70 years ago this week, Kenilworth voters approved the issuance of $285,000 in bonds to construct the 13-classroom addition to Harding School seen above. The 1950-51 addition to the building is marked by the six sets of windows facing the camera. (Source: Author)
20 years ago: Borough Council expected to pass long-delayed $8.5 million budget for 2000 … borough receives $245,000 in Extraordinary State Aid
30 years ago: Borough Council bans parking of school buses in residential areas … Saturday detention at Harding School eliminated due to budget cuts … registration underway for summer library program
40 years ago: Robert Reuter elected chairman of Democratic Municipal Committee … Merle Walsh hired as 4th grade teacher at Harding … Phyllis DiSturco hired as 6th grade teacher at Harding
50 years ago: Dr. Marvin Green named pastor of Community United Methodist, succeeding Rev. James Cooper … annual Youth in Government Day observed, with Cynthia Gross serving as mayor … Borough Council approves subdivision of former Arthur Mansion property at Arthur Terrace and Newark Avenue
60 years ago: Winners announced in Cub Pack 83 pinewood derby … Board of Education announces plans for central school library … Elsie Edinger and Cynthia DiDonato hired as teachers for upcoming school year at Harding
70 years ago: $285,000 bond referendum to construct Harding School addition approved by voters … ordinance to fill and grade North 26th Street passed on first reading … Kenilworth firemen defeat Hillside Social Club 7-0 in baseball game
80 years ago: Ventilation to be improved in McKinley School lavatories … reconstruction of borough tax records now 65% complete … Mayor Berzin appoints planning board to work in cooperation with Federal Housing Authority for local housing
90 years ago: Board of Education refuses to grant raises to Principal Deans or teachers due to depression … Mrs. J.A. Bailey elected PTA president … bonds purchased to finance Harding School boilers
100 years ago: Students who qualified for county athletic contest will be transported to Weequahic Park via special trolley … borough students Nelson Mergott and Mary Kanane to graduate from Roselle Park High School
20 years ago: Carmela Colosimo and Madonna Bogus win Democratic nominations for Borough Council … Kathi Fiamingo and Don Rica win Republican nominations for Borough Council … Mayor Tripodi writes letter to the editor thanking donors in DiMario Playground renovation
30 years ago: Seven students inducted into Italian Language National Honor Society at Brearley Regional … Borough Council considering by-law to force councilmen to chair committees … Harding School carnival held recently
40 years ago: Senator Edward Kennedy receives more votes than President Jimmy Carter in Democratic presidential primary in borough … 10 Harding School students inducted into National Junior Honor Society … Brearley band invited to participate in Marching Bands of America Grand National Championship in Jacksonville, Florida
50 years ago: Kenilworth TARS (Teen Age Republicans) observing Honor America Week … Municipal Softball League set to open season … 39th annual American Legion Posts and Auxiliaries of Union County convention underway in borough
60 years ago: Sam Vitale elected president of Italian-American Welfare Association … registration open for Camp Wild Cherry summer program … North 7th Street man arrested for firing shotgun outdoors after 11 P.M.
