Historical Maps and Plans Storage

FAIN: PA-51528-06

County of Essex Department of Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs (Newark, NJ 07104-5873)
Joseph Lanzara (Project Director: May 2005 to September 2007)

The purchase of storage furniture and preservation supplies for maps, plans, and blueprints that document the development from 1895 to 1979 of a park system that has served Newark and its densely populated suburbs.

The Essex County Park Commission was established in 1895, becoming the first county park system in the country and a prototype for other multi-municipality park developments. The Commission archive contains unique evidence of the design process behind the creation of a park, as well as a century of changes. This project focuses on the historic maps and plans which identify properties to be acquired, indicate recreation trends, or illustrate the grading, landscaping, and structural elements of the parks. In order to preserve these valuable documents, the Department will purchase flat file storage and preservation supplies for rehousing the map and plan collection of the Park Commission as recommended by a preservation assessment.