Historic Happenings Blog

Thursday, October 10 -- Morris County          To coincide with Fire Prevention Week, the Morris County Historical Society will officially open its new exhibit,  Up in Smoke: Northern New Jersey’s Worst Man-Made Disasters: 1910-1989 ,  at Acorn Hall, Thursday, October 10, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. This photo-driven exhibit brings heroes to light, recognizes the sacrifices of those lost, and illustrates the varied events that brought communities together, tightened safety regulations, and changed legislation nationally.              Up in Smoke  covers twelve 20 th -century disasters , five from Morris and seven from its contiguous counties that, due to their scale, severity, loss of life, or ability to cause major changes in workplace safety or fire science, stand as benchmarks with ominous connotations. Still, in understanding the severity of the situations, heroes, some as martyrs...

Sunday, March 22 – Morris County Lightning Strike Ends in Death and Destruction 1926 Picatinny Arsenal explosions continue for days MORRISTOWN, NJ – When lightning struck the Navy surplus cache at Lake Denmark Powder Depot on a hot July evening,1926, millions of pounds of explosives detonated turning the forested lands into a lunar landscape complete with craters. In addition to structural and landscape devastation, loss of life, and loss of military resources, the event is considered one of the worst manmade explosions in U.S. history. Join us on Sunday, March 22, at 1:30 p.m. as Picatinny Arsenal Cultural Resource Manager Jason Huggan describes how the local landscape and the additional storage of ammunition and explosives left over from World War I intensified the disaster lending the site a war-zone appearance.  He also discusses the sweeping legislation and munition's operational changes that resulted from the disaster. Additionally, Huggan will share recently discovered and d...

December 1 to January 5 -- Morris County A Very Merry 19 th -Century Christmas  MORRISTOWN, NJ  – This holiday season, travel back in time to 19 th -century Morris County to learn more about the introduction and evolution of our most beloved Christmas traditions.           Not only our long-lived Yuletide customs but more than 30 period-appropriate 19 th -century costumes from Morris County Historical Society’s collections, will be on display at Acorn Hall from Sunday, Dec. 1, to Sunday, Jan. 5, 2020.          While many English customs such as the Christmas tree, mistletoe, and caroling took on a uniquely American flavor, their earliest beginnings remain as evident as ever in  A Very Merry 19 th -Century Christmas . Focusing on the Victorian woman’s role as “the ministering angel of domestic bliss,” the authentically decorated and interpreted exhibit comprises many costumes that hav...

Sunday, October 6 – Morris County Works by Latin Composers Performed at Morris County Historical Society MORRISTOWN, NJ -  Spice up your Sunday afternoon serenaded by the  music of 19 th -century Latin composers Ricardo Castro and Teresa Carreno. Internationally acclaimed pianist Peter Toth (pictured) will play works by Castro, a Mexican composer and concert pianist, and Tammie Holloway, a trustee with the Boonton Historical Society and Museum and 40-year piano teacher, will play select pieces by Carreno, a Venezuelan pianist and conductor. The performances on our  1872 Chickering piano (pictured)  begin at 1:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 6, at MCHS’s Acorn Hall Music Room. A native of Hungary, Toth has lived in the United States since 2009 and is a piano faculty member at Rutgers University and piano teacher at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He has performed throughout Europe, Asia, Latin America, Australia, and the United States. He has been a regular guest artist at vari...

Sunday, September 15 -- Morris County From Farmland to Elegant Tables: A History of Land Use in Morristown and Morris Township Sunday, September 15, 12:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. FREE PROGRAM     Explore the history of land use through special presentations at Macculloch Hall Historical Museum (45 Macculloch Ave., Morristown, NJ), The Morristown and Morris Township Library (1 Miller Rd., Morristown, NJ) and The Morris County Historical Society at Acorn Hall (68 Morris Ave., Morristown, NJ).     Tour Macculloch Hall’s historic garden at 12:15 p.m. (Refreshments will be provided).      Then hear Joseph Grabas, author of  Owning New Jersey  (Charleston, SC: History Press, 2014) talk about the history of buying land in Morris County and New Jersey in the Morristown and Morris Township Library’s Lower Level Meeting Room at 1:30 p.m.     After the talk venture over to the Morris County Historical Society at ...

Saturday, August 24 - Chester, Morris County Industrial Crafts Day O n Saturday, from 11:00 am - 4:00 pm, discover early industrial crafts, with demonstrations by a blacksmith, a tinsmith, tin piercers, weavers, and spinners.  Create your own tin-pierced craft to take home. Cost: $3/adult, $2/senior (65+), $1/age 4 - 16 and FREE/under age 4. The Cooper Gristmill is located at 66 Route 513, Chester, NJ. For more information, call 908-879-5463 or visit  www.morrisparks.net .

