!

New Historic Project for 2025:

To Celebrate the “Bergen 250: the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the Revolutionary War in Bergen County”, we are creating a new project with a series of special events and meals at different historical sites in Bergen County. It gives these sites a fresh approach to new visitors.

Our class toured the site and I tried to showcase this site to another Team of students to reimagine it.

We were joined by County Historian Vivian Davis who led the tour to my students

We toured the grounds and gardens where a Country Afternoon Tea would be planned in the backyard of the home with a house and garden tour and plant sale.

My class toured the historic kitchen

We then toured the historic room with the homes past and the family tree

The Bergecco-Parc Consulting 250 Team in the backyard of the Garretson Forge & Farm

Our selfie with Vivian

The end of our tour that afternoon

It was another successful in the field by Bergecco- Parc Consulting Inc.

Pascack Historical Society Museum (John C. Storms Museum) 19 Ridge Avenue Park Ridge, NJ 07656

The Pascack Historical Society Museum (John C. Storms Museum)

19 Ridge Avenue

Park Ridge, NJ 07656

Phone: (201) 573-0307

Open on Sundays from 1:00pm-4:00pm; Admission is Free. Gift Shop hours are when the museum is open. (Holiday Excepted).

http://www.pascackhistoricalsociety.org

http://www.facebook.com/pascackhistoricalsociety

TripAdvisor Review:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46713-d12610386-Reviews-Pascack_Historical_Society_Museum-Park_Ridge_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

The Pascack Valley Historical Society is now celebrating their 75th Anniversary.

The Pascack Historical Society Museum (John C. Storms Museum), headquarters of the award-winning Pascack Historical Society, is located in the 1873 church building that was dedicated by the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher. The building and all the exhibitions have gone through an extensive renovation and have been reinstalled with more signage and information. Please check out their new displays.

The sign that greets you in the front of the building.

The Historical Marker in front of the building.

As you enter the building, you are welcomed to a comfortable spot.

The extensive exhibits include a general store, colonial kitchen, a Victorian Living Room, dolls, clothing and other displays of American life in the Pascack Valley. The front gallery as you enter serves as a classroom and lecture hall for the society. There you can see a variety of artifacts in the collection from china to guns and clothing.

Artifacts in the front room.

Artifacts in the first gallery.

A collection of antique guns in the front gallery.

A selection of hats in the front gallery.

There is also a special exhibition that features the world’s only wampum drilling machine as well as a collection of early colonial currency.

The Wampum Machine sign and how Wampum is made.

Their early Colonial Financial exhibits include an early wampum machine that the tour guide had said that it was the only one of its kind that made a type of rolled wampum from the inner section of a conch shell. Early New Jersey currency is well represented in the collection with several types of dollar bills at a time when states printed their own currency for its citizens. Really take a look at the early detail work of these bills.

The Wampum display of shells and tools.

The uses of Wampum and how it is made.

The oldest working Wampum machine in the world.

The Van Ripper General Store exhibition features many types of early Colonial artifacts that include weights and measures, food items found in an early grocery store, turn of the last century bottles and many types of appliances for cooking. Several treasures are tucked here and there to create the mood of shopping at the turn of the last century in Bergen County. There are classic groceries, weights and measures to weight groceries and several artifacts from the Van Ripper and Stockdale Farms which used to be located in the area.

The General Store sign

The General Store display.

Stockdale’s Dairy Farm was a popular farm in Park Ridge before the 1960’s.

Tools need on the farm and in the home.

The Tool display at the General Store.

The Toy Collection is extensive and covers several time periods. They have a interesting collection of dolls over the ages that include cloth and china dolls that would cater to children from different economic status. There are also games, wooden and metal pull toys and hobby toys such as marbles and jacks.

The Early Dutch Farmhouse Kitchen & Dining Room features one of the first beds that has no mattress but constructed by a series of ropes that are tightened. The tour guide explained that this might be where the expression “Sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite” might have come from as the ropes needed to be tightened each evening before the family went to bed.

Early Dutch life sign.

The exhibit also had early furniture hatches, chamber pots, a butter churner, various chairs that were manufactured in the area and several detailed decorative pieces.

The Early Dutch Kitchen and Living Space

The Victorian Dress of the church visitation.

The Victorian Living Room features many plush pieces of furniture, decorative knick-knacks that used to dominate the décor and a graceful piano with mother of pearl keys and decorative carved sides. This model was one of maybe a hundred made for a very elite client. The display also featured one of the early record players that still works.

