Monthly Archives: December 2024

Published on November 01, 2024

“Celebrated Past” Compendium Project Has First Anniversary

In honor of Día de Los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, the Morris County Office of Planning and Preservation acknowledged last year’s launch of an interactive ArcGIS StoryMap© of Morris County cemeteries with a trip to the Orchard Street Cemetery and Gatehouse in Dover.

The Orchard Street Cemetery Gatehouse, built around 1875, is the latest historical site to benefit from the $3.6 million in grants that were allocated from Morris County’s Preservation Trust Fund to help restore, preserve and further protect 21 historic sites in 16 towns across the county.

Watch the Orchard Street Cemetery Video

To learn more about the restoration work, the cemetery was toured recently by Morris County Commissioner Deputy Director Shaw, Commissioner Tayfun Selen, Dover Mayor James Dodd, and Joseph Barilla, Director of the Office of Planning and Preservation. Leading the tour was former Dover Alderman R. Keith Titus, who is Vice President of the Orchard Street Gatehouse Historical Association, and Paul K. Wood, Gatehouse Historical Association Recording Secretary and Historian.

The Orchard Street Cemetery, like many other historic cemeteries in the state, has been targeted by senseless vandalism, with the latest incident occurring exactly three years ago from the day of the visit.  Several tombstones and large markers were toppled.

“As liaison to the Office of Planning and Preservation, I’d like to highlight the support provided by the Morris County Preservation Trust Fund for cemetery restoration projects,” said Deputy Director Shaw, who also is liaison to the Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund. “These include the John Hancock Cemetery in Florham Park, Old Union Cemetery in Washington Township, Whippany Burying Yard in Hanover Township, and now, the Orchard Street Cemetery Gatehouse.”

View Photos from the Orchard Street Cemetery Tour

Founded in 1850 and certified by the New Jersey State Historical Preservation office in March, the Orchard Street Cemetery features remarkable headstones crafted by renowned masons like David J. “DJ” Howell. Howell’s legacy includes the headstone of William Pregnel, an early builder of the Morris Canal. The cemetery is also home to unique memorials, such as a bench dedicated to Joseph Kekuku, the inventor of the steel guitar.

“The master list of obituaries in the compendium allows for searches by name, date, and cemetery location, while the StoryMap provides deeper historical context,” said Barilla. “One notable figure highlighted is Benjamin Franklin Hathaway, the designer of Orchard Street Cemetery, who pioneered the rural cemetery movement. His vision transformed burial spaces into peaceful retreats, influencing the design of other local cemeteries, including Warwick and Laurel Grove.”

“We have 125 veterans buried here, and five date back to the War of 1812, two of which are brothers, Billy and James Ford,” said Wood. “They are related to Colonel Jacob Ford of Morristown, from the Ford Mansion.”

The Ford Mansion, known as Washington’s Headquarters during the Revolutionary War, recently reopened to the public on Oct. 5, after nearly ten months of meticulous restoration work.

“My family has been in Dover for 250 years and I have ancestors buried here as well. It’s a peaceful place to work,” said Titus, who works almost daily on the restoration of the stones, many damaged by vandals or the elements.

Morris County has awarded more than $50 Million to preservation efforts at 123 historic locations since 2003, when awards were first issued for protecting historic sites through Morris County’s Preservation Trust Fund. The properties have benefited through 533 grants, with some properties receiving multiple grants over the years to conduct planning, acquisition and construction projects.

“It’s exciting to see these sites come back to life,” said Shaw. “This funding has been supported by our taxpayers for more than 20 years to preserve our county’s unique heritage which is directly tied to the founding of our country.”

As Morris County prepares to host the 250th Anniversary of our nation’s independence in 2026, many of the 123 funded historic sites will be on display for visitors to appreciate.

###

Photo 1: At the entrance to the Orchard Street Cemetery, the Gatehouse is on the left. (l-r) Joe Barilla, Director of the Morris County Office of Planning and Preservation, Keith Titus, Vice President of the Orchard Street Gatehouse Historical Association, Dover Mayor James Dodd, Commissioner Deputy Director Stephen Shaw, Barbara Wood, Paul Wood, Gatehouse Historical Association Recording Secretary and Historian, and Commissioner Tayfun Selen.

Photo 2: (l-r) Commissioner Deputy Director Stephen Shaw, Paul Wood, Keith Titus and Joe Barilla.

Photo 3: The memorial bench dedicated to Joseph Kekuku, the inventor of the steel guitar.

After the New York Red Bulls defied all odds by making it to Major League Soccer’s (MLS) championship game, MLS Cup, many are questioning what’s next for some of the team’s stars. And with New Jersey gearing up to host the World Cup final in 2026, some are wondering if stars and stripes are in defender John Tolkin’s future.

The 22-year-old from Chatham, who has played for the Red Bulls since 2021, has been going up against the toughest competition in the country since he was a teenager growing up in Morris County. This past summer, he was a starter on the squad that represented the United States in the Paris Olympics, prompting hometown watch parties, celebrations, and a large banner in his honor hanging from Chatham’s Borough Hall.

“[The hometown support] pushes you through the hard moments,” Tolkin says. “In games, when you’re exhausted and you don’t think you can really do much more, I kind of lean back on those sorts of thoughts to get to the finish line.”

Hometown support “pushes you through the hard moments,” Tolkin says. Photo: Courtesy of New York Red Bulls

Tolkin, nicknamed “JMi” since childhood because his middle name is Michael, is among a small number of elite players from New Jersey who have earned call-ups to the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT). Goalkeeper Matt Turner from Park Ridge and midfielder Brenden Aaronson from Medford—who both play in Europe—have earned recurring spots on the national-team roster and are expected to play for the U.S. in the World Cup.

Tolkin, meanwhile, is an up-and-coming player who has demonstrated a lot of promise in his young career. “Hopefully I’ll be playing there,” he says of the World Cup final. The roster won’t be announced until shortly before the World Cup takes place in summer 2026, and with the recent appointment of internationally renowned Mauricio Pochettino as USMNT manager, the door is wide open for young stars to prove themselves.

Tolkin joined Red Bulls Academy, the team’s youth-training program, in 2015, spending his high school years training with the best prospects in the region instead of playing with his Chatham pals. Despite being separated by the sideline, Tolkin and his friends never broke their bond. “It was sad, but also fun to watch from afar,” says Tolkin. “And then obviously they showed all their support for me. The fact that it went both ways was really special.”

Photo: Courtesy of New York Red Bulls

After a stint with the development team Red Bulls II, Tolkin made his MLS debut in 2021. Since then, he’s been an important part of a team that just surprised fans nationwide by being crowned Eastern Conference Champions. Although the Red Bulls ultimately weren’t able to lift the trophy over the L.A. Galaxy, it was Tolkin’s perfectly placed assist off a free kick in the Eastern Conference Final which proved to be one of the defining moments of the Red Bulls’ playoff run.

In recent times, MLS has seen rapid growth as a competitive league through an increased focus on youth development and the signing of big-name players from around the world. As the pressure continues to mount, however, Tolkin has learned to take it in stride and focus on the task at hand.

“Once the whistle blows, I don’t really care who I’m playing against. I don’t care what the event is,” he says. “I just want to win.”

[RELATED: Cultivating an NJ Community Through Soccer]

No one knows New Jersey like we do. Sign up for one of our free newsletters here. Want a print magazine mailed to you? Purchase an issue from our online store.