Volume XXXX Issue 11 Spring 2009 Historic Library Painting .

PAGE 4Upcoming EventsTuesday * April 21st * 7:30 PMRegular Monthly MeetingMuseum HouseHISTORIC DOVER AREAWHARTON PHOTOSTuesday * May 19th * 7:30 PMRegular Monthly MeetingMuseum HouseQUAKER MEETING HOUSENo Charge - Refreshments ServedMonday * Memorial Day ParadeMonday * May 25thMovie at the Baker TheaterYANKEE DOODLE DANDY(Watch the movie on the large screen)7:00 pm * Donation suggestedRefreshments availableTuesday * June 16th * 7:30 PMRegular Monthly MeetingMuseum HouseHISTORY OF BAKER THEATER(From vaudeville to motion pictures)No Charge - Refreshments ServedN E WS LE T T E R T I T LESunday * July 12th * All DayANNUAL YARD SALE/FLEA MARKETANNUAL ROOT BEER SOCIAL(A day at the Dover Flea Market)For reservations call 973.361.3525 20 per table - 15 for returnsTuesday * July 21st * 7:30 PMRegular Monthly MeetingMuseum HouseHISTORY OF THE DOVER SCHOOLSNo Charge - Refreshments ServedTuesday * Aug. 18th * 7:30 PMRegular Monthly MeetingMuseum HouseTHE MORRIS CANAL THRU DOVER(Explore the old canal through Dover)No Charge - Refreshments ServedSept. & Oct. * Family Portraits *The Dover Historical Society will behosting family portraits, taken at theMuseum House.(Be part of Dover’s recorded history)Photographer - Rick KellyV O LU M E X X X X I S S U EOutreach Program Senior Citizens have been meeting at themuseum house through the DoverRecreation Commission. “Disasters of the Dover Area” programhas become very popular as it has nowbecome the most requested show to see.It’s been shown at the WhartonHistorical Society, The Dover SeniorCitizens Club and The RandolphHistorical Society. The Dover College Club recently met atthe museum house and heard apresentation from Linda Barth,president of the Historical Societies ofNew Jersey. The annual Flea Market returns toBlackwell Street this year. Look for ouryard sale on July 12th, all day. Second Annual Tea Party coming up onSeptember 26th with two seating's. Last(These programs are subject to change)Beyond The “D” - History of Craftsman FarmsBeyond the “D” is a column featuring interesting historic faces and places beyond Dover but very close. By Joan BocchinoSome names you just don’t hear too much anymore. Last September, Hurricane Gustav roared up the East Coast. Gustav the name emanates strength and ethnicity – someone full of GUSTO! Our great Morris County had its own famous Gustav – GustavStickley. Who was this Gustav Stickley?To know Gustav, you must visit his legacy, Craftsman Farms. That name probably rings a tiny bell, for if you ever droveRt. 10 West, leaving the flatness of Morris Plains, then climbing, climbing up the foothills of Parsippany and Powder Mill, you mighthave seen the brown sign. “Craftsman Farms, next right.” Slow down, turn in. It’s 1908. Gustav purchased the first of his 650 acres“deep in the sunny New Jersey hills.” Thirty miles from NYC, five miles from Dover, and a few short miles from the all-importantticket to NYC - the Morris Plains train station.Gustav’s goal was to buck the mass-produced overly ornate Victorian furniture trend of the day. He wanted to bring back thecraft of furniture making – simple, sturdy, and functional furniture. At the same time, he wanted to marry this artistic philosophy to alifestyle. (cont. on page 6)Antique Center(cont. from previous page)Years ago, many kids walking home fromschool used to use Newberry's as a shortcut from one block to the other stoppingalong the way to browse or stop at JoeWessman’s Jewelry to have a watchfixed or just watch him work. The DoverAntique Center, now in their 14th year atthe old Newberry's store, helps bringback a lot of old Dover memories. Theyhave my praise for the work they do and Some of the vendors at the Dover Antique Center include Harry Stihl, Dan Korpos, Joethe business they’re in. Be sure to stop Formato, Irene Linzmayer, Karen Gunzel, Nancy Vandeerbush, Jeannie Benedetto,Brenda Feller, Rich Kandy, Al Slater and Bob Ricciotti.by and say hello.

