With meticulous research and an obvious love of her subject, Jessie has written about such diverse subjects as mayors, mosquitoes, mail, marbles and Main Street.
-Somerville History Advisory Committee
In 1909, Somerville, New Jersey, celebrated its new status as a borough independent from Bridgewater with music and fireworks. Centuries before, however, Somerville was home to individuals whose foresight and dedication transformed it from a sleepy backwater to a thriving county seat, industrial center and commuter suburb. From dogwoods to doughboys, county fairs to the coming of the railroad, this collection of Jessie Havens's "Hindsight" columns is a patchwork quilt of historical vignettes that provides detailed insight into the local color that gives life to a town.
Jessie Havens is the unofficial historian of Somerset County and board member of the Heritage Trails Association, whose expertise on local history is called upon by everyone from cornerstone rededication committees to the author of an article on the history of New Jersey's electric chair. She wrote a much-beloved column for the Somerset Messenger-Gazette (which went out of print in 2005).
Linda J. Barth gives tours of historic sites in New Jersey and is the author of two books with Arcadia Press on the Raritan Canal: The Delaware and Raritan Canal and The Delaware and Raritan Canal at Work. She has also written a children's book: Brigetender's Boy.