Books with title Chester

Formerly known as Black River, the village of Chesterlies in the hills of Morris County, New Jersey. On a site where Indian trails once existed, Chester was incorporated as a township in 1799. Join local historian and photographer Joan S. Case for this unique and informative look at the history of Chester. With images donated by the local historical society as well as many Chester families, this pictorial history covers the period from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s. During this period, Chester was home to one of the busiest mining districts in New Jersey and was also an important agricultural area; local distilleries turned thousands of bushels of Chester apples into the famous “Jersey Lightning.” Five sites in Chester, including Zephaniah Drake’s Brick Hotel, have been accepted to the State and National Registers of Historic Places, all contributing to the town’s significance in the area’s past.

Formerly known as Black River, the village of Chester lies in the hills of Morris County, New Jersey. On a site where Indian trails once existed, Chester was incorporated as a township in 1799. Join local historian and photographer Joan S. Case for this unique and informative look at the history of Chester. With images donated by the local historical society as well as many Chester families, this pictorial history covers the period from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s. During this period, Chester was home to one of the busiest mining districts in New Jersey and was also an important agricultural area; local distilleries turned thousands of bushels of Chester apples into the famous "Jersey Lightning." Five sites in Chester, including Zephaniah Drake's Brick Hotel, have been accepted to the State and National Registers of Historic Places, all contributing to the town's significance in the area's past.

In Chester, you will be introduced to the main character, Ms. Perry first. She decides she wants to adopt two cats named Chester and Twinkle, because her neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Carruthers are having to move into a nursing home community, and can not care for them any more. Ms. Perry enjoys four years of love and companionship with Chester and Twinkle, until she gets a new teaching job in New York City where her landlord does not allow pets. She is then faced with a very difficult and emotional decision, to surrender Chester and Twinkle to “Franklin’s Animal Shelter” or give them to her brother who she believes likes dogs better than cats. What will Ms. Perry’s decision be? What will be Chester and Twinkle’s fate? You’ll have to want to read “Chester” all the way through to find out.

Chester, part of the Then & Now series, places the history of this North Jersey community in a new light by contrasting the old and the new. Vintage photographs are paired with contemporary ones, showing both the changed and unchanged elements of the scene. Zephaniah Drake's Brick Tavern, established after the opening of the Washington Turnpike, still stands in the center of town. But the Chester that was once an important iron-mining center, with 30 mines and two railroads, has disappeared from view.