USA > New Jersey > Passaic County > Passaic > The Passaic valley, New Jersey, in three centuries.. Vol. 1 > Part 7
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The Morris and Essex Railroad, built about 1837, at first extending only from Newark to Morristown, afterward car- ried to Easton, in Pennsylvania, traverses Chatham nearly directly through its center. This road has been leased nom- inally for a term of years, but really on a perpetuity, to the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, which has controlled it lately for several years. The facilities afforded by the excellent management of this road have induced many business men of New York and Newark to seek for summer residences in Madison and other parts of Chatham. The appliances afforded by this road for travel to and from the metropolis and other large centers and for local pur- poses are unequalled.
Stanley is a small village situated on the west side of the river on some high ground near where the railroad bridge crosses the Passaie. It is of recent history, but at one time had a prospect of becoming important through some fac- tories built near it on the stream. It owes its existence
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mainly to the energy of George Shepard Page, now dead, who once lived on the high western bank of the river near Stanley. Ile was a public spirited man and rejoiced in good deeds, especially in Sunday school and church work. Through his exertious a small church, dedicated to the Con- gregational denomination, was built at Stanley, and a pas- tor employed. The untimely death of Mr. Page has retarded somewhat the growth of this locality, but there are appli-
AN EARLY STAGE COACH.
ances existing which may eventually aid in establishing here a strong and vigorous community.
Chatham is comparatively an old settlement, one of the oldest in the county. It extends for a mile from Black Brook to the Passaic, compactly built on both sides of the main road to Morristown. The population originally was an agri- cultural one, with no manufactures of any extent, and their dwellings were of rather primitive architecture, mostly of the English cottage style, one and a half stories high; but recently the houses have changed in their mode of erection
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RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS
and have clustered together, some of greatly improved style of architecture and indicating that those who dwelt in them were the possessors of wealth and taste.
There are three churches in this locality : a Presbyterian, a Methodist, and a Roman Catholic. A very large part of the population was derived from Puritan ancestry, emigrat- ing from New England to Newark and Elizabethtown, and coming from those two places into Morris County. They were mostly Presbyterians, and almost immediately after their settlement here took measures to provide a place for religious worship. Their numbers and pecuniary means did not warrant the erection of an editice to be used only for that purpose. A building was created for a school, and this was utilized for religious meetings. Prior to this the settlers attended divine services at Madison, or Bottle Hill as it was then called, and at New Providence, now in Union County. A church editice was erected in 1823, but it has been found necessary to enlarge it since that time, and it can now seat abont. 500 persons. This congregation1 has had a very successful history and has been fortunate in the choice of its pastors, one of whom, the Rev. Joseph M. Og- den, D.D., ministered to it for forty-tive years. About the time of the erection of this Presbyterian Church a few citi- zens who professed the Methodist faith attempted to form a church of that denomination. They were materially aided in their efforts by the energy and liberality of the Rev. John Hancock, and in 1832 were able to finish and dedicate a modest building, and to secure the services of a regular pas- for. Since that date additions have been made to the edi- tice and a strong congregation is now gathered within its
1 This congregation was materially aided, at the time of the erection of this edifice, and since. by Mr. William C. Wallace, a wealthy and henev- olent gentleman of Newark, who built a country residence at Chatham early in the nineteenth
century, and up to the time of his death con- stantly worshipped in this church during the summer. One of his daughters ocenpies hier father's former residence and another lives near.
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walls. But even this building, so enlarged, proving insuffi- cient for their wants, has been torn down and a new and more commodious one erected in its stead. Later a brick edifice was built for the purpose of Roman Catholic worship, but used at first for a school, and afterward devoted en- tirely to religious services, a smaller house having been provided for a parochial school.
Particular care was given by the new settlers to the edu-
INDIAN MORTAR AND PESTLE.
cation of their children. The very first public building put up in the early settlement was one designed for school pur- poses, and now a large and commodious academy stands in the center of the town, giving evidence that the views of the citizens as to the importance of securing an education for their children have not changed.
