For this year's Quasquicentennial Celebration, The Rock Recorder Blog will post a chronological (as much as possible) history of Glen Rock, NJ. My main source for framing this series is an unpublished manuscript in the Glen Rock Historical & Preservation Society's archive, which was written by George Hubschmitt. This is Part #12 of the series. With the Glen Rock Volunteer Fire Department organized, the borough was even more attractive to new residents. The Smith-Singer Com

For this year's Quasquicentennial Celebration, The Rock Recorder Blog will post a chronological (as much as possible) history of Glen Rock, NJ. My main source for framing this series is an unpublished manuscript in the Glen Rock Historical & Preservation Society's archive, which was written by George Hubschmitt. This is Part #11 of the series. The newly formed Glen Rock Fire Department in front of the first fire house, 1911 Before there was a Glen Rock Fire Department, if b

For this year's Quasquicentennial Celebration, The Rock Recorder Blog will post a chronological (as much as possible) history of Glen Rock, NJ. My main source for framing this series is an unpublished manuscript in the Glen Rock Historical & Preservation Society's archive, which was written by George Hubschmitt. This is Part #3 of the series. Colonial life was stern, an almost continuous round of work, up with the dawn, then care for the livestock and, shortly after breakfa

What's a "quasquicentennial", you might ask? It is a fancypants way to say "Happy 125th Birthday"! On September 14, 2019, Glen Rock will be celebrating its 125 years of being an independent borough. Mark your calendars now because you won't want to miss the fun, food and festivities planned throughout the day. The official logo, pictured here, was the winning design by long-time Glen Rocker Michele Keller. The logo nicely pulls together some of the things that make our b

As we stop this Veterans Day and remember the men and women who have served our country in peacetime and in war, my attention returns to The Rock and the bronze plaque affixed to its surface. The plaque, installed in 1921, is the borough's World War I Memorial; it lists the five Glen Rock men who lost their lives during the conflict as well as the 89 Rockers who served and returned. One of these returning men, Frederick G. Freestone, is the subject of this post. A little wh

Continuing with our celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the establishment of the Glen Rock Police Department, this Blog post will focus on John J. Mulqueen, the 3rd GRPD Chief (1953 - 1958). Chief Mulqueen also ties in nicely with our current World War I Honor Roll research project since he was a decorated combat veteran of World War I and his name appears proudly on the Honor Roll Memorial plaque affixed to The Rock. John Joseph Mulqueen was born in Edgewater, New Jerse

Glen Rock Historical & Preservation Society (GRHPS) Board Members Anne Ciliberti and Barbara Schineller recently did an analysis of the 1900 Federal Census and the 1915 New Jersey State Census for our recent History Day focusing on immigration and the railroad's role in bringing people to Bergen County. This got me to thinking about how life in Glen Rock was radically changing during the early 20th century. In 1900, Glen Rock was a fledgeling community, having incorporated a

How Glen Rock became Glen Rock

Thomas Lawson Hawkins was born in 1923 in Springfield, Massachusetts and moved to Glen Rock with his parents, William and Rebecca, when he was a young child. The family lived in several homes over the years, residing on Hamilton Avenue and Broad Street before settling on Dean Street around 1941. Hawkins was very bright and athletic and had a gift for vocal music. He attended Central School, Glen Rock's new Junior High School on Harristown Road, and Ridgewood High School (as

The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, when peace finally came to the Western Front following the four years of hell that was known as The Great War, was originally called Armistice Day but now it is venerated in the U. S. as Veterans Day. Veterans Day is the official holiday for us all to give thanks to every man and woman who has served in the United States Armed Forces. Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day, which honors all those who

As the Borough Historian, I receive many questions from residents who want to know when their house was built or when their street was developed. One of the major developers of early Glen Rock in the first decades of the 20th Century was the Smith-Singer Company, founded in 1908. Smith-Singer homes were well designed and of sturdy construction; postcards of some of the finished houses were used to promote the borough, especially to families living in New York City looking t

This past Memorial Day, the Glen Rock VFW Post #850 and the Glen Rock American Legion Post #145 placed flags on a gravestone in the Hopper Family Burying Ground behind Coleman School. The stones in the small cemetery are in very poor condition, after over 200 years, and many of the names and details are no longer legible. I will write a future post about the Burying Ground itself but for now I am concentrating on the one gravesite there which holds the remains of John A. Hop