The September 2024 updates to the History Project include T. Johnson Design metal works around Hopewell, Smith Novelty local business invoices c1910, 1932 Lindbergh scenes of Hopewell, and the 2024 Hopewell Harvest Fair. (See Site Updates for more.)
By the numbers, we finished the month with 331 files in the Archives, including 168 documents and 163 maps and aerials. The Image Gallery now has 4289 files, and the Panoramas Collection has 50 images. The Pamphlet Collection has 318 documents, and the Property Reports Collection has 101 documents. The interactive History Map includes 775 addresses with 103 historic places in Hopewell Borough. The History Project YouTube Channel is hosting 34 videos, plus 22 external local history videos, including 9 videos of History Project presentations. Please keep the materials coming!
T. Johnson Design – Metalwork in Hopewell
with Gazebo Weathervane, 1994
T. Johnson Design has been creating custom metalwork designs in Hopewell Borough since 1994, combining practical functionality with design aesthetics.
They design for private and municipal clients throughout the region, but a number of their works are visible as iconic and familiar installations around Hopewell, as shown here.
Some of these works are very familiar, like the frog weathervane on the gazebo in Hopewell Borough Park, while others are more subtle, including the railings at Nomad Pizza and Saint Alphonsus Church.
Smith Novelty Business Invoices c1910
This wonderful collection of invoices for Smith Novelty from 1910s Hopewell companies vividly show the interconnections of local businesses of the time. The customer here was the Smith Novelty Company on Somerset Street (the predecessor to Rockwell), which at the time was growing past 40 employees.
These invoices also show how local companies viewed their own businesses, with extensive descriptions of their products and services on the invoice forms.
Thanks to Jinny and Bill Baeckler for kindly rescuing these materials from the dumpster, and preserving and sharing them here.
1932 Lindbergh Hopewell Scenes
These are examples of Lindbergh kidnapping materials related to Hopewell Borough. The kidnapping in March 1932 had a interesting side effect for Hopewell – It bought a mad rush of reporters to town, with ten different newspapers moving in to local residences and installing dedicated phone lines.
Then, in the absence of news on the kidnapping, the reporters turned to the local Hopewell scene – generating stories and photos and maps and aerials and newsreels that now provide us with helpful historical perspectives of the time.
Hopewell Harvest Fair – 2024
The Hopewell Harvest Fair volunteer community event has been providing fun and entertainment for Hopewell Valley families and friends since 1987.
Walk the Town Square to meet local business owners and non-profits with exhibits and fun activities. Explore the Crafters’s Court to discover handmade creations from local artists. Plus there are local food vendors and the Farmers Market.
Experience entertainment under the big tent. Enjoy favorite family activities including hay rides, pony rides, a petting zoo, children’s games, and face-painting. The Kid’s Korner is a dedicated area for children to have fun playing games and participating in festive activities.
We have an almost complete collection of Harvest Fair Almanacs from 1987 to 2024, plus a couple pamphlets from the earlier Community Day in the 1980s.
Please contact us if you have – or know of – other images and materials that we can share to help illuminate the history of our Hopewell Valley.
