Wed., April 10, 2024, 7 pm - CANCELLED
Joseph Klett, Executive Director of the New Jersey State Archives and President of The Hopewell Museum, will discuss the earliest European settlement of "old Hopewell," which included Trenton and Ewing prior to 1720.
Joe will touch upon Indian villages and paths, early roads, civil boundaries, and the Quaker, Presbyterian, Dutch Reformed, and Baptist families that settled here starting in the late 1600s. He will also highlight early primary sources such as land and probate records, documentation on slave holdings, etc. Hopewell Public Library Speaker Series
Co-sponsored by the Hopewell Valley Historical Society and The Hopewell Museum |
Sun., March 24, 2024, 2 pm - Registration required
- Attend in person at Hopewell Branch of the Mercer County Library - Full - please join online - Or join online virtual presentation via Zoom -> Click here to register for online only Join Bob Lawless as he recounts the origin, construction, and operations of the short-lived Mercer & Somerset Railway. Built in the early-1870’s, this railroad provided the citizens of Hopewell Valley with the means of traveling to Trenton, Philadelphia, and New York in less time than ever before. While the events surrounding the “Frog War” are the most memorable, the history of the railroad is replete with fascinating accounts related to the communities of which it served. Although service ended less than a decade after it started, many relics of the line remain as reminders of the railroad that contributed to the prosperity of the Hopewell Valley.
This presentation will provide many details about the railroad and offer a unique opportunity to those in attendance. All attendees are welcome to join the speaker at a post-presentation reception hosted by Sentiment Depot, held in the M&S Station Agent dwelling located across the road from the library. The opportunity to continue discussions about the Mercer & Somerset Railway will be afforded. Robert Lawless is a board member of the Hopewell Valley Historical Society, and Chairperson of the Program Planning Committee. His extensive research has focused upon the development and operations of railroads in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. Robert has worked in the railroad industry for most of his career, and presently employed by a regional transportation authority. Co-sponsored by the Hopewell Valley Historical Society, the Hopewell Museum, and the Friends of the Hopewell Branch Library. - Attend the event in person at the Hopewell Branch of the Mercer County Library, 245 Pennington-Titusville Rd., Pennington, NJ The in-person event is free – but has limited space - Registration required In-person registration is full - please join the meeting online - register below - Or attend the event online via Zoom – Click here to register for online only |
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Mon., Feb. 5, 2024, 6:30 - 8:00 pm - Free and open to the public
- Attend in person at Hopewell Branch of the Mercer County Library, 245 Pennington-Titusville Rd., Pennington, NJ - Click here to register for in-person (through the Mercer County Library) - Or join online virtual presentation via Zoom -> Click here to register for online only Please join us in a discussion with Beverly Mills and Elaine Buck, the authors of African Americans of Central New Jersey: A History of Harmony and Hostility. Through grit and determination, the founding Black families of Sourland Mountain and surrounding Central New Jersey put down roots, built homes, established churches and navigated their lives in an unforgiving world. Through extensive research and interviews authors Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills reveal stories of the families who shaped the region for generations.
Copies of their book, African Americans of Central New Jersey, will be available for sale, as well as signing. Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills are the founders of the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum and co-authors of If These Stones Could Talk. They proudly received the Kirkus Book Review in October 2018 and in 2019 the New Jersey Author's Award Non-Fiction Popular Works Category. In 2020, they partnered with the Museum of the American Revolution for an exhibition titled When Women Lost the Vote. In 2021, they received Doris C. Carpenter Award on behalf of Preservation New Jersey for their work on the March of America's Diverse Army through New Jersey and the Solomon Northup Family Award for uplifting the memory of enslaved people. Their new book, African Americans of Central New Jersey: A History of Harmony and Hostility, was released in July. Co-sponsored by the Hopewell Valley Historical Society, The Hopewell Museum, and the Friends of the Hopewell Branch Library. - Attend the event in person at the Hopewell Branch of the Mercer County Library, 245 Pennington-Titusville Rd., Pennington, NJ The in-person event is free and open to the public – but has limited space - Click here to register for in-person (through the Mercer County Library) - Or attend the event online via Zoom – Click here to register for online only |