Ongoing historical research on a variety of topics.
Views: 5,386A fun community-driven Mr. Local History post where we need history sleuths who’ve read all those old documents and maps to help build the largest list of New Jersey Revolutionary War-era taverns. Did you know…..Continental Army officers often used… Read More »New Jersey Taverns of the Revolutionary War
Views: 5,707“Pluck-em-in” and Middlebrook AND America 250 – Perfect Together. Get to know this Great American History Story. During the winter of 1778–1779, the Middlebrook Encampment stretched across the Somerset Hills while, at Pluckemin, General Henry Knox established the famed… Read More »Middlebrook / Pluckemin MLH Series: Tell America About These Rev War Jersey Destinations
Views: 1,206 Historic archeologist drops a verbal bombshell announcement at a New Jersey conference: The Rev War Pluckemin Cantonment WAS America’s first military academy, confirming the construction was done 24 years before the United States Military Academy at West Point.Dr.… Read More »Was Pluckemin America’s First Military Academy? Expert Breaks Silence & Takes Position
Views: 1,009There’s something genuinely exciting happening right now for historians. For the first time, we have tools that can read, aggregate, and synthesize massive amounts of information in seconds, helping us connect sources, test ideas, and even visualize the past… Read More »AI and History: Lessons Learned – Pluckemin Cantonment Edition
Views: 2,116From Rev War Soldiers to Gliders to Gun & Rod Clubs: The Transition on Schley Mountain There is no well-documented evidence of a formal, dedicated police or public shooting range in the “The Hills” development itself. But we’re hoping… Read More »Remembering Gun and Rod Clubs Around Schley Mountain in the Somerset Hills
Views: 2,212Pluckemin, New Jersey, pronounced “PLUCK um in“, carries three enduring name stories. Some trace it to a Lenape word for persimmon tied to early Algonquian place terms. Others repeat the roadside tale of tavern keeper Jacob Eoff, who would… Read More »Middlebrook Symposium – Pluckemin’s Rev War Academy Analysis with Dr. John Seidel
Views: 2,527Stations in the News Railroad service into the Somerset Hills began in 1872 when the Passaic Valley and Peapack Railroad opened a new line running west from Summit into northern Somerset County. The original route established stations at New… Read More »Looking Back at Train Stations Along the Peapack Gladstone Line
Views: 1,356History says the subscriber list is lost, so Mr. Local History is trying to rebuild it. We wanted to begin this addition to our Somerset Hills train history series with the story behind what became widely known as the… Read More »Millionaires Express Elegant Commuting – Who Was On That Exclusive Subscriber List
Views: 1,071As our researchers investigated the history of the Millionaires Express story, we found several articles about a terrible rail accident involving the Millionaires Express on June 5, 1908. We’re sharing a few stories/articles from the era and are working… Read More »Historic Train Accidents on the Peapack Gladstone Line
Views: 3,474UPDATE:For 1 day only on Sunday, May 17, visitors can experience the “Millionaires Express” at the Whippany Railway Museum by riding in restored 1900s era luxury club cars once used by wealthy railroad travelers on New Jersey’s famed Lackawanna… Read More »The Millionaires Express Train – Luxury Between Hoboken & the Somerset Hills
Views: 2,054Latest Issue – Summer 2026 – Click Here Spring 2026 marks the beginning of something extraordinary across the Garden State. Communities, museums, schools, and historical societies are launching celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary, the SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL of the Declaration of… Read More »Mr. Local History 2026 Spring Magazine Vol 8. Issue 1
Views: 5,628This Special Issue of Mr. Local History Magazine celebrates America’s SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL, the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence, by bringing New Jersey’s Revolutionary past to life. From historic battlefields and museum exhibits to community events and… Read More »Mr. Local History’s America’s 250th Celebration Magazine
Views: 1,589Part of our Mr. Local History Train Series….. For years, the Mr. Local History research team has been digging into New Jersey’s railroad history. As we traced old rail lines town by town, something curious began to appear in… Read More »Northside or Southside – Train Determines Socio Economic Town Dynamics
Views: 981A Retrospective The Mr. Local History Project conducted a deep dive into the beginnings of railroads in New Jersey, focusing on east-west corridors that sought to connect Pennsylvania with New York through New Jersey’s crossroads. Long before the railroads… Read More »Passaic Valley & Peapack and the West Line Railroad – What if the West Line Succeeded?
Views: 4,181The iron rail that brought the steel horse to the Somerset Hills.This story is as much about the railroads that were built as it is about the railroads that weren’t. As our researchers identify new pertinent information, this post… Read More »The West Line Railroad: Fate That Created a Community Instead of an Industry
