The early days of Morris County, NJ, and its various communities --Boonton, Chatham, Chester, Columbia, Denville, Dover, East Madison, Green Village, Hanover, Hanover Neck, Jefferson, Littletown, Madison (Bottle Hill), Mendham (Roxiticus), Monroe, Morris, Morristown, Parsippany (Parcipany, Parcipponong), Pequannock, Randolph, Roxbury, South Hanover, Troy, Washington. Whipany (Whipponong) -- are recalled through a mixture of colorful tales and factual data in this NEW 64 Page Booklet reprinted from two hard to find books: the 1847 edition of John Warner Barber and Henry Howe's Historical Collections of the State of New Jersey and New Jersey, a Guide to Its Present and Past, a WPA project published in 1939. The spiral-bound booklet is printed on 60# paper, with the fine print enlarged for easier reading. Clear vinyl has been added to protect the front cover.
The Howe/Barber history covers the development of this area until about 1844, while excerpts from the WPA book, give a nostalgic glympse from a 1939 vantage point, including interesting historical notes, especially as they relate to sightseeing possibilities.
Among the many and varied topics in the booklet are:
Early settlers; a Physical Description of the county including "The Great Swamp"; How "Bottle Hill" and "Mendham" got their names; Early Madison Residents and where they lived; Churches and Ministers; an Attempt to Capture Washington; a Newspaper Account of Two Robbers; the East Jersey Iron Mfg. Co.; Hardship among the Soldiers in Winter Quarters; Washington's Winter Quarters in Morristown, with incidents and descriptions; Count Pulaski's Horsemanship; Washington's Views on Holy Communion, Gambling and Free Time Activities; Devaluation of Continental Money, partly by British Counterfeiting; Revolt of the Pennsylvania Line, near Morristown; a Drunken Ghost who foiled his own plot; Gen. Daniel Morgan, a native of Morristown; Tombstone Epitaphs; the Celebrated Spring on Schooley's Mountain; Dispute Over Singing Psalms; Area Maps; a Special WPA Section on Morristown with a map; and other interesting bits of history and trivia.
The booklet contains illustrations depicting Madison, Chatham, the Presbyterian Church at Mendham, the Public Square at Morristown, Washington's Headquarters in Morristown, a Painting of Washington by Col. Trumbull, Two Churches in Rockaway, Dover and Schooley's Mountain Spring House.
Wouldn't this make a unique gift?
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