Category: New Jersey History
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Women’s Work: The Home Demonstration Agents of Passaic County, New Jersey
This Women’s History Month, we recognize the work performed by members of the Home Demonstration Unit between 1910 and 1930. Across the United States, home demonstration agents hosted educational presentations for the public, on topics such as home economics, nutrition, and modern technology. Their work was pivotal in improving the livelihoods of Passaic County’s rural…
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This Month in Wayne History:The Continental Army Visits Wayne
ON July 1st, 1780, over 8,000 soldiers of the Continental Army arrived at the home of Theunis and Hester Dey in the town of Preakness (today’s Dey Mansion, located on Totowa Road in Wayne). Far from the triumphant military force we see in today’s portrayal of Revolutionary history, the army was a sorry sight to…
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This Month in Wayne History: Hamburg Turnpike is Incorporated
While not the oldest road in New Jersey, Hamburg Turnpike can certainly boast over its history. Its story forms one part of the larger narrative of our relationship to travel, and the technological advancements that unleashed a whirlwind of industrial and urban development in northern New Jersey. Today, join us as we take an in-depth look at…
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All that Glitters: The Coming-Out Party of Mae Anderson Bell
ONE-HUNDRED and thirty-two years ago, on a cold, snowy December night, the peal of laughter and the sound of Christmas carols rang through the streets of Paterson. The cause for such celebration? Miss Mae Anderson Bell, one of Paterson’s “fairest daughters”[1], made her grand appearance to dozens of the city’s most elite and distinguished citizens—the…