The Ravioli House Restaurant and Pastry Shop at 102 East Bennet Avenue.
* I wanted to note that since COVID all the prices have changed so please check the website as my prices enclosed were reflective at the time of the visit.
Sometimes a shop does not fit the traditional pattern of establishments that I include on this site. They fall into a category that is more restaurant than a traditional store. Ravioli House & Pastry Shop is a combination of both where quality and service separates it from other restaurants and bakeries that I have visited lately.
The Pastry counter at the back of the restaurant
I came across the Ravioli House when I was attending the Firemen’s Convention every September. I was walking around Wildwood to see what the town was like after our main meeting and came across the Ravioli Pastry Shop which is the back part of the restaurant. It had an inviting entrance with the words “fresh Italian desserts” and that was for me. What a great surprise inside!
The sign for the Pastry Shop in the back.
The pastries here are amazing and are very innovative. There is a combination of traditional and modern Italian desserts to choose from. The eclairs are larger than their French versions and full of creamy vanilla filling. They are topped with a thick layer of chocolate frosting and this confection is a pleasure in every bite.
The Pastry Shop and Bar in the back of the restaurant.
They bake a usual cookie called a “Deliciousioso”, which is a type of Linzer Tart but instead of jelly it is filled with almond cream and then the sides are rolled in nuts. It has a subtle sweetness to it and you can taste the richness in the cream filling.
Having a Deliciousioso on a recent night
They are so delicious
Don’t miss these sweet treats
It is hard to choose from all the delicious pastries
All the delicious pastries I enjoy: the Peach dessert, The St. Joseph’s Puff, the Deliciousso and the Chocolate Cake dessert.
The St. Joseph dessert with Vanilla Cream
The St. Joseph Puff Pastry differs from a Cream Puff only in that it is filled with a combination of Cannoli cream and vanilla filling rather than a traditional whipped cream or vanilla filling. It large, dense and you can taste the sweetness in both the Cannoli Cream and in the pastry itself.
On another recent trip, I had the St. Joseph Puff Pastry with the Vanilla Cream, and it was amazing. Creamy and sweet on the inside and the same crisp outside. Both versions are worth a try.
The St. Joseph’s Pastries with both Vanilla Cream and Cannoli Cream are both delicious
The Cannoli’s here are filled to order and made in house. The Cannoli Cream is thick, rich and delicious and studded with chocolate chips. The outside shells are crisp and well baked.
The Ravioli House Restaurant:
The restaurant section is just as good as the Pastry Shop, with all sauces, pastas and dressings that are made in house and the quality of the food and service is top notch. It is a real home town restaurant as it has been owned by the same family for almost 50 years and the daughter of the owner still guards over the dining room and her mother, the owner still works in the kitchen and supervises the staff.
The Dining Room at the Ravioli House.
The Dining Room in the late evening
The new outdoor addition of the restaurant is seasonal
The best start to the meal: the salad with homemade Creamy Italian Dressing with their freshly baked bread
The homemade Ravioli here is excellent and was the meal of my choice on my visit in 2023. Little pillows of fresh pasta that are filled with Cheese, Meat and Spinach. Order the Ravioli House Trio with a side of meatballs and you will get to sample all three. The marinara sauce here is made with fresh tomatoes and garlic and is full of flavor.
Their homemade Ravioli is excellent
The Manicotti here with meatballs is very good. They are made with light as air pasta pancakes filled with a ricotta and Parmesan cheese filling and topped with their fresh marinara sauce.
The Manicotti with Homemade Meatballs
The pasta was light as air
The side of pork meatballs were amazing. So rich in the sauce.
All their entrees come with a freshly tossed salad along with their homemade creamy Italian dressing that is so good you will need extra bread to sop it up with when finished.
You always need plenty of their freshly made in house breads to soak up their sauces. When really hot, there is nothing like it.
Their fresh tossed mixed salads come with the entree and are topped with their homemade creamy Italian dressing
Another dish I can recommend is the Linguine in White Clam Sauce, which is made with fresh in house linguine and studded with fresh baby clams and steamers in a light white wine and lemon sauce which enhances the freshness of the seafood and not overwhelming. I had this on a recent trip for dinner.
The Linguini with Clam Sauce has two different types of clams in the dish
The pasta was perfectly cooked and the clams were sweet and tender
The Linguine is also good with their Bolognese Sauce, which is topped with a rich and flavor packed meat sauce of ground beef and chopped vegetables.
The Linguini with Bolognese Sauce
They must have given me a pound of pasta
The sauce was full of lots of meats and vegetables
When visiting for the 2021 Convention, I made my annual visit to Ravioli House again and this time because of COVID, they used the parking lot next to the restaurant for outdoor dining. So I had a nice table facing New Jersey Avenue and ordered my meal. The waiter could not have been nice enough and the service here is always top notch.
For dinner, I ordered the Chicken Pastina Soup, which was a rich chicken stock with chunks of chicken, carrots and tiny pastina pasta cooked to perfection in the soup. Each spoonful had a nice combination of flavors of the cooked chicken and the chopped fresh vegetables. It was the perfect way to start a meal on a early summer evening.
The Chicken Pastina Soup with its rich broth.
As part of my dinner, it included a house salad with crisp green leaf lettuce, tiny cherry tomatoes and chopped cucumber in a zesty house creamy Italian dressing that is also made inhouse. The dressing was just enough to add some zing to the salad. Each bite was crunchy and sweet.
The Tossed House salad
The entrée was a real feast when I ordered the ‘Trip Around Italy’, which was a sampler of the restaurant’s fresh pastas. The entrée included two large stuffed shells, two fresh cheese ravioli, a large portion of homemade Gnocchi and Spaghetti covered with a rich red sauce that was topped with a large meatball and a nice piece of sausage. The meal could have feed two people comfortably.
The “Trip to Italy” can feed two people
All the pastas were delicious and so well prepared. The Spaghetti was perfectly cooked and was a meal in itself. The Gnocchi was perfectly cooked and each piece of pasta was nice sized. The pillowy Ravioli and Stuffed Shells were filled to the brim with a nice cheese mixture of Mozzarella, Ricotta and Parmesan. The red sauce had a nice combination of spices that accented the fresh tomatoes used in the sauce.
I was completely stuffed when I finished the meal that I could not eat dessert. I had been eyeing the Napoleons when I was in the pastry shop before dinner, but I could not eat another bite. It was another excellent meal at the restaurant.
In 2022 and in the summer of 2024 (a month before Convention), I returned to the Ravioli House for dinner on my traditional Saturday night at 8:00pm meal and it was ‘same time next year’ with the owner who l left in the same spot last year this time. We even laughed about it.
I wanted something totally different this year and I had the Chicken Picante, which is thinly sliced chicken breasts sauteed in butter, wine and lemon and then was served with a side of spaghetti in a red sauce. It also came with a small house salad with oil and vinegar. This was the perfect meal.
The delicious home made rolls served with the meal.
Most of the entrees start with a fresh tossed salad with homemade Italian dressing
The tossed salad with a side of the homemade bread is the best way to start a meal at Ravioli House
The chicken was so tender, and you got two nice sized pieces with the order. The sauce had such a nice flavor, and you could taste the lemons and capers in every bite. Their red sauce is made from scratch, as all their sauces and pastas are and you could taste the spices, they added to it. The spaghetti was cooked perfectly and had a nice bite to it.
The Chicken Piccante at Ravioli House is a real treat
The full dinner comes with two large chicken breasts with a side of homemade spaghetti and homemade red sauce
When I came for dinner during the convention in 2025, it was picture taking time and I revisited the dishes I had before like the Manicotti and the Pasta Bolognese. This time though I tried the Fried Mozzarella for an appetizer and it was delicious.
The Fried Mozzarella with Red Sauce
The pastas here are all homemade
This includes all the stuffed pastas, ravioli and stuffed shells
On a recent trip to the Ravioli House during the Firemen’s Convention, I dined there for dinner and ordered the Lasagna dinner which came with bread and a House Salad. The meal was excellent.
The House Salad with fresh bread that I enjoyed before my Lasagna dinner
The Lasagna at Ravioli House is the type you might find in the Emilo-Romano section of Italy. It is layered with two different types of meat, two different types of cheese and slices of hard-boiled eggs baked between the homemade lasagna sheets and then topped with their homemade red sauce. It is decadent and delicious.
The Lasagna dinner also came with two homemade meatballs
They give you a sizeable slice of Lasagna loaded with meats, cheese and sliced hardboiled eggs
Yum!
I was so happy with dinner the night before, that I decided to have dinner there again my last night at the shore. The restaurant closes for the season on October 13th, so there will be no more trips until next year.
What I really enjoy about the restaurant is starting with their house salad with homemade dressing
The salads are so crisp and fresh
Dinner was the Shrimp Scampi with homemade linguine
After several days of fried foods and heavy sauces, I decided to order something lighter and ordered the Shrimp Scampi, which came with a lemon and wine sauce. It blended in wonderfully with the fresh cooked pasta. The sauce had a creamy consistency.
The jumbo shrimp were perfectly cooked and were sweet and tender
The meal was delicious and the seafood was so fresh
For Dessert and Visiting the Bakery behind the restaurant:
For dessert this time, I had one of the St. Joseph pastries with the vanilla cream. Talk about heaven in each bite. The pastry was sweet and tender for each bite and the vanilla cream had a sweet and luscious taste to it. I love all their pastries as I work my way through it every year.
