Old Sussex Almanack The Newsletter of Sussex County Historical Society

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Message from the President On June 8 th, the Sussex County Historical Society held a rededication ceremony to celebrate the 100 th Anniversary of the Hill Memorial Building, the headquarters and

The significance of these buildings is that they were recently donated to the Society by their owners George Markou (79 Main Street) and Nick Gangemi (75 Main Street).

1 Message from the President On June 8 th, the Sussex County Historical Society held a rededication ceremony to celebrate the 100 th Anniversary of the Hill Memorial Building, the headquarters and museum of the SCHS. This ceremony, in part, took place in the back yards of two buildings that are located across Main Street from the Hill Memorial Building. The significance of these buildings is that they were recently donated to the Society by their owners George Markou (79 Main Street) and Nick Gangemi (75 Main Street). The donation of these buildings has significant positive implications for your Society. Presently, the functions of the society has been hampered by the lack of operational space. These two buildings will help the society meet both current and future needs that will permit us to grow and maintain the collections that we presently own and may hold in the future. The building at 79 Main Street, the M. Tully House built in circa 1890, will be used as the administrative center for the society, permitting us to move all of our office operations, records storage, and major collections and artifacts to the building. This will allow us room to appropriately organize, assess the different collections, and curate artifacts and documents properly. Additionally, by moving our office operations across the street, that will open up a great deal of additional space on the second floor of the Hill Memorial Building for more exhibits. Old Sussex Almanack The Newsletter of Sussex County Historical Society Published Quarterly Spring 2017 Sarah Saynor winner of Sussex County Historical Society Hill Memorial Building Centennial Logo contest The Hill Memorial Building was constructed during and serves as the headquarters of the Sussex County Historical Society. The building houses a collection of Sussex County museum artifacts, archival material and a genealogical library. The Society is hosting a year-long celebration commemorating the construction and dedication of the Hill Memorial building. The celebration includes a series of lectures focused on Sussex County, agriculture, mining/ minerals, school/education and the Sussex County lake communities. The highlight of the year will be the June 9 th rededication celebration of the building. The society held a contest, requesting local high school students design a logo for the 100 year anniversary of the Hill Memorial Building. The winner of this contest, Sarah Saynor, is a sophomore at Newton High Message from President continued on next Page Logo Winner continued on Page 4

Sussex County Historical Society 82 Main Street, P.O. Box 913 Newton, NJ 07860 973-383-6010 www.sussexhistory.org Email: sussexcountyhs@gmail.

2 Sussex County Historical Society 82 Main Street, P.O. Box 913 Newton, NJ HOURS Friday: 9 am-1 pm; Designated Sundays: 1 pm 4 pm or by appointment SCHS Officers President Wayne T. McCabe Vice-President Jay Docherty Treasurer Tammy Satter Recording Secretary Lisa Holder Corresponding Secretary Peter N. Chletsos Board of Trustees Christine Cassidy, Peter N. Chletsos, Jay Docherty, Ron J. Dupont, Alex Everitt, Jr., Kiyoshi Hamada, Lisa Holder, Nancy Madacsi, Wayne T. McCabe, Mario Poggi, Tammy Satter, Myra Snook, William Strait, Ruth Ann Whitesell, Wendy Wyman PURPOSE The purpose of the Society is to promote public knowledge and interest in the history of Sussex County, New Jersey, and surrounding areas, by compiling, publishing and disseminating information; collecting, preserving and studying historical, genealogical and archaeological records, documents, papers and artifacts; maintaining a museum for public exhibits; promoting the preservation and protection of buildings, cemeteries and other sites of historic interest; and cooperating with other organizations of similar interest. WELCOME These following individuals are newly enrolled members for the 2017 year Member City State Type Glenn Aumick Sparrow Bush NY Senior James Best Netcong NJ Senior Mary Cafarelli Wantage NJ Senior Richard Crawn Newton NJ Life Richard Dutton Port Jervis NY Senior Charles Heinze Piscataway NJ Senior Henry Ickes Newton NJ Senior Harry Kaplan Newton NJ Senior L. K. Little Plano TX Family Michael McGovern Sussex NJ Senior George Parichuk Newton NJ Senior Michael Stewart Cream Ridge NJ Individual Yvonne Van Orden Sussex NJ Senior Message from President continued from front page The building at 75 Main Street is the Old Newton Academy building, built in 1802, with a later two-story brick addition to the rear. This building, for the near future, will be used for bulk storage of records. The Trustees of the Society will be studying the building in order to determine additional uses the structure can be put to in the future. The 100 th Anniversary of the Hill Memorial Building marks a major milestone for the society. Not only has the society used the museum to help educate the public about our local history, but this year also marks the beginning of a new and very bright future for us. Because of this extreme generous donation by George Markou and Nick Gangemi, the Sussex County Historical Society can look forward to better serving our primary goal bringing the history of Sussex County to our residents. Wayne T. McCabe SCHS President Board of Trustee Meetings The regular meeting of the Board of Trustees is held every month on the fourth Monday. Upcoming meeting dates are: Monday, June 26, 2016 at 7:00 pm Monday, July 24, 2017 at 7:00 pm Monday, August 28, 2017 at 7:00 pm All SCHS Members are Welcome to Attend Trustee Meetings 2

