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South Plainfield Historical Society, Headquarters at the History Center: 115 Sylvania Place (Highland Woods Nature Reserve), South Plainfield, NJ (2026)

06/19/2026

SPHS Centennial Celebration Series:
25/ MIDDLESEX VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY

A 1906 field fire that spread ½ mile from New Market Avenue to the Steengrafe farm buildings on Montrose Avenue, causing $5000 in damages, might have been the last straw for So. Plainfield’s residents. The growing community faced increasing fire risks due to development and insufficient prevention measures by the Township of Piscataway. Action had to be taken to protect the lives and property of the residents.

The Good Government Club, a local civic organization which had most recently been agitating for the implementation of a trolley line and bus service to So. Plainfield, assumed the cause in the summer of 1906 to investigate organizing a fire company. Over the next months, they successfully rallied public support and volunteers that culminated in the establishment of the Middlesex Volunteer Fire Company on May 17, 1907.

Patrick F. Kaine was named chairman and the following were chosen officers: President, Harry J. Manning; vice president, David Bigley; recording secretary, Charles H. Brantingham; financial secretary, Frank E. Faulks; treasurer, Robert Horn; steward, Monroe Pyatt; chief, William Hamilton; foreman, William Reilly; assistant foreman, Michael Day; second assistant foreman, A.V. Springer.

Board of directors included: Rev. Charles Atlee of the Baptist Church, Judge William E. Smith, Reune B. Manning, Archie Steengrafe, Patrick J. McDonough, Thomas Linaberry, Frank Miller, Charles Jackson, and Michael Day.

The Fire Company headquarters on Lehigh Avenue (Hamilton Boulevard) was a small building on a lot purchased from Nelson Webster where they met for the first time on Sept. 16, 1908. Initially, the team operated with minimal equipment -- 24 fire buckets for hastily summoned brigades, three axes, two bars, two hooks, a 35-foot ladder and 100 feet of rope -- but gradually expanded their resources. Fire Chief William Hamilton, a blacksmith, built the first hose cart in 1908 and gave it to the company the following year when 1,000 feet of hose was obtained. Members subsequently built a hose drying tower where an alarm bell, a gift from the Piscataway Board of Education, would hang from the top until 1922. The cart was hand-pulled until Joseph Delaney hitched it to the back of his flivver.

Unfortunately, this was not enough to meet the first major challenge of the young fire company. On January 6, 1909, a windswept nighttime fire erupted at the New Brooklyn Grist Mill on Spring Lake. The ancient timbers of the centuries old landmark burned out of control as roofing shingles, corn sacks and other combustible debris caught fire and scattered in the wind, threatening to ignite Patrick Kaine’s house 200 feet away. His house stood between the mill and the village. If it caught fire, the village would have been destroyed. According to an eyewitness, Edward M. Ten Eyck, Sr., the firefighters took a 100-foot hose from the nearby Middlesex Water Company pumping station and trained it on Kaine’s house, keeping it soaked for hours until the danger passed. The Plainfield Fire Department assisted. No other fire occurred that night. The mill was lost and never rebuilt, but the village survived.

Several years of fundraising and a loan from the recently established So. Plainfield Building and Loan Association culminated in the construction of a 2-story, 2-bay cement block firehouse next to Webster headquarters in 1913. Charles E. Drake, the contractor, completed the building at the end of August for $2,000. The ground floor was used for vehicles, and the second floor for recreation. The original firehouse was sold to William Ledden who served as mayor from 1935-38. The building was later repurchased from Ledden and repurposed for storage.

The company continued to expand its equipment over the next few years. The first motorized equipment was purchased in 1917, a Republic truck chassis which Chief Hamilton built a wooden frame body, followed by a 600-gallon American LaFrance pumper in 1926. After the Borough was incorporated in 1926, the equipment was deeded to the municipality, and the group’s name changed to the So. Plainfield Volunteer Fire Department. The newly formed Borough proceeded to rent the second floor for offices until 1961 with the construction of the Municipal Building on Plainfield Avenue.

