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MPHDA Guest Book
Seven Oaks
Hi Karen,
What great news to have a sister preservation organization neighboring Montrose Park/South Orange. We would be delighted to meet with you. Feel free to contact our association via email at info@MontroseParkSONJ.org, so that we can schedule a time to meet.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn, President
By Amy Dahn on December 7th, 2006 at 05:02am
Seven Oaks in September
A group of residents in the Seven Oaks section of Orange have formed the Seven Oaks Historical Association (SOHA)as a 501c3. We have all attended your events and we would greatly appreciate some guidance from you in making our organization as successful as yours.
By Karen Wells on December 7th, 2006 at 05:01am
Hills Portrait Studio
Hi,
I have not heard of this photographer. Does it indicate South Orange, or Newark? The NJ Historical Society in Newark owns an extensive photo collection & they might be able to help you out. You could also look at a 1942 telephone directory to see if the studio is listed. These are available in the archives section of most public libraries.
Good luck!
Amy Dahn
MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on December 6th, 2006 at 07:02am
Trying to locate a Portrait Studio.
Can you give me information about Hills Portrait Studio? I found a picture of my deceased father and on the back it had this studio's name. Any information would be greatly appreciated. The picture was taken approximately 1942.
Thank you,
Mrs. D. Howard
By D.Howard on December 6th, 2006 at 05:00am
369 Scotland Road
Hello,
I lived with my family in the house at 369 Scotland Road from 1964 to 1983. The house is full of many interesting architectural features, including a cantilvered central staircase.
I am pleased to see your efforts to celebrate this very special place.
regards,
Henry Singer
By Henry Singer on December 5th, 2006 at 06:01am
District Inventory
Hi Jennifer,
Yes! Our long term goal is to post photographs of each home within the historic district. Where we have access to an old photo, we would try to post that in addition to a more current photograph.
This is a very ambitious project as there are more than 500 contributing properties in the district. Plus, we are considering posting a current photograph of non-contributing homes as well.
If you would like to share your photos with MPHDA, we would be delighted to receive them.
We often receive emails from homeowners who are looking for old photos of their homes.
Digital images at 300 dpi would be preferable! Feel free to email us at info@MontroseParkSONJ.org
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn
President
By Amy Dahn on December 2nd, 2006 at 08:01pm
Pictures for the Inventory?
Are there plans to post pictures of the homes listed in the district inventory? I am a former resident of Irving Avenue and have beautiful pictures of our house as well as soem of the heighboring properties. For some of the homes not yet restored the pictures may provide inspiration and or motivation to current or potential owners.
By Jennifer Thompson Mermel on December 2nd, 2006 at 07:02pm
Train service
Hi Jane,
While many of our board members share your concern, advocating for train service is not within the scope of our mission to promote and preserve the history and architecture of Montrose Park.
I suggest you visit NJ Transit's website and locate their e-mail contact section for complaints. Go to njtransit.com & click on "contact us". It takes a day or so, but they should send you an e-mail response addressing your question or complaint (not just a stock answer.
You could also seek the help of the Village Trustees, especially since we are supposed to be considered a "Transit Community."
On another note, thank you so much for your of our efforts in Montrose.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn, President
By Amy Dahn on December 2nd, 2006 at 09:01am
Bring back train service!
Living just outside the Montrose District, I really appreciate your efforts and wondered if it might be possible for the Association to write to NJ Transit to restore weekend service (all MidTown Direct service on the weekend is now cancelled and local service to Hoboken runs every couple of hours, practically useless and no connection to NY). Whatever you can do will be appreciated. Address is NJ Transit, 2 Penn Plaza, Newark, NJ 07104
By Jane Harris on December 2nd, 2006 at 05:01am
South Orange Avenue
Hi Jim,
Thanks for your interest Montrose Park. At this time, MPHDA Has no additional information about 319 S. Orange Avenue and the application for additional parking. As soon as we hear when the next Zoning Board of Adjustment hearing will take place, we will post this information online and email to our membership. You can also check with the zoning office at Village Hall.
