Archive for the ‘Middlesex’ Category
30 Jul
The Han Solo grave of Rahway
When wandering thru a cemetery, most of the headstone are rectangular blocks of granite and stone, interspersed with the occasional more exotic designs. Sometimes there are carvings of specific items that meant something to the deceased, like a football or religious statuary. You might see images engraved on stones, but its unlikely you will see a headstone quite like this one.
Found in Hazelwood Cemetery in Rahway, the headstone of Bruce Berman has his face carved in to it, but he is emerging from it. As such, it has been dubbed the Han Solo headstone, a reference to when Han Solo was frozen in carbonate.
Berman was a special effects animator and was an adjunct graphics/animation professor at both Seton Hall University and William Paterson College. Berman was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig disease) in 1996 and eventually passed away in 1998. In his memory, the Bermanimation Award is given out every spring at Seton Hall University to a student in the field of computer animation.
Berman came up with the idea before he died, and had his head scanned by a computer, from which a bust was made. With the help of his friend, Rob Dressel, his wife had the headstone designed and it was installed a year after his death. He thought it was amusing and she felt it was important to see his wish fulfilled.
6 Dec
The Art Walk on the Raritan
Albus Cavus is a group of artists which originated in new brunswick whose goal is to reclaim bad neighborhoods and run down areas thru public art. When one says public art, one might think of large expensive sculptures or art by well known famous artists which you can;t get close to. Their idea of public art is art in the most unexpected places, something positive and uplifting rather than the graffiti that is so often associated with poverty, crime, and neighborhoods that have need for urban renewal.
In 2007 they attempted to transform the Raritan Walk, a 1.8 mile stretch of walkway along the Raritan River into one of the largest murals in the world. Local artists were invited to add their artwork to what was otherwise a blighted stretch of concrete. In this article the idea of Albus Cavus is discussed, including the art walk in New Brunswick as well as one in DC. The hope was to maintain it and keep it fresh, but sadly that has not been the case.
I visited it in spring 2015. The art was still there and its rather impressive. The walk however, was clearly home to small groups of homeless. The vegetation was barely in check and there was garbage and debris all along its path. There was also signs that the homeless were feeding a local colony of cats. I didn’t feel entirely safe, despite not seeing any obvious threat. It is desolate and far from aid should one need it. It also appears as if the art murals done 10 years ago have been covered with your typical graffiti. If one wishes to visit, the best way to do so is park at Elmer Boyd Park and just walk North.
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6 Dec
Old Cemetery at Piscataway High School
Visit Piscataway High School on Behmer Road and you’ll find a large sprawling school complex, a well kept parking lot and a small stadium for the football team, the Chiefs. You will also find the FitzRandolph Cemetery, a collection of barely a half dozen graves belonging to one of Piscataway’s most prominent families in the 1800’s.
7 Sep
Prince Rodgers Cemetery
Located in Bridgewater about 5 yards from a major road and yet completely invisible from it, lies a small burial plot of slaves from the 1700’s.
Located approximately 500 feet from Foothill Road and Bridge Rd in Bridgewater is a burial plot. Known as the Prince Rodgers cemetery, (it has also been referred to as the VanderVeer Burying Ground), there are a handful of headstones, several of which are broken. Prince Rodgers was born in 1813 and was a slave of Cornelius Van Horn until being freed from slavery by his master at age 25. Other sources claim that Rodgers was a slave of the VanderVeer family. Completely forgotten despite being yards from the road, it sits between two homes one of which is owned, the other appears abandoned. Several years ago efforts began to restore the cemetery. Black plastic and wood chips have been laid down and the brush was cut back, but not much progress has been made since then and the weeds and brush have returned.
22 Jul
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.
23 Dec
The Morse family plot
Cemeteries are for most of us a communal place. Our loved ones are laid to rest alongside hundreds of others, row upon row of headstones. On certain holidays you will find many decorated with wreathes or flowers as surviving family members pay their respects in a manner that is private and personal, yet also on public display. It was not always like this. Many times families would bury their dead in plots on their own property. As these (often large) properties were sold or as parts were sold off, eventually these family burial plots would find themselves hemmed in by development both commercial and residential. Sometimes when the last pieces of the family estate are sold, the dead would be disinterred and moved to some nearby cemetery. In some cases though, the plot remains untouched. One example would be the Mary Ellis grave in the middle of the parking lot of an AMC movie theater.
The Morse graves are another example. The Morse family was one of 80 colonists who, though a combination of grants and sales by local indians came to own nearly 1 million acres in what would now be the Careteret-Linden-Iselin area. They settled in the area in the late 1600’s 200 years later they still owned several hundred acres. and owned several hundred acres of land. John Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil decided that the Morse land would make an excellent site for his new refinery. The land was purchased in 1907 and was cleared with the exception of the family burial plot. By 1910 the faciliy was produced crude oil and 100 years later Standard Oil was broken up by the Sherman AntiTrust Act and the Bayvway Facilities are owned by Exxon. Despite changing hands and name several times, the Morse Plot has never been disturbed. Surrounded by a tall, large hedge it is highly sheltered, rendering it nearly invisible to the people who drive on Lower Rd and Stiles Rd. There are three headstones as well as a marker that tells some of the history behind the Morse family. There is a small ball park across the street where people walk their dogs and watch their kids play baseball. I venture few if any of them known that they are doing so a few dozen yards from the graves of some of the earliest European settlers to live in America….
8 Oct
Some interesting stuff in the paper: an irish bar and a bunch of worries about pollution.
This bar in Denville seems pretty cool. It’s only the second thatched roof Irish bar in the United States.
In bridgewater Twp, a superfund site got submerged in over 10 feet of water for a long time. Did those water leech toxins and move them around? Probably.
Shipwrecks off the jersey and Maryland coastline are leaking fuel… and thats never a good thing.
Staying on the issue of pollution the long polluted Quanta site in Edgewater will be capped. 150,000 cubic yards will remain underground. Granted paying 5M to cap it is more economical then paying $300M to clean it up right… but why are we not making the companies pay for it? But the EPA is evil folks, it’s *big government*. That’s why Herman Caine would appoint oil and gas execs to head the EPA if he gets elected…. There isn’t a big enough #facepalm for this kind of thinking.
18 Jan
Recent news
Bergen Record article on a study of some really really old rocks in Passaic County
AMC is bringing it’s “dine-in theaters to NJ, but they’re only coming to central jersey for now. I wanna try this even if it means going down to Bridgewater just for a movie.
A stockpile of 2600 tons of mercury has finally been relocated out of Hillsborough, NJ. Only took 50 years….
A Hunterdon man grew (then carved) a 500 lb pumpkin
Scott Willman doesn’t just take care of Mount Pleasant cemetery. He lives there. Speaking of cemeteries, A pair of retirees have been working hard to research the locations of veterans buried in forgotten cemeteries in Morris County. In another cemetery story, a slave headstone is beyond repair, but a locals are pitching in to replace it with a new one
Speaking of odd jobs, apparently people go around the state gathering acorns (fighting off squirrels) so they can plant them and keep oak trees alive.
I once was young and stupid. (note: I’m now old and stupid). I stole road signs and dropped bowling balls from great heights. But I still can’t help but be amused when idiot teens get busted for… I dunno… stealing stuff for a scavenger hunt.
Finally, the state has decided that the best way to handle the over 20,000 toxic waste sites is to farm out the cleanup to private contractors and let the DEP handle only the worst of the worst. Yeah, I can’t see anything wrong with that.
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