($) BUS TOUR OF D&R CANAL
Join us for a fabulous "on/off" walking tour of the D&R Canal. We will be hopping on and off a deluxe coach bus with private comfort facility for a day walking the scenic and preserved Delaware and Raritan Canal system from Bulls Island State Park to Trenton. Built in 1834 and dug with hand tools mostly by Irish immigrants, the canal starts in New Brunswick and ends in Trenton, which we all know by now was once part of Hunterdon County. The canal was the major shipping hub of West NJ commerce. It has a fascinating set of locks that allowed boats to be raised and lowered.
Our day starts at 9 am when we will meet at the Bulls Island State Park parking lot closest to Route 29. (Do not go over the bridge.) We will spend about an hour learning the history of the canal and walking the Bulls Island section of the Canal with our guides Bob and Linda Barth. Linda is the president of the D&R Canal Watch and has literally spent her life on this canal.
At 10 am we will depart in our deluxe coach and head to the beautiful and preserved Prallsville Mills where Linda and Bob will provide a tour of the grist mill and canal-related sites. The Prallsville Mills is home of the D&R Greenway Commission.
We'll make a brief stop to see the canal aqueduct near the Holcomb-Jimison Farmstead Museum, the oldest farm in Hunterdon County.
Our next stop is in Lambertville to see the lift lock and the outlet lock.
We'll stop for a nice lunch and head out of Lambertville and "2018 Hunterdon County" and then head to "18th Century Hunterdon County" for a stop at Washington Crossing State Park, once ours -- now Mercer County's, to view the ferry boat reproduction of an 18th-century ferry located there.
From there we head to Trenton to view the Battle Monument and take a short walk to the confluence of the main canal and feeder in Trenton.
Return time to Bulls Island is approximately 4 pm.
$30 per person all inclusive day trip includes deluxe coach, two amazing tour guides, all your admissions, lunch, snacks, tip!
Once you have ordered your ticket(s) from Eventbrite, please send your check to confirm your reservation(s) to The Hunterdon 300th, 3 Chorister Place, Flemington, NJ, 08822.
Your payment MUST BE RECEIVED< within 3 days of reserving your seats for the tour or your ticket(s) will be released.
RESERVE YOUR SEATS NOW!!
18TH CENTURY SMOKEHOUSE DEMONSTRATION AT THE BOUMAN-STICKNEY FARMSTEAD
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., Susan McLellan Plaisted MS RD CSP LDN, will demonstrate and discuss methods and traditions for smoking pork during the 18th century. At that time, most homes had a smokehouse in their backyard, and the Bouman-Stickney Farmstead has become no exception. Thanks to Eagle Scout, Derek Scott, the farmstead is proud to showcase his recent Eagle Scout project, the smokehouse, as Plaisted demonstrates the art of smoking meat.
This program is held at the Bouman-Stickney Farmstead in the Stanton section of Readington, GPS address: 114 Dreahook Road Lebanon NJ 08833. Although there is no fee, donations are gladly welcome. In case of inclement weather please call the Museums to find out the status of the program.
For more information visit the Readington Museums website
CRAFTS regular meeting - open to all with special guest: Directors of CRAFTS are pleased to announce that renowned furniture and tool restoration expert, John Porritt, will be our presenter. John’s topic will be: “Welsh Folk Life, an appreciation of Welsh folk art as evidenced by welsh stick chairs, rare love spoons and textiles”. The talk will include a hands-on experience and discussion of various forms of these crafts, and some thoughts and conjecture about the circumstances that brought them into being. John has a love of folk culture and the influence that it provides to the design of local craft items. He has always worked in wood. From making little boats of elder wood to sail on the Hampshire streams to making bows and arrows to play in the woods. His initial formal training was at Stokecroft Arts in North London in the mid 70s. He followed this with six months carpentry training in a government skill center in Sittingbourne, Kent. The icing on the cake for him was attending Shrewsbury College of Art and Technology in 1979-80, studying fine furniture making with John Price, who trained with Edward Barnsley in the Arts & Crafts furniture tradition. Since 1980, John has been self-employed, working as a designer/maker/furniture restorer/Windsor chair collector and specialist and maker of Windsor chairs and Welsh stick chairs. John is a member of the Regional Furniture Society of Great Britain, CRAFTS of NJ, Mid West Tool Collectors Association, The Early American Industries Association, and the Austerlitz Historical Society. He has spoken at numerous tool and furniture groups. Email John Porritt for additional information
Meeting Times and Location/Directions: Tailgate sales in the parking lot begin at 12:00pm (as we always say, you may want to get there earlier than that!). The meeting itself starts at 1:00pm and runs until 3:30pm. It is held at the...Masonic Lodge, Ridge Road & Dennis Ave, High Bridge NJ 08829.
Hunterdon Historical Society- For Citizens and Strangers: NJ Taverns During the Early American Period
Architectural historian Dennis Bertland is the guest speaker at the Society’s fall meeting on Sunday, November 4, 2018 @ 2:00 p.m. The meeting and lecture will be held at the United Methodist Church, 116 Main Street in Flemington, directly adjacent to the Historical Society Library and headquarters
DOWNLOAD PRESS RELEASE
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TRICENTENNIAL VOLUNTEERS MEETING
Public Welcome to Attend.
3 Chorister Place, Flemington
7pm - 9pm |
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SPECIAL VETERANS DAY TALK: WWI, THE RED CROSS AND HUNTERDON COUNTY
In honor of the 100th anniversary of the Armistice and ending of the Great War in 1918, Marcia Karrow will present a talk about the recruitment of Hunterdon's World War I's soldiers and the Red Cross movement in Hunterdon County. Free. Reservations recommended. Refreshments follow.
