Wednesday, October 21, 2015

OUR MOVIE EVENT IS HERE! PLUS A SNEAK PEAK AT OUR 2016 CALENDAR -- IT'S REVOLUTIONARY!

LET'S START WITH THE 300TH'S LAST EVENT IN 2015 -- IF THIS DOESN'T GET US A SELL OUT, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL!  IN FACT, WE'RE OFFERING IT TWICE IN ONE DAY, WE'RE SO CONFIDENT OF A SELL OUT!

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15TH: HUNTERDON MOVIES!  A HERITAGE TRIPLE FEATURE:  An exciting triple feature of Hunterdon movies.... We start with the documentary short "A Man and his Land" made by the Grange League Federation (today's Global Agway) in 1941 about modern farming techniques.  The film features Harold Everitt and his farm on Kuhl Road in Raritan Township.  The second film is "Where Have All the Farmers Gone?" which was produced in 1999 by the Hunterdon Cultural & Heritage Commission about the loss of some of Hunterdon's best farms to development.  Finally, we show the Emmy Award winning "The Town That Disappeared Overnight" about the creation of Round Valley Reservoir and the taking of some of the best agricultural land by the State of NJ.  The film's producer, David Kuznicki and County Historian Stephanie Stevens will be on hand to answer questions.  

THERE ARE TWO SHOWINGS:  12:30 AND 3 PM -- TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE NOW FOR BOTH SHOWINGS!  Please be advised this event will start promptly.  The films will be shown concurrently with little or no break.  The total viewing time of the three films is approximately 75 minutes followed by Q&A time with David and Stephanie.  

Fun snacks will be available before and during the event to be held at the Main Branch of the County Library.
The movies and snacks are free but reservations are required.

BEFORE REVEALING SOME OF OUR 2016 CALENDAR, WE HAVE GREAT COUNTY-WIDE HERITAGE OFFERINGS FROM SOME OF THE COUNTY'S BEST HISTORICAL ORGANIZATIONS:


East Amwell Historical Society              Historical Society News

Clawson House: Open House!   
All are Welcome to Walk Through to View the Fantastic Transformation in Phase One Completion

Saturday and Sunday, October 24 and 25 from 12:00 noon-3:00pm. Historic Clawson House at Clawson Park, Ringoes, NJ.  Ample parking is available and refreshments will be provided.

The Historical Society is sponsoring a two day Open House at the Historic Clawson House.  The Clawson House was built circa 1800 (at least) and at one time was the architectural center piece of Ringoes.  Acquired by the Township in the year 2000 – when the Township purchased the Clawson Farm for a park – it has sat boarded up ever since.  With grants from the County and funding provided by the Township, work has begun to bring the building and property back to life for everyone to enjoy.  Completion of the project is expected to take several years and this will be the first opportunity for the public to see the house in its “rough” state.  Enjoy the fall weather and spend a few minutes walking back into history.  Volunteers work at the Clawson House almost every Sunday from 10-12pm. If you are interested in being on the volunteer list, please sign up when you visit.

Oct. 24th 2015! The first Annual Vought House "Confiscation" Auction!  
Inspired by the Patriots' 1778 auction of household items confiscated from the Loyalist Vought family. 
   All proceeds benefit historic preservation of this Revolutionary War Loyalist Homestead!
Picture
This is a real live auction with an auctioneer, a food table, tent, and port a potty.
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Local artist Dan
Campanelli signs
his watercolor
print of “Old Glass”
which will appear
in the auction 

Picture
Antiques and “olde” household goods will be up for auction on Saturday, October 24th at 9:30 (previews) and 10:30 (auction starts) at the 1759 Vought House, 34 Grayrock Road, Clinton.  Professional auctioneer Michael J. Stasak, Jr., Antiques and Auction Service, Carpentersville, NJ, is generously donating his services, and friends and neighbors of the Vought House are donating quality household items, vintage and new, including furniture; art work; rugs; quilts; collectibles; china; and tools.  Approximately 100 items are up for sale and admission is free! Not just for history buffs, spread the word!

The latest highlight in the flood of donations is a print of a watercolor by Dan Campanelli of glass bottles, the last of this series available from Hunterdon County’s nationally known artist.  The original subject bottles are being auctioned as well.  Three antique samplers from the early and mid-1800s; a set of nine nesting Shaker wooden boxes; a three-piece wood entertainment unit with bookcases and cabinets; handmade quilts of various sizes; room-sized rugs; a pair of Tiffany-style hanging lamps; a Victorian bow-front curio cabinet with desk; a wooden pie cupboard; a Victorian carved wood bedstead; and a large brass Indian tray/ table are other highlights.

The 1759 Vought House is accepting additional donations until October 17th.  If you have clean, well-cared-for household items, old or new, that you would like to recycle from your home, garage or tool shed, please contact Kerry Cahill-Defuccio at 908-447-2006.