Veteran Marker Project at the Old Newton Burial Ground By Wendy Wyman The members of the new Cemetery Committee, with the assistance of students and staff at the Lakeland Andover School, have made

So, initially, the existing markers were labeled with the Veteran s name, removed from the cemetery, polished, engraved on the back with Old Newton Burial Ground and the first and last names of each

3 Veteran Marker Project at the Old Newton Burial Ground By Wendy Wyman The members of the new Cemetery Committee, with the assistance of students and staff at the Lakeland Andover School, have made significant progress on their Veteran Marker Project. Many markers were found to be missing or in poor condition. So, initially, the existing markers were labeled with the Veteran s name, removed from the cemetery, polished, engraved on the back with Old Newton Burial Ground and the first and last names of each Veteran, and, then, placed on new rods. New markers were purchased for those missing and again engraved on the back. The markers were then taken back to the cemetery where a hole was dug to the left of each gravestone and cement poured into the ground around the rod, which was bent into an L shape. A new American flag, donated by Newton Post 86 of the American Legion, was placed into each completed marker. (The American Legion actually gave us a box of flags we are set for a few years!) The final positioning of 38 grave markers was completed and readied for Memorial Day. Our thanks to the Lakeland Andover School digging crew of Miguel Gutierrez, Brandon Metzgar, Justin Benner, Nicholas Evans, Michael Sinegra, and Kieaun DePew under the supervision of their teacher, Jack Wyman. A special thank you to Miguel for the engraving job well done!! In the meantime, the cemetery committee is also busy cutting grass, trimming brush and picking up garbage. WE COULD USE MORE PEOPLE TO HELP!!! We have a mower and weed trimmer available for our use, however, if you re able to bring one with you, this would assist in our cemetery maintenance. If you are interested and can give an hour or two of your time, please contact Wendy Wyman at or (Wendy s phone numbers). THIS IS A BIG CEMETERY!! My thanks to Geoffrey Ithen, Alex Everitt, Bill Wyman, Brad Greenwald and Kaylee Greenwald (age 3) for all of their help! Also, monetary donations are welcomed, since the removal of one dying maple tree and the topping of a second tree in early June took quite a bit of funds from the cemetery committee s budget. There is much to do in the future with many gravestones to be repaired and maintained. Monetary Donations can be made to the Sussex County Historical Society (writing the Cemetery Committee in the memo section of the check) or can be m a d e o n - l i n e a t o u r w e b s i t e : 3

Christopher M. Roof vs Oliver Roof et al (File G27-744). Complaint filed 3/21/1891 Genealogical Information from Chancery Court Cases By Richard M. Stevens John Roof owned a 195 A.

4 Christopher M. Roof vs Oliver Roof et al (File G27-744). Complaint filed 3/21/1891 Genealogical Information from Chancery Court Cases By Richard M. Stevens John Roof owned a 195 A. farm, lying on both sides of Stillwater Road, about 1 1/2 miles NW of the Village of Swartswood. It had belonged to his father Jacob Roof, and he bought out his brothers and sisters in 1868 (Z5-462). On 1/15/1875 he mortgaged it to his brother Christopher M. Roof for $ Shortly thereafter he died, leaving a widow and seven children. In his Will he devised his entire estate to his wife while she remained his widow, then to his children. The interest was paid on the mortgage through 1/15/ The widow died on 2/16/1891, leaving the last year s interest unpaid. A little more than one month later Christopher brought this suit to foreclose the mortgage. There was no opposition, and on 8/10/1891 the Sheriff sold the farm to Christopher M. Roof for $1500. Genealogy: 1. JOHN ROOF: married to Mary M.(2); children: Oliver(3), Barnet H. (4), Phebe(5), Keturah(6), Nettie(7), Anna Mary(8), Joseph(9); deceased January MARY M. ROOF: wife of John(1); deceased 2/16/ OLIVER ROOF: son of John Roof(1); living in Mason, Idaho Terr. in BARNET H. ROOF: son of John Roof(1); married to Lillie; living in Climax, Kalamazoo Co., Mich. in PHEBE HUNT: daughter of John Roof(1); living in Sussex Co. in KETURAH ROOF: daughter of John Roof(1); living in New Jersey in NETTIE AYERS: daughter of John Roof(1); wife of William Ayers; living in Yale, Guthrie Co., Iowa in ANNA MARY HENDERSHOT: daughter of John Roof(1); wife of William A. Hendershot(10); children: Ida(11), Olin(12), Lillie(13); deceased ca JOSEPH ROOF: son of John Roof(1); living in New Jersey in WILLIAM A. HENDERSHOT: married to Anna Mary(8); children: Ida(11), Olin(12), Lillie(13); living in New Jersey in IDA HENDERSHOT: daughter of William A. Hendershot(10) & Anna Mary(8); under 14 years of age in 1891; living in Sussex Co. in OLIN HENDERSHOT: child of William A. Hendershot(10) & Anna Mary(8); under 14 years of age in 1891; living in Sussex Co. in LILLIE HENDERSHOT: daughter of William A. Hendershot(10) & Anna Mary(8); under 14 years of age in 1891; living in Sussex Co. in Centennial Logo Winner continued from front page School. Sarah has an interest in art and history. Her winning entry (shown on the front page) is being used as the logo for the year-long celebration of its 100 th -year anniversary. The logo has been made into posters, used in flyers and is part of a large banner that is decorating the Hill Memorial Building. Photo Sarah Saynor (center) Winner of the Centennial Hill Memorial logo contest with Wayne McCabe & Lisa Holder 4

