Cranford's Tercentenary Pageant Otters
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Three Hundred Years at Gram's Ford: "~x Rahway iliver Pageants and Parkways, 1886 to 192& (This is the last oj a scries of "Indeed, the river is Cran- very youhg girls went swimming, expected spill. Canoeing on a in Venice by an eloquent visitor articles in tohich Dr. Homer J. ford.'s chief- claim .to superiority and those who did. stayed-close to .Sunday afternoon with a pretty from Roselle- who later became Hall, president of the Cranford over* hundreds of. other' towns in the Casino. girl, sinking along the river on a Governor William Sulzer of New Historical Society arid chairman the suburbs of New York. The The most fun was in the Fetts picnic party to the woods, pad- York, and Cranford became of the. frnnfftr-ii: i* >q pnrp an natnrn rp '' 1 •*•**•. ' '•*:-•; n pool..near uoering Way. A clay dles -jiivthe moonlight; dipping to -known as "The Venice of . T make it. The '-residentsI "can en- Committee, Ms 'presented a pre- bank there could be dug and the rhythm of a mandolin or ban- America.'' . • , . joy all the various water sports view," ' prepared . 'from man y smoothed for slides and chute the jo .— these were the joys that in summer, and perfect skating in • The first aquatic meets started sources'in the society's records, chutes, down which the young- summer .offered- the* winter, without the incon- by the Cranford Boating Club and of the story which will be told in sters slid like so many joyous veniences of travel which so of- Canoeing, the basis df many a Association in 1879 and.1880 had Cranford's Tercentenary Pageant otters. Other pools lihed the> ten mar the pleasure of these lively competition, was much the only swmming and boat races. •.'.. in Nomahcgan.Park on June 14.) i stream, near Lincoln Ave., Wall healthful pastimes." preferred means of travel from the institution of the carnival By HOMER J. HALL St., and the present footbridge to house to house, or from house to • was a complete success,- continued "The beautiful Rahway Rivet- Enjoy it they did. The chief Hillside Avenue School. Casino or'club. Eveiy lew- years- --.en yea.', and extended in 189.0 water sport was swimming. The. winds its way in and out through It is hard.,-to'realize that the a -i ew canoe club was fo meJ, as o invite participants from other records say that the" first "order- the very cente-r'of Cranford. So •iver averaged two to three another generation of teemgsrs ommunities. • ' issued in 1898 to the new Cran- picturesquely serpentine is its feet higher at first than it is to- graduated to young adults. ford Police Department was to Enthusiasm continued to grow, . " course,"^said he. Board of Trade day. In 1871.surveyors from Eli- "arrest all persons found bathing _^ The first of the annual river and in 1892 the C:anford Casino in 1913, "that it crosses most of zabeth were seriously considering. in the rivor in an immodest wey." carnivals was staged by the Cran- was built as a center of social the principal streets""aT least where they might tap this "pure Of course this applied only to the ford River Improvement Associ- events, at a beau.ttiful location on once, and several of them are stream,-right from the mountains" river through town, which ation in .1886 with swimming the bend of,-the river above the compelled to 'brjdge*"its crystal as a source of water, and opposi- stopped at the ford. The best races, a canoe race, and, as the dam. The Casino was leased to waters twice within a few hun- tion to this plan was part of the swimming place was a-large deep special event, "a ladies double- the Cranfoid Country Club, and dred yards. Other streets follow politicking involved in organizing 11 hole above the ford, where the scull race which was won by the was well known as one of the •the course of the river at'a dis- the Township of Cranford. The big boys swam au natural. Diving- Munoz. sisters." .