The St. Joseph’s pastries come in both Vanilla and Cannoli Cream.
The Saint Joseph dessert is so special
Even the Whipped Cream that it was served with tasted homemade
All the desserts are made in house in the pastry shop next door
The service here is always very friendly and when it is not too busy can be very personal. Their wait staff has been very well trained and handle a busy dining room like an artist. Everyone is made to feel at home here.
The Chocolate Éclair was the star dessert in 2023
The restaurant is opened seasonally and will close in October until the beginning of April.
The Peach Pastry has been a favorite of mine for years. This was the dessert of choice when I visited during the Firemen’s Convention in 2024. I found out from the waiter that this dish was the creation of the restaurant owner, Teresa. It is one of her signature desserts.
The Peach doughnut
The Peach dessert up close
The inside of the dessert is filled with rich cream and is soaked in maraschino cherry juice. It is heavenly!
Take time to visit the pastry shop in the back of the restaurant where an assortment of delicious Italian baked goods are available.
The bake shop has a wonderful assortment of bakery treats
The assortment of cookies and puffs
The assortment of cakes and pastries
The seating area in the pastry shop allows people to talk amongst themselves
I stopped in for a late breakfast snack and tried one of the Delishioso cookies.
My dessert that morning
The Delishioso cookie
The delicious crème filled cookie
It was delicious
I stopped in for breakfast on my last morning of the Convention in 2026. I was getting tired of Pancakes, Bacon and Eggs and wanted something different. Since my dinners were so filling, I never got a chance to try two of the desserts I had wanted in the last two visits to the restaurant so I stopped in the bakery and had breakfast here ordering a Cassata Cake and a Napoleon with fruit. I could just about finish the Cassata Cake because the pastry was so large and very sweet that I brough the Napoleon home.
The Napoleon and the Cassata Cake with some hot tea with lemon
The Cassata Cake at Ravioli House is very dense and rich and should be shared
The dessert is filled with a mixture of cake, nuts and liquors
The Napoleon I saved for later
It is fun after a day at the beach to come in for a piece of pastry. The selection is wonderful and very creative.
It is nice to come to a restaurant where quality still matters and everything is made from scratch. That is very rare these days.
Over twenty years ago, I had joined the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ in June 2005. Some of the guys had started to tell me their stories about going to the piles one night as a Department while we on standby at the firehouse. I asked if anyone ever wrote an article on all this and they said no. I could not believe that no one bothered to tell their story so I got as many of the guys together that were there that day to talk about it for an article I wrote for both The Hasbrouck Heights Gazette and the Hasbrouck Heights Observer in 2006 for the Fifth Anniversary of the attacks. These are their stories:
I do not have a picture of all the guys together as none could get together for a group picture back then. This is a picture of us at an Engine One barbecue at the firehouse Summer of 2017 of which many of the guys attended. Firefighter Ed Carter is forth to the left, Firefighter Bob Pietz is fifth to the right and Chief Tim Moots is is first on the right.
Several Hasbrouck Heights Firefighters Recall 9/11
By Justin Watrel
*I wrote and published this article in September 2006 for the Fifth Anniversary of the Attacks on the World Trade Center for both the Hasbrouck Heights Observer and the Hasbrouck Heights Gazette. Many of the firefighters in the article have since retired or moved on from the Department with Firefighter Greg Rubino being the only current firefighter active on the Department. This is their story from the day of Recovery.
I want to thank the following Hasbrouck Heights Firefighters for assisting in this very moving article: Retired Chief Joe Taylor and Retired Firefighter Tom and Current Firefighter Greg Rubino, Firefighter and former Lieutenant Bob Pietz, Firefighter and Retired Chief Tim Moots and Firefighter and Retired Captain Ed Carter III. Thank you all for your dedication to the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department.
Author’s Note: I updated this slightly to reflect today but the conversations are verbative from the original article. To keep the flow of the article, I kept the firefighters’ positions in current form through most of the article.
It is hard to imagine that 25 years has passed since the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Since that time, the site has been cleaned up, new buildings have gone up and One World Trade Center (formerly the Freedom Tower) has been built with views overlooking the once devastated City, where all this once happened. The whole configuration of downtown has changed since that time from a business to residential neighborhood. The vibe of the City has changed since that time.
Behind the scenes though, there are the lingering memories of what happened that horrible day 25 years ago and how it touched us as a community. Even though we are only eleven miles from Midtown Manhattan, it seems like a world away.
What many people don’t know is the contribution Hasbrouck Heights made in the recovery process. Our schools and parishes raised money and lent support to many agencies in the City that needed help. In the fire service, several of our members took time out of their busy work schedules to help on the piles with the recovery and help search for victims.
Some of them will never forget what they saw in those days following the tragedy in New York City. The Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department, a volunteer department, sent the following members over to work the piles, former Chief of the Department Joe Taylor Jr., Firefighter Tom Rubino and his son and current member, Greg, retired Firefighter Edmund Carter III and former Firefighter Bob Pietz. Former Chief Tim Moots went over with the Teaneck Fire Department. Many of these brave men shared their experiences that they encountered the days that followed when they helped work the piles years ago.
Former Chief Joe Taylor had been a member of the Department for over twenty years and been a former EMT in Hackensack, NJ said, “I was home watching TV that morning when I turned on the set and saw the towers on fire. I immediately reported to the firehouse for further instructions.”
Retired Firefighter Tom Rubino, a nursing instructor at Bergen Community College, said back then, “We were in classes when the plane hit,” Tom said. “Classes just stopped and everyone was watching TV. There were questions about terrorists but no one was sure. Classes were later suspended because everyone wanted to go home.”
His son Greg, who was at work at Hackensack Hospital said, “From the hospital, we could see smoke coming from the first tower then saw the second plane hit the building. The hospital then went to Code Yellow and we were on standby.”
Retired Firefighter Tim Moots, then a member of the Teaneck Fire Department, was at his home in Fort Lee at the time, when his then wife called to tell him what had happened. “About an hour later, I was called to the Teaneck Firehouse. We were on standby near the George Washington Bridge until 4:00pm. We were then sent over to Hoboken to help with HAZMAT. We were part of the DECON Team hosing people off, who were still arriving from the City at 4:00am.”
Former Fire Fighter Bob Pietz said, “I was working at the hospital installing an air conditioner when the first plane hit. I ended up having to leave the job. When I got back to Heights, the ambulance was called into service and I was on standby with other members of the Fire Department. As a Task Force, we headed to the City but were rerouted by the George Washington Bridge and were released a couple of hours later.”
Retired Firefighter Edmund Carter III was home asleep after a long shift at work, when his then wife informed him that the first tower had been hit. “My initial reaction like everyone else’s was that it was a plane that lost its way, but she informed me that a second plane hit. I then got up, showered and reported to the firehouse, where a lot of members were awaiting further instructions.”
Heading to the Scene:
Everyone on the Department had different reasons for helping in the recovery. All of them wanted to make the best contribution they knew how. Retired Chief Taylor said, “There was a lot of concern from each firefighter for both the City’s citizens and their fellow Brothers in the FDNY. I put out the call and asked members to help.”
Ed Carter said, “I felt I had an obligation to do so. I was given a chance to help in the best way I knew how and was not going to give that opportunity up.” Retired Firefighter Tom Rubino added, “When the call comes out, you respond.”
What they saw at the site still haunts many of the members of the Department. “It was the worst thing I ever saw,” Firefighter Bob Pietz said. “I never saw the magnitude of the destruction.” Chief Taylor added, “I could not believe it. You just could not fathom the destruction.”
Firefighter Tom Rubino explained, “The boat trip over was eerie. The lights were on where the job was being done. The smells were unbearable from the rotting flesh and dust in the air.” It was complete chaos,” his son, Firefighter Greg Rubino added. “I had never seen anything like it. It was like the end of the world.”
“It was only a ten-minute ferry ride over but it felt like forever,” said Firefighter Bob Pietz. “So much smoke was coming from the site.”
When the firefighters reached the site, the initial reaction to the site and the enormity of the situation took hold. Firefighter Tom Rubino explained, “It was like a different world. My first reaction was misbelief and anger.” Firefighter Greg Rubino added, “The smell was unbearable and there was dust, smoke and twisted beams all over the place.”
“It was like a war scene,” said Chief Taylor. “You could not fathom what you were seeing. There in front of you were 110 stories of two towers that stood only a couple of days before.” “It didn’t seem real,” Chief Moots said. “Even when you walked around, it just didn’t sink in that fast. The whole scene was just so overwhelming.”
“You experienced what the media showed and it was worse than what was reported,” added Firefighter Ed Carter. “The smoke hung over everything. I felt anger that fellow firemen, police and citizens from around the area had been killed from the assault on the City.”
Chief Taylor added, “You could not believe what you were seeing. There were cement slabs and bent “I” beams all over the place twisted like pretzels. It was amazing to see police cars and fire trucks smashed, twisted and flattened to nothing. The dust coated everything and the smell of rotting flesh was in the air.”
Some of the men said that while they were arriving at the site, there were still boatloads of civilians leaving the City covered in dust. They would be headed over to the HAZMAT Center, where first responders like Chief Moots would be working with the Teaneck Fire Department. Chief Moots said, “At 10:00pm, it was tough to hose the survivors down, especially after what they had been through. Some were angry, some were hurt and some were still in shock. The comments were heard were, ‘Thank you for all of your help’ and ‘You are so brave for going over there.” “They couldn’t have been more respectful,” Chief Taylor added.
