Nearly $330K To Preserve Historic Bergen County Farm

FAIR LAWN, NJ — Nearly $330,000 will go to preserve one of Bergen County's oldest historical sites — a living, working Dutch farm functioning as a museum in Fair Lawn, according to officials.

A grant from the Bergen County Open Space Trust Fund was approved unanimously on Wednesday by the Bergen County Board of Commissioners to help preserve Garretson Forge and Farm, a plantation that housed six generations of the Garretson family since 1719.

The funds will support a new, "historically accurate" cedar shake roof made of materials from a cedar tree that would be of the same style from when the building was built, a Board of Commissioners spokesperson said.

“It is important that we preserve these (historical) sites to help ensure future generations can enjoy the stories that have contributed to the (300-year-old) legacy of Bergen County," Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco said.

Known to have been the discovery site of numerous Lenape Native American artifacts, the farm was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Nov. 19, 1974. Today, the property serves as a museum and has a garden with a picnic area.

“Garretson Forge and Farm is one of those landmarks that not only provides us historical education but also serves as a centerpiece for community engagements," Commissioner Chairman Tom Sullivan said.