(Nina- was mest clubhouse.: in New Je.sey. tance of- a few hundred feet, thus stream was easily navigable to kept the silt in motion and wash- later Mrs. Santiago Porcella, Sr.) It burned down in 1897 and was .giving the town as a whole a the Morris Ave. bridge in ed it down the river, so the swim- The afternoon regatta was fol- rebuilt later the same year com- park-like appearance. " .Springfield, and well above' this ming holes-were always deep and lowed by a twilight carnival pro- plete with bowling alleys, shuf- in.times of high water. ,. "Many of the residences are clear. Further up was a shallow cession the next day in which 25 fleboard, billiaid room, library, built to face the river, with lawns hole for little kids. It was the canoe, however, canoes, gaily decorated with committee rooms, smoking room and flower gardens to the very which gave the river its special .Chinese lanterns, followed a and auditorium. In recent years brink of the stream. This, com- There are a^ number of local quality. Cheap, easy to make and course nearly three mile's long; the Casino has been the home Of bined with the scores of beautiful residents who learned to swim in maneuver, it took a shallow d^aft doubling up the river and back, Cranford Post 212 of the Ameri- EARLIER DAYS ON THE RIVER — According t.o a booklet on "Qranford, the Venice. of New canoes always to be seen gliding the river at CVanford around the and could move ,a,t a fast, or while a band of musicians struck can Legion. • Jqrsey," published in 1913 by the ! Cranford Boa rd of Trade, the picture above was taken during to and fro on its surface, has turn of the century. Mrs. George leisurely pace as the occasion de- up a lively airand marched with The river carnival, became a meet held on the Rahway River here in the early 1900's by the New Jersey State Canoe Associ- caused Cranford to be termed Bates and Mrs. .William Scar- manded, with always the slightly them along the shore. The car- more and more of an affair, with ation.. •'".. 'The. Venice of New Jersey.' borough recall that -only the exhilarating chance of an un- nival was likerjedjo a night scene (•Continued on Page 2, Section 2) NIAW jrnsrv TERCENTENARY Second Clue Poltase Paid Vol. LXXI. No. 19. 3 Sections, 24 Pages CRANFORD, NEW, JERSEY, THURSDAY, MAY 28, 1964 Cranford, N. J. TENXENTS Memorial Pay Parade,Coordinator Closing of Municipal Dump Ceremony Plans Told-, PosiFilled . Cranford's war dead will be honored at services at Mem-By Board Expected Within 10 Months; orial Park at 10 a.m. preceded by a five-division parade through Appointrnent of 12 teachers in- the community at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Memorial Day. cluding a language- arts coordi- - Roderick W. Smith, former president of the Cranford nator was made Tuesday night by Chamber of Commerce and vice-chairman of Region II, Boythe Board pf Education meeting in Rise in Scavenger Fee Seen Scouts of America, will be | ^~~~* Lincoln School. The board also grand marshal. He is a former announced the retirements of three . Cranford will terminate the president of the Cranford His- teachers and resignations of 23 ijse of its municipal dumping torical Society. • her faculty members. area, in the southeasterly area j<&0 V: O'Brien, commander Dr. Anne Bailey of Union Plan to Appoint Full-Time of the community, within the fci-anford Post 212, American named to the newly created posi- next 10 months, it was re- Legion, will be master of cere- ti6n of language arts coordinator nt vealed at Tuesday night's meat? monies at the prograVn at Mem- at a salary, of $10,139. In March Township Committee wUl introduce' an^ordlrjSiJ&e at its June/8 Ing of ToWhship .Committee.. the board hired a mathematics co- orial Park. Mayor H. Raymond meeting to provide funds for appointrnent of a'f\ll-t*mo superinten- In all probability, a decision ordinator. The primary function of Kirvvan will give the welcome ad- dent'of recreatlon.'it was announced this week byFubiic Affairs Com- ^l be made within the next the coordinator is to improve in- dress. missioner Wesley N, Phllo. " . ... , • \ — structiqn in his fipltj •'T^igh rir .local refuse will be carted, it was The Recreation Committee already has more than ; six applica-. -i/M"J en velopment of a sequential curricu- learned yesterday from Public Af- tions for the position, which will will recite Lincoln's "Gettysburg lum at all levels. fairs Commissioner Wesley N. have a minimum starting salary of Address" accompanied by . the Dr Bailey -attended Newark PJiilo. , "\" 6,000, it- was reported by H. R. Cranford High School Band. The State College and received a B.S. Negotiations have been under- Jacobus, chairman, Salary will way with the Cranford Scavengers' high school choir will sing "Cry degree from' Rutgers School of Education, 'master's degree in ed- be commensurate with age, quali- Association, which, in turn, has Out and Shout" by Nystedt. John been endeavoring to obtain a five- ucation and doctorate in educa- fications and experience, it was E. Haviland-will lead singing with tion from New York University. year ltfasc on land which could be pointed out. accompaniment by the high scho61 She has had extensive experience used as a dumping area. While Minimum qualifications for the band. at all grade levels in Elizabeth,.