We had a job to do
Even with the enormity of the site, there was a job to do and the men pitched in to do their part. The mood of the work site stuck all of them.
“Everyone was very focused.” Firefighter Bob Pietz said. “Everyone was working as hard as they could and no one was fooling around. The frustration of not finding any survivors was on everyone’s mind.”
“It was very somber,” Chief Moots added. “People had a job to do and there was not much personal conversation. People worked as best they could for as long as they could.”
“People were working with their game faces on determined to do the best job they could,” Chief Taylor said.
“We walked through the site where part of the tower had bent and sagged as shown on TV and we walked past the jagged edge of the wall to reach the area we had to work,” said Firefighter Carter.
While on the site, all the men were given jobs to do, working along side the FDNY and members of other volunteer departments. Some worked on the bucket brigades, while others worked cutting “I” beams and helping move debris.
Firefighter Greg Rubino because of his size, was asked to search through small crevices and assist with searches under the rubble with specially trained dogs to find pocket where people might have been. “With the spotlights and the tower lights you saw everything. You had to be focused so that you were not hurt while helping out.”
“We passed bucket after bucket. Buckets were being passed as fast as we could move,” Chief Taylor described. “I found pencils in sharpeners and receipts from “Windows on the World”, while we were digging. There was a great deal of cooperation, for example: There was a two foot “I” beam that we needed to pass and we immediately got help to cut it.”
Firefighter Carter described, “We dug past part of the building and found a piece of the plane. We notified the people in charge and members of the FBI immediately removed it as evidence.”
Later that evening, an FDNY firefighter’s helmet was found and then his body. “When we came across the fireman’s helmet, everything stopped. The whistle was blown and everyone stopped working. There was silence as the body was wrapped in an American flag and carried out of the site while everyone stood at attention.” Firefighter Carter said.
“I could not believe it when we found the body of the firefighter,” Firefighter Pietz said. “There was silence, then everyone took their helmets off.”
Chief Taylor added that it was done with the utmost care. “People got a little emotional when they saw that. The body was carried out with respect and attention. Then the men went back to work.
Personal Experience
When the men described their overall experience, each one had a different story to tell. Chief Moots describes, “There was an outpouring of thanks. There were loads of supplies, water, tools and food for the people working on the piles. The support volunteers who helped with the supplies were extremely thankful. I will never forget that.”
“I did not want to go back,” Firefighter Carter said. “I was too angry to go back there again. The more I experienced, the more I would carry the scar of the incident.”
Firefighter Pietz added, “It was amazing how everyone came together to help with what was happening on the scene. It was a great feeling that people had for one another, It was the true meaning of brotherhood.”
Chief Moots said, “People can pull together when there is a catastrophe and the expression, ‘here today, gone tomorrow’ is very true. You can almost relate to the experiences that our parents went through during WWII.”
“My main priority was to be with my men,” Chief Taylor said. “I didn’t want anyone to get hurt. When they wanted Greg Rubino to go into certain voids, I had to disagree. I was there as a firefighter but still looked out for my guys. Everyone wanted to do as much as they could during those days.”
Firefighter Greg Rubino added, “You never thought it could happen here but it did. You see a picture of the skyline now that the towers are not there and you realize how different the world is today.” His father added, “I think I am more tolerate toward my fellow man. People have to learn to appreciate life because in a minute it can all change. You never know when it can be taken away.”
Firefighter Carter summed it up best when he said, “The encounter was different from the time we got there until the time we left. The people who risked their lives in the line of duty are truly what heroism is all about. If I could have rescued one life, I would have done it.”
Will it happen again?
When asked if we are prepared for a next time, most of the men felt the same way. Most felt we would never be prepared because you can’t prepare for everything.
Chief Taylor said, “Will it happen again? It is a probability. You never know what you are getting yourself into in these situations. The people that helped out that day will never forget. You have to be mentally prepared for what might happen. We have made strides but you can never be fully prepared.”
“There will be a lot of chaos if it happens again,” Tom Rubino added. “Have you ever sat down to plan an escape route? Do you know that Route 17 might be like if we had to escape this area? It would be like a parking lot. What preparation we do have now is good but not good enough. People are just not prepared.”
“It could be hard to stop a threat,” his son, Greg added. “You just can’t predict what can happen next. You have a strong feeling that something might happen, you have to prepare yourself for the future.”
“There have been many improvements since 9/11.” Chief Moots explained. “So much time and resources have been dedicated to better preparation but we have to prioritize.”
Chief Taylor concluded our interview with, “People tend to forget over time. You can’t prepare for everything. Things are tough when Homeland Security funding is being cut in this area of the country. The one thing I can say is that the City called our small town and asked us to help. We responded to the call and gave it our best.”
Author’s Note: As a nineteen-year veteran of the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department, I wanted to thank my Brothers for sharing their story twenty years ago. Many have since retired from the department but their legacy lives on in the younger firefighters. I was very proud to tell these men’s story and we should appreciate how our town of Hasbrouck Heights responded that day when we were needed. Thank you!
Author and Retired Firefighter Justin Watrel (Author Justin Watral)
The front of the Van Kirk family home which serves as the headquarters of the Sparta Historical Society
The History of the Site:
(from the museum website)
The Van Kirk Homestead, as it stands today, is 3.5 acres. There is one outbuilding both dating from 1930s – the red carriage barn. A detached garage, dating from the 1970s, is across from the carriage barn. The original log cabin is gone but its site is known (Sparta Historical Society website).
The house that exists today is from 1780s but because it was lived in by generational Van Kirks’ it has had a few expansions. It is this house which has been revamped into a museum. The original part of the house has a stone basement that was opened in 2019 as two exhibit galleries. The first floor has two original fireplaces comprised of four exhibit galleries. The second floor has the original wide plank floors and has another three exhibit galleries (Sparta Historical Society website).
The sign in the Main Street
The historical description of the house
The main part of the house was closed due to a renovation and the members were going to be opening a new exhibition upstairs. So I toured the lower level kitchen area.
The lower level of the house which was used for the kitchen and storage areas
The history of the kitchen at the Van Kirk House:
(from the museum website)
A two-year major restoration of century comparison period kitchens with the addition of several new gifts and collection purchases. This exhibit shows the original fireplace colonial kitchen, reopened after 100 years, and the numerous transitions experienced by American families during the Industrial Revolution and its effect on kitchen appliances (Sparta Historical Society website).
The kitchen and dining area with family China and cookware in the background
The prep area, washing equipment and summer storage area
The baking and prep area
The wash equipment and ice box and tongs in the back
The Mining Exhibition just off the kitchen:
(from the museum website)
Opened in October 2019, this permanent exhibit features original Edison artifacts, a scale model of Lime Crest Quarry, and a large fluorescent mineral display. Through these and other rare artifacts, the exhibit explores the town’s mines and the people who worked at them. Housed in the 1780 section of the Van Kirk Homestead Museum, expect insights into, and understanding of, the past which supplements our understanding of our once primary iron and lime industry in Sparta and elsewhere in Sussex County. It also provides a glimpse into the time-consuming, labor-intensive methods used in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries to prepare, and ship minerals (Sparta Historical Society website).
The other side of the kitchen has an exhibition on the Mining Industry which is a big fabric of the community. The exhibition included a model of the Lime Crest Quarry and the Sterling Quarry.
The sign for the Lime Crest Quarry Model
The Mining exhibition-the Lime Crest Quarry model
The Men, Mines and Minerals exhibition with the lights off
The minerals and the clock from the mines
The Mineral exhibition with the lights off
The iron ore and the magnet exhibition
After touring the inside exhibition, I then explored the grounds which are still being used for gardens and vegetable beds for the society.
The back of the house grounds. They were setting up for an afternoon concert
The grounds of the house and the garage in the background
The family garage on the property exhibition:
(from the museum website)
Opened in August 2019, this permanent old fashioned transportation exhibit is located in the multi-year restoration project of the Nicholson Family Wagon House. On display at the Historic Transportation exhibit, you will discover ahorse drawn carriagewagon, an oldhorse drawn sleigh, an old antique car Model T Fordand transportation artifacts. Learn how horse buggies, vintage carriages and old antique cars set the path for historic transportation to the present (Sparta Historical Society website).
The inside of the garage had a Model T car in perfect shape, a buggy and a sleigh.
The inside of the garage
The Model T car
The buggy and the sleigh in the back of the garage
The Studebaker Doctor’s buggy sign
The buggy
The Sturtevant-Larabee Sleigh sign
The sleigh
Also in the garage is various pieces of equipment and even an old gas pump
The sign for the Gilbert and Baker Self-Measuring Gas Pump
The old fashioned gas pump in the garage
Along all the walls were old pictures of the farm when it was still active and under family control
The gardens an grounds in the distance
One of the old sheds was converted into a school house and the room was set up as an old fashioned on room school house. Here kids of various ages were taught the fundamentals of Math, English and History.
