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Beacon Historical Society 61 Leonard Street Beacon, NY 12508

Beacon Historical Society 61 Leonard Street Beacon, NY 12508

Beacon Historical Society

61 Leonard Street

Beacon, NY 12508

(845) 831-0514

https://www.beaconhistorical.org/

https://www.facebook.com/BeaconHistoricalSociety/

Open: Sunday- Wednesday Closed/ Thursday 10:00am-12:00pm/Friday Closed/Saturday 1:00pm-3:00pm

Admission: Free but donations are accepted

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g47291-d15772700-Reviews-Beacon_Historical_Society-Beacon_New_York.html

The Beacon Historical Society at 61 Leonard Street at Christmas time

The outside of the building in the Summer

The sign for the Beacon Historical Society at Christmas time

The outside sign in the Summer

The Mission of the Society:

(From the Society pamphlet

The Beacon Historical Society was founded in 1976 to preserve, collect and interpret the rich history of the City of Beacon and its predecessor Villages of Fishkill Landing and Matteawan.

History of the Society:

(From the Museum website)

Established in 1976, the Beacon Historical Society showcases Beacon’s history through exhibitions, collections, programs, books and an informative monthly newsletter. The Beacon Historical Society is proud to serve as Beacon’s repository of rare photographs, paintings and prints, Hudson River ship models, objects and ephemera from local factories and Main Street businesses, records of local cemeteries and Civil War veterans, maps of Beacon, Fishkill Landing and Matteawan.

I recently did a walking tour of Downtown Beacon, NY and was impressed by the numbers of restaurants, bars and stores in the downtown area. It is an impressive downtown with very few empty stores and impressive and lively street life. On my first trip to the Beacon Historical Society I learned this was not always the case.

I recently visited this small historical society packed with information on the history not just of the City of Beacon but the surrounding Hudson River area. The museum gives an in depth view of the industrial history of the area and the highs and lows of many of the river communities. These small communities have seen a renaissance over the last decade especially during COVID and many of the older towns have seen new life being breathed into them.

The first exhibition I looked at was the Photographer Patrick Prosser exhibition (being shared with the Howland Cultural Center) ‘Work in Decay: The City of Beacon NY’.

Artist Patrick Prosser

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Beaconphotogroup/posts/30007658412154532

Photographer Patrick Prossner was born and raised in Beacon and a graduate of Beacon High School and SUNY New Paltz with BFA. His work on this project started in 1982 photographing the decay of his home town (Author’s Bio on BHS website).

The photographer moved to the area in the early 1980’s during a time when Beacon’s mills and factories were closing and the downtown was boarded up. It shows what the downtown business district looked like and the changes that were made to shape it today.

The sign for the exhibition

Pictures of the former industrial zone

The pictures showed a once vibrant industrial community and the changes once these factories closed.

The changes in the surrounding area

The exhibition really shows the transformation of these towns from the once industrial hubs to the artsy communities filled with galleries and bars that many of them have become.

Downtown Beacon today filled with art galleries, shops and small restaurants

The former mill is now a luxury hotel and restaurant overlooking the same waterfall that used to power the mill

These small communities factories have now become hotels, lofts and in some cases new cottage industries have moved in. Time transforms areas and what is old becomes new again.

The first floor gallery

The second exhibition that I walked through was the ‘From Haverstraw to Beacon: Inside the Brickyards the built New York City’, an extensive look at the brickyards and the clay deposits that once lined the Hudson River that build most buildings in the City in the end of the Eighteenth, Nineteenth and early Twentieth centuries.

The exhibition sign

The map of the location of the brickyards along the Hudson River. This depended on the location of the clay deposits.

Transportation of freight and people for both recreation and business was described in this display of different boats down the Hudson River.

The display of understanding the brick business

Display of the different companies and processes of making bricks

The display of people that make up the industry

The process of mining, making, drying and creating the bricks that would end up in New York City

Some of the bricks and the companies from the New York market that were created in the region

Another display on the companies

More of the companies and processes to making bricks

The exhibition was a very interesting look at what was once a dominant industry in the area but like any industry as the clay ran out and building materials changed, the industry diminished in the area and that way of life changed. With it as well was the transformation of the area.