70 years ago: Board of Education holds public hearing on addition to Harding School … testimonial dinner held honoring Police Chief Conklin’s 25th anniversary as member of the force … new home sold on Richfield Avenue
80 years ago: Two injured in car accident outside Beth David Cemetery … President Roosevelt nominates Postmaster Hoagland for reappointment … Newark men held as suspects in theft of $1,500 in goods from Volco Brass and Copper
90 years ago: St. Theresa’s Catholic Club holding carnival next to Kensington Riding Academy … road scraping continuing … municipal dump reported in good condition
100 years ago: Meetings with county over extension of Boulevard continuing … ordinance to construct sidewalk on east side of North 21st Street between Washington Avenue and Boulevard passed on first reading … ordinance regulating keeping of chickens passed on final reading
This playground equipment at DiMario Park was dedicated 20 years ago this week. It was replaced by new equipment in 2017. (Source: Google Maps)
20 years ago: New playground equipment dedicated in ceremony at DiMario Park … Kenilworth Jets to hold registration for 2000 season
30 years ago: Six students inducted into National Honor Society chapter at Brearley … Borough Council recommends $160,000 reduction to school budget … 69 students named to third marking period honor roll at St. Theresa’s School
40 years ago: Board of Education considering proposal to make home economics classes and industrial arts classes mandatory for both boys and girls … mayor granted emergency power to close streets if necessary … bids received for 22nd Street resurfacing project
50 years ago: $6.9 million bond referendum for expansion of Regional high schools defeated … controversy over mini-playground at Roosevelt Lane and Lincoln Drive continues … Schering donates $2,500 to Rescue Squad ambulance drive
60 years ago: Harding PTA holds testimonial dinner for retiring school principal Signe Swanberg … Holy Name Society to hold 17th annual communion breakfast at St. Theresa’s School … WSCS to hold rummage sale at Community Methodist
70 years ago: $625 raised in Cancer Control Campaign here … Patrolman Arthur Green hospitalized after motorcycle-car collision on the Boulevard … 4 new homes sold in Oak Knolls development on Quinton Avenue
80 years ago: 50 percent of borough tax records reconstructed following destruction by tax collector … William Von Ohlen elected chief of Kenilworth Volunteer Fire Department … grass fire extinguished along Boulevard
90 years ago: Heating pipes in McKinley and Harding Schools to be covered with asbestos … Board of Education authorizes entertainment committee to plan graduation exercises
100 years ago: A.J. Packard reengaged as McKinley School principal for 1920-21 school year … school enrollment reaches 345 students … craps game raided near Union Township line, 7 men arrested
Ward Field, the site of many hard-fought victories since 1966. (Source: Google Maps)
While many people refer to it as simply the “football field,” the home of the Brearley Bears is officially named Ward Field. The field was dedicated on October 3, 1970 in honor of Kenilworth resident Avery Ward.1 But who was Ward?
As one might expect from the field that bears his name, Avery Ward was deeply involved in the education of Kenilworth’s residents. Shortly after moving to the borough in 1945, Ward ran for a position on the local Board of Education.2 Prior to running for the board, Ward had served in World War II and was a member of the Kenilworth Republican Club. He lived on Birch Street with his wife and children.3 Ward ran on a platform of lowering school expenses, and in an unusual move, the Borough Council endorsed his candidacy, along with those of Grace Hetman and Orland Reid, two other newcomers to the board.4 Councilman Dudley Neville acknowledged the unusualness of the situation, saying “[The Borough Council has] enough to do here without trying to control the school board, but we would appreciate having someone on the board who would cooperate with us in keeping taxes down.”5 On February 8, 1949, Ward was elected to the school board along with Hetman and Reid, defeating incumbents Allen Arthur and John Beyerl, and future mayor, Walter Boright.6
During his tenure on the board, Ward helped oversee the first expansion of Harding School. In the five years since 1944, the enrollment at McKinley and Harding Schools had grown from 468 to 657 students, putting a serious strain on facilities.7 In November 1949, the Board of Education and Borough Council approved an 8-room addition to Harding School at a cost of $195,000.8 As enrollment continued to mount, another agreement was reached in March 1950 to bring the size of the addition to 13 classrooms.9 To deal with the overcrowding, part-time sessions had to be initiated for eight classes in September 1950.10 Fortunately, the first section of the addition opened in October 1951, putting a temporary end to overcrowding in borough schools.11
In 1952, Ward sought a second term on the Board of Education. This time, however, he lost his seat by just four votes.12
Ward’s next opportunity to influence the education of Kenilworth’s children came in December 1952, when Joseph Benintente announced he would not seek re-election as one of Kenilworth’s representatives to the Union County Regional High School District Board of Education.13 Ward announced he would seek the seat on the board, and in February 1953, he defeated Thomas Parker to win the position.14
The Regional Board of Education is pictured, 1954. Ward is standing third from right. (Source: Jonathan Dayton Regionalogue, 1954)
Ward was initially appointed to the finance committee, where he worked to formulate the district’s annual budget.15 In that position, Ward often acted as a cheerleader for the budget, speaking at meetings of civic organizations such as the Kenilworth PTA to urge an affirmative vote. The efforts paid off: Under Ward’s leadership, the board continued its history of undefeated school budgets, a record that would last until the 1970s.