The One Room Schoolhouse
The history of the Schoolhouse from the early 1900’s:
(from the museum website)
Step back in time to when classes consisted of all ages together! Welcome to our One Room Schoolhouse exhibit which opened in 2023. Sparta had four one room schoolhouses. The first school was built at the Presbyterian Church in 1812 and was replaced in 1860 after a fire destroyed it. The one-room schoolhouses were established in New Jersey when a 1819 bill funded public education, and they remained active through the 1930’s, when regional schools were established. Students from grades one to eight attended these schools. Four of the structures that housed the one-room schoolhouse remain (Sparta Historical Society website).
Our schoolhouse replicates schools that were generally equipped with a teacher’s desk, student desks, a flag, a globe or map, books, a slate board, and a clock. Our schoolhouse has an 1860 map of Sussex County. At the back of the room is an old stove similar to those used to heat the room (Sparta Historical Society website).
The inside of the One Room Schoolhouse
The Teacher’s desk
The Grounds and Gardens of the Museum:
(from the museum website)
Besides the two fenced Sparta Community Gardens, the homestead grounds have a fir pine grove, a New Jersey Champion Big Tree, a herb garden, and a continual seasonal flowering landscape (Sparta Historical Society website).
The last thing I toured at the museum was the open vegetable gardens which looked like they were getting ready to harvest.
The vegetable gardens in the back of the schoolhouse
The inside of one of the flower and vegetable gardens
The entire museum complex of the Van Kirk House, grounds with the sheds and garage and gardens on both sides.. The grounds are beautifully maintained.
Video on the site from the Sparta Historical Society:
The tour of the house:
Tour of the house and the grounds:
Historical Tour of Sparta, NJ:
The museum has interesting exhibitions and an array of special events through December 13th when the museum closes for the season. It reopens again in April with the warmer weather.
Take time to stroll the grounds and take a look at all the exhibits. It is an interesting look into New Jersey’s past.
I recently visited the Ogdensburg Old Schoolhouse and Firehouse Museum at 6 Passaic Avenue in Downtown Ogdensburg and discovered the community’s rich history of farming and mining in its past and its current destination as a weekend vacation spot and a up and coming bedroom community of New York City.
The County still has some farming and agriculture going on as the County continues to be built up with expats from the City, and Bergen and Morris Counties. The first floor is dedicated to the history of the Ogdensburg Fire Department with an old Engine and Ladders trucks, artifacts from the Sterling Mine just up the road and township property such as an old voting booth. You can read about the history of the Ogdensburg family as you head to the outside gallery.
The second floor has displays of various town departments including the Rescue, the Police Department and Fire Department. There are various displays of the town’s school system and various clubs in town. There are displays on the town’s mining and agricultural past with items such as farm advertising and mining equipment and minerals. Each display plays a role in the development of the community and how it progressed from farming to mining to manufacturing to the bedroom community it is today.
History of the Building:
“Built in 1910 as Ogdensburg’s fifth public school, it was adapted for re-use in 1930 as the Borough’s first firehouse replacing the one built in 1872. In 1984, with the aid of two state grants, the Ogdensburg Historical Society adapted it for re-use and dedicated it as the Old Schoolhouse and Firehouse Museum in 1987.
After 97 years, the Museum continues to serve the Borough of Ogdensburg as an historical learning and preservation center, and as a meeting hall. On June 10, 2006 it was dedicated as an Ogdensburg Historic Site.”
The historic sign of the museum
The Borough of Ogdensburg is the host of this marker commemorating the rich history provided by this building. This building has been maintained with much thought and care and remains as a museum and meeting place for the residents of the town. The marker is located in front of the building on Passaic Avenue just off Main Street by the Ogdensburg Elementary School. This marker was part of the 2008 placement (Museum website).
The outside of the museum which served as a school and a firehouse
The first floor of the building has the fire trucks, the history of the fire department and Ogdensburg’s 250th Anniversary of the United States on display.
The museum artifacts from the 250th celebration of the Country
The museum is on the heart of mining country of Sussex County, NJ and the museum has an interesting mineral collection along with their collection of mining artifacts.
The Mineral and Mining Collection
The museum being home to the Ogdensburg Fire Department contains the history of the local fire department along with vehicles and artifacts from the department.
One of the early pull hose beds pulled by men and then by horses
The first floor also contains the history of the Ogden family in the region.
The history of the Ogden family in the community
The town voting booth and a turn of the last century phone
The second floor gallery used to serve as offices and living space of the fire department.
The main gallery on the second floor
The gallery case lines are filled with memorabilia from different aspects of the community telling the story of the growth of the community that included Mining and Farming. It explains the growth into the modern suburbs of today.
The main gallery on the second floor of the museum
The main gallery on the second floor
The display case of Ogdensburg departments including school, fire and police departments
Blanket with historical sites and artifacts of the town of Ogdensburg, NJ
The businesses including schools and the domestic and farming industries
Each of the display cases represented different aspects of the town and has a variety of pictures and memorabilia from a variety of eras. The case lines show how the community changed over time from a mining community to the changes of a bedroom community of Newark and New York City.
The Entertainment display of recorders, phonographs, radios and early record players
The influence that Thomas Edison had on the community with new technology. Several pieces of Thomas A. Edison memorabilia are on exhibit to honor the ten years Edison spent mining iron ore at the old Edison Ore Milling Company on Sparta Mountain. Several of his phonographic inventions were created here (Ogdensburg Historical Society website).
Close up view of record players and Victrola’s
The School system display
The Ogdensburg Presbyterian Church display of artifacts from inside the church
The Sterling Mine display with minerals and equipment
The NJ Zinc Mine and Mineral display is a small s as molding of the museum down the street and the importance of the mining industry at the turn of the last century.
A closer look at the minerals display
A replica of a working mine operation. The machine shows how workers descending and brought up rock from the mines.
The Dedication to Mr. Waco Hadowantez, the town historian
The last display as you leave the museum is dedicated to the man who founded the historical society, Waco Hadowantez.
The museum tells an interesting story of the history of Ogdensburg and the surrounding area. It shows the importance of the Mining Community at the turn of the last century and how the community is pivoting towards tourism to tell its story.
Please contact the museum directly for seasonal hours and tours.
This National Registered restored 1872 New York, Susquehanna & Western railroad station, one of oldest in New Jersey, is located in the heart of Maywood, NJ. Restored by the Maywood Station Historical Committee and opened in September 25, 2004, it contains an extensive railroad museum and collection. The site also contains a restored caboose and engine.
The museum sign welcomes you
The side of the museum where materials are dropped off
I visited the Maywood Station Museum when it was open recently and found a fascinating collection of railroad memorabilia, Maywood fire department history and early maps of the town of Maywood. It is a treasure trove of articles for people who like to study railroad history especially its growth in small towns, early stages of industry in the town and in New Jersey.
The inside of the station museum
There is a lot of items that show the history of rail service not just on the train but in the station as well. There are antique desks, phones, ticket takers, mailboxes, benches and pictures all from the turn of the last two centuries.
The train ticket collection
The Maywood Station Historical Committee (MSHC) division of New York, Susquehanna & Western Technical & Historical Society operates the Maywood Station Museum and is chartered as a tax-exempt, 501(c)3 non-profit, educational and historical organization with a mission to preserve our railroad and cultural heritage through restoration and preservation, historical awareness, archiving and interpretation, museum open houses, meetings and special events (Maywood Station Museum Committee).
The train artifacts
The History of the Museum:
(From the Museum website)
The museum is operated and staffed by the volunteer membership of the Maywood Station Historical Committee. The main focus of the museum is concentrated on the history of Maywood Station and the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad and the roles they played in the development of the Borough of Maywood and the surrounding area. The museum collection contains hundreds of photographs, displays, documents, maps and artifacts covering the histories of Maywood Station, the NYS&W and local railroads, the Borough of Maywood and the local region, which are changed periodically and designed to entertain and educate visitors of all ages as well as offer a virtual timeline to these subjects.
The Museum and Railroad Car
Maywood Station Museum is also the official site of the New York, Susquehanna & Western Technical & Historical Society’s (www.nyswths.org) archive, which contains thousands of drawings, maps, track diagrams, photos, timetables, documents and records covering the history of the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad (Wiki).
Train documents and other artifacts
For those interested in historical buildings, meticulous care has been taken by the Maywood Station Historical Committee to show the museum in a historical context. The museum features the original woodwork painted and stained in the original colors and original Maywood Station furnishings have been restored and displayed such as the potbelly stove, station agent’s desk, chairs, telegraph keys and freight scale. Victorian-period original light fixtures and sconces adorn the ceilings and walls. Additional items have been painstakingly reproduced to the exact original specifications of over one hundred years ago including the station benches and bay window area (Wiki).
The Station Master’s desk
The Maywood Station Museum collection includes a former Penn Central/Conrail N-12 class caboose, which was restored by Maywood Station Historical Committee members. Visitors to the Maywood Station Museum are invited to come aboard Caboose 24542 and view additional displays and an operating model train layout. The Maywood Station Museum collection also includes original New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad ALCO Type-S-2 Locomotive #206, which has also been restored by Maywood Station Historical Committee members (Wiki).
On September, 10, 2009, NYS&W S-2 #206 was placed on the State of New Jersey Register of Historical Places. The locomotive was placed onto the National Register of Historical Places on March 19, 2010 (Wiki).
