July
2002
New
Jersey State Museum makes Delaware star for the season
by
Joe Emanski
New Jersey State Museum Curator of Cultural History Jim Turk is
a man who knows his stuff. Responsible for the museum's current
featured exhibit, "River of Leisure: Recreation Along the
Delaware River and Bay," Turk gives the impression that he
was involved in every minute of the detailed research, artifact
acquisition and exhibit assembly that went into making the project
a success.
The hard work has paid off. The exhibit features photographs of
bygone eras when the Delaware River had a somewhat different significance
for the people who lived in its valley. Far from merely an industrial
waterway, the Delaware has a long history as a center of tourism,
recreation and leisure.
New Jersey's seashore is as much as ever the state's premier destination
for travelers and vacationers. But as travel and leisure gradually
became a reality for more and more Americans toward the end of
the eighteenth century, natural scenery that did not recall the
urban life of the period attracted the masses to places like the
Delaware Water Gap and boating clubs along the length of the river.
"A
hundred fifty years ago, picture this area-(the development) was
not contiguous," says Turk. "The impetus of resort communities
was the same then as it is now-to get away from it all."
It's hard to see Riverton (N.J.) today as a place to get away
from it all, says Turk, but back when each town was its own separate
world with wilderness at its borders, a place like Riverton was
essentially remote.
Sadly, the same industry that made Trenton a prominent regional
city also figured in the decline of the Delaware as a tourist
destination. Pollution changed the character of the river. The
amusement parks and summer camps along the riverbanks closed,
and eventually summer "resort communities" like Riverton
became year-round locations.
Trenton's leisure scene around the turn of the previous century
looked somewhat different than it does now. White City Amusement
Park, which closed in 1937, offered in that day what Great Adventure
does today. And canoe clubs were extremely common on both sides
of the river near Trenton as social clubs for the region's upper
class. Fire has claimed much of what socioeconomic changes did
not. But the river's particular attributes made it a viable alternative
to the more distant Jersey shore.
"The
falls and the freshwater appealed to the people of the day,"
says Turk.
The Delaware River is particularly known for its decoy carving-to
this day, detailed decoys are created by artisans such as Trenton
native Bob White, the "last of the old school carvers,"
according to Turk, and his apprentice John Wood, a former Trenton
police officer.
Delaware River decoys often feature raised wing carvings and extraordinary
detail not usually found in decoys. The fact that duck hunters
in the non-tidal areas of the river shot at the birds from boats
instead of blinds led to the notion that the decoys had to be
that much more convincing.
"Ducks
and geese may not be that discerning," Turk says with amusement.
"But that belief led to the school of carving." White
and Wood's carvings are highly sought among collectors of decoys.
Among
the many other artifacts gathered in the exhibit are boats used
for duck hunting and numerous photographs of times gone by.
"(The
exhibit) seems to be evoking many memories and responses,"
says Turk. "One of our guards here was particularly interested
to see Camp Osceola mentioned. Another guard remembered River
Beach State Park."
Trenton's
residents are often cited for their willingness to recall the
old days in Trenton. Seeing the exhibit, one can't help but note
that Trenton has changed, quite a bit. As have most of the cities
along the Delaware. Change is, as they say, inevitable.
"River
of Leisure" calls up nostalgic feelings even for those who
never knew Trenton in other times. From Rotary Island's lodge
house-long ago destroyed-to Florence's hotel-also long gone-to
the evolution of the Delaware River decoy, the Delaware River's
heritage as a place for the masses to go and enjoy life is clear.
The exhibit runs through November 3, 2002 and admission is free.
It's worth a visit to see what we're missing, as well as what
we might want to think about reclaiming as we talk so much these
days about Trenton's revival.