Ward’s tenure coincided with the Regional District’s expansion program. When Ward joined the board in 1953, the district enrollment was approximately 1,267 students.16 By the time of his resignation in 1969, the district’s enrollment had skyrocketed to 5,521 students.17 In his first decade on the board, the district opened the Arthur L. Johnson Regional High School in Clark (1956) and the Governor Livingston Regional High School in Berkeley Heights (1960).
The future site of David Brearley Regional High School, and Ward Field, is pictured. Photo taken between 1957 and 1962. Note Harding School and McKinley School near the top of the photo. (Source: 1962 Superintendent’s Report, Regional District)
After 10 years of service, Ward was elected president of the board in 1963. His presidency coincided with the continuation of the district’s expansion program, and he played a key role in the planning and construction of David Brearley Regional High School. Prior to his presidency, Ward had been named to chair a committee with Kenilworth officials to discuss the draining and filling of property behind Harding School that the board had purchased in 1957.18 Plans proceeded quickly and Ward turned over the first spadeful of dirt, accompanied by his son David, for Brearley’s construction on May 26, 1964.19 The school would open for its first academic year in September 1966, and Ward presided over the dedication ceremony held a month later.20
The remaining years of Ward’s tenure were marked by more tumultuous fights over expansion. In 1967, major changes were proposed to student assignments in an effort to maximize space capacity in the district’s schools. One of the proposals would transfer Garwood freshmen to Brearley from Johnson, where they had been since the school opened in 1956.21 The board approved the proposal in May 1967, and the first class of Garwood students to graduate from Brearley would do so in 1971.22
The transfers were only a short-term solution. Board projections showed that enrollment would continue to increase in the district, and if additions were not constructed, overcrowding would become severe. As such, the Regional Board of Education developed the first of what would become three expansion plans meant to solve the problem of overcrowding within the district. The first plan, announced in December 1967, called for additions to be constructed at all four of the district’s high schools. As the newest high school, Brearley would only receive an addition of four classrooms.23 Unfortunately, Springfield and Mountainside quickly became centers of opposition to the expansion plan, and the referendum was defeated in March 1968.24 The board then contracted the services of a Columbia University professor to determine the exact expansion needs of the district.25 However, one positive step toward expansion came in February 1969, when voters approved the purchase of land adjacent to Brearley for future expansion.26 The land is now the site of the temporary classrooms across from the main Brearley building.
The Regional Board of Education is pictured in 1969, Ward’s final year on the board. Ward is seated second from right. (Source: Jonathan Dayton Regionalogue, 1970)
After 16 years on the board, Ward submitted his resignation in 1969 due to ill health. In his resignation letter, he said that he “appreciated the confidence and the support of the board in having me as its president for the past almost seven years” and expressed hope that the public would support the board’s second attempt at an expansion referendum. He recommended that Charles Scheuermann be appointed to the vacancy created by his departure; the board took up his recommendation and Scheuermann served on the board through 1972.27
Sadly, Ward passed away on August 23, 1971 at the age of 53. Ward’s years of service left a legacy of honesty and integrity. He successfully navigated the district through its biggest phase of expansion and played a direct role in the opening of Brearley. So the next time you cheer on the Bears at Ward Field, take a minute to thank Ward for helping to open Brearley in the first place.