The improvements in Chatham were so marked in their character and the number of its inhabitants so increased
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CHATHAM VILLAGE
that the community was obliged to seek legislative aid to assist them in a change of government in their municipality. They sought this change by adopting a village form of an- thority. Some years later this mode was found inadequate to their wants and they selected, with the assistance of the Legislature, the form of a borough with the officers usual in that kind of municipality, such as mayor and common council. Frederick H. Lum was elected the first mayor and has been re-elected to that position from the beginning of their borough history until the present. The population of Chatham now numbers about fifteen hundred.
-The names of most of the prominent families among the earlier settlers in Chatham indicate that they are of Eng- lish origin. Prominent among these names are the follow- ing: Lum, Minton, Day, Ward, Munn, Woodruff, Ferris, Og- den. Pierson, Bond, Brueu, Muchmore, Sayre, Johnson, and some others who might be mentioned. The name Genung, frequently found here, is French, held by au ancestor, a French Huguenot, who tied to this country to escape perse- ention ; it is still prominent here and is also found at Morris- town, Newark, and elsewhere. The original name has been changed somewhat into its present form.
The Lum family occupy a very prominent position: two of them are successful lawyers in Newark, one of whom is now the mayor of the borough; another has been a member for many years of the Board of Frecholders of the county and was at one time its director; another is a real estate broker in Newark. All of the name are of very great respectability. The name is undoubtedly of English origin. Sir Charles Lum was a British officer, a major, during the Revolution. He made a successful raid on Newark, but the American branch of the family were irne to the cause of freedom.
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Dr. Jephtha B. Munn, at the beginning of this century, was an eminent physician and an influential citizen of Chatham. His great interest in Masonic affairs made him well known all over the State, and his name still lingers among the older members of the fraternity, who ever men- tion it with respectful memory. A member of the Budd family was in years gone by a well known physician. Both the Munn and Budd names are still represented here by ex- cellent and highly respected citizens. The Condit race, which is so ubiquitous, being found in every State in the Union, also had one of its name here carly in the nineteenth century. William Spencer and Parkhurst & Muir con- ducted large manufacturing establishments during the see- ond quarter of the last century with machinery driven by water power from the river. Josiah F. Muir, of the last named firm, is still living in Morristown at a very advanced age, hale and hearty and in the full possession of his facul- ties.
Many new names have been interjected into the popula- tion during the last few years and their possession have broken up somewhat the rather slow manner of the old citi- zens. They have introduced new ideas, stimulated action on the line of improvements, new streets have been laid out, the character of the roads has been greatly improved, the architecture of dwellings has been changed, elegance and comfort have been added, proving that taste and wealth have prompted the new departure. A water power for fur- nishing the inhabitants with pure water is now owned by the municipality, and at the very moment of this writing (June, 1901) the people are voting for or against the intro- duction of electricity for lighting the streets. Among the newcomers whose good judgment and wisdom have thus stimulated the community may be mentioned James M. Gif-
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CHATHAM VILLAGE
ford, Edward L. Phillips, Thomas W. Dawson, Charles L. Kelley, and others. Two descendants of Robert Treal, the leader among the immigrants from New Haven and other towns to Newark, in 1666, and afterward governor of Con- nectient, Frederick and J. Mortimer Treat, are now residents of Chatham. A beautiful and most commanding spot south of Stanley, from which is obtained an uncommon prospect in all directions unequalled in all the characteristics of charming scenery, has been selected by William A. Martin,
1
COLONIAL SILVER.
another newcomer, and utilized for dwelling purposes. Mr. Martin has erected here an elegant residence with all the appliances for comfort and ease.
Chatham has not escaped the fever of real estate specula- tion. Some tracts of its land have been plotted into city builling lots and offered for sale. Frank L. Kelley & Co. conducted for many years a brick manufacturing establish- ment nearly opposite the railroad depot. Like many other communities the people are opposed to the sale of intoxi-
255905
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cants and strive to banish the saloon from their borders. Religion and education are respected and receive the cheer- ful and active support of the inhabitants.
