Post Views: 39 The Brothers Hildebrandt – The creation of the original Star Wars Poster was just the tip of the iceberg. NOTE: As with all Mr. Local History retrospectives, we often update the post when we learn stories and are sent photos from our community. We will continue to grow this piece as information becomes available. Greg and Tim Hildebrandt better known to the illustration world as “The Brothers Hildebrandt” began their careers 1959. The Brothers have worked on documentary films and thousands of illustrations for text books, children’s books,…
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Post Views: 49 Want a quick way to search for articles about the history from your town? The Mr. Local History Project has created a few quick searches to give you a head start. Bedminster Bedminster History Bernards Township (Basking Ridge) Bernards Township History Bernardsville Bernardsville History Far Hills Far Hills History Peapack & Gladstone Peapack & Gladstone History What is the Somerset Hills The Somerset Hills is known as the northern region of Somerset County located in the U.S. state of New Jersey and includes the townships of Bedminster,…
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Post Views: 89 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 school work and being in the History Maker program, Annie also was an avid athlete participating in soccer, field hockey – North Jersey Section 1 Group 4 championships, and the track and field team on the 100, 200, and 4×400 relay teams. “I really enjoy working with Annie,” said…
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Post Views: 1,050 Trying to Make Somerset County Grow with Free Sunflowers and Some Local History – And Now – a Contest! Who doesn’t love a good challenge and some free stuff. This one is a fun one to see if we can promote growing in the Somerset Hills. Let us introduce the 2nd annual “Mr. Local History Grow Local History” project. Locals come get your pack of locally grown sunflower seeds and lets see how many new gardens we can create. PLANT NOW – JOIN THE CONTEST Read below…
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Post Views: 414 NOTE: As with all Mr. Local History retrospectives, we often update the post when we learn stories and are sent photos from our community. We will continue to grow this piece as information becomes available. A Small Part of Camelot in the Somerset Hills While the Somerset Hills plays home to many a power broker and celebrities, there was no one who captured the time and essence of the Somerset Hills quite like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. While her life was filled with unimaginable tragedy, we look at…
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Post Views: 566 June is our Scholarship Community Giving Month and we need your help! HELP MAKE OUR $1200 GOAL Mr. Local History, a local non-profit organization which celebrates the history of the Somerset Hills, encourages everyone who supports our mission to take part in our scholarship program that is given annually to a worthy Somerset Hills student that’s passionate about preserving and promoting OUR local history. This year has been a particularly tough year with the Covid-19 virus and our non-profit has not had the chance to hold fundraising…
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Post Views: 647 Bernards Township has been a charted township going all the way back to 1760. With the early Dutch and Scottish settlers, the origin of the area belongs to the famed Lenni-Lenape Native American tribe.But what about the other cultures in the area. We’re on a mission to find out and would love to engage the community. Demographic Highlights Researching Diversity We are honoring those in our neighborhood who have identified themselves as Asian according to the census. Statistics have shown that the Asian American community (including India…
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Post Views: 1,081 While you’d think that hurricanes and floods wreak the most havoc, there has been nothing more destructive to properties in the Somerset Hills more than fires. The Mr. Local History Project is gathering information regarding large fires in the Somerset Hills area. Looking back at history, we’ve started digging to let the public understand how severe fires have devastated our community. Bernardston Charter Destroyed in 1850 Fire Basking Ridge – All township records before 1850 were destroyed in a fire. “It is in fact unfortunate that these…
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Post Views: 668 Before we get started: The Methodist Church in the United States is 94% white, 92% third generation American, 60% married, 69% believe in God absolutely, 42% attend church weekly, and 62% believe in hell. Several attempts were made in the twentieth century to reunite the Methodist Church with its founder’s own church – the Church of England. These were rejected by the Church of England’s General Synod in 1972. However, dialogue and informal relations continued. In 2003 a Covenant between the two churches was signed. This affirms…
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Post Views: 651 The Mr. Local History Project honors the former Bernards Township’s historian June Kennedy showcasing our “June in December” tree honoring her dedication to community and local history. The Festival of Trees is an indoor exhibit of decorated Christmas trees by various community groups and individuals and runs from December 6 thru December 30th at the Environment Education Center on Stirling Road in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. The Mr. Local History Project is proud to announce the newly created “community spirit tree” honoring all those who like to…
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Post Views: 502 Do you know all of the historic sites on our state and national registers here in the Somerset Hills? Well you do now! And we threw in the rest of Somerset County as well, just for fun. Welcome to our google map of all of the historic sites covering Bedminster, Bernards Township, Bernardsville, Far Hills, Peapack & Gladstone. Want to visit one? Just click the icon, then click the directions and it’ll map it out for you.
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Post Views: 817 History Makers High School Volunteers HISTORY MAKERS MAKE HISTORY “Today is tomorrow’s history, so make it a good one!” is the motto readers will always find on the Mr. Local History website. The motto is a reminder that each and every day, all of us “make history” through the actions we take or the decisions we make. To that end, Mr. Local History encourages teenagers to join our organization and think about how they can make history themselves. Local high school and college students are invited to…
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Post Views: 869 Our Holiday Issue Happy holidays. Tiz the Season! The Mr. Local History Project has been working hard to produce the next issue of our magazine that combines news, stories, and feature posts about the area’s local history in the Somerset Hills area of New Jersey. This month’s cover showcases the iconic Christmas Eve caroling on the green in the village of Basking Ridge. Volume 1 Issue 4 – Holiday Edition. Another word for history is “tradition” and this issue is full of holiday traditions in the Somerset…
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Post Views: 1,206 The Mr. Local History project’s mission is to preserve and promote the local history in Somerset Hills, a area in northern Somerset County, New Jersey. An all volunteer organization, social and educational activities are paramount to engaging in fun new ways. Mr. Local History announced the incorporation of Mr. Local History as a formal non-profit organization. By incorporating, the effort is now recognized as a legal entity to conduct business, organize, and develop fundraising efforts to support programs geared specifically for the local communities of the Somerset…
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Post Views: 1,466 The Mr. Local History Project is a 501c3 all volunteer non-profit organization. We have two goals. One is to create an ongoing high school scholarship fund to present annually to a Senior High School recipient. The second is to promote local history. Your contribution goes fully to support those two efforts. Scholarship Fund Donation Each year the Mr. Local History Project works with the Ridge High School to make a unrestricted scholarship to a worthy senior. Please help us continue this annual program. Regular Mail For those…
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