Items

• Note from Mrs Karl Bitter regarding a fireplace grate

  Undated handwritten note from Mrs. Karl Bitter to H.D. Morehouse of Utica, NY regarding the purchase of a grate for a wood burning stove. On stationery of The Studio of Karl Bitter.
• Karl Bitter's Studio, Eldorado Weehawken, NJ

  Unposted color postcard of sculptor Karl Bitter's home and studio atop the Palisades. Far left is the bandstand from Eldorado Amusement Park which was moved to the back of the Meister home (not seen) and cantilevered over the edge of the cliff. John C. Voigt Post Card Co., Jersey City, NJ. Printed in Germany. From the collection of Tony Bodtmann.
• Photographs of Henry Reuterdahl

  Black and white photograph of artist Henry Reuterdahl and photograph of him in his studio. Born in Sweden in 1870, Reuterdahl died in 1925 in Washington, DC and is buried at Arlington Cemetery. He was a Lieutenant in the US Navy and is best known for his paintings of Navy warships. He also designed posters to support the war effort during World War I. He painted landscapes as well, including Winter in Weehawken. Reuterdahl bought Karl Bitter's home and atelier atop the Palsades (the site of current day Hamilton Park), after Bitter died in a trolley accident in 1915. He was a member of the Society of Illustrators and the American Watercolor Society and exhibited his work in the 1913 Armory Show, although he was not considered a modernist. He also taught at the Art Students League of New York.
• Jerome Robbins Yearbook Picture, Drama Club photo

  Page 38 of The Zenith, Woodrow Wilson High School Yearbook. Jerome W. Rabinowitz (who changed his name to Jerome Robbins) is pictured, with his bio. Page 67 shows Robbins in the front row of the Dramatic Club group photo, taken in front of Woodrow Wilson High School.
• Baroness Nica Koenigswarter and her cats

  Colored photograph of Baroness Pannonica (known as Nica) Koenigwarter with some of her many cats, taken at her home on Kingswood Road in Weehawken. This photo appears in a book, called "Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats", published by her granddaughter Nadine de Koenigswarter in 2008. Her home was referred to as "The Cat House" because of the Jazz musicians who often stayed or jammed at her home, as well as because of her large collection of felines.
• The Unveiling of the Bust of Alexander hamilton by Giovanni Rapetti - a short film by Michael Boldt

  Video of the unveiling of the newly recovered bust of Alexander Hamilton from the Hamilton National Bank. The bust now resides at the Weehawken Public Library.
• THE ART OF GRANT WRIGHT- A Short Film by Mike Boldt

  Video of some of Grant Wright's sketches of Weehawken from the 1930s
• Photo - Karl Bitter Home and Studio

  Undated black and white photo of Karl Bitters home and studio in silhouette on the cliffs above the Hudson. This item is in the collection of the Weehawken Historical Commission.
• Studio of Karl Bitter

  Undated newspaper clipping. Caption: This scene atop the Palisades greeted your eye more than 11 years ago if you looked up the Grauert Causeway. On the brink of the cliff you would have seen the unique studio of Karl Bitters, noted sculptor. He was killed and the property was bought by Henry Reuterdahl, famous marine artist. The studio was razed in 1926. The caption sounds as though Karl Bitter was murdered. He was accidentally killed in 1915, when hit by a carriage as he and his wife were leaving the Metropolitan Opera in New York, The caption would place this as a clipping from the late 1930s..
• Noted Tenor Sings at the Eagan Home

  Undated clipping from an unknown newspaper describing a private performance by Italian tenor Giuseppe Barsotti at the home of Mrs. John J. Eagan at 38 King Avenue. Thanks to Time Machine user John Thompson for pointing out the error of the reporter who wrote the article and pointed me to the following sources which provided more information and the correct address: Source 1 Source 2 Mrs. Eagan was the wife of Congressman John J. Eagan, who had a long and successful political and business career. The second Gazette, dated March, 1993, 'Hail to the Queen of King Avenue', describes the 90th birthday party of Mrs. Helene Anderson, who was the daughter of Congressman Eagan This item in the collection of the Weehawken Historical Commission
• Karl Bitter's home and studio in 1916

  Black and white photograph dated 1916 showing sculptor Karl Bitter's home and studio perched atop the Palisades at the site of today's Hamilton Plaza. The Grauert stairs (built in 1915) lead from Boulevard east down to the West Shore Ferry Terminal. From the collection of the Weehawken Historical Commission.
• Playbill - The Confederate Spy - St Lawrence Dramatic Society - 1900

