Basking Ridge Fire Company No. 1 hosted its annual carnival Aug. 6-7, 1915 and used a real picture postcard to advertise the event. The Moline fire engine, shown here in front of the old Maple Avenue school (now Bernards Township Library), was purchased in 1911.
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On June 26, 1944, architect Peter P. Dupay (1900-1985) obtained a building permit for an addition to a residence on Sixth Street in Basking Ridge.[1] But where was Sixth Street? And if Basking Ridge had a Sixth Street, where were First through Fifth? The answer is provided by an 1891 map[2] showing what was called
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In 1907, the Basking Ridge Free Public Circulating Library, forerunner of the present Bernards Township Library, was located at 25 South Finley in the Ira Pruden house, now home to Ridge Italian Comfort Food restaurant. A bowling alley in the basement generated income to cover library expenses. Prior to that, the Christopher Barkalow House, 31
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Bernards Township teacher Louise M. Flint compiled a scrapbook during the 1930s and 1940s that looked back at the early history of Maple Avenue School, or Basking Ridge School as it was called. Mrs. Flint credited Mrs. Fred Kampmier, Sr., with giving her the following early facts and construction photos. Basking Ridge School – Maple
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Basking Ridge lost a treasure when Interstate 287 came through the Somerset Hills. The Card House, dating to colonial times, stood on the north side of West Oak St., just to the east of Harrison’s Brook. In the early 1800s it was home to the family of Daniel Henry (1774-1850). Later occupants were the Card
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In 1900, a house stood where the tennis/pickleball courts now are on West Oak Street in Basking Ridge, NJ. This vintage photo looks east along West Oak and up the hill toward what is now Brownlee Place. On the 1873 Beers map of Somerset County, the house was shown as the property of Dr. Whitnall
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When my brother Stuart ‘Budge’ Booth (1939- 2002) was a kid in the early 1950s, he used to go across Maple Avenue and set traps over towards the Great Swamp. We lived on South Finley Avenue. In the morning before school he would check his traps, and if there was a fox caught, he would
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Bill Hine (1924-1997) was affectionately known as the “village guardian” of Basking Ridge. His full name was Willard Foster Hine, Jr., and he was born in Westfield. Bill suffered an oxygen deficiency at birth, which left him unable to work at a regular job. After his family moved to Spencer Road in Basking Ridge in
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This red and white pennant from Maple Avenue School in Basking Ridge dates probably to 1948-1969. Maple Avenue School, also known as Basking Ridge School, was built in 1903 to replace the Brick Academy and Franklin Corners School. In 1939, it was closed after the new Oak Street School was built. Bernards Township planned
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Have you found yourself, parents, or grandparents on the 1950 U.S. Census? The National Archives made this census public on April 1, 2022, and you can search for people by name after registering for a free ID at: https://www.familysearch.org/1950census/. The 1950 Census provides a wealth of information on individuals—famous and not-so-famous—and the neighborhoods they lived
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