WATERLOO VILLAGE
Waterloo Village is my new place of business...or non-business...or I should say non-profit! Below are some things I see on a regular basis. As of January 2002, I am the Director of Education, which means I am responsible for the programming visitors experience (not including the concerts, festivals and other special events). Nearly 50,000 students visit every school year, and thousands of general public visitors during the summer. I have about 35 great tour guides/living history interpreters, 2 office assistants and 2 curators. This is a great staff that makes our site meaningful and relevant for people to visit. I'll be posting some information about our events and sites so keep checking!
If you would like to see the official website for Waterloo Village, please click here.
What is Waterloo?
Waterloo Foundation for the Arts, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization, manages Waterloo Village, a restored 19th century Morris Canal port town. Located in the Allamuchy Mountain State Park along the banks of the Musconetong River in Sussex County, it recognized as a National Historic Site. Waterloo was opened to the public in 1964 and consists of three educational sites:
1. Canal Town:
The Canal Town is a perfect example of a busy village during the mid to late 19th Century. With the opening of the Morris Canal in 1831, Waterloo became an inland port with a guard lock and one of 23 inclined planes. The Village quickly became a thriving community with gristmill, sawmill, blacksmith shop, church, school, tavern, inn, a variety of residences and more.
2. The Rutan Farm:
At the Rutan Farm, one can step back in time to a family subsistence farm. One can learn what it was like to grow livestock to feed a family, live without electricity or running water, observe the simple hand tools used on a farm or in the house. A primitive farm house built circa 1825, it was relocated to this site in 1988.
3. The Lenape Village:
The Lenape way of life has been recreated in Waterloo Village. A life-sized recreate village/exhibit has been to depict daily life of NJ's native people.
New exhibits underway...
Above: The Cathy H. is a 17 foot boat that is believed to have navigated the waters of the Morris Canal. She was built ca. 1906-7 by Palmer Bros. of Cos Cob. We have recently learned that she was re-powered around 1925 with a Palmer Bros. YT (Yacht Tender) motor. She was donated to Waterloo about 10 years ago and spent much of her Waterloo life on display at the Museum Gift Shop until...
...I arrived on the scene and coundn't stand to see a great artifact like her sit in mothballs. I discovered the boat had been tucked away in a garage and seemed to be in very good condition. Well a short time later, we began to convert the garage into an exhibit area and now the Cathy H. lives again (but not in the canal). I will be posting pics of the completed exhibit shortly.
Above: Preparing the walls againt moisture & leaks by applying a water-proofing layer. The Cathy H. swims no more (luckily!)
----- Last Updated on August 18, 2003 -----