USA > New Jersey > Morris County > A history of Morris County, New Jersey : embracing upwards of two centuries, 1710-1913, Volume I > Part 31
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school year ending June, 1913, was 425, the average daily attendance, 318; the cost of operation, $10,765.96. The building, a handsome two-story brick, was erected in 1904 at a cost of $26,000, on land valued at $2,000. The school equipment is valued at $4,000, making a total value of $32,000. The total real estate valuation at the last assessment was $571,200, personal property, $384,309; railroad property, $18,514.
Fire Department-Wharton has an efficient fire department of sixty- eight active volunteer members, forming three companies: Independent Hook and Ladder Company No. 1; Active Hose Company No. I, and the Board of Fire Wardens. The apparatus consists of two horse-drawn chem- ical hook and ladder trucks, three hand-drawn hose carriages.
The borough has a partial water supply furnished by Robert F. Oram, as a private enterprise, nearly half of the borough being served.
The Morris County Traction Company furnishes street transportation, an hourly service being maintained with eastern points and Lake Hopatcong.
With the great increase in population Port Oram yearned for municipal distinction and on June 25, 1895, was incorporated a borough. As stated above, in 1902 the name was changed to Wharton in honor of the owners of the iron works which they had revived and started on a new era of prosper- ity. The borough officials for 1914 were: Mayor, Ulysses G. Davenport; councilmen-John R. Spargo, Jairus J. Langdon, William Hill, Elwood Well- ington, Michael Kiernan and Alfred L. Mulligan; clerk, John Kernick; as- sessor, Charles H. Porter ; collector, John Kernick; treasurer, John Kernick ; recorder, Joseph R. Williams; chief of police, John McDonald; street com- missioner, John McDonald; deputy policemen, Patrick Quinn and John Flynn; overseer of the poor, Patrick Casey; chief of the Fire Department, William P. Curtis ; first assistant, Edgar D. Hopler ; second assistant, Daniel J. Kettrick; board of health-Dr. H. W. Kice, Jairus J. Langdon, John H. Williams, John A. Birmingham, John McDonald; president of the board of education, James Walters; district clerk, J. H. Williams; custodian, John Kernick; medical inspector, Dr. Henry W. Kice; attendance officer, John McDonald.
When the new school was completed in 1904, the old building which was erected in 1882 was deeded to the borough, and has since been used as a borough hall. The building is a suitable one and besides its use as a borough hall has rooms fitted up for the comfort of the firemen.
BOROUGH OF NETCONG
The establishment of the Musconetcong Iron Works, at Stanhope in Sussex county, brought many new residents to that place. In time homes began to appear on the opposite side of the river in Morris county, the village of South Stanhope finally resulting. The settlement grew in importance and in 1889 deemed itself worthy of a postoffice separate from Stanhope. With the establishment of the postoffice came a new christening and as Netcong it began its separate career. Five years later Netcong was incorporated a borough and as such has become one of the prosperous municipalities of Morris county.
Netcong is the last station on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western railroad in Morris county, and the point of junction of the Sussex railroad with the Lackawanna. Located near Lake Hopatcong and surrounded by picturesque scenery, its people, prosperous and progressive, have kept pace with modern ideas in municipal government and enjoy the comforts and
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conveniences of much larger communities. Pure water is brought from Pigeon Hill, nearly a mile away; streets and homes are lighted with elec- tricity ; a bank flourishes as well as a newspaper, the public school is an honor to the borough, and an efficient volunteer fire department insures the safety of property. It is a beautiful, rural, residential town and departing trains on the Lackawanna bid Morris county farewell at its western border, after passing through a succession of beautiful sights from the moment of entering the county at Convent Station.
There is a silk mill located at Netcong and a part of the works of the Singer Manufacturing Company extends over the Musconetcong river into the borough, but otherwise there is no manufacturing. The Singer Company is the successor to the Musconetcong Iron Company, but the works are almost entirely in Sussex county. Port Morris, a mile to the eastward, is an important railroad point, the three communities, Netcong, Stanhope and Port Morris, forming a prosperous business section.
Abraham J. Drake was the first postmaster at Netcong, receiving the first sack of mail for the new office on the morning of November 19, 1889, and despatching the first sack in the afternoon of the same day. He con- tinued in office during President Harrison's administration, then was out of office a few years, was reappointed and served until succeeded by the present postmaster, Walter Miller, in June, 1913. The office is one of the third class, its departments including a postal savings bank, money order and all conveniences of its class.
