TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON—Pine Lake, which was at the northwest corner of Pascack and Ridgewood roads, was a popular recreation attraction from the 1930s to the 1970s. Especially loved by area residents was the swim club, a well-received respite from summer heat in years before home swimming pools and air conditioning were prevalent.
The man behind Pine Lake was Wendelin Orth, who bought the property at 800 Ridgewood Road in 1929. The bungalow-style home on the property had been built previously in 1913, but Orth made renovations to convert it into a restaurant that he called the Pine Lodge.
There had already been a lake on the property, but in 1930 Orth made it much larger. This would prove to be an excellent business move. Although the Pine Lodge restaurant was successful, the Pine Lake swim club would become iconic among generations of Pascack Valley residents.
Fed by an artesian well deep underground, the sand-bottom lake created a beach-like atmosphere right on Pascack Road. In the early 1930s admission was 25 cents for adults and 10 cents for kids, or one could become a season member for $5. Buses brought people from all over Bergen County. Groups of kids rode their bikes and spent the day at the lake.
Advertisements from that time give a helpful hint in pointing visitors to Washington Township “midway between Ridgewood and Westwood.”
The little township was easy to miss back then, as it consisted mostly of woodland, fields, and marshes, and was home to 400 people. Pine Lake turned it into a destination.
Orth built a large refreshment stand on Pascack Road, as well as a wooden footbridge that led to an island in the lake for fishing and picnicking. Visitors could also canoe, play tennis, ago horseback riding. There was a playground for children. There was also talk of creating a zoo there, but that never materialized. You could even buy a car on the property; Wendelin Orth Jr. sold Cadillacs from the refreshment stand.
The refreshment stand was later moved to a foundation to the north and turned into a small house. Because of its proximity to the historical landmark Seven Chimneys on Ridgewood Road, Orth referred to this little house as “One Chimney.” It was torn down when the Pine Lake Estates condominiums were built in 1988.
Pine Lake closed in 1976 and the swimming area buildings burned in 1982. Still, the main house, which has passed through numerous owners, continues to be used as a restaurant. For many years it has been Bacari Grill.
— Kristin Beuscher is president of Pascack Historical Society