The most important way you can help prevent this parking lot is to come to the ZBA meeting and voice your concerns about the project.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn
MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on November 2nd, 2005 at 04:02am
319 S. Orange Ave.
Can you send me more complete information about the situation regarding the parking lot for 319 S. Orange Ave?
By James Norris on November 2nd, 2005 at 04:01am
Foster's book
That is great news Jean! MPHDA will have to host a book signing.
Amy Dahn
By Amy on December 10th, 2005 at 01:02am
Janet Foster's book
Janet Foster's book, The Queen Anne House, America's Victorian Vernacular, has finally been published. It features two houses from Montrose Park (mine included!), and includes a few pages of text about Montrose Park in general. The book is beautiful!
By Jean on December 10th, 2005 at 01:01am
Original documents
Rhonda,
Thanks so much for your support regarding the South Orange Avenue proposal.
On another note, that is so thoughtful that the niece thought to give you the original documents for your home. It would be great to see them!
Amy Dahn
By Amy Dahn on December 9th, 2005 at 04:02pm
original home documents
amy, i have original invoices dated 1923/1924 from the various contractors who built 520 grove terrace. we purchased this house from a woman whose father had it built. when she died her niece, who resided in maplewood at the time, very thoughtfully passed them along to us.If you are interested in having a look at these documents, i'd be happy to sharethem with you.
By rhonda sturtz on December 9th, 2005 at 04:01pm
south orange avenue parking lot proposal
I share the MPHA's concern regarding the South Orange Avenue proposal. I would not like to see a parking lot constructed in the Montrose area for all of the good reasons cited in your email.
Thank you for that useful communication.
By rhonda sturtz on December 9th, 2005 at 04:00pm
Photo in Naoma Welk's Book
On page 46 of "Images of America- South Orange" is an undated group shot of the South Orange Fire Department. I would love to know if anyone can tell me what year it was taken (since my Grandfather, who passed a dozen years ago, is in the back row).
By Kenneth Funk on December 9th, 2005 at 02:01am
Seeking family information
I am seeking information about my grandmother Marion Perry Shackford Mundy and her parents Mr. (Captain) and Mrs. William Gardner Shackford who lived at the corner of Vose Ave. and Stewart Place between the 1880s and about 1907. I would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has any information about the Shackford family in South Orange or knows where I might find it. With many thanks in advance, Marion Cooke
By Marion Perry Mundy Cooke on December 4th, 2005 at 03:01am
Hall Court & Woodland Cresc.
June,
Thank you for your entry! You will be happy to hear that 111 Turrell Avenue was restored to its former glory withint the last 5 or 6 years! Thank you for your memories of Hall Court & Woodland Place. I may put you in touch with local author Naoma Welk, who is writing a sequel to her first book, Images of America South Orange.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn, MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on December 2nd, 2005 at 05:01pm
And again - I notice that Hall Court is included in your incventory. My Dad built all of those houses on Hall Court. And if I think hard, I can remember some of the families who bought those houses.
By June Murtha on December 2nd, 2005 at 01:02pm
3 Woodland Crescent
My grandmother, Mattie M. Engler, gave to my parents the property at 3 Woodland Crescent as a wedding gift in 1927. They built the house and moved in at that time. We lived there until 1942 when my Dad went into the Navy, we sold the house and we moved in with my grandmother at 310 Scotland Rd., or as my cousin reports 111 Turrell Ave...I remember asking why that address and of course the reason is obvious...shorter street frontage.
By June Broderson Murtha on December 2nd, 2005 at 01:02pm
Restrictions
Hello Michael,
At this time (Jan, 2006), there are no design guidelines in place for the Village of South Orange, nor the Montrose Park section of South Orange. There is a proposal for the Village to establish an Historic Commission which would oversee such matters. MPHDA encourages residents to make "sensitive" changes to their home which reflect the historic character of the neighborhood. An addition not visible to the street would be of little issue. But, still the use of "in kind" materials would be suggested. I believe you also left a message on the MPHDA phone line and that I responded to your call.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn
MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on December 1st, 2005 at 06:01pm
Restrictions on Additions?