Sunday, September 9 through Sunday, July 14, 2019 Iconic Culture: From Little Black Dress to Bell Bottoms     Morris County Historical Society’s upcoming exhibit, Iconic Culture: From Little Black Dress to Bell Bottoms , promises to be a one-stop spot for a stroll down memory lane.     From the timeless designs of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel to the trend-setting bell bottoms of Sonny and Cher, MCHS explores more than 50 years of cultural history through a retrospective featuring nearly 100 pieces from its historic textile collection.  Iconic Culture  will examine how changes in clothing styles mirrored the social climate of their time and the seminal moments and people who defined their decade – with a focus on New Jersey history.        In addition to the fashions,  Iconic Culture  will highlight cultural milestones in local, state, and national history that coincided with the Roaring 20s, Great...

Thursday , July 4 - Morristown, Morris County Revolutionary Era Powder Mill Walking Tours On Wednesday at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm, the Morris County Historical Society will offer an interpretive walking tour to the archaeological site of a Revolutionary era Powder Mill located just behind Acorn Hall, along the Whippany River. The guided walking tours follow Patriots’ Path to where the mill once stood, giving an opportunity to learn more about this important archaeological resource and its history. Fred and Isabel Bartenstein dutifully researched the history of Jacob Ford Jr.’s plight for and construction of the mill with the N.J. Legislature and Edward Lenik conducted the archaeological investigations that found artifacts and structural evidence of at least one building. Together, their findings were released in  New Jersey’s Revolutionary War Powder Mill , available in the Gallery Gift Shop. The Morris County Historical Society is pleased to offer this program as part of Revolut...

Thursday, June 27 – Morris County Uncle Floyd Coming to Acorn Hall Morristown, NJ –  If you were living in New Jersey during the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, and had a penchant for shows that could only be viewed on a single UHF channel, odds are you’ve seen  The Uncle Floyd Show . Well, now’s your chance to see him in person. The one-and-only Uncle Floyd, aka Floyd Vivino, star of stage and screen in the 1970s, will perform as part the current exhibit,  Iconic Culture: From Little Black Dress to Bell Bottoms , at Morris County Historical Society’s Acorn Hall on Thursday, June 27, at 1 p.m. He will perform in the Music Room on the 1872 Chickering piano, followed by a Q&A session.          While he is a dynamic piano player and world record holder for non-stop piano playing, Uncle Floyd never takes his eyes off his audience while he engaging them in lively banter, jokes, and reminiscing.        ...

Tuesday, May 7 – Morris County REMEMBERING BERTRAND ISLAND PARK For generations of area residents, Memorial Day wasn’t just another holiday, it signaled the opening of the landmark Bertrand Island Amusement Park on Lake Hopatcong in Mount Arlington.      Although nothing remains of the park today except a stone marker, we invite everyone to relive the joy that this former landmark brought to the millions who enjoyed the rides, beaches, and events Bertrand Island offered for more than 60 years. On Tuesday, May 7, at 1:30 p.m., MCHS will offer a matinee showing of “Greetings from Bertrand Island,” a 45-minute film commemorating the history of the amusement park. On Thursday, May 9, at 7 p.m., MCHS will offer an encore showing of the film along with a Q&A session featuring Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum Director Martin Kane, who will provide a glimpse into the magic of this former landmark. Begun as a bathing beach at the turn of the century, by the 1920s, Be...

Sunday, May 5 – Morris County FORMER FORD MODEL RECALLS WALKMAN ROLL-OUT    MORRISTOWN  –  Decades before the iPhone revolutionized the way we communicate, a Dutch firm developed magnetic cassette technology that changed listening habits by allowing music to be portable. The original Walkman, released in 1979, was a portable cassette player sold under several names, including Soundabout in the United States, Freestyle in Sweden, and Stowaway in the UK. Eventually, Walkman caught on globally and Sony used the name worldwide. Join the Morris County Historical Society on Sunday, May 5, at 1:30 p.m., as Hamburg resident and former Ford model Carol Lopatin shares her experiences as a face of the iconic Sony Walkman and other well-recognized brands. An FDU graduate with a degree in marketing, Lopatin declined the offer of an accounting job to model for the renown Ford Agency and eventually launch a career as a commercial print ad model. After 10 years of travelin...

Sunday, December 9 – Morris County DECADES OF ICONIC JEWELRY   MORRISTOWN, NJ –  If it’s true that jewelry makes the outfit, then Morris County Historical Society has a lot to show! Featured as part of MCHS’s newest exhibit,  Iconic Culture: From Little Black Dress to Bell Bottoms,  comes “Decades of Iconic Jewelry,” a presentation by vintage jewelry collector, Nancy Cooper, on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 1:30 p.m.          Longtime member, docent and former MCHS trustee, Ms. Cooper, will discuss the type of jewelry most women wore as part of their daily repertoire. The jewelry, all from Ms. Cooper’s collection, will be examined for materials used, style and reflection with the styles of clothes, and the timelessness of the styles. Ms. Cooper has a long-standing passion for both fashion and, in particular, jewelry. From an early age she recognized that jewelry enhances not only the clothing, but the woman in particular.  From t...