“Paying a Tribute.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), October 8, 1970.
“Avery Ward.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), August 26, 1971.
“Contests in School Election.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), January 20, 1949.
“Take Stand on Trustee Candidates.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), January 20, 1949.
Ibid.
Kenilworth election figures, Allocco.
Kenilworth school enrollment figures, Allocco.
“Agree on Addition.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), November 24, 1949.
“Addition to School.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), March 16, 1950.
“Urge Vote Monday on Bond Issue.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), June 8, 1950.
“Pupils End Half-Day Sessions.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), October 18, 1951.
Kenilworth election figures, Allocco.
“Benintente To Leave RHS Board.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), December 23, 1952.
Kenilworth election figures, Allocco.
“List Committees at Regional.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), March 25, 1954.
Regional district enrollment figures, Allocco.
Regional district enrollment figures, Allocco.
“Plans Told For Regional School Here.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), March 2, 1961.
“New High School Gets Underway.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), May 28, 1964.
“Brearley School Dedication To Be Held This Sunday.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), October 13, 1966.
“District board rezones high schools.” Springfield Leader (Springfield, NJ), March 13, 1967.
“Regional board changes redistricting plan.” Springfield Leader (Springfield, NJ), May 11, 1967.
“Expansion plan offered for regional high schools.” Springfield Leader (Springfield, NJ), December 21, 1967.
“Regional school expansion bond issue loses.” Springfield Leader (Springfield, NJ), March 21, 1968.
“Plan New Study of Regional School Building Needs.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), June 13, 1968.
Kenilworth election figures, Allocco.
Ward, Avery. Letter of resignation from Regional BOE.
50 years ago, residents presented a petition opposing a playground that had opened in this park at Roosevelt Lane and Lincoln Drive. (Source: Author)
20 years ago: Mike McCurry, former press secretary for President Clinton, announces May 18 lecture at Schering-Plough … library activity room mural dedication scheduled for May 19 … Brearley baseball team reaches 8-6 season record
30 years ago: Library writing its history … parent advisory council to Regional District basic skills improvement program to meet at Arthur L. Johnson … Emily Ciechacki’s second grade class wins weekly contest for best cafeteria behavior
40 years ago: 19th century bottles found in excavation of site for library expansion … Historical Society names committees for 1980
50 years ago: Petition presented to Borough Council opposing playground in circle at Roosevelt Lane and Lincoln Drive … Democratic Club unanimously endorses Councilman Frank Mascaro and Councilwoman Mary Kelly for re-election … knights and handmaids announced for 10th annual St. Theresa’s coronation ball
6o years ago: Ordinance to construct new municipal building passed on final reading … 3 Woods’ Edge residents complain of building debris left by contractors … Harding PTA holds sandwich-making demonstration
70 years ago: Harding School 6th and 7th grades visit Museum of Natural History and Central Park Zoo … Board of Education postpones action on salary increases until fall … St. Theresa’s opens 2-week mission program
80 years ago: McKinley School kindergarten class holds April party … gymnasium exhibition schedule announced … 500 attend Jonathan Dayton Regional PTA dance and country store
90 years ago: Early Census results show population of 2,243, an increase of 75% from 1920 … only one farm left in borough according to Census … Harding PTA performs minstrel show to capacity audience
100 years ago: American Can Company auction nets $50,000 … Mary Kanane takes first place in Union County High School Spelling Contest, representing Roselle Park High School
70 years ago, Passaic Avenue residents complained of standing water in unfinished foundations along this section of the street. (Source: Author)
20 years ago: Kenilworth Historical Society announces student contests to celebrate new millennium … Brearley PTO planning first benefit walk-a-thon … Brearley baseball team pitches second consecutive no-hitter.
30 years ago: Cathleen Cohen, Christopher Pheney, and Roger Murphy elected to Board of Education … local and regional school budgets defeated … Fred Soos reelected to Regional Board of Education.
