Plum Run gig at Riverview Estates well attended; Find more of their music here

Posted on March 4, 2012 by John McCormick

Forecast: Cloudy, drizzle, with 100 percent chance of entertainment inside by Plum Run

Lisa Godino and Chuck Winch - authentic looking and sounding Civil War era musicians

Last Friday, Feb. 24, 2012, the performing duo known as Plum Run played to a full house at Riverview Estates while a light drizzle fell just outside 303 Bank Avenue. Inside, spirits were not dampened by the misty scene that served as the musicians’ backdrop for the evening performance. Refreshments provided by the staff of Riverview Estates diminished any residual chills remaining.

Songs of the Civil War: History and Myth was a  free concert, part of an ongoing series of HSR history programs to commemorate the Sesquicentennial.of the American Civil War.

Part-historical interpreters, part-storytellers, part-music instructors, and part-accomplished musicians and talented songwriters as well, they fiddled and strummed, plucked and sang for the enjoyment of the public and the residents of the Baptist Home.  

Lisa Godino explains

Plus, whatever you call it when you clack those bones together. Lisa tells more about her fly swatting technique of getting sound from the percussion instrument with an ancient past.

Plum Run album cover

Besides singing and playing songs authored during the Civil War, the pair performed new original songs from their album “No Longer Gray Or Blue” which sounded just as authentic as the ones from the 1860s.

Between our Publicist, Susan Dechnik, and myself, we captured the still shots that you find displayed on this post. Click here to view a 3 minute 167MB MP4 movie file with several video clips of their performance that evening. Give this big file a few moments to load.

Lisa and Chuck told about the instruments

You can find out more about the harmonious collaboration that is Plum Run at plumrunmusic.com and on any one of several other places on the web like myspace.com  that post some of their music.

For a concert on your computer, check out ourstage.com and click on play all to listen to 19 full versions of their songs plus two videos. The selections there represent a wider range from the pair’s musical repertoire than just the historical variety.

Riverview Estates 303 Bank Ave. Sept. 2008

A good part of the real estate of the current Riverview Estates, or the Baptist Home, once belonged to Mr. Ezra Lippincott whose home and family have been the subject of many of Betty Hahle’s Yesterday columns in the Gaslight News over the years.

Use the search box on this website and you’ll find some of the more recent text and image references to  Lippincotts and 303 Bank Avenue. Riverview Estates publishes a history of beginnings and website located here.

This program was funded by the Horizons Speakers Bureau of the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

As always, comment, challenge, complain, or contribute, if you please. – John McCormick, Gaslight News editor

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Plum Run performs songs of the Civil War at Riverview Estates Feb. 24, 2012

Posted on February 16, 2012 by John McCormick

Riverview Estates at 303 Bank Avenue in Riverton will host the Historical Society of Riverton’s February program on Friday, February 24, at 7:00 p.m.  Songs of the Civil War: History and Myth is a lively and engaging musical history program featuring Plum Run with Lisa Godino and Chuck Winch. 

This free concert is part of an ongoing series of HSR history programs to commemorate the American Civil War Sesquicentennial honoring the legacy of freedom, unity and sacrifice shared by our nation during the last 150 years. The public is welcome to attend the free concert by calling Gerald Weaber at 856-786-6961 to reserve a seat.

Plum Run’s entertaining and informative performance brings to life the spirit and sensibilities of the Civil War era.  They play reproduction and period musical instruments while wearing authentic 19th century attire.  Their music, rich in storytelling culture, incorporates folk, bluegrass, and old-time and traditional country music.  During the question and answer period after the performance, the instruments will be on display.

The Positive Press Community Calendar, a piece in the Gaslight News, and posters displayed around town all beckon to HSR members and the public to come in to get out of the cold on Friday night February 24 and enjoy this warmhearted entertainment among friends.

Chuck’s great grandfather fought at the Battle of Gettysburg, and Lisa is a Civil War re-enactor with the 2nd South Carolina, Valley Division. Their repertoire includes both songs of the mid-19th century and original compositions drawn from their album titled “No Longer Gray or Blue” which tells stories of how soldiers may have felt in the time of war and the yearning of their families for their loved ones.

Here’s another link to a Plum Run performance of a song called Iverson’s Pit dedicated to the 23rd North Carolinians. Hearing the pair play this song with such genuine flair and vocalize those powerful, sometimes mournful, lyrics so expressively is, to me, like listening to a history lesson set to music.  I absolutely recommend that you attend this free public performance at the former Baptist Home on Bank Avenue by the River in Riverton.

