Plaque dedication and celebration at historic Lake Hopatcong Station

July 20, 2021| Community, LHF Environmental & Cultural Center

By: Holly Odgers

A ceremonial check presentation and plaque dedication was held at the historic Lake Hopatcong Station on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, at 125 Landing Road, Landing, NJ. Representatives for the New Jersey Historic Trust and the Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund, along with local elected officials, gathered to celebrate the rehabilitation of the 1911 station.

Built as part of the grand Lackawanna Cut-Off project, The Lake Hopatcong Station was designed as a showcase for the Lackawanna Railroad and was an impressive gateway to the popular summer resort of Lake Hopatcong and its hotels and cottages. More than a hundred years after its construction, the station was purchased by the Lake Hopatcong Foundation and has been undergoing a multi-year rehabilitation. The former station and treasured community icon now serves as the Foundation’s Environmental & Cultural Center.

“This is really quite an accomplishment,” stated New Jersey Historic Trust Board Secretary Peter Lindsay. “It’s good this building has been put to community use. This final phase [of the station rehabilitation project] represents about a quarter of a million dollars of [taxpayer] money being brought back into the local economy through local and regional craftsman and suppliers… and for the betterment of the Lake Hopatcong area and this building.”

Photo by Karen Mancinelli/County of Morris From left to right, Lake Hopatcong Foundation (LHF) Trustee Jim Leffler, LHF Trustee Tom Flinn, LHF Board Chair Marty Kane, New Jersey Historic Trust Board Secretary Peter Lindsay, New Jersey Historic Trust Board Member Lisa Easton, New Jersey Historic Trust Principal Historic Preservation Specialist Glenn Ceponis, New Jersey Historic Trust Executive Director Dorothy Guzzo, LHF Executive Director Kyle Richter, LHF Trustee Rich Romeo, and LHF Board Vice Chair Bob Hamburger.

The Lake Hopatcong Station was unique in New Jersey because three forms of transportation were directly accessible from the station. Rail passengers could disembark at the station, board the Lake Hopatcong Steamboat Company boats for passage through the feeder canal of the Morris Canal into Lake Hopatcong or board the Morris County Traction Company trolley directly to Bertrand Island Park.

“We always talk about what a great place Morris County is to live, work, and raise a family. And part of that is because of the rich history here in the County and how we work to preserve it,” said Morris County Commissioner Director Stephen H. Shaw.

From left to right, Lake Hopatcong Foundation Board Chair Marty Kane, Morris County Commissioner John Krickus, Morris County Commissioner Director Stephen H. Shaw, and Lake Hopatcong Foundation Executive Director Kyle Richter.

Together, the Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund and the New Jersey Historic Trust, have provided grant funding toward the building acquisition, exterior and interior restoration, and most recently, the exterior site restoration, which is currently in progress.   

Lake Hopatcong Foundation Executive Director Kyle Richter thanked those who have backed the station rehabilitation project, stating, “With your support, we have been able to breathe new life into this historic building and have created a space for the community to connect around New Jersey’s largest lake.”
 

In attendance at the event were elected officials Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce, Assemblywoman Aura Dunn, Roxbury Mayor Bob DiFillippo, and Roxbury Councilman Shawn Potillo. Representing the New Jersey Historic Trust were Executive Director Dorothy Guzzo, Principal Historic Preservation Specialist Glenn Ceponis, and board members Peter Lindsay and Lisa Easton. Representing Morris County were Commissioner Director Stephen H. Shaw, Commissioner John Krickus, Assistant County Administrator Deena Leary, and Planning Director Joseph Barilla. Representing Sussex County was Administrator Greg Poff.

About the New Jersey Historic Trust

The New Jersey Historic Trust was created in 1967 to preserve New Jersey's historic resources across the state and works to advance historic preservation in New Jersey for the benefit of future generations through education, stewardship and financial investment programs that save our heritage and strengthen our communities.

About the Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund

The Morris County Board of County Commissioners created the Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund to help support the preservation of the county’s exceptional abundance of historic resources. The Fund considers grants for the acquisition, stabilization, rehabilitation, restoration, or preservation of historic resources that are listed, or certified as eligible for listing, on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places.