Franklin Lakes Fire Department cira 1920

Last year I came across old an old photo of the FRLK fire department but I could only identify two of the seven men in the photo. Luckily, Tim has been busy organizing the history of the FRLK Fire Department (which you should check out) and has, with the help of an old friend, identified the gentlemen in the photo!

While I am working feverishly at the library organizing FRLK and library history, my counterpart at the Franklin Lakes Fire Department, Tim, is doing the same thing. Yeah for the keepers ( and savers) of local history!


Front row L to R: Sam Bowers, Sr. William V. Pulis, William Ainlay.

Back row L to R: J.S. Kinney, Herb Hopper, Kenneth Chilton & Edward May

New and old renovations

Because we are in the middle of a "quasi" renovation at the library, I thought it would be fun to look back at the last renovation at the library in 2004. The Suburban news did a very nice piece on the newly expanded library - much more than just four walls!

New CD Rom Available for Bergen County History

Libraries are a great place to start your genealogical , Bergen County, and the New Jersey history projects. I am happy to announce that we have available for use in the library the following books on one giant CD Rom. The CD is indexed and fully searchable. Come by the reference desk to check it out. (ask for me, Samantha!)

• History of Bergen County, New Jersey, 1630-1923 (1923)

• History of Bergen County, New Jersey (1900)
• Bergen County, New Jersey Marriage Records. Copied From the Entries as Originally Made at the Court House by the Ministers and Justices of the Peace of the County (1929)

• Minutes of the Justices and Freeholders of Bergen County, New Jersey, 1715-1795. From the Original in the County Clerk's Office (1924)

• Genealogical History of Hudson and Bergen Counties, New Jersey (1900)

• Englewood: Its Annals and Reminiscences (1899)

• Things Old and New from Rutherford (1898)

• The Bergen County Democrat's History of Hackensack, N.J. Its Olden Story, Present Annals, Prospective Growth All Told by the Historian's Pen and the Artist's Pencil. (1898)

• Ramapo Reformed Church, Ramapo Lutheran Church (1944)

• Yearbook of the Holland Society of New York
  1913
  1914
  1915

The Famous Windmill

I hope you all had the opportunity to read Rebecca Kaufman's article on Franklin lakes in the Suburban News (07.23.08). In the article , Ms. Kaufman gives us a fantastic tour you can do with family and friends and learn about the great history of Franklin Lakes!

One of my favorite sites is the windmill on Long Bow Drive which used to power Mr. McKensie's farm - almost all of the land that is now Urban Farms!

Oh, to have taxes like these...

We were lucky enough to get a gift of tax bills from Franklin Township circa 1907-1910. Look carefully at the bill and you will see that taxes could be paid directly to the tax collector at his home in Campgaw! I guess we no longer offer that service!

Hoppers Pond Cemetery

We are currently getting the library ready for the major HVAC project next week so I figured it would be a good time to clean up my desk and start this history blog. We hope that we can use this blog as a way for Franklin Lakes historians to share information and stories. Please feel free to post comments and suggestions as well as updated history!

In my infinite quest to organize my desk I came across the listing for the burial plots at Hoppers Pond (located on private property). I am not sure how I acquired this listing nor do I know when the list was generated but I know there are many people who look for this information regularly.

In addition to our blog, we hope that you will come visit our website and visit us at the library. We look forward to your comments.