40 years ago: Democratic Party endorses Vivian Keenan and Phyllis Baldacchini for election to Borough Council … 206 students named to third marking period honor roll at Harding School … Marie Simone’s 4th grade gifted and talented class hears presentation on “mute alphabet.”
50 years ago: Mayor Conrad announces formation of Mayor’s Committee on Drug Abuse … Little League to open season Saturday … two borough residents to graduate from nursing program at Union County Technical Institute.
60 years ago: Walter Pfeiffer appointed architect for new municipal building … Civil Defense and Disaster Control Council holds industrial sabotage exercise at White Laboratories … ordinance passed banning loitering and holding parents responsible for teenage violators.
70 years ago: Harding School 8th grade class selects “Wisdom is Wealth” as class motto … groundbreaking ceremony held for White Laboratories building … Passaic Avenue residents protest standing water in partially-completed foundation for new home.
80 years ago: Rahway Valley Railroad complains to Borough Council of wild ducks on railroad property … ordinance planned to set uniform rates for cemetery burial permits … WPA workers hold banquet in borough hall.
90 years ago: Edward Stupak appointed temporary patrolman … ordinance to create Board of Assessors passed on first reading.
All articles come from the back issues of the Cranford Chronicle.
This is the first in a planned weekly series of posts looking back at what was happening this week over the years of Kenilworth history. All headlines come from the Cranford Chronicle and the minutes of the Borough Council.
10 years ago: Municipal budget being finalized … first draft of borough master plan nearing completion … borough moving closer to purchase of property on South 23rd Street.
20 years ago: $11.8 million school budget approved … Susan Washuta, Helen Paster, and Gerard Laudati elected to Board of Education … Brearley softball team wins second game in a row, bringing season record to 2-2.
30 years ago: Phyllis Baldacchini (D) and Joseph Rego (R) unopposed in mayoral primary … eight candidates seeking four seats on Board of Education … 86 students named to third quarter honor roll at Brearley.
40 years ago: Fred Rica is promoted to Harding School principal by the Board of Education … Brearley Players to present performance of “Carousel.”
50 years ago: Over 100 residents attend Borough Council meeting to protest proposed municipal swimming pool on North 16th Street … Jets linebacker Ralph Baker to speak at fourth annual Brearley sports dinner … Ordinance passed to issue $17,000 in bonds for new garbage truck.
60 years ago: Ordinance to construct new municipal building passed on first reading … Board of Education contracts summer projects … Gospel Chapel to hold annual conference this weekend.
70 years ago: White Laboratories announces construction of 225,000 s.f. headquarters on 125-acre tract along Galloping Hill Road … G&H Construction completes houses at 726 and 747 Newark Avenue … Fire Department extinguishes brush fire in swamp behind Harding School.
80 years ago: Construction begins at Blue Ridge Manor development … Dayton Regional PTA finalizing plans for old-fashioned dance … Breezy Point Society to hold card party.
90 years ago: Board of Education inspects new boiler and dual-school heating system for McKinley and Harding Schools.
100 years ago: Foundation of new firehouse completed … John Enz appointed to Board of Education … sample primary ballots mailed to registered voters.
Prior to the 1900s, the land that would become Kenilworth was home to a patchwork of farms that had been passed down within families since the days of the Revolution. Who were those families and what became of those farms?
