BAYONNE AND BEYOND — Do you have a million dollars sitting in your attic? The Bayonne Historical Society would like to help you find out for sure. They are hosting an Antiques and Appraisal Day as part of their 20th anniversary History Fair at the new Bayonne Community Museum, Broadway at Ninth Street, on Saturday, April 9, from noon to 4 p.m.
For a nominal fee, appraisers Bob West, Leslie Levine, and others will inform the public of the monetary value of their prized possessions and collectibles.
Join the society for an afternoon of events in the beautifully-restored museum exhibition space, including the unveiling of several historical items recently acquired for the society’s archive collection. The event will showcase a huge engraved silver tray presented to Bayonne’s first mayor, Henry Meigs Jr., in 1879 after 10 years of public service to the community, and two antique telescopes from the W & D Mogey Company, which operated in Bayonne between 1893 and 1908. The exhibit will include an introductory astronomy video called “Our Night Sky” from the DVD series “The Great Courses.”
Also on exhibit will be a Civil War era oil portrait of Margaret McIntyre LaTourette, whose parents owned a farm at Bergen Point in the 19th century, and contemporary art by local artist Jan Gary, also known as Mrs. William D. Gorman, who is listed on the society’s Women of Achievement honor roll.
Students from Holy Family Academy will be holding a bake sale at the open house to support their historical initiatives, and the Historical Society will have a mini-flea market with items priced to sell.
Save the date: The Bayonne Historical Society also will host a luncheon on June 4 at Chris’s Corner Restaurant in Bayonne. The luncheon will include the official announcement of the society’s Women of Achievement partial college scholarship winner for 2011, as well as the names of the local women who will be honored by the society as Women of Achievement in 2012.
For more information about the Bayonne Historical Society and its projects, visit www.bayonnenj.org/historical, or phone President Meryl Robin at (201) 339-3338. Society projects are sponsored this year by donations from: McCabe Ambulance Service, Paulanto Bakery, Enrico’s Restaurant, Robert’s Café, 7-Eleven of West Eighth Street, UNICO of Bayonne, John and Geraldine Halecky, Richard and Regina Rutkowski, Joseph Barbone, Eleanor Tiefenwerth, Patricia McGeehan, Henry Sanchez, Dr. Walter J. Wiechetek, Carmine Borzelli, Jan Gary, and Gerard Nowicki.