5 FOCUS ON GENEALOGY By Valerie Stern, CG SCHS Member Happy Families Ancestry.com is a wonderful website. Everyone knows that. It provides us with census information and images, military and church records, copies of wills, land records, birth, marriage, and death records, old newspaper notices, pictures of tombstones and records we never even dreamed of. What s more, it is continuously adding new records. But! Beware the online family trees at Ancestry or any other database. How delightful to find your ancestor in someone else s tree! How tempting to meld their tree with yours and take advantage of all the research they have done and the discoveries they have made. But have they? When I am working on a client s family line, I do check the family trees on Ancestry to see what people conjecture. I used to get excited when I found a tree with 8 attached records, 7 sources. In fact, you find out, the 8 attached records are all images you could have found anyway on the internet. That s okay, but the sources much worse are generally so-and-so s family tree! And so, one person copies from another, who copies from another, and so on, making a record in space and time of a family tree whose structure is unsound. All because one person said, Oh, this HAS to be him in the 1850 census. It s the right name and the right age. Those HAVE to be his parents. Assumptions are easy traps to fall into. I recently had a case of two men of the same age and the same uncommon name living within a few miles of each other. Until this was pointed out to me by a wise friend, I had no idea there was more than one person of this name. They were cousins, probably, but that s just not good enough when you are trying to trace a direct line! It s worth a try to track down the person who posted the family tree and ask how he or she knew a fact to be true. The answer is almost always, I don t know / my grandmother told me so / my cousin did the research / I assumed it because. To verify a fact (date, place, name, event, etc.), you need at least two pieces of evidence. And the value of the evidence is variable. But that s a topic for next time! So, the tip is, let those online family trees make suggestions to you and give you avenues of research to follow, but don t buy them wholesale. Unlike the headstones we pursue, online family trees are not written in stone. 5

6 NEW SUNDAY HOURS Hill Memorial Museum & Library are open every Friday 9 am to 1 pm Now the Museum and Library will be open on selected Sundays List of SUNDAYS Museum and Library to be opened in 2017 Hours Open 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm JUNE 4 JUNE 18 JULY 2 JULY 16 AUGUST 6 AUGUST 20 SEPTEMBER 3 SEPTEMBER 17 OCTOBER 1 OCTOBER 15 NOVEMBER 19 DECEMBER 17 Progress on Museum Displays at Hill Memorial By Wendy Wyman The Lenape village display is ninety percent (90%) completed with new signage for the artifacts. Once again, Lakeland Andover School helped out with a shelf to expand the display area. A new display on the Early Schools of Sussex County has been completed. Thirty-six (36) schools from the twenty-four municipalities in the county have been featured with information and pictures of students/buildings. Some are one-roomed and some are consolidated. The first four high schools Newton, Sussex, Franklin and Hamburg - are included. Thanks to Bill Strait for helping out with the photographs! Artifacts in the Sussex room are being researched with new signage being added. A new display on the Newton Collegiate Institute, also known as the Newton Academy, is in progress. This school, built in 1854, was located on the hill behind High Street. This road is still called Academy Street. Please come to the Hill Museum to see the displays. Sunday dates are given above. MUSEUM EXHIBITS AND LECTURES Future Exhibits & Lectures: Sunday, July 9th 1:30pm (TBA) One Room School House Roundtable Discussion Sunday, July 23rd at 1:30 pm (SCHS Building) History of the Schools in Sussex County Sunday, August 6th at? (Baptist Church) Edison Mine Huge Operation Sunday, August 20th at 1:30 pm (SCHS Building) Franklin Mine Began as iron, became Zinc Mine. Thursday, August 24th at 7:00 pm (SCHS Building) Sterling Hill Mine Began as iron became Zinc Mine. Thursday, September 7th at 7:00 pm (SCHS Building) Slate Quarries Newton, three in Lafayette, Sussex (Quarryville). Sunday, September 10th at 1:30 pm (SCHS Building) Iron Mining Highlands Sunday, September 17th at 1:30 pm (SCHS Building) Limestone Quarries All Museum Exhibits & Lectures are FREE, Donations are welcomed! 6

