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The 340 acre tract of the Schiff Nature Preserve is located in Mendham Township and Mendham Borough, Morris County, New Jersey. The entire acreage of the Schiff Natural Lands Trust Nature Preserve is contained within the Ralston Historic District which is listed on both the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. There are potentially four distinct cultural time periods present of the Schiff property. Prehistoric Period Native American artifacts have been found along the rivers and streams. The local Lenni Lenape probably used the sheltered valleys to provide trail corridors and a food resources. In the northwest area of the preserve, just above where India and Burnett Brooks join to become the North Branch of the Raritan River, a pile of rocks presents a hint of an encampment or shelter. It is possible that there were outlying hunting camps on the steeper slopes of the Preserve. 18th Century Period A long-standing oral tradition locates a Revolutionary War outpost on a hilltop in the northern section of Schiff. This outpost was supposedly utilized c. 1779-80 when the continental troops were in an encampment at nearby Jockey Hollow and may have served to protect the old Mendham-Gladstone Road through the Raritan River pass. A large pile of stones and low ridge of earth and stones extending along the hilltop ridge have not been verified as being part of such an outpost. The Old Colonial Road is another undocumented 18th feature of the Preserve. It allegedly served as a link between the Revolutionary War outpost in the area and the Jockey Hollow encampment. This historic wagon path is now little more than a broad hiking trail. It rises up a gentle grade from Roxiticus Road and the valley of the Raritan River. 19th Century Period In 19th century atlases, the Colonial Road is listed as a private road with a 19th century house identified as the "Geo. DeVore Estate." Today evidence of cut and dressed stone foundations and cellar holes suggest that a main house occupied a 300 foot stretch along the South side of this roadway. The remains of a second 19th c. house are located in the river valley just north of the trail leading off of Union School House Road. A gristmill stone forms the base for a flagpole at the northeast end of the Great Meadow. It originated from a presumed 19th c. mill upstream from Schiff's main entrance. 20th Century Period The present Nature Preserve is part of the original Schiff Reservation which was donated to the Boy Scouts of America by Therese Schiff in memory of her son Mortimer Schiff in 1931. The R.H. Williams family had acquired the land in piecemeal fashion about 20 years earlier from numerous descendants of early settlers. The main entrance bridge and four other false arch bridges with cut stone facings were constructed to correspond with the Eclectic Revival Style manor house, built by Richard H. Williams and visible as one approaches Schiff's entrance from the east. A second estate-era landscape element on Schiff was a racetrack for horses located in the Great Meadow. Other components of the 20th c. at Schiff are the Boy Scout era-buildings and the scout-made trails. Of the nineteenth century buildings that came with the property, only the River House survives today, at the comer of Pleasant Valley, Union Schoolhouse and Mosle Roads. Boy Scouts More important than the famous personalities who have come to be associated with the property is the fact that the Schiff Reservation served the Boy Scouts of America for nearly 50 years, and in so doing became more than just another tract of land. It was the home of the Boy Scouts of America, a living monument to our youth and the importance of teaching our youth about the environment and the role they are expected to play in preserving it. Boy Scouts Move, and the Preservation of Schiff Begins In 1993, Jackson Homes stepped in to begin completion of the project.
The firm purchased the land with its existing zoning restraints,
which established a balance between building and open space. Over
several years, David and Suzanne Jackson succeeded in broadening
their building plan while, at the same time, meeting many of the
conservation goals which had delayed and, ultimately, defeated Westage.
The names of those who strived to save Schiff from development have become legendary in the stewardship of open space. Catania, Davidson, Farrelly, Hayden, Parker, Porter, Thomas, Willemsen - these stand out. Their individual efforts were supported by the far- sighted involvement of the Mendham Township Committee and Planning Board. Mix in the grassroots work and public-relations efforts of scores of individuals in the area. These were the major resources which braked and redirected an intrusive development plan to privatize 500 acres. Today, Schiff continues to grow beyond its original 310 acres.
Now at more than 640 acres, Schiff is a model for the power of community-based
conservation and is known throughout New Jersey for its stewardship,
education and community involvement. |
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The
Dan Beard Cabin, named after the first National Scout Commissioner,
was originally part of a Boy Scouts' Service Camp that was constructed
for the 1939-40 New York World's Fair. At one time a film studio
film studio was adjacent to the present location of this cabin.
This film studio was, at one time, the largest film studio on the
east coast. The studio was a gift of the artist Norman Rockwell
and Thomas Watson of IBM. Norman Rockwell's famous paintings were
on permanent display for a time and he was known to have used the
Schiff Reservation as the scenes for some of his famous paintings.
The Woodbadge Lodge, built in the 1960, the Marge Davidson Administration
Building and the Dan Beard Cabin are the last Scout facilities remaining
after the sale of the property in 1979.Schiff Nature Preserve • 973.543.6004 • 339 Pleasant Valley Road, Mendham, NJ 07945 •