The History of Maywood Station:
The Museum Logo
In 1871, the New Jersey Midland Railway, predecessor of today’s New York, Susquehanna & Western (NYS&W), began constructing a rail line between Newfoundland, NJ and Hackensack, NJ. The line was part of a plan to connect with the New York & Oswego Midland (later New York, Ontario & Western) in Middletown, NY and provide rail service from the Great Lakes to New York Harbor. The residents of what would later become Maywood, which at the time was part of an area called Midland Township, saw the advantages of the new railroad and requested a stop be made.
At the time, approximately 13 homes with nearly 90 residents were in the boundaries of today’s Maywood. Soon afterward, construction of Maywood Station began. On March 11, 1872, the New Jersey Midland commenced operating trains on the new line and Maywood Station formally opened in the same paint colors you see it restored to today. Six passenger trains a day in each direction initially stopped at Maywood. It should be noted that for a brief period after that station opened, the station sign said “West Hackensack” but this removed due to the requests of local residents who wanted the station named “Maywood”, as the immediate area surrounding the station had then become known (Maywood Station Museum).
A station agent was employed and it is believed that the first agent was name George Sipley. The station agent handled passenger baggage, freight shipments to and from the station, passenger ticketing and general functions in addition to performing the job of postmaster. In the 1872 to 1910 period, Maywood Station served as Maywood’s post office at various times when it wasn’t housed in a local merchant’s store. Another station agent/postmaster was Charles M. Berdan, who held this position in the late 1890’s into the early 1900’s. Mr. Berdan’s home was located directly across Maywood Avenue from the station and exists today. Maywood Station was also equipped with a telegraph so that the railroad could communicate between their stations and local residents could send messages around the world. The station also offered Wells Fargo and later, Railway Express Agency delivery services. These services lasted into the 1960’s (Maywood Station Museum).
The Railroad buckles
When Maywood Station was built, it originally located on the south side of the current tracks. In 1893, the station was moved to its present location on the north side of the tracks due to the addition of a second set of tracks being constructed and a purchase of additional land by the railroad. At the time, several additional NYS&W stations along the line were similarly moved for the same reason. When the station was moved, it was jacked up onto the rails, the rails greased, spun around and slide approximately 30 feet closer to Maywood Avenue, then jacked up again and moved to its present location. A new foundation was also added. It is interesting made at this time including the addition of a freight platform at the “new” rear of the station.
The Maywood, NJ Railroad Museum
The spot where Maywood Station was moved to originally included a passing siding where steam locomotives were stationed to be added, when necessary to help heavy freight trains on the several grades encountered heading west on the line. When the station was moved, the passing siding was cut back and one of the two switches was removed. The remaining trackage was then used to store freight cars, which were unloaded at the station. The siding started to the west of the station and ran 440 feet to near the rear freight platform of the station. The siding was last used in the early 1970’s and remnants of it can be seen today (Museum Station Museum).
The train sections on displays in the back of the museum
In 1894, the approximate 1.1. square mile area that included Maywood Station, formerly part of Midland Township was incorporated as the Borough of Maywood. Also that year, the NYS&W expanded into western New Jersey and through its Wilkes-Barre & Eastern Railroad subsidiary, into the coal fields in the Pocono region of northeastern Pennsylvania. The rail line could now take a passenger from a ferry at New York City to a connection at Jersey City, NJ to almost Scranton, PA on its own rails. The added ease of transportation began to attract manufacturing to Maywood as well as a demand for new homes. In 1894, the total residents living in Maywood numbered approximately 300 but this was about to change (Maywood Station Museum).
The rails next to the museum
New manufacturing and homes sprang up in the area surrounding the station and included such industry as Schaefer Alkaloids Company, Maywood Chemical Company and Maywood Art Tile Company. As these companies expanded so did Maywood’s population and by 1920 it numbered nearly 3000 (today Maywood has approximately 9,500 residents). The 1920’s also marked the height of passenger service provided by the NYS&W at Maywood Station. Thirteen passenger trains in each direction stopped at Maywood Station on a daily basis. Freight shipments continued to be delivered to the station and most of the local industry had their own rail sidings serving their plants. The NYS&W was enjoying a period of posterity and in 1920, a freight house addition was added to rear of Maywood Station and the exterior walls received a stucco finish over the existing boards and battens.
Station equipment
Stucco was in-vogue in the 1920’s and the NYS&W applied this material to several other stations on their line as well. In 1926, another round of various improvements were made at Maywood Station including the addition of interior men’s and women’s bathrooms, an 8-inch concrete floor installed to replace the wooden floor planking plus electrical and heating improvements. Unfortunately the Great Depression stuck in October 1929 and lasted well into the late 1930’s and the growth slowed dramatically. In 1937, the NYS&W declared bankruptcy and shortly thereafter was spun off from its parent, the Erie Railroad, which had controlled it since 1898. Around the same time, Maywood Station’s bay window was removed due its deteriorating condition (Maywood Station Museum).
The newly independence NYS&W fought hard to survive and cut back certain services but at the same time tried innovative concepts like streamlined, self-propelled, rail passenger cars as a way of cutting costs while boosting efficiency. The railroad also quickly retired its steam locomotives and replaced them with more efficient diesel locomotives stating in 1941 and completed the program in 1947. During World War II, the fortunes of the NYS&W did improve with the wartime demands placed on America’s railroads. As in World War I, many of Maywood’s servicemen departed through Maywood Station, some never to return. By 1953, the NYS&W was solvent once again but only for a few more years. Faced with mounting losses from the passenger services it offered and America’s love affair with the automobile and a new interstate highway system, the railroad once again embarked on a period of reducing their passenger train schedules.
The Station Master Desk
Losses continued and on June 30, 1966, the last passenger train called on Maywood Station as well as on the entire NYS&W, however the railroad continued to utilize the tracks at Maywood Station for their freight operations, which continues to prosper to this day. Shortly after the end of passenger service, the station was closed and was used by the NYS&W as maintenance base and for storage. Bill Spence served as Maywood Station’s last station agent. In the late 1970’s. Maywood’s Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) leased the station from the NYS&W to be used as a meeting hall. The VFW made a number of improvements including repainting the station, repairing cracked stucco, repairing the roof and maintaining the grounds. In the early 1990’s, the VFW moved out of the station and it remained unoccupied until June 2002, even thought the NYS&W attempted to lease it to another tenant during this period.
Faced with a pending order of demolition by the Borough of Maywood in early 2002 due to the deteriorating conditions of the station, a volunteer, 501C3 non-profit group named the Maywood Station Historical Committee Division of the New York, Susquehanna & Western Technical & Historical Society Inc. was formed on May 29, 2002 with a plan to restore the station and turn it into their museum.
The back of the museum
After several years of volunteer work to restore the station and create a museum, the group has successfully achieved their objectives and more, including placement of the station on both the National Register and State of New Jersey Register of Historic Places. The station now enjoys the notoriety as being one of the most impressive restoration projects and museum efforts to date in the State of New Jersey’s historical community (Maywood Station Museum).
Train lanterns
I want to the thank the Maywood Station Museum for this interesting information and please check out their website at http://www.maywoodstation.com.
The Margate Historical Society at 1 South Washington Avenue
The Margate Historical Society is a small history museum that tells the story of Margate, NJ and nearby Atlantic City, NJ. The two towns are intertwined by history and business. This small museum is run by the Margate Library, part of the town’s municipal system.
The museum sign when open
The entrance to the museum
The inside of the museum and their fire and rescue displays
This interesting museum covers the history of the Fire, Rescue and Police Departments with lots of artifacts from all three departments including pictures and equipment.
The rescue and life guard display
The display explains both the lifeguard stations and members and the rescue units run by both this department and the fire department.
The museum has a lot of interesting artifacts from the Margate Fire Department that covers both the working and social aspects of the department. Many cover the last 100 years of the department.
Margate Fire Company #1 Banner
The history of the Margate Fire Department
The Margate Police Department also had an interesting display of artifacts including a jail cell. The department also donated uniforms and items to arrest people.
The museum features the history of the town from community events and organizations to artifacts on buildings and businesses.
Transit display
The history of the community of Margate, NJ
The town has many historical sites especially the “Lucy the Elephant” building down the road from the museum, which is one of the most well known structures at the Jersey shore.
The history of the Margate trolley system that used to exist on the shore line
Artifacts from the old trolleys
The history of the early community
Artifacts from residents of the town that continue to be collected by the museum
Artifacts from the community
The corner stones from the local schools
The museum has an interesting display of the 1964 Democratic Convention that was held in a fading Atlantic City. One of the biggest complaints was that the hotels were past their prime. This was before gambling would be introduced five year later.
The Democratic Convention in Atlantic City that was held in 1964
The museum touches on all parts of the Town of Margate,NJ and its role in the formation of beach communities along the Jersey shore. The museum shows the spirit of this New Jersey community.
The inside of the museum and the extensive displays of this small but interesting local museum.
The museum takes about an hour to visit and is packed with interesting information. The museum has very limited hours but you can work with the library in the off times to arrange a private tour.
The historic Woodside Cemetery in Dumont, NJ. It is the home of many ‘founding families’ of Bergen County, NJ., such as the Demarest’s, Hopper’s, Van Buskirk’s, Haring’s (Hering’s), Van Saun’s, DeBaun’s, Westervelt’s and Zabriskie’s. These are the families that dominated the farming industry in Bergen County before and after the Revolutionary War. It is one of the many historical cemeteries and graveyards in Bergen County, NJ.