This performance by Plum Run marks the second year of Sesquicentennial events sponsored by the Historical Society of Riverton.  This past October, Jane Peters Estes lectured on the topic, “Gettysburg: Where Were the Women?” and in July 2011, a three-day exhibition at the Burlington County Farm profiled the lives of Riverton Civil War veterans.

Please join us on February 24th for a truly unique musical history program.  The public is welcome to attend the free performance. Call Gerald Weaber at 856-786-6961 to reserve a seat.  Free refreshments will follow the program, courtesy of Riverview Estates.

This program is funded by the Horizons Speakers Bureau of the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities.  - JM

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Riverton Museum for a Day on the Candlelight House Tour 2011

Posted on December 21, 2011 by John McCormick

graphic credit: Bernard & Jean Markovitz

One Society member commented that the homes on the December 3rd Candlelight House Tour December were “…historic and all quite beautiful.”  This extraordinary biennial event invites the public inside some of the most distinctive homes and buildings in historic Riverton to raise funds for the Riverton Free Library.  Hundreds of admirers of 19th century architecture came from throughout the greater Philadelphia and South Jersey area to view the historic buildings all beautifully decorated for the holidays which included five private homes plus the Porch Club, Christ Church, and The New Leaf Tea Room and Gift Shoppe.

Click here for the PDF file of the Official 2011 Candlelight House Tour Brochure.

Curator Mrs. Cheryl Smekal welcomed scores of visitors to our limited-engagement museum.

Mrs. Phyllis Rodgers, proprietor of The New Leaf,  generously offered space to the Historical Society of Riverton (HSR) to host its popular Museum for a Day exhibition,  a traveling display of local Riverton artifacts, photographs and ephemera from its archives.  

The showing offered a special opportunity for its exhibit curator, Mrs. Cheryl Smekal, to display women’s period clothing and furnishings as well as rare objects belonging to prominent Riverton families. Mrs. Smekal organized the event with assistance and guidance from Society Board members Mrs. Pat Brunker, Mrs. Nancy Hall, Mrs. Phyllis Rodgers and Mr. John McCormick.

Can you guess the name or the use of these household items which might have been found in homes of the early 1900s?

A table covered with 16 household objects common to the earlier 1900s which beckoned to onlookers, “Can You Guess…?” sometimes created traffic gridlock as museum visitors seriously debated the various uses to which some of the more puzzling objects might be put.

 

John McCormick, Gaslight News editor, blogger, collector of Riverton objects and lore hopes to interest more people in contributing information and images to the Society.

John McCormick was on hand to answer questions from collectors and the public about memorabilia and collectible ephemera. John, a retired educator and local historian, offered  reproductions from his vast collection of local historic images with street views from local Burlington County towns. 

 

A display includes photos and artifacts from various business enterprises and a vertical wall banner which outlines the history of the New Leaf building.

John devoted a section of the show of artifacts to The New Leaf at 606 Main Street since that address has played a number of roles in Riverton’s business section since it first was the location of Ezra Perkins’ butcher shop about 1900.

You can view a PDF file of that banner that outlines the history of 606-608 Main Street here.

Always of special interest to collectors are the vintage post card reproductions photo-restored by John McCormick featuring Dreer’s Nursery, New Jersey shore resort towns like Long Beach Island, Ocean City, Stone Harbor, and other locales like Burlington, Trenton, Moorestown, Mount Holly, Palmyra, and Riverside.

One collector visiting the Society’s Museum for a Day was delighted to see that John had added considerably to what he had available at Victorian Day 2007, and he pulled up a chair and devoted over two hours to browsing the vintage postcard reproductions.

Pat Lynch and Nancy Hall peruse the gifts available for the history enthusiast - Ruff Copy, Historic Riverton, History of Riverton Fire Co., Romance of Riverton, back issues of Gaslight News, History of Palmyra, repro maps and photos.

The Society appreciates Mr. McCormick’s generosity in sharing his collection on the HSR web site and blog for people of all ages to enjoy.

While an adult visitor may recall and perhaps even reminisce with the website’s content, a child seeing those same images and stories may see for the first time how life in his or her hometown was so different a hundred or more years ago.

We commend The Friends of the Riverton Free Library for their successful house tour program which reminds us that our magnificent, historic homes in Riverton can be restored to their past splendor rather than sold as apartment conversions.

The Candlelight House Tour significantly contributes to the rediscovery of Riverton by visitors and homeowners as a special place to live. The following photo gallery of our Road Show Museum will suffice until the HSR can secure a permanent solution to display the wonderful collection to which so many Rivertonians have contributed over the years. 