V O LU M E X X X X I S S U EN E WS LE T T E R T I T LEPAGE 5Another “Treasured” Library PaintingDOVER-One of Dover’spriceless treasures is located inside thepublic library. Emanuel Leutze’s“Indians Attacking the Wagon Train”painted in Dusseldorf, Germany in 1863was donated to the library on June 3,1943 in memory of Mrs. William E.Derry by the Derry family. Prior to this,the painting had been on loan to thelibrary for eight years.At the age of 24, EmanuelLeutze became part of this flow of artistswho traveled to Germany to study inDusseldorf. Although Leutze only spent20 years in the United States, heconsidered himself an American andlifted up the United States to the othermembers of the Academy. Leutze thoughtof the United States as the universalfatherland. Many German idealiststhought of this belief, which to someaccounted for the large immigration ofGermans into America. Even Dover’slarge German immigrationin the late 1800s won thename of “Germantown” inEast Dover. The GuentherHosiery Mill and the rowhouses along King Streetare still monuments to thisgreat German migration.InLeutze’spaintings, he glorifiedAmerican history withgreat enthusiasm, upliftingthe heroic spirit of thenation.Onavery warm Saturday, July18th day, the temperaturerose to 95 degrees andcontinuedtorisethroughout the day. Thisday was like many othersin Washington, DC wherethe city was known for itsextreme heat. However, onthis day, the excessive heat took its toll on Leutze and hecollapsed in front of the Willard Hotel and within hours wasdead. The newspaper wrote that the cause of death was "heatprostration and sunstroke." The Funeral service was held athis home at 5:30 P.M. on Monday, July 20, 1868. Leutzewas buried at Glenwood Cemetery in the city he calledCompliments ofFrank & Grace HamiltonOld Lyme, CTCompliments ofRobert & RoseTiefenbacher, LafayetteWho were Dr. William E. & Olivia Derry and the Derry Family?Emanuel Leutze’s memory liveson forever in Dover as one only needs tovisit and admire not only the splendiddetail of his art work, but the genuineAmerican spirit that went into it. In 1976,during the United States bi-centennial, thepainting was loaned to the Smithsonian inWashington. It was cleaned and refurbishedin 1989 and today sits on display in its finalresting place. This painting is truly one ofDover’s finest treasures.According to historic documents,“the 1863 painting was donated to thelibrary on June 3, 1943 in memory of Mrs.William E. Derry by the Derry family”WhoweretheDerry’s?According to MarilynPatterson, genealogist for the Dover AreaHistorical Society, William E. Derry wasa physician in Dover.1889, Sarah in Oct. 1894 and Mildred inJune 1899.At 52 W. Blackwell St. (acrossfrom the historical society’s museum) Dr.Derry would have been part of “Doctor’sRow” of Dover.In 1900, he owned a home at 52W. Blackwell St with his wife Olivia, 3daughters Edna, Sarah, Mildred, aservant Bella Dawson, and a hostler JohnWagner.Dr. Derry was born in July 1856,Olivia in June, 1869, Edna in DecemberIn 1910, census shows Olivia andtheir 3 daughters lived at 6 Bank Street andin 1920 they apparently owned a home on 6Orchard Street with Olivia and 1 daughter,Mildred, still at home. More research isbeing conducted on this historic Doverfamily.Vivian Berg - Founding Member & President of Dover Area Historical SocietyOur beloved past president andfounding member of the Dover HistoricalSociety passed away on April 2, 2009.Vivian will long be rememberedas the person who singlehandedly kept thehistorical society together for over 25years. With the failed attempt of theBonnieview Museum, everyone in theorganization walked away except forVivian. Vivian kept the charter alive byholding monthly meetings on a regularbasis, even when one or two people wouldshow up.However, Vivian will mostly beremembered for her successful attempts tosave the historic 1829 Stone Academy.During Dover’s Urban Renewal in the1970s, the town was going berserk tearingdown historic buildings. The town lost theold Playhouse Theater and slated to berazed were all the buildings on thesouthside of Blackwell Street including theBaker Opera House and the StoneAcademy. Vivian stepped up to the plateand fought to save the Academy which wasnext in line. Her attempts caught the atten-tion of the US Dept. of Interior whichordered an immediate halt to any morerazing. The Dept. soon after establishednew rules, that any historic structures tobe razed, needed to be reviewed first bythe Federal Agency. Many feel Vivian’sefforts expedited this ruling. Many inDover also remember Sunday morningsin downtown Dover with Vivian’sbeautiful hymns from the bells of thePresbyterian Church. Vivian’s wonderfulcontribution to the history of Dover willsurely be missed and long remembered.