The Citizens National Bank of Netcong began business in March, 1903, with a capital of $50,000, and has had a successful career. At the close of business, March 4, 1914, the total resources of the bank were reported as $416,793, with individual deposits subject to check of $304,904, and a bank- ing house valued at $14,469. The officers of the bank are: H. H. Helden, president ; D. S. Drake, vice-president ; H. E. Griggs, cashier.
The Stanhope Eagle was established by its present owner and publisher, George T. Keech, and is now in its twenty-ninth year of a successful, useful existence. The paper is well supported and maintains a job department well equipped with modern printing appliances and a large press from which the Eagle is printed.
The Musconetcong Building and Loan Association is one of the valu- able institutions of the borough, has matured several series and been of great usefulness in the upbuilding of the town.
The only fraternal order located in the borough is the Royal Arcanum, the neighboring Stanhope lodges having many Netcong members.
St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church was organized September 27, 1880, and for a time held services in an old warehouse. The corner stone of a church edifice was laid the same year and the building soon completed that is now in use. A rectory was built in 1889, the parish also owning a ceme- tery. The first pastor was Rev. W. H. Oram ; the present pastor is Rev. E. J. Miskela.
Grace Baptist Church was organized in August, 1890, as Netcong Bap- tist Church, the members of which worshipped in a building erected in 1888. On September 12, 1912, the church was reorganized as Grace Baptist Church and was under the charge of State Evangelist H. A. Buzzell until the first pastor, Rev. F. W. Oberhiser, was installed, December 15, 1913. The church has a membership of 38, with a Sunday school enrollment of 113, the aver- age attendance being 60.
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The public schools are housed in a modern two-story brick building, which with equipment and land is valued at $40,000. The system comprises a primary school with six teachers, a grammar school with three teachers, all under the direction of a supervising principal. The teachers are as follows: Principal, William G. Atwood; high school, John P. Greenleaf, Josephine Stevenson, Hazel A. Person; grammar, Edith M. Harvey, Tacey E. White, Elsie King; primary, Eleanor A. Flood, Florence Mowder, Katie King, Rachel V. Mowder, Mahala Britton, Laura H. Mack. The first building was erected in 1892 and in 1912 the high school building was added.
There are two houses of entertainment in the borough: The Mansion House, Keanelly Howard, proprietor ; and the Imperial Hotel, L. P. Shomp, proprietor.
The borough was first supplied with water by a private concern, the Rockland Water Company, established in 1905. The reservoir was built on Pigeon Hill and a gravity system installed that in the borough exerts a pres- sure of seventy pounds. In 1908 the borough bought out the company and now owns the entire plant, supplying 202 private and public buildings, and thirty-five street hydrants. The value of the plant is $35,000.
The fire department is a volunteer force of sixty men, equipped with hose cart, hook and ladder truck, 600 feet of hose, and other fire fighting appliances. By an arrangement with their neighbors in Stanhope, the forces of the two towns unite in case of emergency, the number of feet of hose and fire fighters available then being doubled.
Electricity for lighting purposes is furnished by the Willsbrook Electric Light Company, that also supplies Stanhope, Port Morris and Landing with illumination.
Netcong was incorporated a borough October 22, 1894, and in 1905, the present Borough Hall was erected, that building also sheltering the fire fight- ing apparatus. The present officials of the borough are: Elmer King, mayor ; councilmen-Thomas J. Allen (president), Thomas J. Clift, Pierson M. Chamberlain, Everett J. Applegate, Michael J. Smith, Raymond W. Walter ; clerk, J. P. Meade; assessor, A. A. King ; collector and treasurer, Robert J. Pettit; recorder and justice of the peace, George T. Keech; mar- shal and overseer of the poor, John A. Roy; chief of fire department, A. A. King ; water commissioners for sinking fund, Michael Barone, P. M. Cham- berlain, D. S. Drake; board of health, T. H. Mahany, Dr. John Miller, John Grogan; officers of the board of education-G. H. Lunger, president ; Charles D. Wolfe, district clerk; S. H. Chamberlain, custodian ; Dr. F. M. Horn, medical inspector ; John A. Roy, attendance officer.
The assessed real estate valuation of the borough for the year 1912 was $363,175 ; personal property, $70,442. The population in 1900 was 941; in 1910, according to the federal census, 1,532. The number of scholars en- rolled in the public schools for the year 1912-13 was 401 ; average attendance, 280; cost of operating the schools, $10,391.78.