The Faitoutes are perhaps the best known pre-Kenilworth family, their legacy enshrined in the street that bears their name. The Faitoute property was originally owned by another early Union County settler, the Higgins family. James Higgins (1763-1826), a Revolutionary War veteran, originally lived on a small farm along Springfield Road, south of what is now Black Brook Park. In the early 1800s, he acquired a number of tracts to the southeast, eventually holding much of the property along what is now Faitoute Avenue, which was originally a driveway for the farm. Higgins was known as one of the largest landowners in the area and earned a living by selling the timber on his property.1
Higgins and his wife, Rebecca Jefferys (1766-1840), had nine children. Their sixth child, Elizabeth Higgins, was born in 1800. Around the age of 20, Elizabeth married Moses Faitoute (1799-1875). Upon the death of James Higgins in 1826, he left the property to Moses.2
The 1830 Census shows 8 people living on the Faitoute farm. 5 of the residents were youths under the age of 20, two were Moses and Elizabeth, and the eighth, a woman between age 50 and 60, was likely Jefferys.3
A total of seven children were raised on the Faitoute farm: Phebe/Phoebe (1822-1907), Elizabeth (1826-?), Aaron (1829-1881), Moses (1833-1869), James (1835-1859), Thomas (1838-1912), and William (1840-1872). The 1860 Census shows two of the children, Moses and William, remaining at the family homestead as farmers. The family appears to have been wealthy, as they were able to hire two laborers: William Jackson, a black teenager, is listed as a farm laborer living on the property, while Mary McGowan, an Irish immigrant teenager, was employed as a servant.4
When Moses Faitoute died in 1875, the property was at least partially left to his eldest daughter Phoebe and her husband, William Woodruff. Maps from 1862 show that Moses Faitoute owned land on both sides of Faitoute Avenue; maps from 1882 show that land on the southwest side of Faitoute Avenue was owned by William Woodruff, while land on the northeast side of Faitoute Avenue was owned by the Aaron Faitoute estate and J.T. Faitoute.56 The 1880 Census indicates that William took over the farming duties on the property. Phebe and William had four children living with them at that time: Ella, William, Mariam, and Frederick.7
While I have not found an exact date for William’s death, he appears to have died around 1895. In 1894, the Elizabeth Daily Journal reported that Phoebe had purchased two lots in the Roosevelt Manor section of Cranford.8 The house that Phoebe subsequently lived in still stands at 216 Prospect Street, Cranford. While maps indicate that Phoebe Woodruff still owned the property along Faitoute Avenue, Census records show that her son Frederick was now farming the property.9
It was in this time that the New Orange Industrial Association began purchasing farms in the area for its planned city of New Orange. While it is unknown if an offer was made, the property was not sold. When the Borough of Kenilworth was incorporated in 1907, the boundary between Cranford and Kenilworth was located along the center line of Faitoute Avenue. Lands to the northeast of Faitoute Avenue were part of Kenilworth, while the lands to the southwest, which was exclusively the Woodruff farm at that time, were part of Cranford.10 While original plans for New Orange kept the entire length of the Faitoute driveway, now named Faitoute Avenue, the roadway had been shortened to its present terminus at Richfield Avenue by 1906. So how did the Woodruff property come to be part of Kenilworth?
After Phoebe died on December 3, 1907, the Woodruff children decided to place the family farm on the market to settle her estate. Listings appeared in the Elizabeth Daily Journal throughout January 1908 announcing that 87 acres of property were for sale. Note that these advertisements refer to the property as located on Faitoute Avenue, indicating the name was in use by that time.
The Woodruffs placed this ad in the Elizabeth Daily Journal announcing the sale of the family property. (Elizabeth Daily Journal, January 28, 1908)
The property was finally purchased at the end of 1909 by the Diemicke family from Long Island.11 (Variations in the spelling of their name include Demicke, Demiecke, etc. I have used the spelling recorded in the 1920 Census). Joseph Diemicke (also referred to as Frederick) was a produce farmer and trucked his goods to sell in Newark.12 Unfortunately, tragedy struck the Diemicke family in 1916 when much of their property was destroyed by fire, including the residence, two barns, the market house, the wood shed, and pigpens.13 By 1922, the property consisted of the house, a long rectangular structure (likely a barn), and a garage.14 Sometime in 1925 or 1926, the property was sold to the Equator Realty Company, which subsequently subdivided the property for development as Cranford Knolls.15 Despite the streets being laid out, no houses were ever built on the property, and it slowly returned to nature. It appears that the Woodruff farmhouse survived into the 1930s. A 1931 Chronicle article describes a successful raid on the property during Prohibition, seizing a number of stills and mash from the vacant farmhouse.16 Finally, in 1934, the farmhouse met the same fate as the rest of the property, succumbing to fire.17
The appearance of two fires creates something of a mystery for the property. The 1916 articles report that the Demicke residence was lost in the fire and that the family moved into a “large building” recently erected for the farm laborers and servants.18 However, the 1934 articles report that the Woodruff farmhouse was destroyed in the fire.19 This would indicate three buildings on the property at various times: the Woodruff house, the Diemicke house, and the laborers’ residence. Unfortunately, the only map or aerial I have of the property dates from after 1916, at which point only one house remained. This was the house depicted on the maps below and that burned down in 1934.
