Historic sites in Cranford, New Jersey facts for kids

Cranford, New Jersey is a town with many cool old buildings and important places. You can find structures here that are almost 300 years old, built all the way back in 1740! They are all in a pretty small area of the town.

You can even take a walking tour to see these historic buildings yourself. There's also an audio tour of 25 historic spots in Cranford. It was made by the Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board and is narrated by Bernie Wagenblast.

The Cranford Historic Preservation Advisory Board helps protect these old places. They find, record, and keep track of all the important buildings, sites, and landmarks that have historical or architectural value.

Historic Houses and Buildings of Cranford

Crane-Phillips House

The Crane-Phillips House is one of Cranford's important historic homes.

The Sperry Homes

Thomas Sperry and his brother, William Miller Sperry, helped shape Cranford's architecture. They built the Sperry building at North Avenue and Alden Street. Their daughters married two of the Beinecke brothers, who founded Yale University's famous Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Droescher's Mill

Droescher's Mill is another historic site in Cranford. It played a role in the town's early history.

The Pierson House: A Glimpse into the Past

The Pierson House, also called the Crane House, is at 420 Riverside Drive. It's one of the most famous houses in Cranford. This house was built around 1740. It was likely placed here to watch over Crane's Ford. Crane's Ford was a shallow part of the Rahway River that was easy to cross on horseback.

The Pierson House started as a small wooden building. Over many years, it was changed and updated. In 1929, it was restored to look like it did in the mid-1700s, but much grander. Inside, you can still see some original basement walls, beams, and pegged oak floorboards from 1740.

Today, the Pierson House is a private home. It is owned by the Shanks family. They are currently making repairs because of flood damage from Hurricane Irene.

Norris Oakey House: A Federal Style Gem

The Norris-Oakey House, also known as the Dunham-Oakey House, is at 1119 Orange Avenue. It was first built in 1750. Then, in 1820, it was changed to become a great example of Cranford's first clear architectural style: the Federal style.

You can see the story in the windows. The smaller windows on the left are from the original 1750 East Jersey Cottage. When the house was made bigger, an old door became a window. A new, grander door was added. The taller, more elegant windows on the 1820 part of the house look like those on fashionable homes of that time.

The house was made taller to keep up with the Federal style. The decorations under the roof, called dentils, are also a Federal trait, though these are new additions. The overall look is more fancy and classic than the simple cottages and farmhouses nearby.

The Federal style came from England in the late 1700s. It was inspired by ancient Roman buildings found in Pompeii. This style is known for being strong and formal, but also having some curves and a light feel. The Norris-Oakey House shows how this style spread to smaller, country areas.

The Vreeland House: A Revolutionary War Story?

The Vreeland House is at 306 Lincoln Avenue East. It's on the route of the old Old York Road in Cranford. It was built around 1770, or maybe even earlier. It started as a simple one-room wooden house with a big fireplace.

The house was made bigger over time. Around 1840, it was doubled in size and covered in brick. This was supposedly a wedding gift for a Vreeland daughter. It was the main house of a large property.

Some people believe that a caretaker of nearby Droescher's Mill lived in the Vreeland House. They might have used its basement to store blankets and supplies for George Washington's Army. This would have been during the winter of 1779-1780 in Morristown. Some even say the house is haunted!

Cranford Hall: A Castle in New Jersey

Cranford Hall, at 600 Lincoln Park East, looks like a big English Norman Castle. It has turrets and battlements, just like a real castle, but no drawbridge. It was built in the early 1920s for a wealthy silk businessman, Charles E. Kaltenbach. His land even went down to the Rahway River.

Kaltenbach wanted his home to be a place for big parties and famous guests. Well-known people like William Randolph Hearst and Gloria Swanson visited Cranford Hall. Today, it is a nursing and rehabilitation center for seniors.

21 Springfield Avenue: From Church to Homes

This building was originally built as a church around 1900. It was used by the Christian Scientists. Now, it has been changed into a condominium building, with many separate homes inside.

Historic Sites of Cranford

Mastodon Site: Ancient Bones in Cranford

In 1936, something amazing was found in Cranford! Two tusks (one was over 4 feet long) and some bone pieces from an ancient American mastodon were discovered. This happened in what is now Lenape Park.

