INTENSIVE-LEVEL ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY OF SELECTED PROPERTIES WITHIN THE LOWER GREGORY AND UPPER GREGORY NEIGHBORHOODS TOWNSHIP OF WEST ORANGE, ESSEX COUNTY, NEW JERSEY VOLUME I REPORT Prepared for: The Township of West Orange West Orange Historic Preservation Commission Funded by: State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Historic Preservation Offi ce Historic Preservation Fund CLG Grant-in-Aid # (Grant Identifi er: HE16-011) Prepared by: Eryn Boyce, M.S. Patrick Harshbarger, M.A., M.P.A. SEPTEMBER 2017 This publication has been financed in part with Federal funds from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, and administered by the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office. The contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of the Interior, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorse- ment or recommendation by the Department of the Interior. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the U.S. Department of the Interior strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, disability, age, or sexual orientation in its federally assisted programs. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility as described above, or if you desire further information, please write to: Office of Equal Opportunity National Park Service 1849 C Street NW Washington, D.C. 20240 MANAGEMENT SUMMARY This report presents the results of an intensive-level historic architectural survey of 60 properties in the Township of West Orange, Essex County, New Jersey. The survey was sponsored by the West Orange Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) with funding from the Certified Local Government (CLG) Grant-in-Aid pro- gram of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Historic Preservation Office (NJHPO). The survey was designed to identify potentially eligible historic resources in study areas of southeast West Orange Township designated the Lower and Upper Gregory neighborhoods. Specifically, it surveys 52 properties in the Yale, Harvard and Oxford Terrace and Walker Road to Luddington Avenue sections of the Lower Gregory Neighborhood and eight (8) properties along the west side of the Gregory Avenue corridor of the Upper Gregory Neighborhood. The Gregory neighborhoods originated in the colonial period as a series of farmsteads and craft shops located along Valley Road with fields and wood lots located west of the road on the eastern slope s of First Mountain. From these modest beginnings, the neighborhoods developed in the latter half of the 19th century as a setting for suburban “country” homes and estates, but this development was never as extensive or as exclusive as some other parts of the Township like Llewellyn Park or St. Cloud. Eventually, suburbanization was of a more middle-class character with more than 2,000 houses in various revival styles built from the mid-1900s to 1930s and later in-filling of late 1940s to 1960s houses, especially in the southern and westernmost sections of the neighborhoods. The neighborhoods consist of at least 20 major subdivisions and dozens of smaller subdivi- sions. This survey evaluated 60 properties comprising 59 dwellings and one (1) school. The survey recommends that seven (7) of the 60 properties, all dwellings, individually meet the National Register of Historic Places Criteria for Evaluation and are eligible for the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places or as West Orange Township Historic Landmarks. No potential historic districts were identified. Per the township’s historic preservation ordinance, next steps may include the preparation of formal designation reports for the above referenced resources to become West Orange Township Historic Landmarks. This survey report can serve as a foundation for preparing these reports, but additional work will be necessary. Priorities should be considered based on local knowledge of the level of threat and the willingness of the community and property owners to support designation. The next township master plan update may wish to include specific recommendations from this report. The HPC may use the findings of this survey to encourage property owners to seek listing in the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. It is also recommended that the HPC share the survey results as an educa- tional and interpretive tool, partnering with local businesses, neighborhood associations and local government. i TABLE OF CONTENTS page Management Summary ......................................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................................iii List of Figures ...................................................................................................................................................... v List of Photographs ............................................................................................................................................vii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................................................... xi 1. INTRODUCTION A. Project Description and Scope of Work ................................................................................................1-1 B. Research Design ....................................................................................................................................1-8 C. Definitions .............................................................................................................................................1-9 D. Survey Boundaries ..............................................................................................................................1-11 E. Current Historic Designation Status ....................................................................................................1-12 F. Previous Research and Principal Sources of Information ...................................................................1-12 2. HISTORICAL CONTEXT A. Overview: West Orange — Where the Suburbs Meet the City ............................................................2-1 B. Lower Gregory Neighborhood ..............................................................................................................2-3 C. Upper Gregory Neighborhood ............................................................................................................2-37 3. DATA SUMMARY A. Fieldwork Methodology ........................................................................................................................3-1 B. Results of Fieldwork .............................................................................................................................3-1 4. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS A. Recommendations for West Orange Historic Landmark Status ..........................................................4-1 B. Recommendations for Listing in the New Jersey and National Registers ..........................................4-1 C. Recommendations for Future Research and Survey ............................................................................4-2 D. Opportunities to Enhance the Quality of Life Through Historic Preservation ...................................4-2 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ R-1 APPENDICES A. Historic Preservation Fund Grant Request for Proposals (RFP) and Scope of Work .........................A-1 B. New Jersey Historic Preservation Office Intensive-Level Survey Forms (Volume II) .......................B-1 C. Resumes ............................................................................................................................................... C-1 D. New Jersey Historic Preservation Office Bibliographic Abstract ......................................................D-1 E. Project Administrative Data ................................................................................................................ E-1 iii LIST OF FIGURES page 1.1. Location of Study Area, Township of West Orange, New Jersey ..........................................................1-2 1.2. Detailed Location of Lower Gregory Neighborhood Study Area on USGS Quadrangle Map ..............1-3 1.3. Detailed Location of Upper Gregory Neighborhood Study Area on USGS Quadrangle Map ..............1-4 1.4. Location of Surveyed Properties Map – Lower Gregory Neighborhood ................................opposite 1-4 1.5. Location of Surveyed Properties Map – Upper Gregory Neighborhood ................................ opposite 1-4 2.1. Hill, Sketch of the North Parts of New Jersey, 1781 ..............................................................................2-2 2.2. Sidney, A Map of Essex County, New Jersey, 1850 ................................................................................2-4 2.3. Walling, Map of Essex County, New Jersey, 1859