The 1930s brought new growth. In 1936, the department launched a junior program for local teens. In 1938, it bought its first major apparatus for $11,000: a hose-and-ladder truck with floodlights, a 200-gallon booster tank, a portable generator, and 225 feet of ladders.

As South Plainfield grew, so did its fire department. In 1949, a second firehouse opened at Hamilton Boulevard and Evona Place near today’s Roosevelt Elementary School. Known as the South Side Firehouse, it improved service to the south end before the Lakeview Avenue bridge, when Lehigh Valley rail traffic often delayed cross-town travel. The building was demolished in 1995 because of roof problems. In 1958, the council approved two full-time fire inspectors: Peter Ackerman and David Darge.

In 1963, the department began receiving calls through an in-house phone alert system. A few years later, dispatch moved to the municipal building, where 9-1-1 operators now coordinate police, fire, EMS, emergency management, and fire prevention. That year also brought the Joseph E. Delaney Scholarship Fund, still awarded annually to a South Plainfield High School senior in honor of a former chief.

Today, South Plainfield has about 24,000 residents across 8.3 square miles. The fire department serves them with three engines, an aerial ladder truck, a rescue truck, a water/ice rescue vehicle, a brush truck, a boat, and three command SUVs. Its current firehouse, built in 1967 at 123 Maple Avenue, is owned by the South Plainfield Exempt Association and leased to the borough.

06/14/2026

ROBERT GWIAZDA's TRAINS ARE BACK!
June 27-28, SP Public Library.

06/12/2026

SPHS Centennial Celebration Series:
24/ Part 2 -- IMPORTANT PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS 1907-1911

HOLLY FARM to MENDEL: (c. 1907)
One of South Plainfield’s first large-scale residential developments began with Milton Mendel’s purchase of John I. Holly’s 100-acre farm off Park Avenue around 1907. It appeared to be a sound investment by the New York lawyer who was attracted to Plainfield and its suburbs for much the same reasons as Holly and many wealthy Wall Street financiers and industrialists. Known as “The Queen City,” Plainfield was a thriving resort destination whose scenic countryside and healthy climate — promoted by a local newspaper publisher as the “Colorado of the East” — drew businessmen, their families, and developers for weekend visits and summer stays, often inspiring the construction of both grand estates and smaller seasonal homes.

In 1908, Mendel and Elk Realty issued a plat map illustrating how Holly Park would be divided into lots, blocks, and streets. Advertisements directed at “nerve-tired” New Yorkers seeking quiet summer retreats in the country touted “artistically built bungalows with steam heat, bath and every modern convenience, wide porches, and open fireplaces for $2,500 upwards. Pay like rent -- $30 monthly.” Amenities included unrestricted use of Holly Lake for boating, swimming, fishing, and skating, with access to club stables in the near future. The bungalow colony was close to Plainfield Country Club Golf Links and passenger train service on the Lehigh Valley and Central Jersey. Mendel pledged to preserve the area’s natural beauty in a parklike setting while providing modern conveniences, including gas, electricity, and water.

Excluded from development plans were Holly Lake and the 18-room Holly farmhouse that Mendel shared with his parents, Gustav and Nettie, and one or two servants on (West) Crescent Parkway. Gustav, a German native, immigrated to the United States at age 14 and settled in Cincinnati for 50 years. During the Civil War, he prospered as a manufacturer of Union Army uniforms. After the war, he founded Corbin, Mendel & Co., a wholesale liquor firm, and Mendel & Co., makers of high-end wardrobe trunks. The family moved to New York in 1896, and to South Plainfield with the purchase of property.

Published real estate transactions reported to local newspapers by Middlesex County suggest that sales of Holly Park lots were initially slow. During this period, Mendel also pursued other ventures both civic and business, though some are difficult to date precisely.