BOROUGH OF MOUNT ARLINGTON.
The beauties and wonders of the Lake Hopatcong region have been fully described in the history of the township from which Mount Arlington was set off and incorporated a borough, November 1, 1890. The lake shore line of the borough extends from and includes Bertrand Island, following the indentation of the shore line for three and a half miles to the American House which is just outside the borough limits. The borough extends back
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from the lake an average distance of one and a half miles, its inland line being about six miles in length, taking in Mount Arlington station on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroad. Mount Arlington may be called the capital of the Lake Hopatcong region, as it is the seat of the per- manent population, the large hotels, postoffice and churches, these being located about three miles from Mount Arlington station, and reached by auto stage over a good road. It is about the same distance from Lake Hopatcong station on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western, this being the station for boats that deliver passengers to all points around the lake, and is con- nected with Mount Arlington by "Kings Road," a fine amisite road, three miles in length, built during 1913 by the State and borough at a cost of $54,000. When Mount Arlington was first incorporated, borough improve- ment bonds were issued for $30,000; that was expended in construction of roads, and in the erection of a building that is used as borough hall, school house and postoffice. These bonds have all been retired except $6,000; with- out the creation of a sinking fund. The lake shore is the location of many beautiful homes, as are the hills back from the lake along the well graded roads. The postoffice was originally known as the Rustic Postoffice, but when the borough was incorporated it was called Mount Arlington, and the Rustic Postoffice removed to its present location at Mount Arlington station. In 1892 Mount Arlington was created a money order office. The present postmaster is Cyrus E. Cook, appointed in 1910, with Miss Rae B. Cook, assistant postmistress, and notary public. The permanent population of the borough was according to the census of 1910, 277, but is now (1914) esti- mated at 600. It is also estimated that there is a summer population of 8,000, and that during the summer season 50,000 people visit the Lake Hopat- cong region.
Hotels-The largest hotel of the borough or region is the Breslin, G. Frank Cope, proprietor, which has accommodations for 450 guests. This hotel is beautifully located on the lake front, and is thoroughly modern in its appointments. Other hotels of importance are the Lake View House, John R. Moore, proprietor, with accommodations for 250 guests; the Mt. Arling- ton, John R. MacDonald, proprietor, with capacity for 150 guests ; Schafer's Hotel, Frank Schafer, proprietor, with capacity for one hundred guests ; Hotel Boulevard, Emilie Chaplin, proprietress, accommodating fifty guests ; Villa Von Campe, A. G. Von Campe, proprietor, accommodating fifty guests ; the Woodstock House, accommodating fifty guests; Idle Hour Cot- tage, accommodating twenty-five guests, and numberless other houses enter- taining summer guests. There are numerous forms of amusement furnished by lake and woods, and also a Golf and Yacht Club.
A general store is kept by Charles V. Danielson, and a large garage with room for 100 cars is maintained by R. J. Chaplin & Sons, a repair and refit- ting department also being a part of the establishment. Chaplin & Sons also operate the auto stage line with Mount Arlington station, carrying passen- gers, freight and mails.
A public school is maintained in the borough building, Edith E. Gordon being teacher. The school is maintained at a cost of $1,416, has an enroll- ment of 48, with an average daily attendance of 25.
There are two churches in the borough: St. Peter's Protestant Epis- copal Church, a mission under the care of Archdeacon McCleary, a quaint chapel in the woods; and Our Lady of the Lake, Roman Catholic, with Father Miskela as pastor.
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The assessed valuation of real estate in the borough in 1912 was $506,- 800; personal property, $63,300.
Borough officials: Mayor, Richard J. Chaplin, now serving his fifth term; councilmen-P. S. Dyer (president), Clarence Lee, William P. Grif- fiths, Frank Sisco, H. E. Lowerre, and James D. Purcell ; clerk and recorder, Cyrus E. Cook; assessor, F. L. Schafer ; collector and treasurer, F. H. Tap- pen; superintendent of public property, F. H. Tappen; board of health- Richard J. Chaplin, F. H. Tappen, James Levie (secretary), Dr. Charles Gordon, F. L. Schafer; president of the board of education, Richard D. Chaplin ; district clerk, F. L. Schafer; custodian, F. H. Tappen ; medical inspector, Dr. C. D. Gordon ; attendance officer, A. H. Gordon.
