Harrington Park Historical Society
P.O. Box 105, Harrington Park, N.J. 07640
201 768-2615
www.harringtonparkhistoricalsociety.com
501(c)3 Corporation
Recipient of the Bergen County 2011 Historic Preservation Commendation Award for the Old Burying Ground
Photo of Old Burying Ground
by Dr. Davis Ross
Upcoming Lectures & Events
All Lectures Are Held at the Harrington Park Boro Hall, 85 Harriot Ave., Harrington Park, NJ 07640
7:30 P.M. - Handicap Accessible
All are welcome!
Proud Sponsor
of the
Harrington Park
Arts Council
"The Art of Today - The History of Tomorrow!"
A Legacy Project of the HPHS for the 350th Anniversary of the
State of New Jersey
To increase the interest of our community in the arts, to assist all who wish to make an artistic contribution, and to bring the artist and the community-at-large together in a mutually beneficial relationship. To develop, promote, and coordinate the arts at the community level as an expression of Harrington Park’s talents, needs, resources, and aspirations under the auspices of the Harrington Park Historical Society.
To learn more, please click on the Arts Council Button
or visit the Arts Council on
www.artscouncilofharringtonpark.com
and on Facebook - Arts Council of Harrington Park
GREETINGS !
Welcome to the Harrington Park Historical Society - we are glad you are visiting with us on our website! Please browse around our website to learn more about us and what we do.
We hope you will join us for our ten lecture series on various history subjects that range from local to the far away on interesting historical topics. We meet the third Thursday of the month, except July and August, in the Harrington Park Boro Hall, 85 Harriot Avenue at 7:30 P.M. The Boro Hall is handicap accessible.
In addition to our lectures the Society maintains and preserves two historic cemeteries in Harrington Park, namely; the Perry Cemetery, and the Old Burying Ground. The Perry Cemetery is a small family burial ground located on what was the farm of David Perry (1809-1871). The Old Burying Ground cemetery is part of the land apportioned to Garret Huybertsen Blauvelt, son of one of the original sixteen grantees of the Tappan Patent approved by the Governor of New York in 1686. Although there are believed to be earlier ones, the first known burial was in 1722 and the last in 1905.
Old Burying Ground
Photo by Dr. Davis Ross
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PLEASE READ AND RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP OR JOIN US AS A NEW MEMBER
As part of our mission, we are continuing to maintain and preserve the two historic cemeteries in our care, the Old Burying Ground and the Perry Cemetery. Now, we are reaching out to you, our members and friends to help us continue to keep these cemeteries in pristine condition, and to conserve these historical assets. Whatever you can donate at this time to accomplish this work, we cannot adequately express our sincere gratitude.
We hope you will continue to be as generous as you have been in the past when considering supplementing your annual dues this year. Those dues, which are fully tax deductible, are as follows:
Family $35Individual $30Youth (Under 18) $5
In addition to enjoying dual membership in the Arts Council of Harrington Park, HPHS members receive a discount on all Society events and activities (including fund raisers).
On behalf of the Harrington Park Historical Society, I look forward to welcoming you as returning (or brand new) members! Please call me (201-666-0566) or our President, Gerri Gibney (201-768-2615) if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Karen Goddard
Membership Secretary
Mail your check to P.O. Box 105, Harrington Park, New Jersey. Please include your name(s), address, phone, and email. Or, use the membership form noted above. Thanks!
HARRINGTON PARK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
SAVE OUR HISTORY!
Recently several historic headstones were desecrated at the Old Burying Ground on Tappan Road in Harrington Park.
Here is a short history of two of the broken headstones; Abraham Quackenbush (1768-1854) and his wife, Elizabeth Myers (1770-1807)) are part of the Abraham Myers family burial plot at the Old Burying Ground. In the middle of the 18th century, Abraham Myers received a royal charter from King George III to build a grist mill on the Hackensack River which his grandson John Bogert later operated and it thereby became known as “Bogert’s Mill.” The Myers family members interred in the plot are Abraham Myers, his wife Cathrena Nederman, daughter Cathrena, daughter Elizabeth and Abraham Quackenbush, son John Myers and wife Rebecca Durie. The markers are red sandstone.