The former brick factories

The Brockway Brick Company that built Macy’s original building in Manhattan

There were smaller exhibitions as well all over the two floors of displays. First there was a handmade dollhouse on the first floor that is a favorite of the elementary school students.

The handmade dollhouse on the first floor

On the seconded floor is a display is the socially prominent Van Nydeck family. The family donated their family tree and many family heirlooms and portraits.

Part of the Schenck Van Nydeck family tree

The Van Nydeck family heirlooms

There was also artwork and artifacts from the surrounding community on display all over the museum.

The painting is by a local artist and the pottery is locally made

The window is a Tiffany window from a local church that the Historical Society saved for the museum

The first floor gallery

The docent told me after I toured the exhibition that there are more exhibitions being planned for the future.

Touring Downtown Beacon, NY:

After the trip through the Historical Society, I ventured and walked Downtown Beacon. The neighborhood has certainly changed since the early eighties.

Downtown Beacon today

Downtown Beacon today with Mount Beacon in the distance

The beautiful floral arrangements in the downtown today

Sautjes Tave’s Begraven Ground Cemetery Bogart Road & Everett Road Demarest, NJ 07627

Sautjes Tave’s Begraven Ground Cemetery Bogart Road & Everett Road Demarest, NJ 07627

Sautjes Tave’s Begraven Ground Cemetery

Bogart Road & Everett Road

Demarest, NJ 07627

(732) 260-7877

https://www.revolutionarywarnewjersey.com/new_jersey_revolutionary_war_sites/towns/demarest_nj_revolutionary_war_sites.htm

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/1586040/sautjes-taves-begraven-ground

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=63548

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g46390-d33256525-Reviews-Sautjes_Tave_s_Begraven_Ground_Cemetery-Demarest_New_Jersey.html

The Sautjes Tave Begraven Ground Cemetery is an example of an early Dutch Cemetery of some of the first Colonists in Bergen County with some families arriving in the early 1600’s .

The entrance to the Sautjes Tave Begraven Ground Cemetery in Demarest, NJ

The historic sign at the entrance placed by the David Demarest Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution

The inside of the historic cemetery

These early families once owned farms under royal patents of hundreds of acres and these would be passed down from generation to generation. These small family cemeteries were once located on the edge of family land that have since been replaced by modern suburbs. This is now in the middle of a traffic circle surrounded by homes. The cemetery is a wonderful shape and is nicely landscaped.

The cemetery from the south side

Generations of a Bogarts, Blauvelts, Haring, Demarest, Du Bois, Van Scivan and other prominent families all inter married into each family were buried here.

The Bogart-Bauvelt family plot

The Bogart-Blauvelt family plot

The Demarest family plot

The Demarest-Haring family plot

The Ann Marie Demarest grave

The Cornelius Demarest grave site, a Revolutionary War veteran

Patriot Douwe Talema, who was killed by the Tories during the Revolutionary War

The Daniel Van Scivan grave, another Revolutionary War veteran

The Haring Family plot

The Haring family plot

The James Haring grave

The Sophia Haring grave

The Du Bois family plot

The Cemetery view from the southern corner

My video of Touring the Cemetery and its historic roots:

My tour of the cemetery

Leaving the cemetery you can see the landscaping offers these families privacy in both life and death.

After the tour of the cemetery, I explored Downtown Demarest, NJ and discovered a beautiful little town with small local stores and a beautiful set of parks surround the streams and the train station just off the downtown.

The town of Demarest Veteran’s display

The town of Demarest has its own rich beauty and you can see this by visiting its Downtown area and its parks.

The breathtaking Duck Pond Park attracted a lot of painters who set their easels by the banks of the streams.

The Duck Pond is really beautiful

They also have a really nice railroad terminal that is now a senior center

The historic Demarest Railroad Station

This wonderful community has so many wonderful attributes.

