The Tower on Top of Skyline Drive On the top of Skyline Drive there is a massive stone tower which seemingly is lording over Oakland below as a sentinel of the valley. Everyone has seen it and many have strolled by it going to Ramapo Lake. However, virtually no one knows who built it when and why, what it is, how it got there and where did it come from. Read on now you will know. But first I’ll offer a brain teaser clue….Oakland owes the existence of our beloved tower to a thirsty Newark some 30 miles to our South. OK, I’ll connect the dots. The story of the…
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The Roots and Origin of the Hansen House
July 3, 2018 The Roots and Origin of the Hansen House Oakland, New Jersey 1938 – 1973 The Portobello Banquet Facility as a Time Capsule Summary and Conclusion The core of the Hansen House is believed to originally be a farmhouse built at or before 1861 and greatly expanded by Mrs. Florence Vernam in the early 1890s. The Case for Its Origins as a Simple Farmhouse 1. The original foundation is crude stone rubble typically deployed by farmers building their own farmhouses. 2. There is evidence of late 19th Century masonry in the basement of Portobello’s Banquet facility indicating a significant expansion of the building during that period. 3. A…
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The Mystery and History of Rotten Pond
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…
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Sonya Hansen Remembers Ruth and Didi Nielsen and the Nielsen House
Sonya Remembers Ruth and Didi Nielsen and the Nielsen House Nielsen House located on the site of the Post Office Parking Lot Across from the Ponds Church Ruth and Didi They were sisters, but you never said….Ruth or Didi…it was always the Ruth and Didi. Ruth committee suicide at 57….four years later Didi died of cancer. Neither married… we could only speculate on why Ruth killed herself. She was a nurse, and she died from an overdose. After Ruth died, Didi was alone, she was teaching math in Butler High., I don’t know why she decided to retire so young, perhaps then you could retire with a pension at that…
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Ponds Cemetery Graves
Ponds Cemetery Oakland Ponds Cemetery Oakland, Bergen County, New Jersey As of 4/22/2017 Source: http://www.interment.net/data/us/nj/bergen/ponds/index.htm Contributed by Richard Hrazanek. Families of Oakland, New Jersey Abbott, Harvey H., b. 1 Nov 1919, d. 11 Jan 1971, New Jersey SSgt 3607 Ord Ham CO WWII Abbott, James B., b. 1918, d. 1958, s/w Mary B. Abbott, Mary B., b. 1919, d. 1997, s/w James B. Abbott, Priscilla A., b. 1919, d. 1995, s/w Harvey H. Abed, Danielle, b. 12 Mar 1963, d. 11 Apr 1963 Acker, Catharine, d. 13 Dec 1856, 82y 1m 21d Acker, John D., d. 19 Jun 1830, 49y 2m 5d Ackerman, Adell, no dates, 13y, d/o of John A. Ackerman Ackerman, Catharine A., b. 5 Nov 1839,…
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Notes on Clifford MacAvoy
Notes on Clifford MacAvoy The MacEvoy trail is named for Clifford E. MacEvoy who was a wealthy contractor of large public works. MacEvoy helped conceive and construct the nearby Wanaque Reservoir. In the 1920’s, MacEvoy bought property in the Ramapo Mountains to form the Bergen County Hunting and Fishing Club. MacEvoy’s estate was sold and purchased by the State of NJ using Green Acres and federal funds in 1976 and became what is now known as Ramapo Mountain State Forest. Mayor of Oakland 1936-1942 Died in 1960 Buried at Ponds Cemetery Married to Bernice Ryerson Daughter married Bud Vervaet – Oakland Mill Built Ponds memorial Bldg. Started Rt 208 $543,724 grubbing and clearing contract for…
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Memories of Oakland by Bradford Boone
by Bradford Boone Memories of Oakland may be slightly shaded these days. What remains, however, are a multitude of impressions treasured by a young man who lived through the depression era in a quaint, bucolic village cradled in the Ramapo Valley. Yet, the roads, grasslands, ponds, trees and buildings that lent their charm to the tranquility of yesterday have all but disappeared. That was yesterday, but yesterday’s gone, and changes over the years have all but obliterated the Oakland of my youth. Oakland of my Youth Fortunately, memory is a unique resource. It brings pleasure upon recall and reaffirms the joys of better times. It embraces the spirit and inspires…
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Installment #6 – The Ponds Church
The Ponds Church – Serving God and Oakland for Over 300 Years The Ponds Church in Oakland…..This writer struggles to present its importance and contribution to this community since it was established in 1710. And even now when I have much information at my fingertips about it, I still marvel at its contribution to Oakland and say a silent prayer in thanksgiving for its presence here as Oakland would simply not be what it is without it. If one were to think about it for a moment, the Ponds Church was 66 years old when the Declaration of Independence was read from its pulpit and 153 years old when the…
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Rev Lisley Boone
Rev Lisley Boone – Pastor of the Ponds Church Wikipedia Ilsley Boone From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Reverend Ilsley /ˈɛlzliː/ Silias Boone, known to relatives and friends as “Uncle Danny” (alluding to Daniel Boone), was born in 1879 in Brooklyn, New York and died in 1968 in Whitehouse, Ohio.[1] He was a charismatic speaker, a powerful organizer, and was the founding father of the American Sunbathing Association (ASA), later reorganized as the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR). Early life His father was Silas Ilsley Boone (1846-1900), who was the older brother to his future father-in-law Christopher Columbus Boone (1863-1926). His mother was Agnes Ferris Turnbull Eldridge (1849-1940). Little is known of Boone’s early life, other than he lived in Brooklyn…
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Church of the Ponds 300th Anniversary
The Church of the Ponds Date: January 17, 2009 Subject: The Church of the Ponds Prepares to Celebrate Its 300th Anniversary Contact: Phil Marchbank 201-405-0352 File Photos Included Before there was the United States, almost 75 years before the American Revolution and even before George Washington was born, there was The Church of the Ponds in now what is Oakland, NJ. This sacred church and storied history is now planning the celebration of its 300th Anniversary in 2010. For three centuries it has been pivotal to the growth and character of this community and indeed the surrounding area. The Church of the Ponds was the nexus of life in this…