HOLLY LAKE
In 1917, the Plainfield Courier-News called Holly Park “an embryonic Atlantic City.” Over several years, Mendel had turned the small, shallow, spring-fed lake behind the homestead into a popular recreation spot for swimming. Originally kept for the enjoyment of John I. Holly’s four children in the 1890s, the lake in 1915 attracted hundreds of paying visitors, many from outside the area. As its popularity soared, Mendel grew concerned that the lake was too small for the increasing numbers of patrons, causing him to limit access to those he knew while closing it to the general public.

Two years later, Holly Park Bathing Beach reopened to the public after Mendel’s most ambitious renovation was completed. The lake had been drained, cleaned, and expanded to nine acres to accommodate more patrons and its depth increased gradually toward the center to support a planned diving platform. Hundreds of wagonloads of sand had been spread across the lakebed and banks to give it the appearance of a seaside resort. Mendel also added fifty rental bathhouses, a refreshment stand, and electric lights for evening swimming. Admission was 15 cents for adults and 10 cents for children on weekdays, increasing to 25 cents and 15 cents on weekends and holidays. The Suburban Transit Company ran buses from Proctor’s Theater in Plainfield on both weekdays and weekends. Under Mendel’s management, the operation was highly successful and continued to attract hundreds of summer visitors.

Mendel leased the bathing beach concession to George Blair in 1920, then to the Keiler brothers in 1923. Creative promoters, they attracted not only swimmers but also visitors looking for other forms of entertainment, adding a merry-go-round, pony rides, water slides and a dance pavilion where large crowds of young people Charlestoned the night away with Allie Maiden and the Syncopators performing. They also built a new road over the old dam in the middle lake, giving cars access from Maple Avenue to the amusement area on the south side.

Some events attracted thousands of spectators, including the 1926 Mardi Gras festival, which featured a bathing beauty contest, swimming and diving exhibitions, lifeguard demonstrations, fireworks, dancing, and music from 1 p.m. to midnight. On another occasion, a daredevil pilot staged aerial stunts over the lake, even skimming the water with the plane’s wheels.

The crowds drawn to Holly Park’s attractions — especially the dance pavilion — were not universally welcomed. Neighbors brought their concerns to the Borough Council twice; the first time, Councilman Mendel — himself an elected member from 1926-29 — heard the complaints firsthand. The Keilers’ lease, set to expire in the fall of 1927, was not renewed, and the structures they had added, including the dance pavilion and cabanas, were removed.

Mendel kept the beach open in 1928, but swimming ended in 1929 after the cement bridge at the far end of the lake collapsed, draining water into Spring Lake. In 1930, residents asked the Borough Council to regulate amusement venues before Mendel could lease the site again. The Council passed a resolution and instructed borough attorney Andrew L. McDonough to draft an ordinance regulating such places. Holly Park Bathing Beach closed permanently. Mendel and his wife, Eunice, operated Holly Park Midget Golf Links at Park and Maple from 1930 to 1931, after which it disappeared from the public record.

CAMP HOLLY
When the United States entered World War I on April 6, 1917, officials feared food shortages as farmworkers left for military service. New Jersey responded by urging residents to grow food at home so more could be sent overseas. Later that month, Plainfield launched Camp Holly on more than 70 acres of idle South Plainfield farmland at Holly Park, funded by a $5,000 private donation. Teaming up with Plainfield and North Plainfield High School for labor, the Boy Scouts of America for structure, and Milton Mendel for the use of Holly Farm, “Camp Holly” on (West) Crescent Parkway would be hailed as “one of the largest agricultural propositions using boy labor in the United States.”

Boys 14 and older in good academic standing were eligible to participate in the war garden project and live at Camp Holly for the growing season. The Boy Scouts managed the camp, Rutgers-trained farm supervisors ran operations, and the Plainfield Board of Health oversaw sanitation. Campers received room, board, a share of profits, and one dollar a week for up to eight hours of work a day, five days a week. They lived in tents and ate communally. For recreation, Mendel allowed them to use Holly Lake for fishing, swimming, and boating. Later, a house on the property was rented from Mendel and served as a recreation center.

