Lincoln Park Historical Museum
141 Main Street
Lincoln Park, NJ 07035
https://www.lincolnpark.org/373/Historical-Society
https://www.facebook.com/groups/lincolnparkhistory
My review on TripAdvisor:
Lincoln Park History Museum at 141 Main Street
The entrance of the Museum off the Main Street.
As part of the Morris County “Pathways to History” tour I visited the small Lincoln Park History Museum just off the downtown. This colorful and well lit little museum is packed with information on the development of the town. The transformation took place with the form of transportation that changed the area starting with the Morris Canal running through then the railroad system and then the advent of the automobile. This area is still quite sleepy even though its located just an hour outside of New York City.
Lincoln Park History Museum, located at the original 1922 Library building. Lincoln Park, or as once known, Beavertown, is small in geographic nature but has a rich and diverse history. The museum’s goal is to rediscover the town’s past and celebrate / preserve the history, which sadly, at times, is lost and forgotten.
The history of the town’s police and fire departments
Join us and discover our past which includes: dinosaurs, native American artifacts, revolutionary roads /houses, civil war hometown hero, part of the Morris Canal path, part of the Boonton Line Railroad branch, airport, major flood events, some Hollywood film locations and of course our townsfolks who sacrificed in war, volunteers (fire department, police, first aid, pal, scouting etc.), all who made Lincoln Park a wonderful town to grow up in and formed pride and sense of community (Pathways Tour website).
The history of the Morris Canal that ran through the town before the railroads.
The Morris Canal was an important part of the town’s development.
Learn how the town transformed from a small crossroad in the American revolution to a canal stopping point with incline plane, lock and hotel. Learn how it progressed from farming to resort area to commuting town and transform to what it is today. The town keeps growing.
The day the Railroad came to town and it changed everything! On December 14, 1870 the first passenger train stopped at Beavertown. School was closed that day so the students could witness this momentous occasion. The following year Beavertown’s name was changed to Lincoln Park. This event, started a large and long transformation of the town. Prior to this, the town was all farmland and the few businesses in town centered on support of the Morris Canal. Once the railroad came, the transformation started (Pathways Tour website).
Small industries were created which used the train system for shipping freight and the population started to grow. In the earlier 1900s advertisements were placed in New York /Brooklyn newspapers advocating the benefits of country living. City folks would come by train for the summer and enjoy river activities and many of these folks became permanent residents. During this time the Morris canal was slowly fading away, not able to compete against the railroad. Soon, it was feasible to commute daily from Lincoln Park to New York by train and the population continued to grow along with more business to support the population (Pathways of History Tour of Morris County website).
Lincoln Park’s Farming past and Business District.
Lincoln Park’s town history of schools, fire and police departments.
The museum only takes about an hour to visit but take the time to see all the displays and talk to the docents. The town really has an interesting history.