- Gerald Weaber, President Historical Society of Riverton

 

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Members brave the rain to hear Jane Peters Estes

Posted on October 21, 2011 by John McCormick

HSR members returned to the familiar setting of the Riverton Public School library Tuesday evening to hear historian, Hagley Museum guide, and costumed presenter Jane Peters Estes’ compelling presentation, “The Battle of Gettysburg: Where Were the Women?”

The take-away from this meeting and the short answer to Ms. Estes’ rhetorical question is: The women were everywhere – it’s just not always written in our history books.

Members socialize and enjoy refreshments after the presentation. Jane even showed some of the ladies her bloomers and the crinoline cage under her dress.

Ms. Estes has distilled the best parts from her bibliography of over three dozen listed sources and she quotes from period newspaper accounts, letters, diaries, journals, and eyewitness accounts to make her powerful case.  We heard how women hid in basements, faced their foes on the battlefield, nursed the wounded, and buried the dead at Gettysburg. She lectured dressed as a woman of the Civil War era, right down to the bloomers and corset.

A rhinestone-studded pumpkin decorates a refreshment table loaded with Mrs. Kloos' famous white chocolate covered pretzel snacks, Mrs. Rodgers' pumpkin mousse cupcakes, Mrs. Waters' homemade ginger snaps, donut holes, and two kinds of cider.

Click here for a one minute excerpt from the presentation that explains how a woman could join the army and not be detected.

The presentation concluded and we mingled afterward for conversation and refreshments. It may have been for longer than usual, but there was much to catch up on since this was the first presentation of the season.

An evening’s seminar on the varied roles of women in the Civil War, snacks and apple cider, socializing among others with a passion for understanding and preserving history  -  priceless!  This is a great time to join as a new member.  – John McCormick, Gaslight News editor

 

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May 2011 Annual Meet Convenes at The Bank on Main

Posted on June 22, 2011 by John McCormick

The Bank on Main - open for business once again

The Historical Society of Riverton held its Annual Meeting June 9, 2011, at The Bank on Main, courtesy of the Antonucci Family of Riverton. First constructed for the Cinnaminson Bank & Trust Company in 1928, its new owners have transformed the building’s interior into an attractive venue for business and social events.

In the business portion of the annual meeting members approved a slate of new or returning directors, including Pat Brunker, Donald Dietz, William McDermott, J. Edward Gilmore, Nancy Hall, John McCormick, Phyllis Rodgers, Mary Lou Smith, Michael Spinelli, and Cheryl Smekal.  A number of By-Law proposals received approval with one change, suggested by Mr. Paul Schopp. Members approved his motion to change the quorum for a Board meeting to nine.  Click here find the full text of the By-Laws to passed June 9, 2011.

The massive original vault remains the focal point of the room. Round linen-covered banquet exhibit tables flanked the carpeted part of the room and chairs arranged in rows on a magnificent marble dance floor in the center of the space faced the vault. The high ceiling, large windows, and sparkling chandelier hanging from the center of a huge, ornately carved medallion that dominates the ceiling all served to create an elegant setting befitting the main portion of the meeting; to celebrate the life of Mrs. Betty B. Hahle, Town Historian, who passed away on April 17, 2011. A large photo collage poster of Mrs. Hahle placed next to the vault represented some of her many accomplishments and provided a backdrop for the remarks and accolades of the speakers.

President of the Historical Society of Riverton, Gerald Weaber, started by reviewing the life of Mrs. Hahle, highlighting her contributions to virtually every Riverton organization and stressing her dedication and commitment to preserving Riverton’s history and character.  Her meticulous investigating and record keeping, pursued with passion, earned her a place in Riverton’s history.  Mayor Robert Martin then presented a proclamation to the daughters of Mrs. Hahle, Donna Hahle Kirkland and Marilyn R. Hahle.

Several members of the audience shared memories of Betty Hahle by illustrating examples of her generosity in sharing her extensive knowledge of Riverton while others cited her success in raising her three daughters.

A four-part a capella group called Three Good Men smoothly segued into the entertainment part of the meeting by appropriately choosing “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” as their opening number. They continued the historical theme by serving up an eclectic mix of songs from classic barbershop to Rock & Roll and Doo-Wop, freely seasoned with jokes and puns. The inclusion of “God Bless America” and “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” on the same set list indicates the versatility of this talented quartet. We even learned history trivia; “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” (1942) was the first ever gold record. Clearly, the foursome achieved their website’s description of “the essence of Barbershop” by liberally “ringing chords” off those stately old bank walls for the entire performance.