As sole caretakers of this cemetery, the Harrington Park Historical Society will repair these monuments with your generous financial support.
If you would like to help the Society repair these stones, please send your donation to P.O. Box 105, Harrington Park, New Jersey 07640. Please make your check payable to the Harrington Park Historical Society. The Harrington Park Historical Society is a non-profit 501(c)(3) Corporation.
If you have any questions or would like to get involved in this effort, please contact Gerri Gibney at 201 768-2615, visit their website, or on Facebook.
Francesca Costa
Public Historian
Palisades Interstate Park
Ms. Costa, a full time public historian at the Palisades Interstate Park, graduated from Gettysburg College in 2019. She continued to work there as she earned her graduate degree from the University of Edinburgh. In addition to her responsibilities at the Park, she frequently lectures to various civic organizations, schools, and historic societies.
DUES TIME - PLEASE SEE BELOW!
Please note we have moved from the Harrington Park Library to the Harrington Park Boro Hall for our meetings, and we will meet generally on the fourth Thursday of the month. However, be sure and check the dates we are meeting since we must schedule our meetings around the Boro’s usage of the building. Please join us for our inaugural meeting in our new home on September 25th!
September 25, 2025 - General Meeting
Topic: "An Oft Repeated Anecdote"
Speaker: Francesca Costa
The Harrington Park Historical Society begins its lecture series for 2025-2026 on Thursday, September 26, 2025 with their returning guest speaker, Francesca Costa, presenting “An Oft Repeated Anecdote.” We often hear the phrase “Rockefeller built this park!” … Or did he? Public Historian Francesca Costa busts some common myths about the Palisades, Rockefeller, and undisturbed views. After all is said and done, an even richer story lies under the surface.
The Palisades Interstate Park is a 2,500-acre protected area in New Jersey, featuring a 12-mile stretch of cliffs along the Hudson River with trails for hiking and cycling, scenic overlooks like State Line Lookout and Fort Lee Historic Park, and several picnic areas and boat basins. Established to prevent development of the iconic cliffs, the park preserves natural, historic, and cultural resources for public recreation and education, offering activities such as boating, fishing, cross-country skiing, and sledding. It is a gem not very far from our backyard and is worth learning about, and exploring its vast treasures!
The public is invited to attend at no cost. The meeting will start 7:30 P.M. at the Harrington Park Boro Hall, 85 Harriot Avenue. Please note we have moved from the Harrington Park Library to the Harrington Park Boro Hall for our meetings, and we will meet generally on the fourth Thursday of the month. However, be sure and check the dates we are meeting since we must schedule our meetings around the Boro’s usage of the building. Please join us for our inaugural meeting in our new home on September 25th!
Immediately following the presentation, there will be a meet and greet along with light refreshments.
For more information go to www.harringtonparkhistoricalsociety.com, or call Gerri Gibney at 201 768-2615.
October 23, 2025 – General Meeting
Speaker: Kevin Woyce, author, photographer, musician, and lecturer specializing in regional American history
Topic: “Halloween: A Haunted History”
November 20, 2025 – General Meeting
Speaker: Mario Medici, licensed New York City tour guide, lecturer, a passionate history enthusiast
Topic: “Panama Canal”
December 1, 2025 - Holiday Outing
Tour of DeWint House, Tappan, NY
Our Tour Guide: Harold Jones, Superintendent DeWint House
Hors d'oeuvres & Sweets, Cash Bar
Gulios’s Restaurant, Tappan, NY
Reservation Only – Fee
January Break
Happy 250th America!
The Society would like to thank and salute the efforts of Ben Johnson, a high school senior at NVOT, who recently cleaned up the Perry Cemetery on Old Hook Road in Harrington Park, a historic asset preserved and maintained by the Harrington Park Historical Society If you have not visited this site, please pull off Old Hook in the parking area and read the historic story board and see the cemetery. Look for the historic marker sign reading: "Historic Cemetery."
Thank you Ben!
Perry Cemetery
Photo by John Mager
