Oakland History Reconsidered Recap of Oakland History Presentation This installment will focus on just one of several events that occurred in Oakland during the Revolutionary War: Washington and the Van Allen House. More to the point, did he really stay there? Is this urban legend, wishful thinking or a documented fact? Commonly accepted Oakland history tells us that George Washington slept at the Van Allen House on July 14, 1777. Indeed one is tempted to develop an imaginary scene wherein RVR is lined with flag waving Oakland residents cheering with the passing of each troop with George Washington on a white stallion in the lead smiling and waving at…
-
-
Installment #2- Slavery in Oakland
Slavery In Oakland In this era of hyper politically correct sensitivity, did you know that your property was once owned by a slave owner and that your same property was once farmed by slave labor? Yup, it’s true. And did you know that the very founding and settling of what is now Oakland was accomplished by virtue of slave ownership? Yup, it’s also true. In fact there are a few slave graveyards still in Oakland. So, let’s start from the beginning and explore the facts. Prior to 1664 the Dutch laid claim to all of New Jersey and New York State up to Albany and including New York City.…
-
Installment #3 The Names of the First Oakland Settlers
Oakland History Reconsidered Recap of Oakland History Presentation Installment #3 The Names of the First Oakland Settlers and When They Really Came Here!! In the previous installment here we are told of land patents and the requirement that the wilderness area of the patent had to be populated within 6 years of its granting. It was also noted that the use of slave ownership was a tool to encourage the settlement of the wilderness via free land for every slave owned and, by extension, slavery was the probable basis for the settlement of this valley, a portion of which was destined to become Oakland. Within the above context, one of…
-
Installment #1 – Mother Nature, Men Without Good Maps
Oakland History Reconsidered Recap of Oakland History Presentation Installment #1 Mother Nature, Men Without Good Maps, the Brits, the Dutch and Indians The history of Oakland really begins with Mother Nature. A few billion years ago when the earth was forming, the forces of nature created the Ramapo Mountains which originally were as tall as the Alps. However, since their original formation there have been 5 Ice Ages. The ice, about 5 miles thick, literally wore them down to their current size and height in the course of advancing and receding. The same Ice Ages also created the Palisades along the Hudson River and the wide valley between known as…
-
In Memory of an Oakland Star
In Memory of an Oakland Star March 20, 2014 marks the 19th anniversary of the passing of Sidney Kingsley, a Broadway luminary who lived in Oakland from 1935 until his passing 60 years later in 1995. Mr. Kingsley was a writer, producer and director of nine Broadway plays including The Patriot and Men in White for which he received the Pulitzer Prize in 1934. He married Madge Evans, a star of stage and screen, in 1939. Together they eschewed the lights and glamour both Hollywood and New York preferring instead the quite, pastoral life they found in the fields and mountains of Oakland with their 250 acre estate. That estate…
-
IF YOU’RE THINKING OF LIVING IN; OAKLAND
Real Estate New York Times – 1985 IF YOU’RE THINKING OF LIVING IN IF YOU’RE THINKING OF LIVING IN; OAKLAND By RACHELLE DePALMA Published: December 8, 1985 NESTLED along the banks of the Ramapo River with the profile of the Ramapo Mountains etched sharply against the sky, the Borough of Oakland stands as a rustic outpost in the northwestern corner of New Jersey. This Bergen County community owes to the sparsely populated mountains a mix of light, contour and color that visitors have called breathtaking for more than 300 years. Its nine square miles are dotted with lakes, ponds and streams that flow near restored farmhouses, frame bungalows and modern…
-
Kanouse Mountain Water Co
BEVERAGE COMPANIES IN NEW YORK CITY CIRCA WWI Kanouse Mountain Water Co.. (1916, February 29). [Bill of Sale]. Pompeii Papers Collection. Center for Migration Studies. New York, NY. The second image, is a receipt from the Kanouse Mountain Water Company located on 50 Church Street. Water is a necessity in everyone’s life, so it was not unusual for Reverend Anthony Demo to purchase cases of water weekly from the company. The receipt shows that the Kanouse Mountain Water Company provided The Shrine Church of Our Lady of Pompeii with weekly cases of water to help with basic needs of the church. It was a common practice for churches to dilute…
-
True and Tragic Story of Downtown Oakland
How Did Downtown Oakland Go From This to This? Ladies and gentlemen, lend me your ears and hearts as I will tell you a true and tragic story of downtown Oakland. It is a story that will bring tears to your eyes for what was and now lost and the decline of what is and what remains. I will tell you a very sad, tragic truth, a truth of the destruction and decline of our historic downtown. Up until the late 1950s, Oakland was truly a Mayberry, a backwoods section of Bergen County. Route 208 wouldn’t arrive to Oakland for several years although it was planned and approved during the…
-
How the Brits Helped Us Depart
How the Brits Helped Us Depart 2 19 May, 2014 in Features / Oakland Time Travels Installment #7: The Rise of Townships in Bergen County and the Creation of Oakland or How the Brits Helped Us Depart By Kevin Heffernan The rise of townships in Bergen County…..Hmmmmm….Some might suggest that this is an article to assist borderline insomniacs while others might postulate that it is for the anal retentive interested only in the arcane minutia of little known events and connections of many, many years ago. Well, this mighty pen (keyboard) will quickly dispatch those dragons……Hopefully, if you remain awake to the end. Hang in and don’t despair as there are some pictures. I’ll try…
-
History of the Van Allen House
History of the Van Allen House DEVELOPMENTAL HISTORY HISTORICAL OVERVIEW 2.1 Historical Overview Introduction This history of Oakland is not meant to be all-inclusive, but to look at the historical trends of the region and how Oakland developed based on the surrounding influences. This information will how that the Van Allen House property, located at 1-3 Franklin Avenue, was a product of its time and place. 2.1.1 History of Oakland, New Jersey Early Oakland was a secluded wilderness settled by the Minsi Indians, a tribe of the Lenni Lenapes. The land came into the hands of colonial settlers by the end of the seventeenth century. By this period, what was…