BOROUGH OF MENDHAM
Beautiful for situation lies Mendham, seven miles from Morristown and thirty-eight miles from New York, among the hills and valleys of Mendham township. Its rural beauty and quiet is undisturbed by factory or mill, its claim to distinction being its pure air, clear water, good roads, schools, churches and beautiful homes. On the four corners formed by the inter- section of its two principal streets stands the two old time hostelries, The Black Horse and The Phoenix, the postoffice and Mendham pharmacy. A tall mast of Oregon pine with topmast surmounted by a gilded eagle 128 feet from the ground, marks the center of the intersection and corresponds to the olden time "Liberty Pole." A settlement has existed there from time immemorial, and as the seat of the early churches, and as the residence of many of the noted early families, Mendham gained considerable distinction as a village. Later the desirability of the location attracted summer resi- dents, and May 15, 1906, the village was incorporated a borough. In the days of the prosperity of the Rockaway Valley railroad, Mendham was a station on that line, but since the closing of the railroad, communication with the outside world has been by auto stages to Morristown, the two lines operating almost an hourly service, freight and mails also being transported in the same way.
Entertainment is furnished the public by Black Horse Inn, one of the historic houses of the county, a licensed house having stood on the site since 1735. The present owner and proprietor, George S. Beavers, has kept the inn for the past twenty-six years.
The Phoenix is also an old house; William Phoenix, the grandfather of the present owner and proprietor, William N. Phoenix, kept the house for many years. He built the newer parts of the building, which after him was kept by three of his daughters as a boarding house, there being no bar nor license from 1860 until 1909.
Mendham has had a postoffice for many years, the office now being one of the third class. A postal savings bank is one of the features of the office ; another is a rural free delivery route. The present postmaster, John W. Garrabrant, was appointed December 19, 1910.
The borough owns its own waterworks and system, established at a cost of $40,000. This also is the dependence in time of fire, the gravity system affording a pressure of seventy pounds, which is ample, as none of the buildings are high. The volunteer fire department of forty men is furnished with one thousand feet of hose, a hose carriage and a hook and ladder truck. The Mendham Hose Company is incorporated, and under the control of the borough, the membership of the Hose and Hook and Ladder
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companies being the same. Charles H. Day is the fire chief, and F. M. Groendyke, the foreman.
A circulating library is maintained in the borough by the Mendham Public Library Association, a fee of one dollar being charged annually. A library has existed in the town since 1830.
The lodges of the borough are the Modern Woodmen of America, Junior Order United American Mechanics, Improved Order of Red Men, all meeting in Hoffman's Hall. There are also the different societies of the various churches, social, benevolent and religious.
There are well kept stores, grocery, drug and general, that furnish all necessaries as well as many luxuries. The Pennsylvania Power Company lights the homes of the inhabitants as well as the public places and streets.
The health of the community is safeguarded by Drs. George S. De Groot and William A. McMurtrie.
Schools-Mendham schools have ever borne a high reputation from the days of the "Old Academy," founded in 1795 by Rev. Henry Axtell, D.D., and old "Hill Top Academy," founded by Ezra Fairchild. The present pub- lic school system consists of primary, grammar and high schools, the latter furnishing a three-year course. The teachers ( 1913-14) are: High School -John D. Edwards, principal; Ruth Burns; grammar-Alice F. Anderson and Sophia C. Stocking; primary-May B. Odgers and Mary E. Oliver. For the school year, 1912-13, there were 188 pupils enrolled in the several schools, with an average daily attendance of 148. There was expended in operating the schools during the same period $5,998.62. The buildings are substantial school property, being valued at about $20,000. The officers of the Board of Education are: President, Eugene B. Hill; District Clerk, Frank M. Groendyke; Custodian, Frank McMurtry ; Medical Inspector, Dr. William A. McMurtrie; Attendance Officer, Joseph A. Lowery.
Churches-There are four churches in the borough: Presbyterian, Methodist Episcopal, Protestant Episcopal and Roman Catholic. The oldest of these is the Presbyterian, Rev. Eliab Byram, the first pastor, having been installed in 1744. A more extended history of the church is found in the township history. The first church was built in 1745, "simple, severe and practical." The old church was struck by lightning, May 16, 1813, several being injured, and Mrs. John Drake killed, it being Sunday and services in progress. It was taken down in 1816, and a new edifice erected that burned in 1835. It was replaced by another that burned in 1859. The present church was dedicated February 1, 1860. It has recently been entirely re- built and refurnished at a cost of $13,000. The present pastor, Rev. Joseph G. Symmes, was installed in 1908. The membership numbers over 200 with a Sunday school and all departments of church well sustained.
