RIVER VALE, N.J.—River Vale Township Historian Ed Moderacki leads a walking tour of historic northern River Vale on Saturday, May 18. The tour commences in the parking of Woodside School at 10 a.m. and ends at Baylor Park around 1 p.m.
Much of the 2-mile route is along Rivervale Road, one of the oldest roads in northern Bergen County. The early farms, the genesis of the River Vale Country Club, the former site of the River Vale Ice Arena, home of the Jersey Skeeters Hockey Team, River Vale School No. 2, the summer home of Florence Lawrence, America’s first movie star will be some of the items covered.
Moderacki will answer questions about River Vale from Revolutionary times to the present.
Dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfortable shoes. Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
Get ready: a walking tour of southern River Vale is set for Saturday, June 1. If a walk is cancelled because of rain it will be rescheduled for June 15.
Moderacki, township historian since 1990, is former adjutant general of the Brigade of the American Revolution and has lectured at historic sites in New Jersey and Pennsylvania on the Baylor Massacre, art music in Colonial America, Civil War bands, and on the musical and military history of “The Star Spangled Banner.”
He’s also the author of “Images of America: River Vale” published by Arcadia Press. Copies will be available on Saturday, and Moderacki will sign copies at the conclusion of the walk.