Coney Island History Project c/o Deno’s Wonderful Wheel Park 3059 West 12th Street Brooklyn, NY 11224

Coney Island History Project c/o Deno’s Wonderful Wheel Park 3059 West 12th Street Brooklyn, NY 11224

Coney Island History Project

C/O Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park

3059 West 12th Street

Brooklyn, NY 11224

https://www.coneyislandhistory.org/

Open: Sunday-Saturday 1:00pm-7:00pm (summer months only-May 24th-September 1st)

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60763-d4777489-r1014119112-Coney_Island_History_Project_Walking_Tour-New_York_City_New_York.html?m=19905

The front of The Coney Island Project

I came across this interesting museum/gallery when I was walking around Coney Island. The museum is a few small rooms located in one of the buildings in Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park. The museum is not related to the Coney Island Museum on Surf Avenue.

The small gallery space has a wealth of information and some interesting artifacts on Coney Island’s history both past and present.

The main room had artifacts and pictures of Coney Island’s past amusement history. There were many photo’s of the old parks, especially Steeplechase Park before its closing in 1965. It shows its development, growth and changes after the 1907 fire that destroyed the park.

There was all sorts of artifacts from that time as well as the former Astroland that was replaced by the new Luna Park. If you know the history of Coney Island, this can fascinating to read.

The second room had the later history when the Island’s amusements fell into disrepair and the whole island seemed to fall apart. The pictures show a very run down Coney Island.

The outside pictures show Coney Island in its heyday when during the 1930’s and 40’s before and during WWII, the island being a place of relief for so many New Yorker’s especially the working class.

The inside of the gallery

The main gallery

The Steeplechase Exhibition

Coney Island in ruin in the 1970’s

The history of Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park

The display outside the museum

The mechanical display that sings and dances

The Miss Coney Island robot is a throwback to old technology and campy robotics that is fun to watch. For a quarter, you can take an interesting video with this robot.

The Deno’s Map of the park

The history of the park

The History of the Museum:

(From the Coney Island Historical Coalition website)

The Coney Island History Project’s 2025 exhibition center season begins Memorial Day Weekend with a combination of free indoor and outdoor exhibits.  Visitors to the exhibition center are invited to take free souvenir photos with Coney Island’s only original Steeplechase horse, from the legendary ride that gave Steeplechase Park its name, and the iconic Cyclops head from Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park’s Spook-A-Rama, Coney Island’s oldest dark ride. 

The real Midway

I took pictures after the Mermaid Parade and showed how busy the amusement section was that day. There is so much potential to update the amusements and modernize the area with new rides and concessions. There is so much that can be done here. I already see new luxury apartment buildings being built and the revamping of the main shopping drag.

The Boardwalk at the end of the evening.

The Coney Island Boardwalk at twilight

Union Cemetery (Van Blarcom Burial Ground) 151 Franklin Avenue Wyckoff, NJ 07481

Union Cemetery (Van Blarcom Burial Ground) 151 Franklin Avenue Wyckoff, NJ 07481

Union Cemetery (The Van Blarcom Burial Ground)

151 Franklin Avenue

Wyckoff, NJ 07481

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/688580/union-cemetery

https://www.facebook.com/people/Wyckoff-Historical-Society/100064722099119/

https://theridgewoodblog.net/preserving-history-wyckoff-historical-societys-efforts-at-union-cemetery/embed/#?secret=TINKP0YCEL#?secret=7wVTQvohEu

My review on TripAdvisor:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Profile/R4960NKjustinw/mediabatch/13650290?m=19905

The historical sign for the Union Cemetery at 151 Franklin Avenue in Wyckoff, NJ

The marker sign put up by the Wyckoff Historical Society

The walled garden just outside the cemetery in bloom

The Union Cemetery was originally the resting place of the Van Blarcom family and the right hand side of the cemetery has the Van Blarcom family plot

One of the descendants of the family, Ethel Van Blarcom Green donated money for the preservation of this family plot.

The Biography of Ethel Van Blarcom Green:

(From the Wyckoff Historical Site)

If you at all familiar with the Wyckoff Historical Society’s recent activities at Union Cemetery, you may know that the 250 year-old site was the original Van Blarcom burial site. The name can be traced to the early 1700s when the first Van Blarcom family settled in New Jersey. The oldest legible headstone dates to 1764.

