The July 2025 updates to the History Project included a new postcard views of Hopewell sights, a 1941 Hopewell Elementary School newspaper, and additional Hopewell photographs. (See Site Updates for more.)
New Old Views: Hart Monument, Ralston Castle, National Bank
A newly-discovered collection of historical postcards provides better views into some of familiar Hopewell Borough scenes – New Old Views: Hart Monument, Ralston Castle, National Bank.
These were published by Paul Cutter, who operated the then Rexall Drug Store from 1920 to 1956, in what is now the Hopewell Pharmacy building at Broad and Greenwood.
These include views of the 20-foot granite draped obelisk of the John Hart Memorial, the grand driveway entrance to the Ralston Castle site, and the small building adjacent to the Hopewell National Bank building diagonally opposite the drug store at Broad and Greenwood.
1941 Hopewell Elementary School Newspaper
For another glimpse of long-gone school days, this is the April 1941 issue of the Hopewell Elementary School student paper, The Keyhole.
It is fourteen typewritten pages with illustrations, including news for what each grade was doing, personal updates on some of the students, student writing and poetry, plus “Sense and Nonsense” with some profound and some not-so-deep thoughts, and lots of favorite jokes and riddles.
One event was the seventh grade bicycle ride to Kunkle’s Park during Easter vacation. This was a full-day trip, 5 1/2 miles each way, with time for food and games. The trip route started south out of Hopewell with a long walk up the hill to Mount Rose (our Princeton Avenue / Hopewell-Princeton Road), and then turned right and followed the “stony dirt road” (Pennington-Rocky Hill Road) to the edge of Pennington (where East Delaware Avenue meets Federal City Road), before turning right at the Stony Brook bridge up to the park on King George Road.
Hopewell Photos
Newly added photos to the Image Galley include:
- Nancy Kennedy images including the Hill hardware store in 2005
- Roger Labaw images including 2006 Seminary Avenue renovations
- Sarnese Hopewell Elementary 1930s class photos
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.
