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Texier House — Watchung History comes alive

Published: October 28, 2023; Author: Julia Sonrisa

 November 5, 2023    02:00 PM-04:00 PM EDT

Address: 10 Mountain Boulevard, Watchung, NJ 07069, United States

Phone: +1 908-756-0080 ext. 232

Texier House — Watchung History comes alive

A museum of Watchung history, facts and artifacts. Investigate the 5 rooms independently or ask our guides for wonderful tales of the past.

The Texier House Museum is Watchung’s central location for history, photos, fun facts, and artifacts. Visit and investigate each of the 6 rooms independently or together, speak with our tour guides, and learn about the many wonderful tales from Watchungs (nearly) 100 year history!

The Texier House Museum is open the 1st & 3rd Sunday of each month from 2pm to 4pm, but be sure to check the Watchung Borough webpage for updates, special events, openings or even closings. It is located in the center of the Watchung circle in an old residential home surrounded by greenspace, streams, and large shade trees. There is plenty of convenient parking.

At this time, masks are required for all visitors/staff at all times during their visit.

Exhibit Highlights at the Texier House Museum include:

A history of Hippolyte Texier and his family. Interesting enough, the current museum (opened on October 5th, 2013) was once a home to the Texier Family. Their family manufactured gloves at the Old Mill, which was once located in the same location where the current Borough Hall exists.

A history of Watchung and Best Lake. Watchung is lucky to have two scenic lakes which attract visitors and wildlife alike. Both lakes, however, are man-made and were used for industry including ice harvesting during the winter months. Interestingly enough, Best Lake was originally called Wilson’s Pond, and Watchung Lake was once a thriving swim club for those looking to enjoy the mountain air and atmosphere.

A copy of the original hand-written diary of Captain William Parlin (father in law of Congressman Eaton), who led the first black battalion of soldiers during the Civil War. This diary records his experiences.

Displays on World War I & II. Operate a preserved hand cranked siren that was meant to warn the residents of Watchung if any Nazi boats had stormed New Jersey shores. Luckily, the siren never needed to be used! Learn about legendary World War II Flight Engineer and Veteran Henry Long who performed the Top Secret Classified Mission to Tri Duby, which remained classified for 55 years!

Display showcasing athletes of the Borough. A highlight of this display includes Sports Memorabilia from New York Giants legend Bobby Thomson. Thomson hit the historic three-run homer off of Ralph Branca of the Brooklyn Dodgers that put the New York Giants in the World Series in 1951. This is better known as The Shot Heard ’Round the World!

Restored Stained Glass Skylight, artifacts and photos of the Moldenke Castle. The Moldenke Castle is sometimes considered the most famous structure in Watchung even though it was destroyed in a fire in 1969. The castle was the creation of Dr. Richard Moldenke. Richard Moldenke was from Germany, and the structure was a replica of a castle that was located on the Rhine River in Germany.

A display on Adella (Tibby) Wotherspoon, the youngest (then 6 months old) survivor of the General Slocum Disaster of 1904 where 1,021 of the 1,331 passengers died in New York City’s East River. This disaster was the most tragic event in New York City’s history until the terrorist attacks in 2001 on the World Trade Center. Tibby lived most of her life in Watchung and was an active volunteer with the Watchung Historical Committee and Garden Club!

Artifacts and photos from the Legend of Watchung Pageant, which was performed in the Watchung Mountains and the Borough between the years of 1911 and 1936 with a special performance in 1964 in celebration of New Jersey’s Tercentenary! Learn about the origin of the Legend, and its connection to the famed Legend of Watchung Mural which was displayed at the Sears Building on Terrill Road in Watchung for 56 years!

See a wooden Watchung Democratic Primary Ballot Box, Display on the history of the Lion’s Club, learn about the charitable Camp Endeavor,

and much much more!

Time: 2:00-4:00 PM EST

Admission is FREE. Donations are always greatly appreciated!

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