My mapping of historical cemeteries and graveyards in Bergen County, NJ:
The inside of the cemetery in the historical section of the cemetery
The historical Woodside cemetery is the resting place of many of the founding families of Bergen County and the surrounding communities of New York State.
Lining the historical Main Street of Downtown Dumont, the older part of the cemetery holds the family plots of some of the original settlers who shaped this country from its beginning.
The Voorhis family plot
The Zabriskie family plot
The Brinkerhoff family plot
The Waite Van Bushkirk family plot
The Van Bushkirk family family plot
The large Demarest family plot
The Hasbrouck family plot (The Family who Hasbrouck Heights is named after)
The Blauvelt family plot
The DeBaum-Westervelt family plot
The Van Saun-Demarest family plot
The Demarest-Haring-Van Vliet-Vorhees family plot
The Demarest-Van Bushkirk family plot
The Brinkerhoff-Doremus-Demarest family plot
The Van Bushkirk-Hopper family plot
The grave of James Blauvelt DeMott
The cemetery is the resting place of many War of 1812, Civil War, the World Wars, Korean and Vietnam and the modern wars.
The cemetery is a place of respect and quiet contemplation. To see the contributions of these members of the community is to reflect on the history of Bergen County. These families and many people buried here have helped shape Bergen County and the State of New Jersey to what it is today.
I took a ride to Upstate New York in July to visit museums and historical sites in Orange County, NY that had been on my bucket list but most were closed on the sunny Sunday. I made a U turn on the local highway and stopped to visit the Hill-Hold Museum in Campbell Hill, NY.
The Hill-Hold Museum at 128 NY 416 in Campbell Hill, NY
After the tour of the house was over, I decided to stop at the Orange County Fair for the evening and get something to eat.
Being a frequent visitor of the Dutchess County Fair, I expect all the fairs to be of the size and scope of that fair. This one was much smaller but still had a lot to offer.
The entrance to the Orange County Fairgrounds in Middletown, NY
When I arrived in the late afternoon, the fair was rather quiet as it was the late afternoon and most of the demonstrations and entertainment would be later that evening.
Walking through the entrance of the fairgrounds past the rides and the concessions
Still there was a sizable crowd already at the fair riding the rides, playing games of chance and eating at the somewhat over-priced concession stands.
There were a nice variety of rides and things to do while I walked around surveying the grounds to what there was to do and experience.
Looking over the rides which were filled with families
The first tent I visited was the Livestock Tent and the petting zoo. While the fair did not have the livestock displays that the other fairs did or the 4H presence, the tent had friendly selection of animals to see and feed. They looked so happy to see humans with food.
Walking through the petting zoo
Walking through the petting zoo
The sheep and llamas were waiting by the edge of the pens for treat from a human hand. I found them inquisitive of us especially as we fed them.
Watching the llamas decor an ice cream cone filled with treats
The next tent I visited was the 4H tent with all the craft and food items on display. The judging had taken place and all the ribbons were on display.
Walking through the crafts tents
The Scarecrow Contest in the Crafts Tent
We even got to vote on a scarecrow. I thought that was interesting.
Nightmare Manor, the haunted funhouse
The preview of the movie “The Funhouse”
I next walked along the Midway past a whole series of rides and attractions. The first ones were the funhouse and the glory, the Nightmare Manor haunted ride. The lines were short so most people were getting in quickly.
The next thing I did was visit the grandstands where they were having a demonstration on Monster Trucks. This I had to see.
The Monster Trick Rally competition
They were offering rides to patrons before the show (which was a separate fee), so I got to see people driving around the field having a great time.
I did not want to stay for the show as those lines were getting long and I wanted to head home before it got dark. I left the ever growing line to head to the concession to get something to eat.
Stopping for dessert at Tootsie’s Fried Dough Concession
Someone had just walked by me with a steaming funnel cake and then I had to have one. The one thing I have to say about Tootsie’s Fried Dough is that everything is made fresh to order and the quality of the funnel cake was better than any one that I had at the Dutchess County Fair, which are always premade and soggy by the time you get them.
The Funnel Cake was made to order and out of this world
Yum! These were the best!
The last thing that I attended was the circus, which had just started at 6:00pm as I was leaving the fairgrounds. I decided to stay for the most of the show. I enjoyed the high wire acts and the acrobatic displays.
The high wire acts
These brothers from South America were extremely talented and do the most amazing tricks on the high wire.
The bicycle ride over the high wire
Skipping rope on the high wire acts
I really had a nice time at the fair. While it was not as big as either the Dutchess or Ulster County fairs that I attended in the past, there was a lot to see and do at the Orange County Fair.
The Bridgewater, NJ 4H Fair:
Going to the 4H Fair in Bridgewater, NJ was like a step back in time. I used to come here with friends after swim team practice as kids and we all used to garbage up eating our way through the Food Tent. After that, we would enjoy the fair.
The entrance to the Somerset County 4H Fair in Bridgewater, NJ
Walking into the 4H Fairgrounds was like stepping back over forty years as I had not been here since 1981. I even searched all the tents to find someone I knew (I did not know anyone).
The various displays of crafts, hobby cars, crafts and gardening tips
I first visited the Craft and Hobby tents with the displays of model trains, planes, automobiles and artwork. It was mostly families talking amongst themselves. The I next visited the Cow pens.
The cow pens
The cow pens
The cows were getting their afternoon feeding
I next visited the Sheep tent and they were in the middle of having their lunch as well not paying too much attention to us humans.
The sheep were enjoying their lunch when I got there and stopped for a second to see what I was doing
They all went back to feeding
There was a llama tent as well and they seemed very welcoming to human interaction
While walking around the fair, I could see the dark clouds coming in the distance. I had thought the storms were not coming until that evening, so I hustled through the rest of the tents.
Walking down the Midway of the fair with dark clouds in the distance
Entering the Poultry Tent
There were all sorts of varieties of chickens, ducks and geese to visit at the fair.
The prize chickens in their pens
The chickens were eating their lunch and pecking away
The highlight of the 4H Fair to me as a child was the Food tent with all the hot dogs, hamburgers, fried dough and funnel cakes and the popcorn and cotton candy for dessert.
The Food Concession tent
The Food tent
Just as I was deciding what to eat for dinner, there was a panicked announcement over the loudspeaker that they were closing the fair due to incoming storm clouds and lightening.
Everyone made a mad dash for their cars and I actually felt for all the concessions, who had all this food to sell and now how to shut down quickly. Some of the patrons had a ‘screw it’ attitude and kept eating probably until they kicked them out of the tent.
It started to rain while I was in the parking lot and I just checked messages on my phone and worked on blogs until most of the traffic got out of the parking lot. Then I drove into Bridgewater and had dinner at Joe’s Pizzeria at 1938 Washington Valley Road in Martinsville.
Joe’s Pizzeria at 1938 Washington Valley Road in Bridgewater, NJ
I had been coming to Joe’s since I was five and the pizza has not changed on bit since then. The next and the current owner both use the original Joe’s recipe for tomato sauce for the pies and calzones. Dinner here is another step back in time to my teen years. The inside of the pizzeria has not changed much in 35 years.
I was in the mood for a sandwich but I did not see any on the menu. They no longer make them so I ordered the Sausage and Pepperoni Roll. When it came out, it looked like a small pizza folded over. They made it fresh for me.
The Sausage and Pepperoni Roll with a side of red sauce
The roll was stuffed with a half pound of sweet fried sausage and spicy pepperoni, tucked in a pizza dough shell and baked to perfection.
It was the perfect meal for me covering both lunch and dinner. This could have been shared by two people.
The food here has been excellent since I started to come here in the 1970’s and has not changed since.
The dining area has not changed much since I was a kid
There’s more fairs to see and many more experiences to be had at them.
*The blogger wants to note that the prices have gone up a few dollars but the quality and portion sizes are well worth it.
This iconic pizzeria has been open since 1970 and has been serving the Bridgewater, NJ community and beyond since then. I have been coming here since I was kid and have rediscovered again when travelling in the area. On only its third owner since its opening, the pizza and their amazing tomato sauce has not changed since then.
Their iconic sign
The original Joe sold the business to Joe II in 1984 and this year after 35 years of ownership, Joe II retired and his family did not want to take over the business and sold it to Sal, who I met recently who said he is keeping all the original recipes.
The longevity of this restaurant is the food and their prices. The mozzarella is always stringy on every bite, especially when a fresh pie comes out for slicing at lunch. The tomato sauce has a wonderful spicy tomato-y flavor to it that really brings out the sweet flavor of the fruit.
The pizza sauce recipe has been passed down through three owners!
The bottom of the pizza has a crisp consistency to it and you can taste the caramelization in every bite. The best thing to do is order a large and really enjoy it.
The pizza is really good!
Joe’s sandwiches are always consistent and delicious (See review on TripAdvisor). The half meatball hoagie comes with four rather large, freshly made meatballs. Joe’s meatballs are made fresh every day and are loaded with garlic. On a crusty fresh roll and lots of their tomato sauce each bite is special.
The meatball sandwiches here are amazing! (They no longer serve sandwiches)
Their half Italian hoagie is loaded with freshly sliced Italian cold cuts including ham, salami, provolone cheese with shredded lettuce and tomatoes with a vinegar and oil dressing. The combination of flavors of meats and vegetables really works.
Add a half dozen mozzarella sticks with fresh sauce on the side or garlic knots to a slice and it will give you the perfect afternoon lunch or dinner. In the almost fifty years I have been coming to Joe’s, I have never had a bad meal through the three owners.