Even a mid-meeting power outage which left only dimmed emergency lights to illuminate the chamber failed to dampen anyone’s spirit or curtail the marvelous entertainment from our a capella quartet, which fortunately required no electricity.  At the conclusion, HSR President Gerald Weaber invited participants to enjoy refreshments.  Three Good Men continued their convivial exhibition by harmonizing “Happy Birthday” for two HSR Geminis, Mrs. Linda McCormick and Mrs. Phyllis Rogers and serenading bride-to-be, Keri Antonucci with a song .

We sincerely thank the Antonucci Family for so generously extending to the Historical Society the use of this splendid facility for our Annual Meeting. Find out more about this new multi-purpose banquet hall and event facility at the Antonucci Ventures LLC website.

That was our last meeting for the summer, but check back often for more additions to this website. Our expanded HSR Board will be busy planning for the next 2011-2012 season. Please consider donating items to the Society as you de-clutter or downsize belongings. We also welcome your submissions of recollections, comments, photos, scans, etc. for possible publication in the Gaslight News or on this website.  - Co-written and photographed by: Mrs. Susan Dechnik and John McCormick

 

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Fashion Tales Come to the March 23, 2011 HSR Meeting

Posted on April 6, 2011 by John McCormick

Dear Readers: Mrs. Susan Dechnik, HSR Board member and one of my former teaching partners at RPS, writes today’s entry to accompany all of the great photos that she took at our recent meeting.  - JMcCormick

What can a purse tell about history or a hat about the man who wore it?  Ms. Kate Butler of Decotique.com and Mr. Greg Cristiano, proprietor of Teardrop Memories.com, brought their eclectic assortment of heirlooms and collectibles to the March HSR meeting to show us. They shared their extensive knowledge of antique apparel in the informative program, “Ladies and Gentlemen’s Accessories of the Past Victorian, Edwardian, and Depression Eras.”

Ms. Butler’s collection included antique purses, millinery, footwear, and vanity collectibles.  From handbags to hats and everything in between, including a Victorian-era bathing costume, Kate served up a richly illustrated account of how familiar objects changed through the centuries.

Greg Cristiano, Ms. Butler’s collaborator for the male portion of the fashion discussion, spoke authoritatively about mourning attire, mourning mementos, and men’s clothing items and accessories. Among other things, he brought a 19th century undertaker’s hat, a full-length black bearskin coat, and several unusual decorative mourning items constructed from the hair of the deceased loved one.

In the interactive part of the program the pair invited audience members to have vintage fashion items which they had brought evaluated. Often, the article came with a story connecting it to the owner’s relative, to which the presenters then added expert knowledge about the function and history of the piece. The lecture proved to be a fun and engaging way to relate to history and show how changing fashions and personal items can tell a fascinating story. Click here to download a video clip from the presentation. (It is less than two minutes, but it is a 102MB file.)  - Mrs. Susan Dechnik, HSR Board Member

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Titanic “Survivor” Speaks

Posted on November 30, 2010 by John McCormick

Alisa DuPuy, historical re-enactor

Alisa DuPuy is a historical re-enactor and middle school Frenchteacher who joined the HSR for an entertaining evening at the New Leaf Tea Room on Tuesday, November 30th at 7:30 PM.  Channeling the carefully researched personna of a fictional survivor of the 1912 Titanic sinking, Ms. DuPuy used authentic costume and the Victorian-themed decor of the tearoom to transport the audience back to the scene of the tragic sinking.

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Saint Patrick’s Day: McDermott’s Handy

Posted on March 17, 2010 by John McCormick

A concert of traditional Irish music at the Porch Club, including the dancers of the DeNogla School of Irish Dance.

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100th Anniversary of Riverton Public School

Posted on January 19, 2010 by John McCormick

John McCormick created a Power Point presentation of the history of the current building, as well as previous school buildings here in Riverton.

The presentation, held at Riverton School’s gym/all purpose room, invited current and former alumni and staff to share in the celebration.  Special events are planned throughout the year at the school district.

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Afternoon Tea with Mrs. Lincoln’s Coterie

Posted on November 7, 2009 by John McCormick

Riverton welcomed Mrs. Mary Todd Lincoln, wife of President Lincoln, to the New Leaf Tea Room for a special afternoon.  Guests were treated to an exquisite lunch tea, complete with a Civil War reenactment by actor Joann Tufo who protrayed a compelling Mrs. Lincoln.  The historically accurate and emotionally moving performance by Ms. Tufo brought rears to the eyes of guests upon hearing the tale of personal loss by the President’s wife who outlived three  of  her four sons and lost her husband to an assassin’s bullet.  The public education program was jointly sponsored by the HSR, and the New Leaf Tea Room and Gift Shoppe.  A special note of thanks to Phyllis Rodgers for hosting the program at her tea room in Riverton.

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