Distinguished author and historian Walter E. Boright, Ed.D., will highlight Kenilworth’s role in New Jersey’s Industrial Age during a program being hosted by the Kenilworth Historical Society on Thurs., May 15, in honor of this year’s 350th anniversary of the founding of New Jersey. All are welcome to attend the event, which will begin at 7 p.m. at the Oswald J. Nitschke House (49 South 21 Street). Admission is free, but interested attendees should register in advance by calling 908-709-0434, as seating is limited. Light refreshments will be served.
The featured presentation – “Kenilworth’s Early Industries” – will include a discussion and photos of such early local businesses as the Circular Loom Company, Ricca Mandolin Company, New Orange Decorative Leather Company and Charles E. Wright Machine Company, which later became Volco Wire. Attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions.
Parking is available in front of the Nitschke House and in the municipal parking lot across the street from the Kenilworth Veterans Center. For further information, please call 908-709-0434.
Boright, a native of Kenilworth who now resides elsewhere in New Jersey, has authored four popular books about Kenilworth history; i.e.: “A History of Kenilworth as Told Through its Streets and Street Signs,” “Kenilworth: Houses, People, Pictures, and Stories,” “Women of Kenilworth” and “A History of the Kenilworth Free Public Library.” He also has written a series of articles about Kenilworth history for the Cranford Chronicle.
Boright is a retired superintendent of schools and a retired director of Kean University. He earned his bachelor’s degree at Kean, and master’s and doctoral degrees at Seton Hall University. He has taught New Jersey and American history. Additionally, he has held elected office as a councilman and as a member of the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. His father, Walter, Sr., was a Kenilworth mayor in the 1950s and 1960s.
The Kenilworth Historical Society is an independent, volunteer-based, non-profit, tax-exempt, 501(c)3 organization dedicated to the research, preservation and interpretation of the Oswald J. Nitschke House, local history and culture.
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