The first boys arrived in May when planting began, with more joining through June. All received practical farm training. By May 25, the first 15 acres were planted as Woodbrook Farm’s rented steam tractors continued to plow and fertilize further acreage. At the end of July, Camp Holly’s first crop of beans, peas, cucumbers, beets, and other veggies went on sale at Boy Scout Headquarters on Front Street in Plainfield. As the growing season progressed, the boys harvested cantaloupes, watermelons, bush limas, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, field corn, sweet corn, and winter squash that drew praise from agricultural experts.

The camp closed in early October after a large bean harvest involving 200 boys. Although Camp Holly was not revived in 1918, it reflected the broader home-front effort and Milton Mendel’s generosity that turned idle land into food production during World War I.

LAKESIDE HAVEN OF REST
Mendel’s Lakeside Haven of Rest presents a puzzling timeline and the unrealized promise of an intriguing business venture. He intended to convert part of the 18-room homestead into a quiet country retreat for weary city residents.

A small brochure was produced for distribution describing Plainfield’s easy access by train from New York and its location just beyond the city line. Prospective clients were reminded of the city’s clean air and invigorating climate that helped it earn the nickname “the Colorado of the East.” Few towns could rival its pure air, good water, and attractive scenery—qualities believed to restore health and relieve stress and fatigue.

The Haven promised abundant opportunities for open-air living. Set beside a clear, nine-acre spring-fed lake and surrounded by broad lawns, mature shade trees, and sunny verandas, it offered an especially appealing outdoor setting. Business and professional men and women seeking rest would find it an ideal weekend retreat for boating and bass fishing.

The interior was designed to match the appeal of the grounds, with inviting reception areas and private rooms. Bright, comfortably furnished spaces created a restful, home-like atmosphere and included electric lighting, telephone service, and call bells to summon nurses when needed.

Guests were promised attentive care and, when necessary, access to visiting physicians or the option to consult their own doctor. The Haven was equipped to care for guests with nervous or heart conditions, convalescents, and others needing rest or a special diet. It also offered full maternity care, including the option of the then-new twilight sleep method. Electric baths, massage, and vibratory treatments were available.

Rates ranged from $25.00 to $60.00, with special treatments priced according to individual needs.

Apart from its promotional brochure, the Lakeside Haven of Rest appears to have left no discernible trace in local memory or newspaper coverage. In practical terms, it existed only as a proposal. The retreat never opened, apparently because Mendel was unable to secure the necessary staff. Carmen Helmer Smith, Mendel’s sister-in-law, confirmed that the spa was never established.

The remaining question is when was this proposed? One clue appears in the brochure: Mendel describes the lake as nine acres. It was enlarged to that size in 1917. However, it seems unlikely that people seeking rest and relaxation would have shared the setting with hundreds of noisy visitors at Holly Park Bathing Beach.

AMERICAN SILVER CO. to MENDEL: Driving Park/Fairground (May 1911)
The sale of the Plainfield Driving Park/county fairgrounds to Milton Mendel in the spring of 1911 marked the end of a venerable and beloved institution begun in the 1860s. The 35-acre plot extending from Park to Woodland Avenue facing the Plainfield Country Club was slated for residential development in the near future, but Mendel allowed racing and other activities to continue.

MENDEL to HOLLY CREST REALTY: Driving Park/Fairgrounds (August 1911)
In August, Mendel transferred the same property to Holly Crest Realty Co. of New York, led by J.B. Schwabacher. Activities at the park continued through most of 1912. In November the barns, grandstand, judges’ stand, and fencing were offered for sale for immediate removal. A plat dated November 12, 1912, outlined the layout of lots, blocks, and streets for Holly Crest.

Schwabacher would soon form Avon Park Realty Corporation and purchase the property north of Holly Crest to Maple Avenue between Woodland and Park Avenues. By the beginning of 1919, contractors were grading and cutting streets in Avon Park.

South Plainfield was in a housing boom.