PAGE 6N E WS LE T T E R T I T LEV O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1Post Cards of the Historic Canal Boat-Train WreckDOVER-The only recordedtrain wreck between a canal-boat and atrain in the history of the Morris Canalhappened in downtown Dover. On June12, 1905, a collision occurred betweenthe Central Railroad of NJ engine #410and a Morris Canal boat at the GuardLock in Dover, directly behind theCentral House Hotel (today's LaughingLion restaurant). The train's brakes failedto operate properly. The train crashedthrough the drawbridge, which was opento permit a boat to pass. The engineerwas Henry Schafer and the boat captainwas George Meyers.Miraculously,Captain Meyers, his wife and sleeping 2year old child were not injured. Neitherwas the train engineer.In 2008 when members of thehistorical society were unpacking boxesof memorabilia that have been storedaway for over 25-years, they came uponhundreds and hundreds of photographcards of this canal-boat, train accident.They may have been printed in the 1960swhen the historical society occupied TheBonnieview Mansion Museum at HurdPark. We have decided to enclose someof these cards in our quarterly newsletterfor 2009. Enjoy.One of the little girls posing inthe photo to the lower right may be thatof Dorothy Sektberg later in life tobecome Mrs. Paul Bostrom. In 1963she stated, “I took my brother, Herbert,by the hand and we ran to the scene of theaction. When all the excitement wasover, my father let me know in nouncertain terms that little girls were notsupposed to be in such dangerousplaces.”Compliments ofDover Area Chamber of CommerceDoverIn Loving Memory of Barbara WoodhullBy Bill WoodhullUnexpected financial assistancewas realized by our Society just recentlywhen over 1300.00 was received inmemory of our past member, BarbaraWoodhull.Barbara’s family hadsuggested that in lieu of flowers, adonation be made to the Dover AreaHistorical Society in her memory.A list of donors follows and theSociety sincerely appreciates and thanksthose who so generously sent a memorialin Barbara’s name:Beyond The D (cont.)In today’s vernacular, we mightrefer to Gustav as “green.” His dream wasto create a boys’ school here, CraftsmanFarms, where the boys could learn furnituremaking on a self-sustaining farm withvegetable gardens, fruit trees, a vineyard,barns of cows and chickens.A schoolnever opened, and his family consisting ofhis wife, four daughters and son movedinto the log house. When you visit the site,the centerpiece is “the log house, built in1911, one of the most significant landmarksAkselrad & Joseph Lovas, SuccasunnaWilliam J. Hall, DoverSacred Heart Leisure Club, DoverGeorge & Shirley O’Brien, DoverKathleen & Michael MacDonald, Pepperell,MADiane & Gary Rojek, N. Brunswick,Mr.&Mrs. Nicholas DePasquale, FreeholdJames & Valerie Cline, Long ValleyMrs. Jeanette Czipo, WhartonHendricks & Hendricks, N. BrunswickEllen H. Boyer, Budd LakeIrma McKenna, MorristownStan & Marg Schoonmaker, DoverBrownwood Realty Co., DoverMs. Gloria Bajek, CliftonArlene Renwick, DoverMr.&Mrs. Anthony Benedetto, PrincetonWilmott & Anastasia Barna, PrincetonMr. & Mrs. Craig Goettler,Doylestown, PAPaul McDougall, DoverVicky&Glen Winkelman, HopatcongDalia Tortorella, BranchvilleMrs. Dorothy Thorpe, Bethlehem, PAMr.&Mrs. Charles Cummings, BelvidereMs. Shirley Ferriero, BoontonMs. Dianne Scalzo, Erie, PAMs. Rosita Scinto, DoverDr. Bill and Sharon Johnson, DenvilleCrafts of Gustav was heard in the cries of theworldwide art community who shouted“No!” The preserved site is now managedThe farm was sometimes by the Craftsman Farm Foundation.referred to as the Garden of Eden, butreality visited in 1915, when Gustav wasGustav Stickle was a furnitureforced to declare bankruptcy. In 1917 the designer, a philosopher, and a publisher. Heentire 650-acre property was bought by was a leader in the American Arts andthe Farny family, who kept it intact until Crafts movement.1969 when they sold all but 27 acres. InStep back one hundred years, visit1987 these 27 acres, which contained theCraftsmanFarms. Go to the well craftedlog house, cottages and outbuilding werefor sale to a developer wanting to build website www.stickleymuseum.org to learn52 town homes. This is when the spirit moreof the Americanmovement.”Artsand