The Methodist Episcopal Church has a membership of 185 with a Sun- day school of 97 scholars in all departments and fifteen officers and teachers. The church is a substantial and tasteful building of stone, valued at $18,000, with a parsonage valued at $5,000. Rev. Frank Chadwick, the pastor, is serving his fourth year. All departments of the church work are well sup- ported.
The Protestant Episcopal Church, St. Mark's, also owns a valuable property, Rev. Robert F. Law being rector.
St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church is presided over by Rev. Father Stephen Claffey, his parish being a large one, owning its church and par- sonage.
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The present officials of the borough are: Mayor, Edward W. Elliott; councilmen-James K. Burd (president), George S. De Groot, George Delp, Everitt L. Garrabrant, Dean Sage and J. Smith Gunther ; clerk, Leo Robin- son ; assessor, John H. Quimby ; collector and treasurer, Frank McMurtry ; counsel, David F. Barkman; justice of the peace, Jonathan Pitney ; marshal, John S. Tiger. The present Borough Hall is the former Methodist Episcopal church, and was moved to its present location about the year 1900. The population of the borough, according to the census of 1910, was 1,129.
BOROUGH OF FLORHAM PARK
With the incorporation of Florham Park as a borough, March 9, 1899, nearly all of the former area of Chatham township became incorporated in the three municipalities, Chatham, Madison and Florham Park. The latter borough is the largest landed borough in the county, containing within its borders several large estates and farms, including the Twombly and the late Leslie D. Ward estates and the greater part of the grounds and buildings of the College of St. Elizabeth. There is no large center of population, the residents being mostly farmers, and business men of the cities near by. According to the census of 1913 the population was 558. The assessed real estate value in 1912 was $1,353,677; personal property, $106,977. For the school year ending June, 1913, one hundred and eleven pupils were enrolled in the public schools, the average daily attendance being eighty-three. There was expended in operating the school $3,336.58. Teachers-grammar school, Geneva Pruden ; primary, Florence C. McGuirk. The schools are located in a modern building, well equipped.
The Borough Hall is also the home of the fire department, which is equipped with a chemical engine, hook and ladder truck and accessories. The postoffice is located in the general store of Charles W. Corey, who is also the postmaster. A hardware store is conducted by N. A. Felch.
There is a Presbyterian Chapel in the borough, a branch of the Hanover Church. The principal business of the borough is agriculture in its varied forms. There are many wealthy land owners in the borough who maintain beautiful homes and extensive estates.
The largest and most important institution is the College of St. Eliza- beth which lies also partly in Morris township at Convent Station on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroad, that station being in Morris township. This large and well known institution of the Roman Catholic Church was formerly known as St. Elizabeth's Academy and was established in Newark, New Jersey, by the Sisters of Charity of that diocese. They were not well located in Newark, and finally succeeded in purchasing from Bishop Bayley the "Chegaray Mansion" on the Madison and Whippany road, a property bought by the Bishop four years earlier for a college and diocesan seminary. The building was vacated in June, 1860, and on July 2, 1860, Rev. Mother M. Xavier and five Sisters took possession of the "Chegaray Man- sion" as a boarding school for young ladies under the name of St. Elizabeth's Academy.
The school soon outgrew its original quarters, and from time to time new buildings have been erected and old ones enlarged, until a handsome collection of buildings now graces the beautiful spot at Convent Station on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroad. These consist of a main building, wings, chapel and detached buildings, and are very large and impos- ing without, while within the chapel is a perfect specimen of architectural
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beauty, the marble altars of ornamental mosaic work being said to be among the most beautiful and costly in this country. The Sisters of Charity con- nected with St. Elizabeth's, also have charge of All Souls' Hospital at Mor- ristown.
Borough officials: Mayor, Edgar C. Hopping ; councilmen-William A. Hopping, president ; Nathan A. Felch, Herbert V. B. Smith, William A. Helm, Lyman J. Fish and James C. Bogert; clerk, Howard E. Young; assessor, William V. Tunis; collector and treasurer, Frederick A. Cory ; counsel, Edward K. Mills; recorder, Howard E. Young; board of health- Larue Teneick, Charles H. Genung, Roscoe C. Conkling, George E. Felch, De Witt C. Ward.
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