Explore the History of the Caldwells; Saturday, June 11

by Carolyne Volpe Curley / Carolyne@WestEssexNOW.com
Published 8:11am

CALDWELL / WEST CALDWELL, NJ -  This Satuday, June 11,  organizations in Caldwell and West Caldwell will present a variety of interesting and exciting historic programs at multiple locations which are designed to appeal to all ages and interests. See below for a detailed list of  exhibits, lectures, self-guided walking tours, and an overnight Civil War reenactment. Events are listed by scheduled time.

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West Caldwell Library - "Genealogy and Local History Resources"
Local History and Genealogy Room: 9am to 5pm and during all regular library hours
30 Clinton Road, West Caldwell

• The library's genalogy collection currently includes over 700 books, as well as manuscripts, microfilmed newspapers, directories, yearbooks, maps, photographs, and family histories
• The library also offers access to "Ancestry Library Edition"
• Special Exhibit: West Essex Woman’s Club 's “West Essex Women of Achievement”

First Presbyterian Church at Caldwell : "Caldwell Heritage Room"
Saturday: 10am to 4pm
326 Bloomfield Avenue, Caldwell

• Self-guided tour: Old Burying Ground, 1788 through 1881
  The cemetery contains the graves of twenty veterans of the Revolutionary War and several from the War of 1812
• The Heritage Room is an archive of early church records and artifacts as well as a gallery where the history of the church and Caldwell are exhibited

Grover Cleveland Birthplace Museum State Park - "Silhouette Portrait"
Saturday: 10am to 4pm
Sunday: 1pm to 4pm
207 Bloomfield Avenue, Caldwell

• Silhouette portrait artist, Ruth E. Grabner
  In homage to a long ago time when itinerant artists would visit homes to create portraits that would become treasured family possessions, Ms. Grabner will be offering, for an affordable fee, Victorian silhouette portraits.
• Admission to the museum and gift shop is free.

Caldwell Historic Preservation Commission - "Your Old House"
Saturday: 10:30am to 1pm
268 Bloomfield Avenue, Caldwell

• 10:30am - "Introduction: Meet the Commission"
• 10:45am - “Caldwell Mega-Mansions at the End of the Golden Age”
• 11:15am - “Development of Caldwell from Fine Resorts and Gentlemen’s Farms to Suburbia”
• 11:45am - “Caldwell’s Most Endangered Building” (You’ll be surprised!)
  All of the programs will focus on the Borough’s rich architectural heritage. Residents will be able to look up historic information about their homes and receive guidance about how to do further research. Local historian, Richard Cummings, and architect/historic preservation expert, Frank Gerard Godlewski, will speak.

Historical Society of West Caldwell: "Historic Crane Homestead"
Saturday: 12pm to 4pm
289 Westville Avenue, West Caldwell

• Guided tour: 19th Century Crane House, includes Caldwell’s War of 1812 Militia Flag and West Caldwell’s first Post Office.
• A special exhibit, “Remembering NJ” presents commemorative and souvenirs of NJ
  
  

Co. E, 15 th NJ Vol. Infantry - "Overnight Civil War Encampment and Drills"
Saturday, 12pm to Sunday, 12pm
289 Westville Avenue, West Caldwell

• Camp demonstrations: military camping, cooking, military drills and shooting as it was done in the 1860’s.
• Drills: Saturday: 1pm, 4pm

Sisters of St. Dominic of Caldwell - "Heritage Rooms and Archives"
Saturday: 1pm to 4pm
Dominican Motherhouse, 1 Ryerson Avenue, Caldwell

• Collection exhibit: View pictures, documents and artifacts of their Order, St. Aloysius Church, St. Aloysius School, Trinity Academy and Mount St. Dominic

Grover Cleveland Park Conservancy - "Highlights of a Century"
Saturday: 1:30pm to 2:30pm
Park Pond House, Brookside Avenue, Essex Fells/Caldwell

• Richard Cummings, author of “Illustrated Highlights of a Century: Grover Cleveland Park 1913-2013," will discuss the history of the park. Copies of the book will be for sale to benefit the Park.

Caldwell Merchants Association: "History on the Avenue"
Saturday: throughout the day
along Bloomfield Avenue

• Self-guided tour: An exhibit of over 70 posters of pictures and descriptions of buildings on Bloomfield Avenue and people who worked there in the early 1900’s

Prospect Hill Cemetery
Saturday: throughout the day
94 Prospect Street, Caldwell

• Self-guided tour: Maps will be provided for touring the cemetery which was opened in 1866 and is maintained by the First Presbyterian Church of Caldwell

Caldwell Environmental Commission - "Personette Street Garden"
Saturday: throughout the day
Personette Street, Caldwell

• Self-guided tour: Pollinator Garden, a “work in progress!”

"Parsonage Hill, Caldwell"
Saturday: throughout the day

• Self-guided tour: Parsonage Hill; map to be available "in the area"
  Spanning the years from 1870 to 1920, the neighborhood includes Queen Anne, Carpenter Gothic and Shingle Style architecture and virtually all of the buildings in the neighborhood have retained their architectural integrity.

"Orton Road, West Caldwell"
Saturday: throughout the day

• Self-guided tour: Orton Road map to be available "in the area

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