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    History of the Van Slyke Castle

    The Oakland Castle Oakland, NJ – Hike into History Take a hike. Depending on your tone of voice it can be good advice or a condescending suggestion. In this case it is very good advice because Oakland offers its residents a great opportunity to enjoy outdoor exercise, take in some beautiful scenery, and wander down wooded paths that lead you through local, regional and world history. The hike detailed here starts just off Skyline Drive and is approximately five miles, start to finish. It will take you up through the Ramapo Hills to great vistas where you can visit the ruins of what has been called “The Oakland Castle”, “The Van…

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    The Lodge on the Island in Ramapo Lake

    The Lodge was on Ramapo Lake Paul Neuman December 26, 2014 These photos are of what remains of the house that stood on the island in Ramapo Lake. I haven’t been out there in a few years. You need a good cold snap before venturing over to it. Does anybody have a photo of the house when it was standing? Was it part of the Van Slyke estate? When was it destroyed? I assume it was burned. I seem to remember reading something years ago that the house was built as a safe haven, maybe from the flu pandemic of 1918 or a later public health crisis (TB, polio?). Of…

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    Oakland Homeowners to be Assessed

    1,700 Oakland homeowners to be assessed for lakes’ maintenance February 2, 2012, 8:52 AM By Philip DeVencentis Staff Writer | Franklin Lakes – Oakland Suburban News OAKLAND – Almost 1,700 property owners are being forced to ante up to maintain two lakes owned by Ramapo Mountain Lakes Inc., though some say they never visit the lakes or even benefit from their existence. Crystal Lake, encircled by Lakeshore Drive, and the much smaller Mirror Lake, between Hiawatha Boulevard and Calumet Avenue, are just a mile apart. But the lake association oversees far more land. The lake association was incorporated in 1944 by National House & Farms Association Inc., a developer that acquired…

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    Ramapo Mountain Lakes, Inc.

    A New Town in Town There’s a new town in town, and it goes by the name of the Ramapo Mountain Lakes, Inc. Technically, it’s not a town but a lake association of Oakland homes; but, the breadth and magnitude of its disputed membership makes it bigger than dozens of towns in New Jersey. The borders of the town within a town would make proud any gerrymandering politician, though the majority of the disputed members live somewhere in the vicinity of Oakland’s Crystal Lake or Mirror Lake. On the other hand, some homes within walking distance are not members, and those who would need to drive to one of the lakes…

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    Historic bridge is returned to its birthplace

    Historic bridge is returned to its birthplace The Doty Road Bridge has carried vehicles over New Jersey’s Ramapo River for over a century. The bridge was located where New York District’s Ramapo River at Oakland Flood Control Project is underway. Several years ago it was determined by project managers that the bridge would be an obstruction during floods and that it should be removed. The New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office stated that something needed to be done with the bridge in terms of mitigation because it is a cultural resource and deemed eligible for being listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. Lynn Rakos, a District…

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    Boroughitis The NJ Disease That Created Oakland

    Boroughitis – The NJ Disease That Created Oakland 17 Jun, 2014  in Features / Oakland Time Travels Boroughitis The NJ Disease That Created Oakland By Kevin Heffernan On April 8, 1902 Oakland seceded from Franklin Township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature. Hurrah! And in the words of Martin King, Jr., we finally were “Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty we are free at last!” While I will soon write far more about the details of this wondrous event, it’s important to do some stage setting with regard to the state and county geo-political environments in 1902. In other words, what was going on around us to enable the…

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    Church of the Ponds 300th Anniversary

    The Church of the Ponds Date: January 17, 2009 Subject: The Church of the Ponds Prepares to Celebrate Its 300th Anniversary Contact: Phil Marchbank 201-405-0352 File Photos Included Before there was the United States, almost 75 years before the American Revolution and even before George Washington was born, there was The Church of the Ponds in now what is Oakland, NJ. This sacred church and storied history is now planning the celebration of its 300th Anniversary in 2010. For three centuries it has been pivotal to the growth and character of this community and indeed the surrounding area. The Church of the Ponds was the nexus of life in this…