1870'S: TRENTON IN THE 19TH CENTURY

At the ripe young age of 77 going on 78, I look back at the time when I became  interested in local history. Even though Trenton is not the town in which I grew up, I still harbor a love for the city of my youth; almost, but never as intense as the love I have for Hamilton Township, the town in which I was born those many years ago at 100 Beal Street in Hamilton. Way back in the late 1950's when I was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army, I decided to begin collecting any and everything that touched on the history of our past. One facet that spurred my interest was when Fred Kuser told me stories of the Kuser family and their involvement with the Mercer auto. My brother Bud told of a time during WWII when he was asked to spread a coat of grease on 20th Century Fox executive Earl Sponable's limousine which was being stored in one of the Kuser garages for the duration of World War II. In my quest for local history, my collection burgeoned into an incredibly interesting accumulation of history and memorabilia. Collecting historical material is not like collecting stamps or coins, or automobiles. Rather, it requires research, filing, and many other facets too lengthy to mention. Along came the computer, digital imaging with scanners, the web, and ultimately my 100 year collection of Trenton newspapers dating from the late 1860's to the early 1940's; the latter addition has given me the privilege of sharing my "local history" collection with the many visitor to this site. I have found that viewer interests are very much varied; some are looking for White Horse, Bromley, Hamilton Square, Trenton, and countless other subjects. The graphic above will be of little interest to many, and of great interest to others such as genealogists and those who share my interest in local Trenton history and nostalgia. I would wager that historians of future generations will find these posts of interest, assuming this blog survives the years. Rather than gather dust on shelves as "hard copy," Accessing history via this blog and the ability of visitors to save those posts to their computer for sharing with friends and relatives makes all the hard work very educational, worthwhile, and personally rewarding. 

Its nice that the best local history site on the net is done by someone with such personality. Plus it helps that you or your readers were THERE at many of the places now gone or forever changed.It creates that local insider detail I love.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Anonymous said...

Tom - Once again, I will say that we are forever indebted to you first, for your devoted interest in all things Hamilton and Trenton and surrounding areas, and secondly, that you have the tenacity and desire to pass this incredible amount of information along to future generations. I do not know anyone else who would do this monumental task! You are to be commended! Lakeside Girl

Monday, January 24, 2011