The ‘Victorian Afternoon’ exhibition in 2024:

The sign for the Victorian home:

The ideal Victorian Home ‘Parlor’

Early Edison products

Early Edison recording equipment was not just musical but decorative.

The horse display.

The new exhibition 2025: ‘Collignon Chairs’

The exhibition is on the Collignon Chair factory of River Vale, NJ and the selection of chairs that the factory once manufactured.

The sign from the exhibition

Some of the collection of Collignon chairs on display including the popular deck chair used on streamlines.

The popular folding rocker from the collection

The display of chairs and a drawing of the old factory

Off to the side, there is an early sleigh and horse display, an exhibit of typewriters and carbon paper as I found out the area was once the leading manufacturer for carbon paper and a complete workshop with tools from all eras.

Typewriter collection at the museum.

Early Electronics

The schoolhouse desk of the school master.

The workshop is a very detailed in its artifacts with early saws, hammers and items that even I could not figure out what they were.

In the main room, there are more cases of toys, Revolutionary items and Native American artifacts to explore.

Native American Artifacts

The Lenape display

The Native American display.

A small gift shop is off to the side selling items donated by members.

Become a Friend: From the Friends of the Pascack Historical Society Museum pamphlet:

Pascack Historical Society Information and History:

The Corner Cupboard of early American china.

(From their pamphlet):

Membership Benefits:

Become a member of the Pascack Historical Society, a 501C3 organization. Dues are modest and membership has its privileges!

One year of free admission to the museum and most of its activities.
A one year subscription to the Society’s award-winning quarterly newsletter, RELICS.
10% discount on museum gift shop items (Sale items and new books excluded).
50% discounts on programs for children and adults.
You will receive Members Only advance notice mailings and emails about upcoming events and activities.
Members only “behind the scenes tours” of the museum. (By Appointment Only).
You will have the satisfaction of knowing you have joined the ranks of the area’s most passionate historical preservationists, who have a commitment to educate and enrich their neighbors’ lives-young and old.

The Military embellishments

In 2026, the museum was celebrating the ‘250th Anniversary’ of the Revolutionary War and had an exhibition of artifacts from the Pascack Valley.

The ‘250th Anniversary’ of Revolutionary War

This included all the stops that General Washington made in Bergen County, battles and confrontations with British soldiers and family battles by members who were loyalists and patriots.

The currency of the war years

The exhibitions shows New Jersey’s contributions to the war effort. This part of the exhibition has Colonial currency from New Jersey.

New Jersey Colonial Currency

The full exhibition of the ‘250th Anniversary’ of the Revolution War

Uniforms and accessories of the War years

The Baylor Massacre attack

The Tarlatan Calvary helmet

The Lenape artifacts from that era

Membership Opportunities:

Preserving and disseminating local history is a labor of love when you become a PHS member. It is a partnership between you and your fellow members. We encourage you to think about volunteering at some level at the museum or its events. Check out the volunteer opportunities below and give us a call if you would like to participate in any of them.

Docent: Act as a guide when people visit the museum. A simple one-day training session is all it takes.
Researcher: Do you like to wander through books and archives searching for answers to questions?
Archivists: Preserve and catalog the history of the Pascack Valley.
Educators: Work with youngsters and licensed teachers at Society events.
Tech Savvy: Volunteer your time to help with our website or graphic design.
Handy Helpers: Do you like to repair things? Can you sew, do carpentry? This might be for you.

*Disclaimer: Information on Volunteer and Membership opportunities are taken directly from the Pascack Historical Society Museum pamphlet. Most of the descriptions of the displays is what I was able to see in my short time visiting. The museum has a treasure trove of items to look at in detail.

The Reformed Dutch Church with its Colonial cemetery and the Wortendyke Barn is right down the road so take a few hours to explore the area. The members of the Wortendyke family are buried in the church’s cemetery.

Visit from Bergen Community College for the Bergecco- Parc Consulting Inc. on April 9th, 2025: for the ‘Bergen 250’ project:

The project we created for the “Bergen 250: the 250th Anniversary of the Revolutionary War” that was created:

https://mywalkinmanhattan.com/tag/bergen-250-the-250th-anniversary-of-the-revolutionary-war-in-bergen-county-nj/

As part of my International Marketing class, I took my students to visit the three sites for our project on the ‘Bergen 250’:

The students toured the museum with the assistance of the Museum’s Board members

As part of the assignment for our ‘Farm to Table Dinner’, the project starts here with a Cocktail Party and tour of the museum. The back room of the museum was where the party takes place and then the guests would tour the museum before heading to dinner at the Wortendyke Barn down the road.