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06/05/2026

SPHS Centennial Celebration Series:
23/ Part 1 -- IMPORTANT PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS 1887-1906

In the early years of our community’s history, water-powered mills helped shape a distinct local identity. A sawmill built on Bound Brook in the late 1600s and a grist mill built on Cedar Brook in the early 1700s attracted workers and supported the growth of the villages of Brooklyn and Samptown. The arrival of the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1875 further set the community apart from rural Piscataway Township. By the late 1800s, South Plainfield stood at the edge of transformation as railroad expansion promised a new era. But one obstacle remained: one of the mills stood directly in the railroad’s path.

RYNO to LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD: Sawmill (1887)
In 1887, a significant property transaction took place when the Lehigh Valley Railroad (LVRR) acquired William Ryno’s sawmill located on Bound Brook. The LVRR sought to establish a terminal near New York City on the Hudson River, necessitating the purchase of Ryno’s land. William Ryno, a respected member of the community and Civil War veteran, served in the 3rd New Jersey Militia, participating in both Battles of Bull Run, as well as other major engagements with the 8th New Jersey, including Williamsburg and the Seven Days Battles. Following his discharge due to injuries sustained in service, he returned to operate his sawmill in 1862. In September 1887, Ryno agreed to sell his property to the railroad for $5,000. Subsequently, the Roselle and South Plainfield Railway—a nine-mile extension—was constructed by the LVRR in 1888, connecting the Easton and Amboy Railroad with the Central Railroad of New Jersey. This new route granted access via CNJ to the Hudson River waterfront in Jersey City. In December of the same year, the inaugural train, consisting of loaded freight cars traversed the newly opened South Plainfield and Roselle branch, pulled by Engine No. 163.

The railroad continued expanding its holdings in So. Plainfield by purchasing additional farms belonging to Ryno’s neighbors, including John Kenny, E.B. Boice, Cranmer and Lowe, S. Geary, and Abel Laing, investing $40,000 to obtain 400 acres, some of it utilized for the construction of the Metuchen Road coal storage facility in 1891. On its heels came the Victorian passenger station in 1892 and switch tower in 1900. Passenger operations connected South Plainfield with major hubs, including Pennsylvania Station in New York City and Jersey City, allowing residents to easily commute and trade. The LVRR operated passenger services through the Borough for decades until the service was officially discontinued on February 4, 1961.

BRAKER to BERGEN: Brooklyn Grist Mill and Water Rights (1895)
In 1895, a pivotal land transaction occurred when ownership of the notable grist mill and its associated water rights changed hands, paving the way for the establishment of a significant public utility that remains in operation today.

Throughout the American Colonial era and into the nineteenth century, New Jersey's economy was predominantly agricultural. In Middlesex County, residents primarily relied on wells or surface water sources, which rendered centralized water supply systems unnecessary at the time. However, post-Civil War population growth and industrialization highlighted the inadequacy of local water resources to support ongoing expansion. As a result, the necessity for organized water supply systems became clear, exemplified by Hackensack Water receiving its state charter in 1869.

Historically, water companies and investment entities acquired industrial properties, such as mills and farmland, specifically to obtain their valuable water rights. By 1890, the New Brooklyn grist mill was under the ownership of the Braker brothers (also known as the Baker brothers, Conrad Jr. and Henry J.), prominent New York City businessmen with considerable interests in chemicals, fertilizers, real estate, and investments.

In 1893, W.E. Smith, proprietor of the adjacent Brookside Farm, announced plans to acquire the mill property to produce lactose — a critical ingredient in homeopathic medicines and pharmaceutical preparations — which would have created approximately 150 jobs. The venture, however, failed within a year, resulting in the assets being auctioned publicly in November 1894.

• 1890: The Braker (Baker) family of New York owned the mill property.
• January 1893: American Lactose Co. and W.E. Smith secured (likely through lease) the mill property and water rights.
• November 15, 1894: Assets of American Lactose Co. were sold at public auction.
• October 21, 1895: Frank Bergen, President of both the Plainfield Water Supply Company and the Union Water Company, alongside his wife Lydia, purchased the South Plainfield mill property — including the grist mill, the former lactose factory building, barn, all water rights, the pond, adjacent lands, and the residence of miller W.D. Randolph — from H.J. Braker for $13,000.

