Views: 12,646 UPDATE: While we wrote this piece years ago, the Bedminster Charter came back in the news on October 21, 2019, when it was announced that the Forbes family was donating the charter back to Bedminster Township. The story… Read More »The Lost Charters of Bernards Township & Bedminster
Views: 3,522 JOIN US THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3 for a VIRTUAL EVENT from 7-8pm. DID YOU KNOW BASKING RIDGE AND OTHER TOWNS WERE ALMOST LOST TO A SUPER REGIONAL AIRPORT IN THE 1960S? Taped: December 3, 2020 Background 61 years ago… Read More »VIRTUAL EVENT: Filmmaker Scott Morris Honors Saving the Great Swamp- The Fight to Defeat the Jetport
Views: 3,885 Schools in the Somerset Hills area of northern Somerset County have been a mainstay back to the mid-1700s. We honor the history of these memorable facilities in images from various sources now in our digital research archives. For… Read More »MLH Honors Back to School with Historic School Images From the Somerset Hills
Views: 3,042 Congratulations to our 2020 Ridge High School senior and MLH History Student of the Year – Annie Kleinle. A history volunteer since the MLH was founded, Annie Kleinle has been involved with local history. In addition to her… Read More »Congratulations to Annie Kleinle, the 2020 MLH Project High School Student of the Year.
Views: 2,968 In recognition of the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in the U.S., and the ratification of the 19th amendment guaranteeing all American women the right to vote, the Mr Local History project recognizes this great accomplishment in American History.… Read More »100th Anniversary Honors Women’s Right to Vote in New Jersey
Views: 4,774 We’ve been testing out a new piece of technology and wanted to share with our community. The project is to compliment what has traditionally been a guided walking tour in Basking Ridge. We’re thinking of hiring one of… Read More »Virtual Tour of Historic Basking Ridge Village
If you’ve been touched by the story of the Basking Ridge Historic Oak Tree’s 600-year history, you have to see this new book. “The Historic Basking Ridge Oak Tree Project” is a compilation of the area’s children from Kindergarten through High School who have written or drawn pictures of one of the most historic trees in America.
The Basking Ridge Historic Oak Tree Project is one of the most heartwarming books ever made to celebrate the life and history of the 619 year oak tree that was lost in 2017. It’ll pull on your heart strings.
Meg Wastie, Historic Oak Tree Project coordinator
The Basking Ridge Historic Oak Tree Project sought kindergarten through high school students to participate in The Historical Society of Somerset Hills “Tree Views” writing contest and the William Annin Tree Shirt Contest & Fundraiser. The essay premise was that students would write as if they were the historic oak and describe events they felt notable. Every school in Bernards Township participated, including Cedar Hill School, Liberty Corner School, Mount Prospect School, Oak Street School, William Annin Middle School, Ridge High School, St. James Catholic School, and one from the Assumption School. The tree shirt contest raised over $5440 in selling tee shirts while the Historical Society presented a $500 scholarship to the high school essay winner.
Below are a few examples from the 145-page collection of stories and images of the Great White Oak of Basking Ridge (Click Images to enlarge):
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The inaugural run of the book became available on Thursday, June 8, 2017, starting at 7 p.m. at the Tree Views Essay Reception at the historic Westminster Hall at the Basking Ridge Presbyterian Church, next to where the historic oak lived. Over 100 guests attended the release, where authors and artists read their essays. A book signing followed, which was one of the most touching events we’ve ever seen.
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Related Local History
Views: 4,244 Coloring History Opportunity for Kids T3 Consortium, a local company in the Somerset Hills, is proud to announce a new program for education programs to create a great program to make available for children while teaching them about… Read More »Kids Event Planning: History Coloring Book
T3 Consortium, a local company in the Somerset Hills, is proud to announce a new program for education programs to create a great program to make available for children while teaching them about some of the greatest historic people, places, and events in New Jersey’s Somerset Hills area including Bedminster, Bernards Twp, Bernardsville, Far Hills, Peapack & Gladstone.
What better way to teach kids about local history than by having them color some of the greatest events in Somerset Hills history with over 34 historic images including:
A great idea is to distribute the book to each student, pick maybe one image per week, tell a brief story about the event, person or location. Let the students either do it in class, or take home for an assignment.
Do the same as the school program, or consider doing some sort of event where the children get to color an image (their choice or yours) and then they get to tell about what they did when they complete the drawing (e.g. color selection or maybe adding an activity where the child gets to write something the person in the image might have said.
Pick the image that you like the best (e.g. your facility or story), have the children complete a xeroxed copy of that image. When they present their colored image back, post them on the wall. THEN, when they think they’re done, GIVE EACH OF THEM THEIR OWN BOOK! Watch their eyes light up! Then create a follow up activity and have the kids (and their parents) come back to your facility. A great traffic enhancer!
Yes, real estate agents! What better way to welcome a new family to town than with a coloring book for their kids that shows them the rich history of the Somerset Hills area. For such a small gesture, imagine how happy the kids will be when they get the chance to color historic figures from their new town. A nice touch to say the least!
Here’s a great offer at half the price. Why not have your kids learn about local history and spend time enjoying what they do.
To take advantage of this offer, visit our contact page and provide your details and we’ll contact you.
If you have any additional ideas, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to post your comments below or drop us a note – Click Here
Thanks! And keep on sharing our local history!
Views: 7,373 Historic documents often meet their tragic endings swiftly and tragically. In 1850, Bernards Township was known to have had a massive fire at the home of the township administrator, burning all of the township’s documents, including its founding… Read More »Recreating the Historic Charter of Bernardston