This 1922 map shows the former Faitoute property split between Cranford and Kenilworth. (Source: 1922 Sanborn map via Princeton University)In the mid-1920s, the old Faitoute property was subdivided for a residential development, Cranford Knolls, that never came to fruition. (Source: 1950 Census Enumeration District map)
It wasn’t until after World War II that the property was finally developed. A portion of the land between Faitoute and Ashwood Avenues was purchased by E.G. Anderson with the intention of building a residential development. In February 1953, the Kenilworth Borough Council passed Ordinance No. 314, annexing the Anderson property from Cranford. The land was then subdivided as Ken-Land Homes, and 19 homes were built along the newly-created Red Oak and Red Maple Lanes. The remaining portion of Cranford Knolls was vacated by the Cranford Township Council in April 1963 to allow for the creation of a new Office-Business Zone. The Verizon building (formerly New Jersey Bell Telephone) and the Cranford Conservation Center are both located on the former Faitoute property.
Today, the only remaining trace of the Faitoute farm is Faitoute Avenue. The families of Red Oak and Red Maple Lanes live on the same lands that were farmed by the Higgins, Faitoute, Woodruff, and Diemicke families for nearly a century. While the farm is long gone, the legacy of the Faitoute family lives on in Kenilworth history.
Ken-Land Homes, developed by E.G. Anderson in the 1950s, now occupies the former site of the Faitoute farm. (Source: Author)
Sources
Higgins, Katharine Chapin. “Richard Higgins: A Resident and Pioneer Settler at Plymouth and Eastham, Massachusetts, and at Piscataway, New Jersey,” Worcester, MA, 1918.
Ibid.
1830 Census.
1860 Census.
Meyer, Ernest L. and P. Witzel. Topographical Map of Union County, New Jersey. New York: Ferd. Mayer & Co., 1862.
Outline Map of Union County, New Jersey. 1882.
1880 Census.
“Cranford.” Elizabeth Daily Journal (Elizabeth, NJ), July 14, 1894.
1900 Census.
“An Act to incorporate the Borough of Kenilworth, in the County of Union.” Passed May 13, 1907. Chapter 192, Acts of the 131st Legislature of the State of New Jersey.
“Cranford Locals.” Cranford Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), December 9, 1909.
“12,000 Fire Loss.” Cranford Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), September 7, 1916.
“Dimick Farm Burned.” Cranford Citizen (Cranford, NJ), September 7, 1916.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Cranford, Union County, New Jersey. Sanborn Map Company, Jan, 1922.
“Borough Briefs.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), April 8, 1926.
“Dry Agents Make Two Calls in Kenilworth.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), September 8, 1930.
“Unoccupied Dwelling Destroyed By Fire.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), January 18, 1934.
“Blaze Destroys Farm Buildings.” Elizabeth Daily Journal (Elizabeth, NJ), September 5, 1916.
“Unoccupied Dwelling Destroyed By Fire.” Cranford Citizen and Chronicle (Cranford, NJ), January 18, 1934.
The Kenilworth Archive 