BERGEN to MIDLAND WATER COMPANY (1896)
• May 1896: Midland Water Company was incorporated by Frank Bergen, Edward M. Wood, and Maline W. Halsey, with capital stock set at $200,000.

The corporation aimed to develop the South Plainfield water supply to serve Somerset, Union, and Middlesex counties. Test wells near the mill confirmed an ample flow of high-quality spring water, comparable to that consumed in Plainfield.

• May 1896: The Bergens transferred ownership of the property and assets to the Midland Water Company for $25,000.

MIDLAND WATER CO. to MIDDLESEX WATER CO. (1897)
• May 11, 1897: Middlesex Water Company was formed by William H. Corbin to provide water to northeastern Middlesex County and industrial clients along Staten Island Sound.

Each company possessed distinct assets: Middlesex Water Company had a substantial customer base, while Midland owned vital water sources.

• 1897: Middlesex Water Company acquired Midland Water Company for $1, appointing Bergen as president of the unified organization, which retained the name Middlesex Water Company.

Existing leases — to Randolph for milling and to the McDonough brothers for ice harvesting — were upheld following the merger. A fire in 1909 destroyed the mill; the company opted not to rebuild, focusing solely on water resource management.

For more than 129 years, Middlesex Water Company (NASDAQ:MSEX) has delivered regulated and non-regulated water and wastewater utility services, mainly in New Jersey and Delaware. The company remains engaged in collecting, treating, distributing, and selling water for domestic, commercial, municipal, industrial, and fire protection purposes. The County of Middlesex purchased the water company property in 1974 and eventually created a 127-acre flood detention basin and recreation area dedicated as Spring Lake Park in 1984.

LOIZEAUX to HADLEY: Isaac Dayton Farm (1906)
Benjamin F. Hadley, English-born editor and publisher of a Plainfield, NJ, insurance publication, purchased the 117.19-acre farm formerly owned by Isaac Dayton on Stelton Road in Piscataway from J.D. Loizeaux Lumber Company of Plainfield in December 1906. The property (Hadley Field) will be discussed in a future installment of this series.

NEXT INSTALLMENT
24/ Part 2 – IMPORTANT PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS (1907-1911)
Sale and development of Holly Farm and the Plainfield Driving Park/Fairgrounds.

05/29/2026

SPHS Centennial Celebration Series:
22/ JOHN I. HOLLY

His last name has become associated with many locations and businesses in South Plainfield. Starting in 1877 with Holly Grove Farm, it later appeared in real estate developments (such as Holly Park, Holly Crest, and Holly Manor), properties (Holly House and Holly Hill farm), streets (Holly Street, Holly Avenue, Holly Park Drive), businesses (including Holly Park Diner, Holly Park Video, Holly Park Insurance, Holly Park Florist, Holly Park Mower Service, and Holly Park Realty), land features (like Holly Pond, Holly Lake, and Holly Brook), Holly Park Boy Scout Troop #1, and the Holly Grove Herd of award-winning cattle.

John I. Holly, born 1844 in Stamford, CT, was a man of wealth, influence and social standing who could trace his ancestry to the Mayflower’s arrival at Plymouth in 1620. He was president of the Commercial Alliance Insurance Company of New York City, and an important man in the Standard Oil Company, as well as a Colonel in the New York National Guard, 65th Regiment, Company C of Brooklyn. He lived part-time, then full-time for 30+ years in South Plainfield beginning with the acquisition of 46 acres at the southern end of Park Avenue and along Oak Tree Avenue around 1873.

Like many wealthy Wall Street financiers and New York industrial leaders, John Holly was drawn to Plainfield and the surrounding area as it changed from a rural village into an affluent Victorian suburb and resort destination in the early 1870s. This marked the start of Plainfield’s Gilded Age, fueled by Central Railroad of New Jersey passenger service, which brought businessmen, their families, and developers to the picturesque countryside for weekend visits or summer stays that often led to the construction of large permanent estates. John Holly was one of them.