What you may not know, is that Ethel Van Blarcom, a direct descendant, bestowed a significant financial contribution to the Society beginning in 1978, with her wish that her beloved family cemetery be maintained. Although she lived in California for most of her adult life, Union Cemetery obviously held a special place in her heart, and she wanted to see it survive. The Society has Ethel’s hand-written letters that confirm her generous donation. She also continued to renew her Society membership until 1984.

However, it wasn’t until 2019 that the current trustees decided it was time to use the funds for its intended use, and honor Ethel’s wishes. Several headstones were repaired, new fencing is being installed, and yearly grounds maintenance is conducted, thanks, in part, to Ethel’s generosity.

It was at this time that Society trustees, Doris Noerr, Melanie Long, and Linda Vreeland, dove into genealogy websites and Society archives to learn more about Ethel’s life and to particularly find a photograph of her. 

“After several week of research, we obtained Ethel’s death certificate which led to contacting her niece Naomi who is now 92,” said Society president, Lynn Groel-Lynch. “To our delight, she had a photo of Ethel and her husband, Roy Green that we believe is her 1916 wedding photo.”

Ethel was born in Paterson in 1897 and lived to the age of 89. She and Roy moved to the Los Angeles, California area most likely around the time of her mother’s death in 1933. The couple had no children.

“We are still in the process of contacting a few descendants, and those we’ve spoken to have been happy to share what they know about Ethel,” said Melanie Long. “We also will install a plaque in her memory near where her father, Edward is buried in Union Cemetery. There are thousands of Van Blarcom names as they were the one of the prominent families in our area’s farming community, and after all these years, the Society is thrilled to finally honor the legacy of one very important Van Blarcom, Ethel Van Blarcom Green. As they say, ‘It’s never too late’”.

The current history of the Union Cemetery:

(Wyckoff Historical Society website)

The original Grange sign from the 1960s at the Franklin Avenue entrance of Union Cemetery was weathered and fragile. The Wyckoff Historical Society recently replaced the old sign with one that is also hand-lettered, and includes the Grange logo which was barely visible on the old sign. Two new posts display the new sign.

The Ackerman and Terwilliger families are buried to the left/northern side of the cemetery

The Terwilliger family plot

The resting place of James Terwilliger’s tombstone

To the right of the pathway around the cemetery to the south is the Van Blarcom family plot where on the oldest graves is that of John Van Blarcom, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.

The resting place of Revolutionary War veteran, John Van Blarcom

https://patch.com/new-jersey/wyckoff/birth-of-a-nation-revolutionary-officer-remembered

The original section of the Van Blarcom family plot dating back to the Revolutionary War

The later burial section of the Van Blarcom family

The resting place of Daniel and Rebecca Van Blarcom

The Terwilliger family has two sections of the family plot in the northern section of the cemetery

The Ackerman family’s plot is to the middle most northern end of the cemetery

The Mallinson/Westervelt family has the further most family plot of the cemetery

The cemetery is so peaceful and relaxing to walk around. The Wyckoff Historical Society has done a wonderful job maintaining the property. Even though it is the resting place of many family plots, it’s still a very welcoming place and you can feel it as you walk the paths. There is a respect of remembering the people of the past that can be felt here

As you walk the pathways, you visit the people who have contributed to the growth and history of Bergen County and the surrounding area. They shaped their communities from before the Revolution War to today.

My video of visiting the cemetery and the families that rest here.

The History of the Cemetery:

(From the Wyckoff Historical Society website)

The Union Cemetery on Franklin Avenue dates back to the first half of the 1700s, when Johannes Van Blarcom set aside an area of his property to become a burial place. The earliest readable stone is from 1764 and thought to mark the grave of a slave girl because there is no surname given. Johannes Van Blarcom’s daughter, who died in 1725, is alleged to be buried there also. Various community groups have volunteered to maintain the cemetery, including the Wyckoff Historical Society. In 2018, dead trees, underbrush, and poison ivy were removed.

Most are early Van Blarcom family members as the cemetery was one of the original family cemeteries.