  From the collection of the Weehawken Historic Commission, this playbill is for The Confederate Spy, a military drama in five acts, performed by the St. Lawrence Dramatic Society at St. Lawrence Hall in the Shades on Thursday and Friday evenings, November 29 and 30, 1900. The document includes a cast listing, a synopsis of the thrilling plot and a word from the sponsor, William Gulden Furniture, Carpets,Bedding, Etc. on Bergenline Avenue. William Gulden and his family lived on Hamilton Avenue in Weehawken from about 1910-1920.
• Sculptor Karl Bitter's Studio - 1910

  Black and white photograph of sculptor Karl Bitter's home and studio as it looked in 1910 (present day Hamilton Park.) Far left is a gazebo (a bandstand from Eldorado) cantilevered over the Palisades. At bottom, a train passes. This photograph is from the collection of the Weehawken Historical Commission.
• Poet Found Spiritual Thrills In Weehawken 75 Years Ago

  Clipping from an unidentified newspaper stamped September 28, 1934 describing poet James Restine and his poem "Weehawken Heights."
• Weehawken of 1830--Famous Poem

  Newspaper clipping from an unidentified paper stamped September 28, 1934 describing the poem "Weehawken" written by Fitz-Greene Halleck in 1830.
• Karl Bitter in his Studio

  This black and white photo, sent in by Lauren Sherman, shows famed sculptor Karl Bitter (on the stairs) surrounded by some of his works in his Weehawken studio, which was located in what was the Rheinish Castle at Eldorado. The building was on the site of today's Hamilton Park.
• Painting of Highwood by Grant Wright

  Water color painting of Highwood, the estate of James Gore King, painted by Grant Wright and based on a 1957 charcoal drawing of Highwood by Thomas Ayres. Ayres did a series of drawings of the Highwood estate, which reside in the New York Historical Society archives.
• Winter in Weehawken

  Winter in Weehawken, painted by Henry Reuterdahl, who bought Karl Bitter's home and studio after Bitter died. The painting was awarded the Silver Medal in the Panama Pacific International Exposition of 1915. From the collection of the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
• Fred and Adele Astair in Weehawken Circa 1910

  The family of the then very young Fred and Adele Astaire lived on Eldorado Place in the early years of the twentieth century. This photo and article from the Weehawken Reporter (1987) provides some background to the famous dancer's time here, as told by Helene Anderson, an old friend and long-time Weehawken resident. Included is a black and white photograph of the Astaires and their class at Miss Greenwood's Dancing School circa 1910.
• Before the Lincoln Tunnel

  This drawing by Grant Wright shows the playground just below the town hall at 400 Park Avenue in what was called the Valley area of Weehawken before construction began on the Lincoln Tunnel. Far left is old Boulevard East, at right is Park Avenue with trolley lines. The drawing is dated 1935, and was published in an unknown paper. From the collection of the Weehawken Historical Commission.
• The Bebop Bentley

  Color photo of the famous bentley of one of Weehawken's most royal residents, the Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter, who provided jazz legend Thelonius Monk with a home in his last years, as well as supporting dozens of other jazz musicians. An article from the jazz website "Rifftides" provides a look into the world of the Baroness and her musical cohort.
• John Marin - Weehawken Sequence Number 30

  Artist John Marin painted a series of abstract representations of the Weehawken waterfront in 1903-1904. These oil on board paintings made up his Weehawken Sequence and were based on views from around his grandparents' Weehawken home. Thanks to Willie Demontreux for this link.
• Painting - West Hoboken - William R Miller

  This image of an 1882 painting by William R Miller, showing the New York Harbor from West Hoboken. It may also show the waterfront artist colony which used to be on the banks of the Hudson. Thanks to Willie Demontreux for this image.
• Drawing - Hamilton Plaza - Peter Fiordalisi

  Pen and ink drawing of Hamilton Plaza by Weehawken artist Peter Fiordalisi, dated 1947. Peter Fiordalisi was born in Union City, N.J. in 1904 and resided in Weehawken and West New York, NJ until his death in 1988.
• Drawing - Palisades and Waterfront - Peter Fiordalisi

  Pen and ink drawing of the Weehawken Palisades and waterfront by Weehawken artist, Peter Fiordalisi, dated 1950.