Hello,
The vintage postcards and photos on this site are amazing! Thanks for sharing!Friends of mine are interested in purchasing a home at 344 Montrose Ave. They are wondering if there are any building restrictions as they would like to expand out the back to add a family room. What are the historical society's restrictions on this?
By Michael on December 1st, 2005 at 05:01am
1907 Diary posted
I've posted my cousin's 1907 diary to the net. She lived at 140 Montrose Avenue - her grandparents' house - from 1905 to 1925. This was her first diary, written when she was 15 years old. She illustrated the diary with pencil drawings. In 1925, she married novelist, Larry Baretto and illustrated several of his travel books.
She died in 1972.
The link to the .pdf file is:
http://homepage.mac.com/dave.thayer/aa_flichtner/Anna1907diary.pdf
The file size is about 1.2MB
By David Thayer on December 6th, 2004 at 05:00am
Re: House Drawings
Dear Jean,
These renderings were made of houses that were on the Montrose in May House Tour. Several renderings were chosen for the gift cards. We may have a few packages of gift cards left if you would like to purchase a set. Please email me with the address of the home you purchased and I will be able to notify you as to whether we still have a scanned copy of the rendering. The originals were given to homeowners as a gift.
Sincerely,
Amy Dahn, MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on December 5th, 2004 at 06:02am
Drawings of Houses
We recently purchased a house in Montrose Park and will be moving in in another month or so. Our house previously was on the House Tour. The current owners of the house showed us a card or brochure that had a drawing of our house. It was a picture of three houses; our house was in the middle. I think this was from the house tour. I'm not sure what year the house was on the house tour. Is there a way to get copies of old brochures or cards from house tours. I would love to have a copy of this picture.
By Jean Farrell on December 5th, 2004 at 05:01am
Fences
Dear Hugh,
There are no local zoning ordinances, at this time, pertaining to the historic district. The local fence ordinance is Village-wide. Check with Village Hall.
Sincerely, Amy Dahn
By Amy Dahn on December 5th, 2004 at 03:02am
Are fences okay?
I'm looking at a house in Montrose Park. I have a small dog and a small child, so we were thinking about putting up a fence if we buy. No one else seems to have a fence. Is there a restriction in the district?
By Hugh Snyder on December 5th, 2004 at 01:01am
More on 140 Montrose Ave
Dear David,
On behalf of MPHDA, we are delighted to hear of your family's history at 140 Montrose Avenue! The Association would truly appreciate a copy of the PDF version of your cousin's diary.
If you would like to learn more about and/or confirm your Great-Grandfather's profession, I suggest that you research this via the old telephone directories located at the South Orange Public Library. Microfiche of newspapers from that era might also provide an obituary. Please read the FAQs page of our website for more details about how to complete historic research.
We would be delighted to mail you a copy of last year's house tour brochure. Please email me at info@MontroseParkSONJ.org.
Sincerely,
Amy G. Dahn, MPHDA President
By Amy Dahn on December 5th, 2004 at 06:02am
140 Montrose Ave
Hello David,
My wife Mary Ann & I
live at 140 Montrose today. I would love to get the PDF version of her diary. We did a lot to the house and it was featured on last year's Montrose in May tour. I have pictures I can send you. If you live within range, we would be happy to see you here.
Best regards,
Ernie Albanese
By Ernest L Albanese on December 4th, 2004 at 09:01pm
South Orange in 1907
My great-grandparents lived at 140 Montrose Ave. at the turn of the century, and my cousin moved there with her mother when her father died in 1905. I have her first diary, written in 1905, when she was 15. It's quite charming and illustrated with drawings. She details her busy social life in S.O. that year. I copied the diary and I believe that I sent a copy to someone in the S.O. historic society, some years ago.
I have a PDF version, if anyone's interested in reading it. I would be interested in learning more about the Thayer house on Montrose Ave. and more about my g.grandfather. I've heard that he was a druggist, but have no confirmation. He died in 1888, Mrs. Thayer died in 1903, Their twin sons, daugher (and granddaughter-the diarist) and Mrs. Thayer's sister, Mrs. Annie Appleton Osgood, lived there into the 20's and maybe into the 30's.