Afton, the name recently given to a locality known for many years as Columbia, is an important village situated on the river in the easterly corner of Chatham and adjoining Hanover Township. The dwellings, built mostly along the main road running from Madison, are occupied in many cases by a farming population. This locality, however, has felt the influence of the impulse which sends the residents of the cities out from their heated streets into the rural dis- triets to find pure air and recreation. It is a quiet, peace- ful neighborhood, where are lived contented lives, and where the saloon is not permitted to open its doors and invite the unwary to scenes of vice and dissipation. The people are moral, industrious, churchgoing, God fearing, and law abid- ing. It is very seklom that an inhabitant of Afton is charged with crime in the county courts, and differences, if any, which occur among its citizens are generally settled without recourse to a court and jury. There is no part of the county where the people are more permanent in their residences; there are few changes in the population, except as the young men seek employment elsewhere and the maidens accept other homes. There is, however, quite an influx of new families impelled hither by the quiet peace of the neighborhood and the healthfulness of the climate.
The first immigrants to this part of the country are well represented to-day. Among the names prominent in the early history of Afton are Meeker, Ward, Sayre, Hopping, Ely, Richards, Woodruff, and others. John Hancock was a notable character in this section during the early part of the nineteenth century. He was a surveyor of large expe- rience, a Methodist clergyman, greatly attached to his re-
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AFTON AND FLORHAM PARK
ligions denomination, of great prominence in all public af- fairs, well known all through the county, and highly re- spected. He was prominent among the founders of the Methodist Church at Chatham and aided largely by his in- fluence and means in the erection of the church editice. His family is represented to-day, in Alton, by William F. Han- cork, as are also the Lanning and Young families by George M. Lanning and Stephen Lyman Young, both of whom are influential citizens.
Descendants of the Genung family are also resident in Afton. A representative of the Meckers, Carnot B. Mecker, is one of the first men in this vicinity. He has been a mem- ber of the Legislature from Morris County, has been a county official in several offices, and has withheld his name as a can- didate for other functions. He and his brother, William J., live together on a farm near the river.
Afton is now included within the bounds of Florham Park, a new borough erected by special act of the Legisla- ture in 1899. The title Florham is made up of the first two syllables of Florence and Ham-ilton, The names of Mr. and Mrs. Twombley, whose elegant summer residence and grounds attached thereto are within the bounds of the new borongh. Florham Park covers the eastern part of Chatham Township, lying between the railroad and Madi- son and Chatham Boroughs on the west, the Passaic on the sonth, Hanover Township on the east, and Morris Town- ship on the north. The land in the northern part, near Morristown, is high and commanding, but there are some low grounds in the eastern portion, such as the Black and Beach Meadows. Afton proper is also low and level, par- ticularly that part of it lying along the river, bni there are no swamps found in that locality. The residence of Mr. Twombley is placed on an elevation from which a most ex-
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tensive prospect is gained, looking off toward Boonton and up the valley toward Caldwell. The estate lying around the dwelling house is the most extensive connected with any summer residence in Northern New Jersey. The resi- dence itself is large and commodious and stands out in bold relief. The grounds immediately attached to the house are in a transition state, but the present improvements give indication that if apparent plans be carried out the result will be one of the best embellished and most tasteful parks and grounds in New Jer- sey. Already within the short time since the im- provements began the sur- roundings have become so changed that imagination will utterly fail in attempt- ing to describe what may be the condition of things when art shall have ex- hausted itself and taste shall have had full scope to display its powers of em- bellishment.
AN INDIAN VESSEL.
Florham Park has about six hundred inhabitants; at its last election one hundred and sixty-five votes were recorded. It is governed by a mayor and board of six aldermen. Jesse S. Keyes is now and has been the mayor since its formation. The present (1901) al- dermen are Aaron P. Condit, James L. White, Carnot B. Meeker, Lyman J. Fish, George E. Felch, and Clinton C. Hopping, representatives of the old settlers and of new comers. The mayor and aldermen have been unanimously elected without regard to party politics.