7 The Crescent Theatre / Part th Anniversary - July 24, 2017 Written by Mario Poggi, SCHS Trustee The Crescent Theatre is located at 74 Main Street (Also referred to as 74 Fountain Square), Sussex Borough and was built for original co-owners Dexter S. Goble and Clarence Smith, both local area residents. Dexter S. Goble moved to Sussex (Deckertown) in 1892 at the age of 28. Goble had purchased the property across from the Crescent Theatre and operated it as the Goble Inn (Currently the Fountain Inn) until 1915, then again from 1935 until his death in On July 12, 1916 Clarence Smith of Hamburg purchased the lot where the Crescent Theatre would be built. The lot was owned by Moses C. Ayers who operated a butcher shop there at the turn of the 20 th century. Smith made it known that he wanted to build a theatre there and laid out detailed plans. He and Goble entered into a partnership and formed the Crescent Theatre Company and in 1916 authorized capital stock in the amount of $50,000. Goble and Smith each invested $5,900 and their wives, Eva and Anna each invested $100. The theatre was planned to open in the spring of 1917 but poor weather conditions, excavating difficulties and building supply delivery delays caused the opening to be in July of Giles, Giles and Company of Middletown, New Jersey was awarded the contract to build the structure. The architect remains unclear as it was reported by the Sussex Independent that it was Bassert of Paterson while later news items surrounding the sale of the theatre in 1928 list the architect as Flavis Grosso of Paterson. The Crescent Theatre had 600 seats. 500 in the main theatre area and an additional 100 in the balcony section. With a capacity like this in a town the size of Sussex, it was considered a Palace class theatre. It opened its doors on July 24, 1917 with the showing of the silent photo play Miss George Washington. It would be accompanied by the 14 piece Sussex Orchestra along with three popular local vocalists. Patrons were warned that only 600 seats at 50 cents each would be sold for this grand opening so they would be well advised to buy their seats in advance. Oh what a glorious and grand night that must have been. A newspaper report days later said that nearly 800 people attended and the overflow of people were seated in camp chairs in the aisles and around the stage. As reported at the time, A.S. Anable directed the 14-piece orchestra. Mrs. Miles Wilson was the pianist that evening, and she continued in that capacity until the arrival of talkies. There would be films and performances at the theatre on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights. Interestingly the Sussex Theatre, which was across the street in Hornbeck Hall and dated back to 1876 was also providing shows and films on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday nights because when the Crescent Theatre came along it made sense to strike a deal between them to alternate shows during the week when it was more likely that attendance would be down. The Sussex Theatre actually had 700 seats and was originally built for live performances but then as motion pictures came along adapted to present them as well. 7

ARTICLE Submissions Welcomed! Do you or your organization have a story or historical tidbit to share? Do you have an idea for an article or would you like to write for the Old Sussex Almanack?

8 ARTICLE Submissions Welcomed! Do you or your organization have a story or historical tidbit to share? Do you have an idea for an article or would you like to write for the Old Sussex Almanack? If so, please contact the Old Sussex Almanack Editor at Or Attention: Editor sussexcountyhs@gmail.com Our newly revived Old Newton Cemetery Committee needs volunteers to help maintain and clean-up the cemetery s ancient gravestones and gravesites. The Publicity Committee needs individuals who are versed in public relations. SCHS COMMITTEES SCHS members are encouraged to get active in the SCHS. Many opportunities are available and are certain to capture your interest. Volunteer on one or more of our committees - Finance; Programs and Special Events; Building and Grounds; Old Newton Cemetery; Museum; Library & Genealogy; Membership and Development (includes communications, publicity, technology and website). If you are interested or want more information, call us at and leave a message or us at sussexcountyhs@gmail.com. Or Just drop by, visit and talk to us! Sussex County Historical Society P.O. Box Main Street Newton, NJ

Old Sussex Almanack SAVING HORTON MANSION. The Newsletter of Sussex County Historical Society. Letter from the President Musings about 2014

Old Sussex Almanack SAVING HORTON MANSION. The Newsletter of Sussex County Historical Society. Letter from the President Musings about 2014 Old Sussex Almanack The Newsletter of Published Quarterly Winter 2014 Letter from the President Musings about 2014 The year 2014 has been a rather busy period for the County Historical Society. We sponsored