South Plainfield Vietnam Memorial

 

This is South Plainfield Memorial Park, home to momuments dedicated to the Civil War, Vietnam War, SP police, SP Rescue Squad, and a Veterans Momument, along with various flags and a town clock. The park cost over 100,000 and was funded thru donations. The standout feature of the park is the AH-1 Cobra Assault Helicopter.  It flew in Vietnam from 1970-1973 before returning home and being used at various bases stateside. I was en route to a friend’s wedding in S Plainfield when I spotted the helicopter and had to stop and check it out. 

#voiceofthemostinterestingmanintheworld: I don’t normally pose for pictures with military vehicles, but when i do I’m wearing a suit.

Thruout NJ, historic black cemeteries are in poor condition

All across NJ there are historic black cemeteries, Many in poor condition

The first execution in NJ

The marker at this location commemorates the first hanging in NJ history. I assume they mean official hanging….Located on the appropriately named Gallows Hill Rd, it is unlikely to be seen unless looked for specifically.

Fisherman Memorial

Located next to the Cape May Coast Guard is this memorial to fisherman lost at sea. It has a list of all the fisherman lost in the area since … well since they started keeping track. Its most prominent feature is the statue of the wife with the kids looking out to sea.

St Andrew’s Ukraine cemetery

St Andrews Ulraine Cemetery is located in S Bound Brook right on the Raritan river. The ornate church the church was erected as a monument to those Ukrainians who died in the quest for liberty and national independence for their homeland – and especially to the 7 million victims of Stalin’s planned annihilation of the Ukrainian nation, the Great Famine of 1932-33. It is the only monument dedicated to these victims. “The memorial church is a very modest cross on the graves of the millions of victims of the Great Famine – the graves that were plowed under by the enemy.” These were the words of Archbishop Mstyslav of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church on October 10, 1965, the day of the dedication of St. Andrew’s Memorial Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

It is the only monument dedicated to these victims. On St. Thomas Sunday, or “Providna Nedilia,” thousands gather at the center to honor the dead.

The Beach of Dreams

I’m not sure but this appears to be a memorial to a local fisherman who passed away. The memorial includes all manner of boating equipment including a row boat that’s split in half.

The HMS Martin

The HMS Martin blockaded the Delaware River in the War of 1812 and was eventually grounded, destroyed and burnt. It’s remains were exposed during a hurricane in 1954, and locals had the remains moved to a nearby spot where it could be preserved.

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The Sindia Shipwreck

The Sindia was a 4 masted sailing ship which ran aground on the beach of Ocean City after 4 days of rough weather had beat the ship and its crew down. The steel hulled ship was pushed hard into the sand, cracking the hull and filling the ship with water and sand. 100 years later the ship remains on the beach, but beach replenishment efforts and the shifting of the shoreline has completely covered the ship. What remains buried there is a mystery, because some believe it contained a secret cargo of stolen art from the middle east…

Read more about the Sindia at the official website.

Virgin Mary stump update

A $200M redevelopment project is slated to go up across he street from the Virgin Mary stump in Passaic and folks are wondering if Mary has to go. Councilman Jon Soto said a religious altar should not be allowed to remain on public property. “Although the shrine is sacred to some, it’s on public property and in the sense of the separation of church and state we can’t have a shrine here”. He wanted to debate it at a town council meeting but the mayor said the town lawyers should examine the issue before any debate. Said Soto: “the whole are is going to be redeveloped and if we don’t address it now and you leave it there for a few years then later down the road it’s going to be ‘it’s been there for five years’ and it will be more difficult.”

As you can see below, the Virgin Mary tree stump now has proper protection in the former of a properly built shelter. The area has also been paved with bricks for safety…

Virgin Mary Tree Stump

In Passaic, near the corner of Hope & Madison right as it goes under Route 21, drug users frequently would gather and shoot up behind the bushes. Local residents, fed up with the drug user going on out in the open, decided to clear the brush to take away the privacy it afforded the drug users. One teenager chopped down a thick tree and a left the stump and logs there when he was done. A few weeks later someone noticed that the stump resembled the Virgin Mother May. A protective shelter was erected around it and soon Catholics from all around were visited the shrine. People left candles, rosaries, and drawings of the Mother Mary. A fence was eventually erected to keep the crowds from getting too close.

It does appear to be a figure with sloping shoulders who is crossing his/her arms. But the Virgin Mother? I’ve seen Scooby Doo in cloud formations, it doesn’t mean I was watching cartoon network at the time. The human mind likes to see things in random designs in nature.

Although I’ve never believed that images of Jesus or the Virgin mary on toast are really, I did notice some interesting things about this particular sighting. 1) this occurred on Hope St. 2) it’s the month of the Holy Rosary in the catholic church. 3) if you walk back on Hope St perhaps 150 feet you can see over the highway and on a building on the other side someone painted the words “read the bible… Jesus is the future king.” This was painted years ago. (in the picture below you can see the building to the right of the sign post…) Coincidence or just another sign? That’s for you to decide…