By David Thayer on December 4th, 2004 at 06:00pm
Montrose Scotland
I am from Montrose in Scotland and found your web site very interesting!
By Lori Ogilvie on October 31st, 2003 at 03:01pm
367 Vose Picture
Kevin,
Thanks for taking the time to post.
I would LOVE to see this picturte or a copy of it.
You can reach me at general_michael@vivavite.com.
Thanks again.
Michael Joseph
By Michael Joseph on December 9th, 2003 at 07:02am
367 Vose
Michael, My grandmother had friends who lived in 367 Vose for many years and she used to take me there to visit once in a while. I have a photo of the house from 1908 which shows the balustrades along the roofline. If you leave your email address, I'll contact you.
By Kevin on December 9th, 2003 at 07:01am
367 Vose/District Inventory
Hi Michael,
Welcome to Montrose! Your house has great bones and great neighbors! The author of the District Inventory is Historic Preservation Consultant Ulana Zakalak. Her contact information is available on our website on some of the written history pages, and possibly also on the first page of the District Inventory. Zakalak used a variety of sources to compile the inventory including old maps, atlases, tax records, etc. It could be that the style of your house typically had a balustrade at the roofline. Or perhaps the previous owner new of its existence and told Zakalak. A title search of your property would reveal all previous owners. Check out our FAQ page for details!
By Amy Dahn, MPHDA Pres. on December 8th, 2003 at 11:00am
Source of data on 367 Vose
Hi,
My wife and I are the new owners of 367 Vose and bought the place for it's unique charm and architecture among other things.
We moved from 16 Oberlin St in Maplewood which was another classic house but in the "Victorian Farmhouse" style and after renovations we had it own a number of ditrict house tours.
I also managed to obtain the entire history of that property and talk to an owner who grew up there in 1912 (before he passed away) and find these sorts of exercises truly interesting.
I note with great interest that 367 Vose is classified in your inventory as 'contributing' and has a descriptive summary that includes the following: "Although the original roofline balustrades have been removed, the house is still an important component of the historic district. The house was originally owned by Agnes L. Miles."
Whoi is the author of this summary and how do they know about the "roofline balustrades"..?
I would be most interested to contact this person and any others who have information about our home.
On a separate note, we plan to paint the exterior shortly and I would be very interested if anyone has pointers to a good style guide for a home of this sort that would be in keeping with it's design, period and the district as a whole.
Thanks for any thoughts on this.
By MIchael Joseph on December 8th, 2003 at 10:02am
127 Ralston Ave
Hi, Greetings from Wilton Ct. My family lived @127 Ralston Ave from 1952 to about 1974. My Dad was an exec at B Altman's dept store in Manhattan. Although a large house, it was often small for seven children! Previous owners were the Rummle's (a teacher at Seton Hall) and the Barrymore acting family when John and Ethel were youngsters). I recall my father having some work done on the garage and a local craftsman remembered it being used as a horse stable complete with an array of carriages and ponies. Many happy memories and its nice to see the neighborhood revive.
By Ed Papp on December 8th, 2003 at 03:01am
Renderings of Homes
Hi Bernie,
Thanks for the kind message. I hope others are enjoying the MPHDA website. It continues to evolve!
The renderer used by MPHDA for our house tour brochures is:
George Hess
Elegant Domain
190 Prall Avenue
Staten Island, NY 10312
phone: 718-356-7928
www.eleganthouseportraits.com
He does a great job!You will have to send a photograph of the home and close ups of any particular details you want. Also, you can ask him to edit things out like shrubs or air conditioners! Have fun!
By Amy Dahn on December 7th, 2003 at 02:00pm
Pen and ink drawings of homes
Amy:
This is an awesome website!
I left a voice mail for you as well - who is an artist that would draw a pen and ink sketch of a home? A few of us wanted to give Kathy Flaxman it as a going away gift. Any suggestions?
You have done such an outstanding job developing MPHD from an idea to an incredible legacy! A million thanks!
By Bernie Parsons on December 7th, 2003 at 01:01pm
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