This fund-raising auction is inspired by a real auction in 1778.  This Revolutionary War Loyalist Homestead was the home of old Christopher Vought, his son John, and their families in the 1760s and 1770s.  When the men joined the British forces in New Brunswick in 1776, their wives and children, like many other Loyalist families, faced the anger of their Patriot neighbors, who stole some of their goods and finally auctioned off everything remaining.  In 1779, the farmstead itself was sold.  The Voughts were among the 33,000 Loyalists who resettled in Nova Scotia at war’s end. Today, the 1759 Vought House non-profit is restoring t
his stone house, which is on the state and national register of historic places, to what it looked like in 1776! Your participation and voluntary donations are essential to preserve this historic and architectural gem.

Come, have fun, bid on wonderful items, and support the exciting historic restoration of the Vought house!  Bargains galore, entrance free, donations received with gratitude.  All proceeds benefit the 1759 Vought House non-profit which is restoring this Revolutionary War Loyalist Homestead

Contact:  Kerry Cahill-Defuccio at
Phone: 908-447-2006
Location Details:
You can park at the Clinton Township Middle School
34 Grayrock Road

Clinton, NJ 08809
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1ST:  SAUSAGE MAKING EIGHTEENTH CENTURY STYLE:  Historic cook, Susan McLellan Plaisted, from Pennsbury Manor, will demonstrate authentic 18th century sausage making on November 1, 2015 between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Plaisted, proprietress of Heart to Hearth Cookery, a food history business based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, holds a B.S. in food and nutrition and an M.S. in health education. Her specialty is American and Native American food during the Colonial Period.
The Farmstead is located at 114 Dreahook Road, in the Stanton section of Readington Township. If using a GPS, use Lebanon, NJ 08833. This is a free family friendly event, although donations will be gratefully accepted. In case of inclement weather please call the Museums to find out the status of the program.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7TH:  EAST AMWELL CEMETERY 'CLEAN UP' DAY - All Are Welcome to Participate Beginning at 11am.  Tucked away in the woods on Mountain Road in East Amwell are two small, adjoining cemeteries. These were family cemeteries for the Hunt and Simerson families. The cemeteries’ grounds have become overgrown and the early 1800s tombstones have been woefully neglected. The East Amwell Historical Society is sponsoring our first Cemetery Cleanup. When the work is complete and the twenty or so stones are uncovered – we will be honoring and preserving our Past for the future. More on the project – and the day’s proceedings – as we get closer to Cemetery Clean Up 2015.  For further information contact Jim Davidson at jdavid4194@aol.com.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18TH:  HUNTERDON HISTORICAL SOCIETY and THE HUNTERDON 300TH PRESENTS:  "Do They Know Where the Bodies are Buried?"  As a follow up on our Cemetery Cemener held on September 19th, on Wednesday, November 18, 2015Michelle Kuhn & Mike Gagliano from the New Jersey Geological and Water Survey will review the findings of their recent Ground Penetrating Radar scans at the Flemington Presbyterian Church Cemetery. They say "We know where the bodies are buried."  But do they?
Did they find a mass grave location, used for poor people, within the cemetery?
Did they find the foundation of the original church?
Did they locate the three Revolutionary War soldiers mentioned in Dr. Mott's 1894 book, "History of the Flemington Presbyterian Church"?
Are there many graves without headstones?

They will also discuss how the Ground Penetrating Radar process works and software programs they use to interpret the data.
A Q&A period will follow their brief presentation.
This program may be of interest to church members, scientists, historians, cemetery enthusiasts/caretakers & archaeologists.
The program is free and open to the public;  7PM at the Flemington Presbyterian Church

WE KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN WAITING WITH BREATHS BAITED TO SEE WHAT WE HAVE IN STORE FOR HUNTERDON'S 302ND YEAR..... WHICH HAPPENS TO ALSO BE THE 240TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BEGINNING OF THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR.

THE HUNTERDON 300TH
CELEBRATING 300+ YEARS OF HUNTERDON COUNTY HISTORY
PRESENTS OUR 2016 CELEBRATION: 
“THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR IN HUNTERDON COUNTY”

2016 CALENDAR IN THE WORKS:

Lenape Medicine Pouch and more….
March 8: History Mapping the American Revolution
April 2:  Hearth Cooking Demonstration & Lunch
March 12: Children's Historical Craft Project: Corn Husk Toys, Lenape Medicine Pouch &                        More!
April 19:  Daily Life in 1776
April 26:  History Thru Art:  1700s Mural Panel
April 30:  Children’s Chat and Play:  A Child's Life in 1776 and Games of the 18th Century
May 17:  The Revolutionary War in Pittstown
June 14:  Flags of the Revolutionary War
September 6:  Mapping Where Washington Slept
September 13:  The Potterstown Skirmish
October 18:  18th Century Women’s Fashion Show
November 5:  Revolutionary War Cemetery Tour South
November 12:  Revolutionary War Cemetery Tour North
December 3:  The Skirmish of Geary’s Ridge

Other events planned include: A Tour of Washington Crossing State Park (PA and NJ); Hunterdon Returns to Trenton Bus Tour; The Crossings and Battles of Trenton Lecture; The Lowerys: Town and Country; Vought House Tour and Talk, Military Fashions and Arms and more!

WATCH OUR CALENDAR OF EVENTS GROW WITH EACH FUTURE BLOG!

FOR FULL EVENT DETAILS VISIT US IN 2016 AT WWW.HUNTERDON300TH.ORG.