JERSEY CITY — Frank “I Am The Law” Hague, mayor of Jersey City from 1917 to 1947 will be the subject of a video by Bob Leach to be shown at “Come Home to History,” Saturday, Oct. 9.
“Invasion of the Reds: Mayor Hague’s War on Radicals and Free Speech” will be shown at 3:45 p.m. Leach, founder of the Jersey City Historical Project, will be present to introduce the video and answer questions, according to a press release about the event.
Bob Leach is known as Jersey City’s storyteller. Born in 1937, he has steeped himself in Jersey City folklore and in the era of Hague. For the past 35 years he has interviewed “old timers” for the stories that convey the feel of a place sometimes missed by academic historians. The results are published in several books, “Frank Hague and the Lucky Horseshoe,” “The Parade of the Shantytown Dead,” and “How Frank Hague Became a Hero.”
The Hague video is part of a full day of illustrated talks, workshops, children’s activities, and a tour focused on the 350th anniversary of the founding of the Dutch settlement of Bergen, now Jersey City, and other key moments in Hudson County history.
The fair is scheduled for Saturday Oct. 9 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. at Hudson County Community College, The Culinary Conference Center, 161 Newkirk St., Jersey City.
More than 30 historic preservation and history-oriented exhibitors will be on hand. Admission is free; discounted parking is available; and refreshments may be purchased at the Culinary Conference Center.
See www.hudsoncountynjgenealogy.org/historyfair2010 for more information, a complete schedule, and updates.