The calzone was excellent
On a recent trip after a Michigan State versus Rutgers football game I decided to stop for dinner. I had the most delicious Sausage and Cheese Calzone that was made by the current owner. The calzone was huge. It was about the size of a small pizza that had been folded over.
Where the pizza magic happens
The calzone was filled with a combination of ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses with a big handful of fried sausage tucked into a soft pizza dough that was baked golden brown. It was accompanied by a bowl of their delicious tomato sauce that is based on the original Joe’s special recipe. Each bite was wonderful.
I went to Bridgewater again in 2026 to go to the 4H Fair and when a storm brewed during the fair, the organizers kicked everyone out before I could eat, so I decided to stop by Joe’s for a sandwich. They no longer make them so I ordered the Sausage and Pepperoni Roll. When it came out, it looked like a small pizza folded over. They made it fresh for me.
The Sausage and Pepperoni Roll with a side of red sauce
The roll was stuffed with a half pound of sweet fried sausage and spicy pepperoni, tucked in a pizza dough shell and baked to perfection.
It was the perfect meal for me covering both lunch and dinner. This could have been shared by two people.
The food here has been excellent since I started to come here in the 1970’s and has not changed since.
The dining area has not changed much since I was a kid
It’s nice to know that somethings never change. The restaurant has always been consistent and it’s nice to know that some things don’t change.
I had a five week break from the college when my first Summer class was cancelled. So I concentrated on traveling through New Jersey and New York, both the City and Upstate for my blog. I wanted to revisit many historical sites that I had seen during the holiday season (was Christmas six months ago?) or in the past. There were places like Central Park, where I had not seen certain sections in the Spring. This lead to me being part of many walking tours of gardens during the month of June.
With all the wet weather we had in the Spring, the gardens in June were lush with flowers and flowering trees and plants. Pathways lined with color and walled gardens beautifully laid out. It was interesting to see how these were planted, designed and maintained.
The entrance to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in June 2026
All the rain we had in April and May and the warm days of early June had awakened the Cherry Blossoms and I visited as many locations to see them in full bloom.
Please read my blog on visiting the Cherry Blossoms:
Once they were finished, gardens came to life all over the tri-state area and many historical homes and parks came to life in a sea of color and smells that showed the power of Mother Nature to make things beautiful. I was impressed with the work of many volunteer staffs and their dedication in taking care of these sites for all of us to enjoy.
Visiting to Amour-Steiner House for the Spring Garden Tour:
The Amour-Steiner House the day of the Garden Tour
The beds were in full bloom when we toured the gardens
The colors of the flowers were patriotic red, white and blue
In between the hedges, there was elegant statuary and potted urns with colorful flowers blooming with bright hues.
The urns were filled with bright colors of the season
Statuary representing the arts and music lined the hedges
The flowers were so brilliant that afternoon
I enjoyed looking at the statuary
The gardens were so beautiful with the house in the background
As we left the gardens, I admired the ornate Fox and the Glove gate on the way out
We then crossed the lawn to tour the greenhouse, where many of the flowers were and still are grown for decorating the house both inside and out.
The landscaping has a romantic spin on it as the property was planted to accent not just the property but the house as well giving it a natural but balanced look to it.
Touring the formal greenhouse
Even the working greenhouse had a romanticized look about it that reflected the house
The inside of the greenhouse. Each side of the counters seasonal flowers are grown for the property. This greenhouse is used all year long supplying the house with a steady stream of flowers.
In the middle of the greenhouse was a beautiful Victorian aquarium that was lined with more flowers. There were no fish at this time.
I loved the beautiful flowers that lined the counters
The Spring colors were breathtaking
We then started the tour of the house starting with the outside veranda that held more urns and planters of fresh flowers
The beautiful veranda lines the entire house
The beautiful colors from the potted and hanging plants
The veranda decorated for the upcoming ‘250th Anniversary of the United States
The hanging plants
The potted plants
We even admired the birdhouse that matched the house
We then went inside to tour the house. It would be interesting to see the house without all the Christmas decorations that I saw the last time I toured the house.
The triangle room off the foyer once used as the Receiving Room
The beautiful foyer to the second floor
The main Parlor/Living Room used for entertaining
The formal Dining Room
The decorative sideboard
The other decorative sideboard
The Dining Room table set for a Spring dinner
We then started the tour of the second floor which started in the game room at the top of there landing. I remember the big Christmas tree being here when the house was decorated for the holidays.
I liked the room was the way it is here
Then we toured the bedrooms which were not that elaborate but functional and comfortable as they are today.
One of several bedrooms on the second floor
The bathroom which is considered normal today was ahead of its time with flushing toilets and hot and cold running water
The office off the side in one of the Octagon corners
The Egyptian Room was the height of fashion with travel and new discovers in Egypt at the time.
The ceiling and decorations of Egyptian Room
The decor of the Egypt
The beautiful porcelain in the room
Then we toured the Curio Room. I thought the room was a lot of fun with small objects that people would have collected from their journeys at that time.
The shelves, counters and walls were filled with all sorts of interesting objects
Many types of object’s
The Victorian Terrarium that was becoming fashionable at the time
The fold out desk with small objects in each slot
A Victrola and Terrarium
The last part of the tour was of the newly renovated kitchen. The shelves were lined with a collection of shiny pots and pans.
The ‘modern’ Victorian kitchen
When the tour was over, I visited the gift shop and looked over the kitchen once more. It is interesting to see how ‘modern’ back then is ‘contemporary’ today. Victorians set the tone for the modern American home of today and the expectations of the American dream.
Before I left the grounds, I visited the gardens once more. It was such perfect weather to walk around and I enjoyed the beauty of these gardens. Mother Nature creates this all this.
Walking around the grounds of the home
I enjoyed walking around the gardens that day
I found this tour one of the most relaxing I have taken in a long time. The beauty of both the house and the gardens was wonderful. Just sitting on the veranda and looking over the grounds was the perfect way to spend the afternoon.
Taking the Clermont Garden Walking Tour 2026:
I returned in the Spring of 2026 for the an updated walking tour of the gardens “Gardens and Grounds: Evolving Landscaping of Clermont”, where the State of New York horticulturalist who had just been hired to maintain the gardens, explained to us the developments and goals that the State wanted for the direction of the landscaping on the property. They wanted it brought back to the 1930’s blueprint of what Alice Livingston had originally envisioned for the estate when she returned from Europe.
Arriving to the Clermont estate at 1 Clermont Avenue in Germantown, NY
We started the tour with a history of the house and Alice Livingston’s return from Europe to create her famous gardens
The front of the mansion in the Spring of 2026
We started the tour at the Walled Garden which was just finished being restored. The back wall had just been finished and the site’s main horticulturalist explained that she was working with a group of volunteers to maintain the gardens.
The Walled Garden designed by Alice Livingston
The Walled Garden in the Spring of 2026
The inside to the entrance of the Walled Garden
The back part of the Walled Garden
The next garden we toured was the Wilderness Garden which included wildflowers and a fish pond
The Wilderness Garden sign
The back part of the Walled Garden leads to the Wilderness Garden
The entrance to the Wilderness Gardens
The lecture on the design and plantings of the Wilderness Garden
The colorful wildflowers that line the grass paths
The fish pond in the Wilderness Garden
We then followed the path and walked up and toured the Cutting and Children’s Garden. These colorful gardens once supplied the house with an assortment of fresh flowers. It also taught the Livingston girls the attributes of gardening.
The Cutting Garden and Greenhouse sign
The main Cutting Garden
The Cutting garden
The Cutting Garden in the late Spring
The in season flowers in the Cutting Garden
The Children’s Playhouse and Garden is next to the Cutting Garden
The Children’s Garden in the Spring
Touring past the old Greenhouses
Part of the former greenhouse
The tour through the grounds with my group
The pathway back to Clermont
Touring along the river
The former roadway between the house and the river
The South Spring Garden
Our last garden toured was the one closest to the house and that was the South Spring Garden of which Alice could see from her window. When the porch was removed from the home and Alice developed plans for other gardens, this garden went ‘native’.
The South Garden
The South Garden in bloom
The views from the South Garden
The flower planters near the South Garden
The planters filled with Spring geraniums
Walking back after the tour was over and looking at the beautiful grounds
Ending the tour that day with a walk along the river
It was a beautiful day to walk the gardens and the perfect way to spend the afternoon. Each time I take a tour of the gardens, I am amazed how different they seem. I love the different times of the year and how it changes these gardens.
I returned to Manhattan the next week and as I was working in Inwood and Washington Heights neighborhoods, I took a tour of Isham Park with the Bruce Reynolds Gardens and Fort Tyron Park with the Heather Gardens, when they were in full bloom. It was breathtaking with the back drop of the Hudson River on a sunny afternoon.
In Isham Park, I toured the Bruce Reynolds Gardens, which is in the center of the park. They were in full bloom when I walked around the gardens and relaxed under the shade trees.
The new Bonnefont Restaurant is open for lunch and brunch
The restaurant was closed that afternoon but I was able to look at the menu online and it is an interesting menu. The cuisine is a mixture of French and Contemporary cooking.