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CONVENT OF SAINT ELIZABETH
Leslie D. Ward, M.D., owns abont a thousand acres with- in the bounds of Florham Park, a large portion of which he has devoted to the purpose of a game preserve, having al- ready stocked it with birds and other game, and purposing in the near future still more largely to increase the quantity and quality of appliances for the use of sportsmen. An ele- gant dwelling has recently been erected by Dr. Ward near his preserve, and he is now constructing a road through his extensive grounds for access to his residence. His enter- prise is novel in this part of the county, and is, at present, in a formative state, but with his well known energy it will undoubtedly prove successful.
The Convent of Saint Elizabeth and its extensive grounds are nearly all included in the Borough of Florham Park, but a portion of the buildings and several acres of land lie within the bounds of Morris Township. This institution has gradually grown from small beginnings to its present magnificent proportions. Its history is one of those mar- vels which give evidence, from time to time, of the grand work that can be accomplished by the energy of one zealous, indefatigable soul, whose indomitable spirit of perse- . Verance conquers apparent impossibilities. The movement for the establishment of this enterprise began in 1859, when the Rt. Rev. James Roosevelt Bayley, then Bishop of the Diocese of Newark, secured from among the Sisters of Char- ity of New York City Mother Mary Xavier and five co- workers as the nuclens of this part of the order, which now numbers hundreds. Mother M. Xavier was the first si- perior of the little band which began this great work, and she is still happily governing it and actively engaged in the furthering of its objeets and plans.
The building first occupied by the sisters was the old Chegary Mansion, then used by Seton Hall College, which
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stands at the foot of the hill, on whose crown now rests the new buildings. This Chegary property was purchased from the diocese through the trustees of the college. The " mansion," as Madame Chegary's residence was called, was opened in 1859 as a boarding school for young ladies, and the forty and more years that have elapsed since that first foundation have witnessed a marvellons growth in the buildings, in the number of the sisters admitted to the order, and in the number of scholars. Great wisdom and wonderful executive ability have been shown in the comple- tion of this pile of buildings, the most prominent educa- tional feature in the whole of the Passaic Valley.
The facade of the buildings is over six hundred and fifty feet, and the depth of portions of them over one hundred and seventy-six feet. A large and beautiful chapel ex- tends to the rear, while the structure to the east is devoted exclusively to the use of the sisters; to the west are the acad- emy and collegiate portions, given up entirely to the pupils. The architecture of the main erection is Gothic, that of the new college, called Xavier Hall, in honor of the venerable mother superior and foundress, being modelled on the Renaissance style. The corner stone of the present main building was laid in 1877; the whole was completed in 1901.
There are several hundred acres of ground about the col- lege. for the most part used for the cultivation of fruit, vegetables, and other products of the soil. A large park surrounds the buildings, and broad and beautiful walks stretch through the picturesque woods, offering every facil- ity to the pupils for healthful outdoor amusement. Every detail in the arrangement of buildings has received the most scrupulons care and attention, and the result gives evidence that a master mind bas controlled the work from its inception and zealously watched its progress.
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CONVENT OF SAINT ELIZABETH
The site of the college is one of the most imposing in the State; the view from it looking westward and northward is blocked by the blue mountain ranges which seem to be watchful guardians of the scene. Looking southward and eastward the broad and charming valley of the Passaic, with its variety of landscape, lies at the beholder's feet. A smaller building has been erected on the grounds, abont fifteen minnies' walk from the college, for a preparatory school for boys between six and twelve years old.
The sisters of the convent devote their time mainly to the work of education, but they are also trained during their novitiate to the self-sacrificing labors of caring for the sick, the poor, the orphan, and the foundling. Daily do these women, who have sacrificed the delights of home and of social attractions in their zeal to benefit mankind, brave storm and wind, heat and cold, to lend help and comfort to those in need. The principle that seems to animate these good sisters and stimulates them to heroic deeds is zeal for the honor and glory of God and charity toward humanity.
