The February 2025 updates to the History Project include materials on the the stories of two teachers from the Hopewell Grammar School in the 1920s, a new Schools album in the Image Gallery with additional class photos from the 1920s to 1950s, artifacts from the Hopewell National Bank, and a variety of historical Pennington booklets from 1940 to today. (See Site Updates for more.)
1920s Hopewell Teachers – Scott & Scharring-Hausen
This 1920s photo of two Hopewell Grammar School teachers is annotated as “Mrs. Scharringhausen & Miss Scott, my 7th & 8th grade teachers.”
This simple photo also opens a window into exploring their lives, as they became educated and worked hard to transition from their farming upbringings into greatly appreciated contributors to the Hopewell Valley. Miss Scott, it turns out, was not only a long-time teacher, but was the principal of the Hopewell Grammar School for over a quarter century. And Mrs. Scharring-Hausen and her husband were contributors to Hopewell Valley agriculture – and literature – for half a century.
Hopewell Schools Photo Album
This month also saw the addition of a new Hopewell Valley Schools and Students album to Image Gallery.
This includes class photos and school scenes from the Hopewell Grammar School (Model Ave.) from 1906, Hopewell Elementary School (Princeton Ave.) from 1926, Pennington Grammar School from 1957, and Central High School from 1959. The class photos and file names are annotated with the names of the students and teachers as available.
- See the Schools material in the Pamphlet collection, including yearbooks and graduation programs.
- See the More on Hopewell Valley Schools section at the end of the above post on 1920s photo of two Hopewell Grammar School teachers.
Hopewell National Bank Checks
Several 1900s Hopewell Bank Checks help us take a look into banking in this area around the turn of the century. These include two 1886 checks drawn on the First National Bank of Trenton and a 1900 check for The Hopewell National Bank.
These are simple printed pieces of paper, and not the special stock used today, and are cancelled with a “stamp cut,” a visible cut that marks the check as processed and no longer valid. The 1900 check also has an attached revenue stamp from the United States Internal Revenue Service, which were issued as a tax and to be used as proof of payment.
Pennington History
This month also saw the addition of six historical Pennington booklets to the Pamphlet Collection.
- 1940 Pennington 50th – “Pennington Presents her Past and Present” – with 72 pages of chronology, photos, advertisements, and histories of local people and organizations.
- 1957 Pennington Grammar School Graduation – Closing Exercises for 8th grade, including class members
- 1957 Pennington Grammar School Yearbook – “Blue and Gold” yearbook, with class photos, club and sports summaries and photos, lighthearted class notes, and class histories.
- 1999 Pennington House Tour – “A stroll along North Main” – House and Garden Tour sponsored by the Friends of the Pennington Library, with house descriptions and histories
- 2024 Pennington Methodist 250th – “An Historic Sketch of 250 Years of Methodism in Pennington, New Jersey,” with histories of major developments in the life of the church
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.
