Historic Happenings Blog

Sunday, January 26  - Maplewood, Essex County Annual Open Hearth Cooking Demonstration In an annual tradition spanning over 35 years, visitors have gathered around Durand-Hedden’s 18th-century hearth and experienced how Maplewood residents of long ago cooked, ate, and kept warm during the long winter months. This tradition takes place on Sunday from 1:00 to - 4:00 pm. Durand-Hedden is pleased once again to welcome cook Margaret Quinn to its kitchen. Margaret is the spirited shearer who trimmed the wool from visiting sheep at our From Fleece to Cloth event in April two years ago and will bring the same energy and skill to our fireplace. Margaret has worked in the living history field for over twenty years and has become proficient at the wood stove and open earth cooking. She continually expands her culinary knowledge as a participant in the Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums and the Historic Foodways Society of the Delaware Valley. On the menu this y...

Address : Hilton Branch, Maplewood Library                  1688 Springfield Ave, Maplewood, NJ 07040 Hours :  Sunday 1–4PM Monday 10AM–5PM Tuesday 12–8PM Wednesday 10AM–5PM Thursday 12–8PM Friday Closed Saturday 10AM–1PM

Teddy Roosevelt returns to Maplewood, NJ! Sunday, October 20, 2019 at 2 PM – 4 PM Jefferson Elementary School 518 Ridgewood Road, Maplewood, New Jersey 07040 Don’t miss Theodore Roosevelt’s resplendent return to Maplewood on Sunday, October 20, at 2:00 p.m. at Jefferson School sponsored by the Durand-Hedden House. Teddy once roamed the hills and meadows of our town as a boy exploring nature while visiting his Uncle Cornelius’s estate, now the Roosevelt Park section. Expertly played by historic interpreter Joe Wiegand, Theodore Roosevelt will come back to reconnect with Maplewood and vividly share stories of his life, family, and presidency. Born in NYC in 1858, Roosevelt graduated from Harvard University and was elected the youngest member of the New York State General Assembly. In the years that followed, he became a cattle rancher in the Dakota Territory, served as the president of the Police Commission of New York City, the Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Navy, the Governor of New Y...

Sunday, September 15 – Essex County   Sunday, September 15 - Maplewood, Essex County Horseshoe Crabs: A Fascinating Conservation Study If you headed ‘down the Shore’ this summer, you may have brushed up against a few horseshoe crabs on the beach – and had hardly given a thought to these odd, distant relatives of spiders. Yet horseshoe crabs are 300 million-year-old living fossils that are so valuable that in the late 1990s they became the center of a perfect storm of competing interests. At 2:00 pm Sunday, New Jersey environmentalist Tedor Whitman will tell us why commercial fisheries, tourism officials, ornithologists, government (local, county, state, and federal) agencies, and pharmaceutical interests all fought to determine the use and future of these animals. Fortunately, the fate of the horseshoe crab fell into the hands of a resourceful biological technician and a handful of determined citizens. Tedor Whitman is the Executive Director of the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird...

Juneteenth, an African American holiday marking the end of slavery, will be celebrated Sunday at Durand-Hedden House, in collaboration with the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race. The event, from 1:00 - 5:00 pm, will include reenactors from the Civil War 6th Regiment Colored Troops, African Drummers and Dancers, the Columbia High School Special Dance Company, a demonstration by Nubian Quilters, storytellers, and many activities for adults and children, including face-painting, read-alouds, and making paper quilt squares. The winners of the student essay contest will read their essays. Vendors of African-themed books, clothing, and jewelry will add to the excitement. Delicious individual pies and cookies will be available for sale. Also available will be voter registration forms, free blood pressure screenings, and health information about sickle cell disease and bone marrow donation. Inside the house, an exhibit about the origins of Juneteenth and the history of slavery...

Join genealogist and author Maureen Wlodarczyk at Durand-Hedden House & Garden in Maplewood, NJ, on Sunday at 2:00 pm to learn how to layer historical context (social, economic, religious, military, and other aspects) of the times in which your ancestors lived into your family tree, giving dimension to their lives, struggles, and experiences. Researching your family history and authenticating names, dates, and places is only the starting point. Maureen uses her own New Jersey Irish family in her PowerPoint talk to illustrate how adding “flesh” to our ancestral “skeleton” brings our forebears alive. She will provide handouts and welcome questions. An unrepentant history and genealogy addict, Maureen Wlodarczyk is an officer and genealogical researcher with the Flannery Clan organization based in Dublin, Ireland, and is a member of the Irish American Writers and Artists organization, the Genealogical Society of New Jersey, and the Hudson County Genealogical Society. She has helped ma...

Join Durand-Hedden for this wonderful event for mothers, daughters, fashionistas, home sewers, history lovers, and all those who wonder how clothing provides a window into the past. At 2:00 pm, clothing historian Pat Sanftner will reveal the high style changes that took place in the 1700s in Europe and then the American Colonies, and the fashion mavens who made them, using 100 illustrations to demonstrate four significant style changes during the time period. There will also be a charming display of hand-sewn outfits for American Girl® dolls and other 18-inch dolls by sisters Judy Cronin and Claire Sisson, who call themselves LindsayLu. LindsayLu doll outfits will be available for sale at the event. The popular exhibit Exploring Golf Island will be on display for visitors. Durand-Hedden’s charming Country Store will open. Check out historic-themed treasures such as early American children’s games, books and toys, facsimile documents, quill pens and ink, historic cookbooks, cookie molds...

In an annual tradition spanning over 35 years, visitors have gathered around Durand-Hedden’s 18th century hearth and experienced how Maplewood residents of long ago cooked, ate, and kept warm during the long winter months. This tradition takes place on Sunday from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. Durand-Hedden is pleased once again to welcome cook Margaret Quinn to its kitchen. Margaret is the spirited shearer who trimmed the wool from visiting sheep at our From Fleece to Cloth event in April two years ago and will bring the same energy and skill to our fireplace. Margaret has worked in the living history field for over twenty years and has become proficient at wood stove and open earth cooking. She continually expands her culinary knowledge as a participant in the Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums and the Historic Foodways Society of the Delaware Valley. On the menu this year will be roasted larded venison, sour lentils, mashed turnips, Norfolk dumplings and for dessert...