The college is duly incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey, with full power to grant diplomas and confer degrees. The number of pupils is large, and students from all parts of the world are registered on the annual list. The curriculum of study is thorough and comprehen- sive, and especial advantages are offered to sindents of whatever course of study they may choose to pursue. Do- partments of domestic art and science form a feature in the institution, as well as education in physics and chemistry, with practical operations in laboratories and in the finer arts, such as music and painting.
Union Hill, a hamlet of a few scattered houses, is situated on both sides of the principal avenue for travel between Chatham and Madison, and about midway between the two
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THE PASSAIC VALLEY
towns. It lies on higher ground than the greater part of Chatham Borough, but is not so elevated as Madison. It is an old settled hamlet and has experienced less change than any other locality in the county. It is the birthplace of many of the names of Bruen and Carter, who once abounded here, and of whom some representatives are still found at Union Hill. The Hon. Nathaniel Niles, formerly senator in the State Legislature from Morris County and president of the Senate, erected here some years ago a very handsome stone dwelling with all the appliances necessary for a commodious residence, where he has since resided.
Green Village extends from Passaic into the western side of Chatham, with the larger part of the village in Passaic Township. There are postoffices at Green Village, Stanley, and Afton.
7
CHAPTER VIII
THE BOROUGH OF MADISON
m ADISON BOROUGH is one of the most interest- ing municipalities in New Jersey. not only for its beauty of location and its many appliances for a desirable home, but from the character of its in- habitants and its history. It has rejoiced in three names, being first known as East Hanover, then as Bottle Hill, and Bow as Madison. It derived its first name from this chain of circumstances: The whole of the present County of Mor- ris, before 1739, was a township called Hanover, and incor- porated within the borders of Hunterdon County, as then established. When Morris County was created its inhabit- ants clung to the name Hanover, and retained it in con- nection with several localities. What is now Whippany was then called Hanover, Morristown was known as Now Hanover, and West Hanover and Madison as East Han- over. They were then all mere hamlets, with very few in- habitants, Whippany being the most important of the three. The name Hanover was undoubtedly held in great esteem by the carly settlers in Morris County, who were zealous Protestants. George I, a descendant of a daughter of James 1, was King of Hanover in Germany at the time of his accession to the throne of England. He was not the lineal heir, for between him and the crown, if the usual line
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of descent were regarded, were children of an older son of James, who, however, conformed to the Roman Catholic faith. But by the celebrated Act of Succession, passed by the English Parliament in the time of William and Mary, it was enacted that "every person who should be recon- ciled to, or hold communion with, the see of Rome, should profess the Roman Catholic religion, or should marry a Roman Catholic, should be excluded from succession to, and be forever incapable to inherit, possess, or enjoy the crown; and that in such case the people should be absolved from their allegiance, and the crown should descend to such per- sons, being Protestants, as would have inherited the same, as if the person so reconciled, holding communion, profess- ing, or marrying, were naturally dead."
By virtue of this act George I became King of Great Britain. He represented Protestant faith and Protestant principles to these immigrants in New Jersey, who, or whose ancestors, had fled from religious persecution to find freedom in this Western World, and it was natural that they should reverence a name so intimately connected with that which they held so dear and which had cost them so much to secure.
The origin of the name "Bottle Hill" has occasioned some grave dispute among historians, by whom three theories are held as to its origin. It is not, however, of sufficient importance to warrant a discussion in these pages of the rexata questio. Besides, it seems now to be well set- tled that the name originated in this trivial circumstance : On the hill just west of the railroad depot at Madison, in the olden time, a tavern was conducted in a rather rude, uncomfortable building, in front of which an empty bottle swung on the sign post, notifying thirsty travellers that their thirst could be assuaged by application within.
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MADISON BOROUGH
The citizens of the neighborhood became restive under the use of this rather vulgar appellation and changed it to Madison, in honor of James Madison, President of the United States. By that name it has since been known and it will probably hereafter be retained. The town deserves a good name for its beauty of situation, its pure air, the public spirited character of its citizens, and its honorable history.
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