V O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1N E WS LE T T E R T I T LEPAGE 7The Historic Central Hotel (Laughing Lion)DOVER-This was originally theCentral Hotel one of the major hotel stopsalong the busy Central Railroad of NewJersey.In 1872, Leopold Schwarzpurchased the old Steel Furnace site onNorth Sussex Street and used its bricks toerect the Central Hotel, the second brickbuilding in Dover. The hotel building stillstands today and is the home of TheLaughing Lion Restaurant. In exchangefor the right-of-way between Mr.Schwarz's two buildings for the CentralRailroad tracks, Mayor George Richardsgave Mr. Schwarz the "Old Stone Store"onBlackwellStreet.The Old Steel Furnace has awonderful history all onto itself. It oncestood at the site of today’s Schwarz BlockBuilding. The furnace was constructed byHenry McFarlan, Sr. & JosephBlackwell shortly after they took over theIron Works site in 1816. It was the firstsuch plant of its kind in Morris County.As the iron and steel businessprospered in Dover the populationcontinued to grow and with the soon-to-beMorris Canal dig through town, McFarlan& Blackwell decided it was time to lay outa city-street-grid and offer lots for sale tofuture settlers.In 1827 they advertised in thePalladium of Liberty Newspaper in New Yorkthat building lots in Dover were “for sale.”Unfortunately, Joseph Blackwell never sawhis dream come true for he passed away thatvery same year. Likewise, three years laterHenry McFarlan Sr. passed away with hisson, Henry McFarlan Jr. taking over thebusiness of developing Dover which hesucceeded in doing over the next 55-yearsuntil his death on March 27, 1882.Blackwell and McFarlan,partners since 1796. were iron merchants inNew York City where they did immensebusiness from their store at 8 Coenties-slip.They were known to buy outentire cargoes of iron without hesitating,and their store was considered theheadquarters of the iron trade.Current Events In Historic Dover - Major Bridge RepairWork hasbegun on the 61million improvementproject of the Route46 overpass andRoute 15 intersectionwhich should takeabout three years tocomplete.Townofficials said the improvements couldn’tcome soon enough since the bridges werein horrendous condition with chunks ofconcrete falling from underneath. Abovephotos show some of the early worktaking place. The razing of a group ofhomes along McFarlan Street west andthe razing of Traveler’s Diner. The phototo the right is a view of the Route 46bridge over the Rockaway River, the siteof the annual Rubber Ducky Race. Thisyear’s event will move to a new site atWater Works Park. Traffic is beingdetoured around the work site causingsome serious delays and congestion.Cub Scouts Visit Museum - Boy Scout Troop 64 SleepoverA group of Cub Scouts recentlymade a trip to the museum house.Pictured are three of the scouts, MichaelRohn, Matthew Schoelch and JonathanBurgos. Their biggest thrill was to visitthe site of the “ghost.”Eagle Scout Todd Stazackfrom Mine Hill earned his rank bycompletely renovating the second floorkitchen area of the Dover HistoryMuseum. Recently, Boy Scout Troop 64held a sleepover in the museum house.Center picture shows museum curatorGeorge Laurie explaining the story ofDorothy, the friendly haunting, that stillvisits the house on a regular basis. Thephoto to the right shows how attentive theboys were.