Peter Meany, the First Vice President of the Board explaining the Wampum machine to the students. This form of Native American currency is the only machine in the world like it and is a rare artifact.

Our Team group picture at the Pascack Valley Historical Society with members of the Museum’s Executive Board Peter Meany, Ralph Donnell Jr. and Christopher Kersting.

We want to thank the Board for taking time out of their busy schedule to support the students on this project.

Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. Spring 2026 Team Project: “Bergen 250-Touring and Marketing the Pascack Historical Society for Tourism”:

The Proposal for “Bergen 250: Touring the Pascack Historical Society Museum”:

BCC-Bergecco-Parc Consulting Inc. 2026 Touring the Pascack Valley Historical Society Download

I presented the project to my students after the Spring Break and then the next week took my students on a mandatory field trip to the Pascack Historical Society Museum in early April. The Board members of the Museum led us on a tour of all the exhibitions, then discussed their plans for the “Bergen 250” and then discussed some of the challenges that the museum faced with attendance.

Touring the museum

The students on their part took pictures and notes about the museum and their displays. Many would make various trips back to the museum to crest the QR codes for the displays and map the museum’s backyard for the Farm to Table fundraiser and a proposed afternoon tea.

Touring the museum

Touring the museum

Touring the museum with the Board of the museum

The museum’s Board members could not have been nicer and more helpful to the students and myself. We got a lot of insights on what direction the Board wanted to go.

Our Team picture at the museum

The tour of the museum took about an hour. We then had a Division Team Dinner at Pompilio’s Pizzeria in Downtown Westwood, NJ:

https://www.pompiliospizzeria.com

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g46923-d4643410-r1053567938-Pompilio_s_Pizzeria_Restaurant-Westwood_New_Jersey.html?m=19905

Dinner with my Divisional Team

I find that these Team dinners and lunches are very helpful in getting the students together to get to know each other and we share a nice meal as a Team should. We asked the Board to join us so we could continue the conversation.

Dinner with both the Board and my Team

For the next five weeks the three Teams broken into Marketing, Historical and Foodservice created their ideas and game-plans to help the museum increase traffic by trying to bring a younger and tech savvy visitor into the space.

The Pascack Historical Society PowerPoint:

https://onedrive.live.com/personal/de20296acb6718c2/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7Bbc38ac22-58a7-444e-8a3d-919c9e880890%7D&action=default&redeem=aHR0cHM6Ly8xZHJ2Lm1zL3AvYy9kZTIwMjk2YWNiNjcxOGMyL0lRQWlyRGk4cDFoT1JJbzlrWnllaUFpUUFXUktobTlXakl2R3NEUUZhQ0k5OFA4&slrid=f6a013a2-4017-1000-b492-bb60994c6fcb&originalPath=aHR0cHM6Ly9vbmVkcml2ZS5saXZlLmNvbS86cDovZy9wZXJzb25hbC9kZTIwMjk2YWNiNjcxOGMyL0lRQWlyRGk4cDFoT1JJbzlrWnllaUFpUUFXUktobTlXakl2R3NEUUZhQ0k5OFA4P3J0aW1lPW1yVHgtT3V4M2tnJnJlZGVlbT1hSFIwY0hNNkx5OHhaSEoyTG0xekwzQXZZeTlrWlRJd01qazJZV05pTmpjeE9HTXlMMGxSUVdseVJHazRjREZvVDFKSmJ6bHJXbmxsYVVGcFVVRlhVa3RvYlRsWGFrbDJSM05FVVVaaFEwazVPRkE0&CID=35417700-9c90-4764-923b-3c9c9a5a6ca3&_SRM=0%3AG%3A58&file=The%20Bergen%20250%20-%20Promoting%20the%20Pascack%20Valley%20Historical%20Society.pptx

The Pascack Historical Society Corporate Website:

https://ekucevic4.wixsite.com/bergecco-parc-consul

The Pascack Historical Society YouTube Presentation:

The video of our Presentation to the Board of the Pascack Historical Society Museum on the evening of April 29th, 2026

On the evening of April 29th, the Board members of the museum joined us for the Presentation of ideas the students came up with including setting new QR codes for all the displays, a revamped Marketing plan to showcase the museum, a new historical walking tour, one aimed at adults and one to children and the ideas for the fundraising dinner, a children’s birthday party concept and a Afternoon Tea fundraiser.

After the Presentation, we had a Q & A on the ideas and after the Presentation was over, we had a reception for our guests and for the student consultants. Then we took our Corporate Team picture.

My Divisional Team the night of the Presentation

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