Vintage Photos Village Hall Architects Rossiter & Wright of New York City designed the South Orange Village Hall which became a recognized landmark in the community. Originally, Village Hall also housed the police and fire departments.  The tower was used to dry firehoses.  The half-timber Tudor-style construction suggests the style of work completed in England and Germany during the Elizabethan period. It has been said that Maplewood resident Edward Stratemeyer's Nancy Drew mystery, The Secret of the Old Clock (1930) was inspired by the South Orange Village Hall clock. (Courtesy South Orange Public Library) Return to Vintage Photos