PAGE 8N E WS LE T T E R T I T LEV O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1Historic Central Railroad Cut ExposedDOVER-For the first time indecades, the historic Central Railroad cutthrough Fairview Hill has been exposed tothe public eye due to the cutting of treesand brush in order to prepare for the majorconstruction of the new Route 46-15overpass, connection.the tunnel and Irish immigrants werehired to work at the western enddigging through the solid rockmountain.In the meantime, agroup of Italian immigrants workedlaying tracks in the East Dover"meadows".According to historic records,before Mayor George Richards was ableto complete his railroad line, The DoverHibernia Line” two major obstacles had tobe overcome. One being the constructionof a tunnel under the Rockaway Road justeast of Dover and the other being a “verycritical” cut that had to be made throughsolid rock in west Dover above the MillPond, adjacent to Clinton Street.Most of the Swedish laborforce was housed in the apartmentsand hotel buildings along NorthSussex Street for the duration of theproject.This project alone contributed toDover's early "Melting Pot" as about fiftySwedish immigrants were employed at theeastern end of the line to dig and constructAfter this link was completedan "old farm house" building on NorthSussex Street was converted into a trainstation to become the first Dover terminalwhich operated there for over fifty years.Once the line was completed to HighBridge, the building was widely used as adeparture and arrival station by thepeople of such towns as Long Valley,Flanders, Bartley, and Califon as well asnearby communities such as Rockaway,Wharton, and Hibernia.Notice the railroad cut through solid rocklooking eastward. The Route 46 overpasswill be reconstructed, joining Route 15 tocreate a “T” intersection.German Exchange Students VisitDOVER-Stan Schoonmaker hosted the visit of eleven German Exchange Studentsfrom Wiesbaden, Germany on Monday April 6th. The students visited the Dover Museum tohear the German language teacher from Dover High, Ulla Shuler, give a lecture on the historyof the German immigrant, Paul Guenther, who settled in Dover in the late 1800s and startedthe world’s leading manufacturing company in ladies silk stockings.Stan was able to use the latest state-of-the-art technology to project hundreds ofphotographs, documents, letters and post cards onto a large screen as Ms. Shuler gave thelecture. This is the same program that the historical society has presented a couple of times atthe Guenther Mill on King Street and hopes to present it again in October.Paul Guenther left such an impact on Dover that an entire section of town in eastDover became known as “Germantown” which also includes “Germania Park” in RockawayTwp. It’s often been mentioned that in his home town of Saxony, statues and monuments standin his memory. In Dover, there is nothing, no signs, not even a street named in his memory.Moller Opea House c 1860s - Baker Opera House 1895 - PlayhouseWhat’s Playing in Dover? Theatre vaudeville & photo plays c 1919 - Baker “silent movies” c 1920s.

V O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1N E WS LE T T E R T I T LEPAGE 9Historic Dover “Tree City USA” 29-YearsDOVER-When Dover receivedthe honor of being named “Tree City USA”29 years ago, only 10 other cities inAmerica had the same distinction at thetime. Today, thousand

Dr. A.L.& Jean Baker, Hopatcong Bill & Ginny Birch, BernardsvilleCarolyn Bishop, Dover . James & JoAnn Dodd, Dover Patrick Fahy, Dover . Winchester, VA Robert & Mary Flanagan