Holly acquired at least three more properties along the Park Avenue corridor in South Plainfield, including a major expansion in 1877 of the Park and Oak Tree tract to 275 acres — an area that today includes Oak Park Commons and the open-space parcel formerly part of ASARCO. Holly Grove Farm stretched north and south along Park Avenue, east and west along Oak Tree Avenue, and north along Woodland Avenue.

Holly’s Jersey cattle breeding and dairy operation at the farm achieved national recognition for its all-around excellence. The facility featured advanced architectural designs capable of accommodating approximately 80 head of cattle, and was equipped with steam-powered grist mills, grain carriers, silos, platform scales, steam pumps, integrated water and gas distribution systems, and an innovative ventilation system.

The stock that Holly imported and selectively bred consistently exhibited superior quality in both competitive shows and auctions. The registered Holly Grove Jersey herd was carefully developed to become one of the nation’s premier dairy herds, renowned for producing dairy products of exceptional quality. Holly achieved prominence within the Jersey cattle breeders' national organization, serving as president, secretary, and treasurer of the association. He was respected for his extensive knowledge of Jersey cattle breeding lines and promotion of the breed in America.

His foremost passion, however, was for horses. Recognized as an accomplished horseman, he participated in trotter races, rode with the Watchung Hunt Club, and organized numerous equestrian events for Plainfield’s distinguished equestrian community. At Holly Grove, one barn was exclusively reserved for his carriage horses, hunters, and racers.

Holly and his colleagues who shared interests in cattle and horses served as officers and directors of the Union and Middlesex Counties Mutual Agricultural Association. This group purchased the Plainfield Driving Park in the early 1870s and inaugurated the area's first County Fair in 1879 where they showcased their own livestock. Although the fair was discontinued after five years, it was not attributed to any fault of the association. Holly remained involved with the association following the reorganization of the group in 1884 when harness racing resumed at the track. In 1887, Holly Grove was sold to Civil War veteran General Samuel K. Schwenk, who continued its breeding and dairy operations.

After the sale of the dairy farm, the Holly family bought the former Laing farm on upper Park Avenue across from the fairgrounds and made it their permanent home. The estate, spanning 100+ acres, featured a scenic 700-foot driveway flanked by established maple trees leading from Park Avenue. A 6-acre spring-fed pond on the property provided recreation, while the expansive, c. 1801 three-story wood-framed house boasted 18 rooms with bright interiors and sun-drenched verandas. From its elevated position on the south side of the pond — about 150 feet away — the house overlooked more stately trees, lush lawns, a stable for Holly’s horses, an icehouse, and the picturesque 60-foot-wide pond that stretched roughly 200 feet along modern-day Maple Avenue where Holly’s children spent many hours boating and fishing in the well-stocked pond.

The Holly family’s busy social life, first established in New York, continued in Plainfield. As Wall Street wealth poured into the area, Plainfield became both a fashionable weekend escape and a year-round home for many of the nation’s wealthiest residents. High society filled its calendar with resort galas at the famed Hotel Netherwood, dinner parties, fox hunts, harness racing at the fairgrounds, and private recreation at the new Hillside Tennis and Golf Club on Woodland Avenue, now the Plainfield Country Club. Two of Holly’s daughters, Margaret and Mary, became tennis champions there.

Holly was active in community affairs, particularly in the early days of the movement to separate from Piscataway. He retired following the death of his wife in 1906 and moved back to Connecticut in 1907 when the farm was sold to Milton Mendel. His daughters remained in the area, and his son joined the navy. Holly died in 1911.

Notably in 1907, Margaret began a 31-year career as executive secretary of the Charity Organization Society of Plainfield and No. Plainfield. Though she grew up privileged and in the lap of luxury, her life was defined by aiding the poor and needy to bring relief to the plight of the less fortunate. Upon her death, flags in Plainfield were flown half-staff.

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