Very helpful! great info!

Preserving history takes center stage in Jersey City
Monday, May 02, 2011, 7:15 AM
By John Gomez - The Jersey Journal

May - the seminal month of the year for historic preservation.

A profound period when the municipality's architectural monuments are opened wide to the populace, when antiquitous archives almost always off-limits are brought forward - and when threatened landmarks largely overlooked and endangered are instead highlighted, acclaimed and defended.

Over three decades ago, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Washington, D.C.-based historic preservation organization that advocates for landmarks across the country, initiated National Preservation Week. The event, consisting of tours, lectures, workshops and festivals, evolved over the years into a month-long celebration, a reflection of preservation's popularity and adoption as a practice and philosophy.

Now in its twelfth year of celebrating National Preservation Month, the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy - formed as a non-profit in 1999 by activists to answer threats facing Jersey City's historic sites, objects and districts - will be partnering with local historians, scholars, educators, neighborhood groups and community organizers to create an extended cultural experience.

A special series of historical walking tours and events is scheduled for the entire month of May. And visit the JC Landmarks website for updates and additional tours and events at JCLandmarks.org.

Bergen Square Walking Tour with historian Dennis Dornan

Saturday, May 14 (rain or shine!)
Time: 1 to 3 p.m.
Cost: $5 ($3 for seniors and students with school identification)

Meeting Place: Meet in front of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (P.S. No. 11) at the northeast intersection of Bergen Avenue and Academy Street, Bergen Square, Jersey City, (two blocks south of Sip Avenue/PATH)

More Information: Contact Dennis Doran at dgdoran91@comcast.net

Join city historian Dennis Doran for this once-a-year public exploration of Bergen Square, the site of New Jersey's first permanent European settlement. Dennis will take tourists through nearly four centuries of time - across a street grid dating back to 1660 and past visible (and invisible) remnants of Jersey City's extraordinary Dutch heritage, including the former site of the Sip Manor, the now-vanished Peter Stuyvesant Monument, the still-standing Van Wagenen Homestead, the neglected Speer Cemetery, and Old Bergen Church and Cemetery, among other seminal Bergen Square landmarks. Sponsored by JC Landmarks, the City of Jersey City, and Old Bergen Church.

Researching Home Histories with Cynthia Harris

Tuesday, May 17
Time: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Cost: Free. Registration is required.

Meeting Place: Meet in The New Jersey Room, 3rd Floor, Main Branch, Jersey City Free Public Library, intersection of Jersey Avenue and Montgomery Street, Van Vorst Park Historic District, Jersey City

More Information and Registration: Contact historian, writer and New Jersey Room Manager Cynthia Harris at (201) 547-6961 or charris@jclibrary.org. Seats fill up fast.

Have you ever wanted to research the history of your home? Or have you ever wanted to learn more about other landmark properties in your neighborhood? This workshop will give you the tools to do so by teaching you the basics of research in The New Jersey Room of the Jersey City Free Public Library, a treasure trove of Jersey City history.

Washington Village Walking Tour with historian Dennis Doran

Date: Saturday, May 21 (rain or shine!)
Time: 1 to 3 p.m.
Cost: $5 ($3 for seniors and students with school identification)

Meeting Place: Meet at the Riverview-Fiske Park Bandstand, Ogden Avenue between Griffith and Bowers Streets, Jersey City Heights, Jersey City, (the park fronts on Palisade Avenue; Ogden Avenue runs through the rear center)

More Information: Contact Dennis Doran at dgdoran91@comcast.net
Join city historian Dennis Doran for a walk through the mid-19th century Washington Village along the eastern edge of the Heights (formerly Hudson City) section of Jersey City. Dennis will trace architectural remnants of the old German, Jewish and Irish village, as well as the area's colonial history. Tourists will visit an ancient cobblestone road, Holland Street; walk past the circa-1740 Van Vorst House; visit the former site of the Pathe-Freres silent film studios; and learn about one of this year's JCLC Excellence in Preservation Award winners! Presented by JC Landmarks.

The Italian Village Heritage Walking Tour with preservationist Joshua Parkhurst

Sunday, May 22 (rain or shine!)
Time: 12 to 2 p.m.
Cost: $5 ($3 for seniors and students with school identification)

Meeting Place: Meet in front of Madame Claude Cafe, 364 1/2 4th St., Jersey City, (at the intersection of Newark Avenue and Brunswick and 4th Streets)

More Information: Contact Joshua Parkhurst at joshuaparkhurst@gmail.com

Join past JC Landmarks president Joshua Parkhurst for a tour of Downtown Jersey City's Italian Village neighborhood. Learn how the once-prominent (and still present) Italian-American population established this community in the late-19th century, transforming it into a cultural and political force; meet both long-time and newly established merchants who are helping to drive the Village's resurgence. Sponsored by JC Landmarks, Village Neighborhood Association, and the Lamp Post Bar & Grill.

2011 JCLC Preservation Awards Ceremony at the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre

Thursday, May 26
Time: 6 to 9 p.m.
Cost: $25 per ticket at the Loew's lobby door (includes presentation of awards, awardee slide show, open buffet, wine, coffee and dessert, live music by the Larry Banks Jazz Ensemble, and a private tour of the theatre)

Meeting Place: At the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre, 54 Journal Square

More Information: Contact JC Landmarks President John Hallanan at (201) 456-0486 or jclandmarks@gmail.com; visit the JC Landmarks website

Every May, JC Landmarks hosts its annual JCLC Preservation Awards Ceremony at the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre in Journal Square. The ceremony highlights those builders, homeowners, institutions, community advocates, scholars and others who have helped build the community of preservation in Jersey City.

Lafayette History Festival & Tour

Saturday, May 28
Time: 12 to 4 p.m.
Cost: Free

Meeting Place: The Rev. Dr. Ercel F. Webb Park (Lafayette and Van Horne Streets), Lafayette, Jersey City

More Information: Contact Communipaw Avenue Block Association President Rosalyn Browne at commblock@msn.com

Join the Communipaw Avenue Block Association, the City of Jersey City, JC Landmarks and special guide Neal Brunson of the Afro-American Historical Society Museum for a day-long celebration of Lafayette's singular cultural and architectural heritage. Visit and see iconic Lafayette landmarks like the former Lafayette Dutch Reformed Church and the famous "House of the Four Chimneys" mural inside the Art Deco-designed Provident Bank. Explore the distinct vernacular architectural landscape of Lafayette, a largely intact mid-19th century industrial neighborhood where the names of African-American legends like Dr. George E. Cannon and Dr. Lena Edwards come to life. The day will feature opening ceremonies, Lafayette Legends tables with students, updates on the Glenn D. Cunningham History Trail Project, theater and dance performances, guided and self-guided walking and bus tours, and closing ceremonies.