2pm
Main Branch County Library
RESERVE YOUR TICKETS NOW!!
BUS TRIP TO THE MUSEUM OF AMERICAN REVOLUTION, PHILADELPHIA, PA
The Raritan Township Local Historians Committee is hosting a trip to the Museum of the American Revolution, Philadelphia, Pa. on November 10, 2018.
The cost for each attendee is $55/person. For Veterans. Gold Star family members, and active duty service personnel the price is $43.
The price includes the tour bus, general admission, and a private Highlights tour of the Museum.
Lunch is not included, however there is a cafe on sight, and numerous recommended restaurants are within walking distance in Old City Philadelphia.
The bus will leave the Raritan Twp. Municipal Building parking lot at 9am and return at approximately 4:30 pm.
Tickets are available at the Municipal Building's Clerk's Office and also at Raritan Township Community Day on September 29th at Lenape Park. Contact Pete Kinsella or Kerry Rhea at 797-3291 and 806-7116 respectively.
EMAIL US FOR TO REGISTER
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HUNTERDON SYMPHONY CONCERT HONORING COMPOSERS WHO SERVED IN WWI
DOWNLOAD FLYER
Celebrating 100 years since Armistice Cay
3pm at the Hunterdon Central Regional High School
$20 Adults
$15 Seniors
$10 Students
Visit Hunterdon Musical Arts, Inc. Website for Ticketing information
TEWKSBURY HISTORIAL SOCIEITY - EQUESTRIAN HERITAGE OF THE SOMERSET HILLS WITH HISTORIAN W. BARRY THOMSON
The Tewksbury Historical Society will be holding its annual covered dish supper beginning at 5 pm, followed by Thomson’s illustrated lecture at 6:15 pm. Both the covered dish supper and lecture are free and open to the public, however for those attending the supper attendees are asked to bring a hot or cold casserole or salad or a dessert. The main course of ham and all refreshments will be provided by the Society.
Reservations can be made for the supper by calling (908) 832-6734 or email the Historical Society and indicate your name and number in your party. Please reserve by Friday, Nov. 9.
Thomson will present a broad overview of the so-called “Mountain Colony” and these many equestrian activities followed by the history of the Farmer’s Day races that have evolved into the Far Hills Race Meeting Steeplechase and the history and art of the four-in-hand road coaches that were owned by the area’s then wealthy landowners.
SOLITUDE HOUSE, OPEN HOUSE AND ART EXHIBIT
The feature exhibit at Solitude House on Sunday, November 11, from 1:00 to 4:00 pm, will be on the Lake Solitude Dam. Other exhibits will be on the wide range of products made by Taylor-Wharton Iron and Steel Company, which High Bridge was built up around. Taylor-Wharton traces its history back to the Union Iron Works that was started in 1742.
In colonial times, when an early forge was built along the South Branch of the Raritan River near today’s High Bridge, a waterwheel powered by the free-flowing river was used to operate the bellows and hammer for the forge. While this was adequate for a moderate size operation in colonial times, in 1858 when the Taylor Iron and Steel Company needed greater waterpower to increase its output and expand its operations, it constructed a dam across the whole river. The longest section of that first dam was an earthen embankment. The spillway, where the water tumbles down, was a “crib dam” – a wood frame structure that was filled with stone, dirt and wood.
In 1909, when an expansion of the Power Plant was planned, the height of the dam was raised to provide greater power and the crib dam was replaced with a stronger structure – a masonry spillway with stone buttresses. The design was by Master Engineer Frank S. Tainter who had completed a buttress dam at Lake Carnegie in Princeton in 1906. The construction of the new Solitude spillway and the heightening of the earthen dam were carried out by the employees of the Taylor Iron and Steel Company.
Over a hundred years later, in 2011, when remediation work was necessary to ensure the dam would not fail, the Borough of High Bridge, the current owner of the dam, took great care to preserve the impressive stone spillway and its buttresses. Today, that spillway looks as it did in December 1909 when it was just completed!
This Sunday, photos and other information on the Lake Solitude Dam over time will be on display at Solitude House. There will also be exhibits on Taylor-Wharton which, for many years, made wheels, axles, switches and tracks for railroads. The company produced dredge buckets which were used to dig the Panama Canal, to mine gold in the West and to mine tin in Southeast Asia. Other products were seamless high pressure cylinders for industry, the military and the medical field, tracks for half-track vehicles and manganese steel safes. During war times, the company made shells, tank treads, and doughboy hats for the military. Present-day Taylor-Wharton products include cryogenic tanks for industrial and medical uses and even tanks for beverage carbonization!
EAST AMWELL TOWNSHIP MUSEUM PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT
Runs from November 11th to December 30th
East Awmell Museum
Come explore the art of N. Frances Parker in a new exhibition at the East Amwell Museum!
1pm to 4pm
For more information visit the East Amwell Township Historical Society's web site
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'UP A CREEK' IN HUNTERDON COUNTY: CROSSING WATER EVERYWHERE!
‘Without a paddle’ or with one... either way this program includes the various 18th & 19th-century methods for getting from Point A to Point B without getting wet (well… not too wet)! It covers such topics as fords, ferries, and bridges [stone arch, metal truss, covered bridges] as well as watercraft that were used to navigate our waterways in Hunterdon County B.C. [before cars]. A fun program for adults and students alike that draws to a close our ‘Water, Water Everywhere’ theme for the year.
7 pm Main Branch; free. refreshments follow.
RESERVE YOUR TICKETS NOW |
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EAST AMWELL TOWNSHIP MUSEUM PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT
Runs from November 11th to December 30th
East Awmell Museum
Come explore the art of N. Frances Parker in a new exhibition at the East Amwell Museum!
1pm to 4pm
For more information visit the East Amwell Township Historical Society's web site |
