Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for new jersey
The Battle of Red Bank
By Linda Tancs
The Battle of Red Bank was a key conflict in the Revolutionary War, marking a victory for the Continental Army in their effort to prevent British and Hessian soldiers from capturing Fort Mercer. The site, Red Bank Battlefield, is a historic park located in National Park, New Jersey, along the waterfront of the Delaware River. An archaeological dig last year revealed the remains of Hessian soldiers as well as artifacts including a King George III gold guinea, which represented a soldier’s monthly payment. The park is also home to the James and Ann Whitall house. Built in 1748, the bustling plantation also served as a field hospital.
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Wolf Watching in New Jersey
By Linda Tancs
Just minutes from the Delaware Water Gap, Lakota Wolf Preserve in Columbia, New Jersey, is the only place of its kind in the state. Featuring educational tours and photography sessions, their guided excursions enable you to experience packs of British Columbian, Timber and Arctic wolves in natural surroundings. Bobcat, lynx and foxes also reside at the preserve. Online reservations are required.
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A Legend in Princeton
By Linda Tancs
The boyhood home of Renaissance man Paul Robeson takes pride of place on Witherspoon Street in Princeton, New Jersey. Known appropriately enough as The Paul Robeson House of Princeton, the three-story, wood frame house is the place where the legendary actor, singer, activist, scholar, writer, law school graduate and athlete was born. The son of a former slave-turned-preacher, he remained in the home while his father served as pastor of Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church. The home’s executive board provides programs for individuals and organizations sharing Robeson’s commitment to advocacy and human rights.
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The History of Rutherfurd Hall
By Linda Tancs
The design and occupancy of New Jersey’s Rutherfurd Hall is quite the pedigreed affair. One of the last extant country estates in the state, it was designed between 1903 and 1905 by famed New York architect Whitney Warren, whose firm won the contract to design New York City’s Grand Central Station. The original landscape design was created by the Olmsted brothers, sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, the designer of New York City’s Central Park. The property takes its name from the Rutherfurd family, who owned large tracts of land in New York and New Jersey, beginning with Walter Rutherfurd in the 18th century. He married the wealthy sister of Lord Stirling, a Scottish-American major general during the American Revolutionary War. The New Jersey property was ultimately built for descendant Winthrop Rutherfurd. Registered on both the national and state registers of historic places, the Tudor-style mansion in Allamuchy is open to tours by appointment only.
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The King of Drakesville
By Linda Tancs
In what would become Drakesville, New Jersey (present-day Ledgewood), European settlers pioneered Morris County’s iron industry in the 1700s. The area was originally named for Abraham Drake, who owned a mill and a tavern. One of his grandsons, Jacob, later achieved prominence as a colonel of the western battalion of the Morris County militia during the Revolutionary War and as a member of the first New Jersey Legislature. Despite the Drakes’ fame, the local economy really prospered under the helm of Theodore King, who invested in mining, real estate and hotels and founded a steamboat company as Lake Hopatcong began to court tourists. The pioneering spirit of these early settlers is commemorated through rehabilitated buildings located at Drakesville Historic Park in the Ledgewood historic district of Roxbury Township. You’ll find the King Store there, flanked by the King Homestead as well as the Silas Riggs House, a so-called saltbox house because of its extended, rear sloping roofline reminiscent of the design of salt containers of colonial times.
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Hoboken’s Chairman
By Linda Tancs
Frank Sinatra spent his formative years in Hoboken, New Jersey. The city’s most famous son, he was known by many nicknames, among them Old Blue Eyes, The Voice and Chairman of the Board. The chairman reference is arguably the most popular and stuck with him for life, a moniker that arose from his founding of Reprise Records in 1960. His legacy is celebrated at the Hoboken Historical Museum, which offers a Sinatra Walking Tour map. In addition to a plaque commemorating the former site of his childhood home (destroyed by fire), a tranquil walk awaits you along the waterfront at Sinatra Park. Start your tour at the museum at 1301 Hudson Street.
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Art in Brick City
By Linda Tancs
Brick City is a nickname for Newark, the largest city in New Jersey, so-named reputedly for the tall, brick buildings that arose decades ago as affordable housing for the growing populace. Brick City Stories is a virtual place created by The Newark Museum of Art (the state’s largest museum) to connect with the local arts community. It’s one of many features offered by the museum, which houses a formidable collection of American art, decorative arts, contemporary art and arts of Asia, Africa, the Americas and the ancient world. Located on Washington Street, you’ll find ample programming for adults, educators, youth and families.
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An Upgrade for the Pine Barrens
By Linda Tancs
New Jersey’s Pine Barrens is an expanse of coastal plain in the southern part of the state. It’s long been recognized as a state scenic byway and now has been federally designated a national scenic byway. The 130-mile route contains multiple wildlife refuges, reserves, forests, parks, rivers and streams as well as historic villages. It extends from Batsto and Tuckerton in the north to Dennisville and Port Elizabeth in the south. Just under an hour’s drive from Philadelphia, the byway features some of the most extensive, unbroken forests remaining in the northeastern United States. Motorists, cyclists and walkers will benefit from an interactive map developed by the Pinelands Commission.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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The Dismal Swamp
By Linda Tancs
Legend has it that New Jersey’s Dismal Swamp got its name from nearby Dismal Brook. That may be true, but don’t let the dreary name deceive you. It’s actually a wildlife preserve spanning parts of suburban Edison, Metuchen and South Plainfield, one of the last remaining wetlands in a highly urbanized environment. Designated a “priority wetland” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, it also features upland deciduous forests with mature trees and more than 165 bird species like green herons, yellow-billed cuckoos, eastern phoebes and songbirds. That’s far from dismal, which is why the name of the preserve was recently changed to the Peter J. Barnes III Wildlife Preserve. It’s been renamed to honor an elected official who helped form the Dismal Swamp Preservation Commission to save the wetlands.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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A Zoo Down the Jersey Shore
By Linda Tancs
Visitors to Cape May County, New Jersey, flock to its famous shores. But there’s a different sort of flock worth seeing, like bison and bongo, oryx and ibis. These are just a few of the animals at Cape May County Park & Zoo at Cape May Court House, New Jersey. The grounds boast 85 acres hosting about 550 animals representing more than 250 species. Open year round except Christmas Day, entry is free. For some special, behind-the-scenes access, you can opt to pay for a camel, giraffe or reptile encounter or a private, guided tour of the facility.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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