Walking back through the gardens to the Fort Tryon location
Walking to the Fort Tryon site
The Fort Tryon site
Visiting the Brooklyn Botanic Garden before Rose Night in 2026:
I got an email from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden saying that the Cranford Rose Garden was at its peak of blooming and that I should see it while it was at its prime. I was busy at work and was able to travel down to down to the gardens a few days later. Talk about perfect timing as the petals just started to fall.
The Cranford Rose Garden at peak is one of the most beautiful sites. The colors and the fragrances are just amazing. I could not attend “Rose Night” in 2026 because of a prior commitment plus it would be a gloomy night with the threat of rain. So I went the Friday afternoon before the event, which would be held the next Wednesday. By that point, the flowers would be out of peak.
The Cranford Rose Garden in bloom at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
The Cranford Rose Garden is amazing from every angle and the views from the top of the hill overlooking the garden shows the extensive amounts of roses planted and the array of colors.
The beds of roses of all colors and species
The entrance to the Cranford Rose Garden is full of an array of different types of colorful flowers
The beautiful and diverse flowers in the Cranford Rose Garden
The beauty of flowers up close
All sorts of roses line the trellis borders of the Rose Garden
What I love about walking around is that you can see the diversity of the roses. The garden is planted with different species so they bloom at different times giving the beds an array of colors at different times. Along the beds and trellis everything bloomed so vibrantly.
The beautiful orange roses that lined the trellis
The colorful trellis pathways
The reds and pinks in full bloom
Roses lining the lamppost
Admiring the beds of roses at the Cranford Rose Garden
Purple reins supreme
Walking through the trellis pathways of red
The beauty of the trellis
The back part of the garden
The back terrace of the Cranford Rose Garden
The elegant statuary of the rose garden and the sun dial
The back Terrace area
The back of the Cranford Rose Garden is lined with all sorts of flowering plants having a rainbow of colors.
Walking through the terrace gardens
The beautiful roses in the back of the garden
The roses in the back of the Cranford Gardens
Walking out the back of the gardens
The back path of the Cranford Rose Garden
The fountain in the back of the Cranford Garden
Visiting the Cranford Rose Garden when it flowering is one of the most interesting collection of colors and scents. This is why I try to time my visits around the blooming of the flowers.
The Tour of the Gardens at The Cloisters in the Spring 2026:
One of my favorite places with in the Metropolitan Museum of Art to visit is The Cloisters in any season. One of my favorite places when it is decorated for the Christmas holiday season, the Spring and Summer offer such beautiful displays of historical plants that try to match the theme of each Cloister and its historical background.
The docent led a very large group of us through each Cloister and told us of the way the curators plant the gardens to represent what may have been planted during the Medieval era for medical and nutritional functions of those peoples lives.
(From the Museum website)
The gardens of the Middle Ages included both real and ideal gardens. Poets and artists delighted in the depiction of fantasy gardens like the Garden of Love or of Paradise, but no real garden of the time remains to us. Historical records are rare and incomplete; the ninth-century plan for the monastery of St. Gall, with its carefully drawn and labeled garden beds, is unique. Archaeological excavations are yielding valuable new evidence, but we still know more about infirmary gardens of medicinal plants and aristocratic pleasure gardens than we do about humble kitchen plots of potherbs and vegetables (Met.org).
The gardens of the Museum, planted in reconstructed Romanesque and Gothic cloisters, evoke those that provided sustenance and spiritual refreshment within the medieval monastery. Designed as an integral feature of the Museum, the gardens have been a major attraction of The Cloisters since its opening in 1938, enhancing both the setting in which the Museum’s collection of medieval art is displayed and the visitor’s understanding of medieval life. The gardens are designed and maintained by a horticultural staff actively engaged in researching and developing the living collection (Met.org).
The Cloisters at 99 Margaret Corbin Drive in Fort Tryon blooming in the late Spring
We walked through the Cloister discussing how plantings were determined by medical and religious purposes
The flower beds in the Cloister
The view of the Hudson River was amazing
The flowers in bloom
Flowers in bloom
Flowers in bloom
Flowers in bloom
We moved the next Cloister looking over the medical plants and flowers
The Cloister in bloom
Walking around the Cloister
The plants around the sills of the Cloisters
Touring the Cloisters and admiring the flowers
Everything in bloom
We toured the last Cloister while the tour guide explained the plantings
The last Cloister we toured
The garden in full bloom
The growth of the hops growing on a trellis
The hops planting up close
The flowers in bloom in the Cloister
Video on “Art and Gardens at the Met”
We ended the tour admiring the art in the Tapestry Room and having a discussion about the use of plants and flowers in Medieval art.
‘The Hunt of the Unicorn’ tapestry discussion
I then visited the ‘Creatures of Myth and Imagination-European and the Americas’ exhibition.
This exhibition was an interesting look at mythical beasts of the era of great exploration from European to the Americas. It reminded me of the book “In Search of Ancient Astronauts” with many golden creatures that look like they are visitors from another planet, Ancient Gods to worship and one civilization’s outlook on the unknown. The artwork was a cross between mysticism and respect.
The exhibition sign for “Creatures of Myth and Imagination: Europe and the Americas”
Set in the evocative atmosphere of The Met Cloisters, Creatures of Myth and Imagination: Europe and the Americas sheds light on a selection of works created on either side of the Atlantic Ocean between 500 and 1500 CE. The exhibition’s exploration of hybrid creatures deepens our understanding of their apparent necessity among diverse peoples. In the Americas, a complex gold pendant by a Tairona artist of northern Colombia, depicting a confrontational figure with hands on hips, a crocodile-like head, and an enormous headdress, would have reflected and expressed the wearer’s status and power. In Europe, ferocious dragons such as the one depicted on a monumental fresco from the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza, Spain, took center stage to convey a multiplicity of meanings both sacred and profane (Met.org).
The exhibition gallery
Unusual mythical creature
(From the museum website)
For as long as humans have told stories, we’ve imagined creatures that transcend the natural world. Fantastical beings combining the features of animals, humans, and even plants appear across cultures, emerging in the most ancient myths and enduring in contemporary epics. The widespread presence of these supernatural beings, possessing the power to transform and be transformed, reflects a global impulse to make sense of both known and unknown worlds. Visual artists have given form to these imaginary creatures, resulting in some of the most fearsome, beloved, and extraordinary works of art ever made (Met.org).
Small gold ancient Gods
Ritual Knives
Double pendants
Earth Deity
I took one last tour of the museum gardens before I left for the afternoon. On the balcony overlooking the Hudson River offered beautiful views and beautiful potted plants.
Walking out of the back Cloister
The back Cloister
The beautiful white flowers
The balcony overlooking the Hudson River
The potted plants by the doorway
The view of the Hudson River
Looking north up the Hudson River
The tour of the Gardens was amazing and the exhibition on the Pre-Columbian art interesting. It was a wonderful tour of the Cloisters.
I had a private function at the Museum of the City of New York across the street from the Central Park Conservatory Gardens. When the event was over, I took a walk around the gardens when they were in full bloom.
The gardens just went through a major renovation and each of the paths had rows of colorful flowers that were beautifully taken care of and designed to bloom at different stages of the growing season so there was always color in the gardens. The effect was amazing.
The entrance of the Central Park Conservatory lawn and fountain
The fountain and the geometric garden
Central Park Conservatory gardens at the entrance
The entrance of the gardens from the Harlem Meer area
The entrance to the flower gardens from the Central Park Conservatory lawn
The Central Park Conservatory garden beds
The gardens in full bloom in the Summer of 2026
The flower beds in the central of the gardens
The Central Park Conservatory Fountain and Lotus pools
I walked behind Hippo Park in Central Park one afternoon to discover a beautiful floral garden that was the 91st Street Garden that I had missed on previous walks in the park. The Garden did not look like this in the Fall.
The 91st Street Garden in the Summer of 2026
Then I remembered the scene in “You Got Mail” and remembered that this was the garden where they met. I always thought it was closer to Riverside Drive than it was here in the park.
The sign for the garden
As I passed the garden, I remember this was the garden in the last scene of the movie, “You Got Mail” when Meg Ryan realizes that her secret email pal is Tom Hanks. It was such a great scene and the perfect end to a great Rom-Com.
The end of the movie “You Got Mail” with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks
The Gardens from the front
The flowers in full bloom
The flowers in full bloom in July 2026
All I could think about was this scene as I walked around the garden. The funny part is this was the first time I had ever visited this garden as I did not know where it was located. I knew it was on 91st Street but could never figure out where. You have to walk on the path behind the Hippo Playground and follow it to the other path.
The gardens from the front
Walking back up through Riverside park from the Hippo Playground
Walking in Riverside Park in the 90’s
You have to find your way through Riverside Park to find the garden but in the Spring and Summer it is worth the walk up and down the hill.
These are just some of the places that I am still visiting as the Summer season begins and there are more historical sites to see and more smaller gardens to visit. Let’s see what the rains produce in the coming months.
Places to Visit:
*Bloggers Note: the prices of these sites vary from season to season and can change from year to year. This is the same with the hours depending on what season you visit.
Fee: Adults $30.00/Seniors $17.00/Children $12.00/Members & Patrons and Children under 12 are free (prices do fluctuate). NY, NJ and CT students and NY residents Pay as you wish.
Museum Hours:
Hours: Open 7 days a week
March-October 10:00am-5:15pm
November-February 10:00am- 4:45pm
Closed Thanksgiving Day, December 25th and January 1st.
*Some galleries may be closed for construction or maintenance.