Workers digging an artificial lake found the bones. Scientists believe they belonged to a young male mastodon that lived about 12,000 years ago. These are the only known Ice Age mastodon bones found in Union County, NJ.

Great Minisink Trail: A Native American Path

Long ago, certain Native Americans lived in the Delaware Valley. They would travel to the coast at certain times of the year to hunt and fish. The Great Minisink Trail was a path used by the Lenape people for their travels.

This trail stretched from Minisink Island on the Delaware River all the way to the coast near Sandy Hook. In the Cranford area, the trail stayed west of the Rahway River. It passed near Nomahegan Brook, where Lenape Park is today. The Lenape called the Cranford area Wawahakewany, which means 'place where eggs are found.'

The Old York Road

The Old York Road was an important historic path. It was used for travel and trade in early Cranford.

The Cranford Pepperidge Tree: "Old Peppy"

Next to the Old York Road grew a special tree called "Old Peppy." This tree was the official tree of the Township of Cranford. It was located in what is now Lincoln Park.

"Old Peppy" was a Nyssa sylvatica, also known as a black tupelo or pepperidge tree. Sadly, it was cut down in April 2015 because of safety concerns. A piece of its trunk is now kept in a gazebo in Lincoln Park. A special plaque that honored "Old Peppy" was stolen from the park after the tree was removed.

The Rock: An Old Boundary Marker

There is a boundary rock in Nomahegan Park. Surveyors carved marks into this rock in 1699. They were marking the edges of the "West fields" land grant.

Crane's Mills Site: Where Cranford Began

This site is on the Rahway River, just north of the North Union Avenue bridge. It's where the two Crane family mills were located. These mills gave the village its first name: "Crane's Mills."

A gristmill was on the north side of the river, in what is now Sperry Park. A sawmill was on the south side. Both mills were next to a dam built around 1720, later known as "Hansel's Dam." In the 1970s, archaeologists dug at these sites. They found old foundations, tools, and other items.

Today, the annual rubber ducky derby race happens over the small falls at Hansel's Dam. This event helps raise money for the Hanson Park Conservancy.

Crane Farm and Village Site

In 1971, the Cranford Historical Society marked the farm and home of Josiah Crane, Sr. (1791–1873). This site is now Josiah Crane Park, on the Rahway River at Springfield and North Union Avenue. Josiah Crane, Sr. built what is now the Crane-Phillips house as a honeymoon cottage for his son, Josiah Crane, Jr.

Crane's Ford Monument: The Town's Name Origin

The Crane's Ford Monument is on Riverside Drive at Springfield Avenue. It marks the spot of Crane's Ford. This was a shallow place to cross the Rahway River.

During the American Revolutionary War, people say that guards stationed here would warn George Washington's troops in Morristown if the British were coming. The town of Cranford gets its name from this very spot! The Cranford Historical Society put up the monument on July 4, 1929.

Revolutionary War Cantonment Site: A Winter Camp

At Sperry Park on Riverside Drive, there's a marker that remembers a winter camp. This was where Continental Army troops stayed during the American Revolutionary War in 1779-80. It was part of a large defense line protecting George Washington's troops at Morristown.

Brigadier General William Irvine set up his headquarters here on January 1, 1780. The defense line stretched from Newark to Perth Amboy, with Crane's Mills (Cranford) in the middle. Several Continental Army generals stayed here. Alexander Hamilton even visited this camp. The marker was placed by the Crane’s Ford Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1977.

Revolutionary Hospital Site: A Place of Healing

During the American Revolutionary War, an army field hospital was located in Crane's Mills. It was there from 1777 to 1780. This site is now part of the Union County College campus, near Princeton Road. The hospital was a log building, similar to ones you can see rebuilt today at Morristown.

The Old Red Schoolhouse: Cranford's First School

At the corner of the Old York Road (now Lincoln Avenue East) and North Union Avenue, there's a historical plaque. The Cranford Historical Society put it there in 1935. It marks the spot of Cranford's very first school, which was built in 1805.

Lost Structures of Cranford

IBM Office

A modern office building for IBM was built in Cranford. It was designed by architect Victor Lundy. However, this building has since been torn down.

Cranford Opera House Block

This building was built in the 1890s by James Walter Thompson and designed by Frank Townsend Lent. It had a theater for different performances. William Miller Sperry owned it before it was destroyed in a fire.

Images for kids

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  This sign image was taken back in the late 1970s