THE MYSTERY AND HISTORY OF ROTTEN POND (RAMAPO LAKE) by Ed Zindel Feb 2015 When I reflect on the impressive list of local angling opportunities that I enjoyed in my youth, the finest warm water fishery was undoubtedly in an impoundment known as Rotten Pond (Rottan? Pond); located on the Oakland – Wanaque border. Furthermore, due to the abundance of large fish in this lake, it was also the most exciting fishing resource that was accessible to me during those cherished years. From the time I overheard the first whispers about this mountaintop fishing hot spot, the origin of the name “Rotten Pond” (as it was referred to by locals) was a…
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The Last Outhouse
The Unfairest Oakland Tax of All What you are about to read is true and factual as improbable as it may seem. And it’s even official as codified into law. Said another way, you can’t make this stuff up. On occasion some laws pasted by our elected officials seem just down right silly particularly when viewed in a distant retrospect. Thoughts come to mind like ‘What were they thinking?’. Or, they just couldn’t be serious! But when it comes to taxes in general or a particular tax on a particular item held or used by only a portion of the population, one knows that they were serious even though we…
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West Oakland Memories
West Oakland Memories Published: December 31, 2008 WEST OAKLAND MEMORIES By Bob Blumenthal It was a magical time, and I was lucky to be a part of it. For fifteen summers I experienced a “high” that no drug can induce. Who knew that the summer of 1948 would change my entire life? I was an eight-year old city boy who was accustomed to the fumes of buses and the clanking of garbage cans. Then, one day, my parents decided to spend the summer in a place called the West Oakland Bungalow Colony. As I sat in the back seat of a ‘48 Dodge, I took in the sights. After crossing…
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Known as The Colony
The Colony Fifty years from now, what will the children of Oakland be remembering about the time, the people, and the place. For Saul Weitz, Bob Blumenthal and George Cohen, fifty years have come and gone, and the memories remain. As Spencer Tracy might say, “I can tell you the memories are still there- clear, intact, indestructible, and they’ll be there if I live to be 110.” The trio are on a mission to find others who can recall the bygone days of Oakland, specifically to what was, and is, known as The Colony. For those unfamiliar with the term, The Colony refers to a development of housing on the…
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Oakland Powder Mills Explosion, Sept 1901
Oakland, NJ powder mills explosion, Sept 1901 Submitted by Tim Taugher New Jersey | Explosions | 1901 EXPLOSION IN POWDER MILLS KILLED FIVE Three Houses at the Oakland (N. J.) Works Were Blown Up. Many Were Injured-Badly, and the Families in the Village Were Panic-stricken – Boiler First Exploded. OAKLAND, N. J., Sept. 12. – Three explosions occurred at tht works of the american E. C. and Schultze Powder Company at this place at 1:30 this afternoon. Five persons were killed, two probably fatally injured, and many others badly hurt. The first explosion was the blowing up of a boiler, which caused the two others. Smokeless powder is manufactured at the works,…
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ROTTEN POND (RAMAPO LAKE) DAM
Ramapo Lake Dam Ed Zindel 17 hrs ARTHUR G. PULIS AND THE ROTTEN POND (RAMAPO LAKE) DAM On October 10, 1927 Mr. Arthur G. Pulis, owner of Oakland Beach and Oakland Grove, penned a letter to the New Jersey Division of Water expressing his “anxiety” over the safety of the Rotten Pond Dam. Included were concerns for his downstream cabins and their inhabitants as well as “the increasing number of new bungalows placed on both sides of the Ramapo”. Just two weeks later, on October 24, 1927, a state engineer performed a safety inspection on the Dam and promptly responded with a letter ensuring Mr. Pulis of its safe condition.…
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Ramapo Hills Sanatorium
Oakland’s Ramapo Hills Sanatorium This is that time of the year for Oakland to celebrate the establishment of the Ramapo Hills Sanatorium with a parade, a proclamation and fireworks. As a point of fact it officially opened its doors to the relatively well- heeled but fatigued paying public on October 9, 1909, a mere 108 years ago. What? You never heard of it? Well, you are in good company as neither have 99.999% of current Oaklanders. What was it, who founded it, where was it and what happened to it? All great questions that I’ll attempt to answer here. Here’s a hint: If you have ever been in the parking…
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Some History about Muller’s Farm
Some History about Muller’s Farm Emilie Grootendorst Barry, Evanston, Illinois – for 6l years (March 19, 2018 at 7:41 pm) Well, I am the youngest, and the last of the six grandchildren of Katie Pfeiffer and William Muller, who came to Oakland in the 1890’s. They were married in Manhattan in 1887, when both were 23. My grandmother had no premonition she was to leave her mother’s high stooped brownstone at 502 West 43rd Street neighborhood on New York’s West Side to spend the rest of her life in Oakland, Bergen County, NJ! But someone put the bug in grandfather’s ear about the countryside in Oakland. And he acquired the…
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History of Route 208
Detailed History of Rt. 208 The highway was redesignated NJ 208 when work began in 1952 at the southern terminus with NJ 4. The route, which was completed northwest to US 202 in 1960, was originally constructed as a two-lane undivided highway (one lane in each direction). The state purchased additional right-of-way for a second carriageway, and bridges were built to accommodate additional lanes. The second two-lane carriageway was built during the late 1960’s, bringing NJ 208 up to four-lane divided arterial standards. In 1993, the NJDOT realigned the northern terminus of NJ 208 in Franklin Lakes to coincide with the completion of the long-delayed I-287. New exits also were…
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Sonya Hansen Huhn – Growing Up in the Hansen House
Sonya Hansen Huhn Recalls Her Life and Times Growing Up in the Hansen House with Her Parents Mom and the Men Who Came to Dinner Growing up in a boarding house/ vacation resort/ tourist home is different than growing up in a regular house or an apartment. We always had guests. In the summertime guests would fill all of the 27 rooms. Usually they’d stay a week at a time. When the summer ended my folks would welcome boarders. Some stayed a month…the ones I remember best stayed longer. There was this one man called, “ Christiansen” he came for a weekend in the summer and stayed for two years.…
