A Craftsman Farms Chronology

By Mark Alan Hewitt, AIA

1905, Fall

Gustav Stickley moves his publishing business from Syracuse to New York City and takes an apartment there; Craftsman showrooms established at 29 West 34th Street.

Homer Davenport, the Hearst newspaper cartoonist, prepares “Red Gables,” his country estate in Morris Plains, N.J., for year round occupancy; Stickley is among the first guests at the compound.

1907

Stickley makes his second trip to California, visits Pasadena and sees the work of Charles and Henry Greene.

The Craftsman magazine changes its editorial direction to feature more articles on home products, decorative arts, architecture, gardening and do-it-ourself crafts.

1908, March

Stickley's account books indicate weekly fares between New York and Morris Plains on the Lackawanna & Western line as he looks to buy property in the area.

1908, June

Stickley pays $900 to Homer Davenport for 30 acres of land adjoining Red Gables in Morris Plains.

1908, July

A second purchase of 58 acres is transacted for $7,000; The Jerseyman reports that Stickley has bought three parcels of land in the area – one from Davenport, one from Condict and 10 acres from “Mary Tuttle and the Garrigus farm.”

1908, September

First $500 payment made to realtor Harvey Genung for larger parcels north of Whatnong Mountain and Mount Pleasant Turnpike in Morris Plains; over $10,000 expended by March 1909.

1908, October

First designs for cottages at Craftsman Farms published in The Craftsman; articles follow on the club house and the house Stickley intends to build for himself; Stickley announces his plans for a farm school on the property.

1908

Lumber, farm animals and supplies purchased from local Morristown merchants; account established with Daniel M. Merchant's Morris Plains General Store; Stickley pays Charles White, a New York employee, to manage his new agricultural properties.

1909

Craftsman Homes published in New York, selling for $2.00; runs to three editions and sells more than 20,000 copies, according to the magazine.

1909, July

Construction of three cottages begins at Craftsman Farms; landscaping and farming enterprises increase.

1910, March

Construction of cottages finished; accounts with Voorhees Building Supply and Messlar Plumbing indicate major construction; further parcels of land purchased from Sister of Saint Elizabeth.

1910, April

Account books indicate “packing crockery goods to Morris Plains from Syracuse.”

1910, July

Gustav's wife Eda Stickley and daughters Mildred, Hazel, Marion and Ruth move from Syracuse to one of the completed cottages in Morris Plains.

Construction begins on the log house; invoices in account books indicate expenditures of over $3,000 from June 9 to July 31, 1911.

1911, July

The Jerseyman reports on a dance at Craftsman Farms attended by “sixty young people” and hosted by the four Stickley daughters then living at the farms.

1911, August

Log house construction nearing completion; roof and interior finishing completed in the fall.

1911, November

Natalie Curtis' The New Log House at Craftsman Farms published in The Craftsman with first photographs of the Farms; Stickley family in residence on the property.

1915, March

Gustav Stickley forced to declare bankruptcy in New York; papers filed indicate a second mortgage of $50,000 on 24 New Jersey properties.

1917, September

George and Sylvia Weinberg (later known as Farny) purchase the entire 650-acre Craftsman Farms, including building and furnishings, for approximately $100,000. The Jerseyman reports that this is less than half of what Stickley had expended on the property.

Craftsman Farms in the Modern Age: A Brief Chronology

By David W. Lowden

1983, October

Township of Parsippany-Troy Hills co-sponsors Stickley Day, a series of events which includes a tour of Craftsman Farms and an exhibition of Stickley family furniture from Craftsman Farms.

1984, Fall

Township nominates Craftsman Farms for listing on the New Jersey State Register of Historic places (listed in May 1985).

1987, January

Developer with contract to purchase Craftsman Farms files application for use variance to allow development of 52 townhouses.

1987, March

Township applies for $1.5 million in Green Acres Loan funds to buy Craftsman Farms (awarded in September 1987 and accepted in March 1989).

1988, April

Township, in conjunction with Morris County Trust for Historic Preservation, the New Jersey Historic Trust and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, commissions a feasibility study to determine appropriate uses of Craftsman Farms. The study recommended Township acquisition of Craftsman Farms and management by a nonprofit corporation.

1988, November

Parsippany voters overwhelmingly approve the establishment of an Open Space Trust Fund to fund the purchase of Craftsman Farms.

1989, January

Craftsman Farms Foundation is incorporated.

1989, April

Township council authorizes acquisition of Craftsman Farms with Green Acres funds and Open Space Trust Funds.

1989, May

Craftsman Farms is placed on National Register of Historic Places and nominated for National Historic Landmark status (granted December 1990 and plaque presented October 1991).

1989, December

Township takes possession of Craftsman Farms by eminent domain.

1990, April

Farms opens to visitors with all-day seminars, evening event for Charter Members and Sunday open house.

1991, June

Foundation and Township sign Operating Agreement.

1991, July

New Jersey Historic Trust Announces $100,000 Matching grant for Phase One renovation work, pursuant to the Historic Preservation Bond Program.

1992, November

Foundation organizes first major catalogued exhibition, Gustav Stickley – His Craft.

1994, April

Restoration begins in Phase One project (roof).

1995, June

New Jersey Historic Trust announces second $100,000 matching grant for Phase Two renovation work.

1995, Fall

Foundation organizes second major catalogued exhibition, Innovation and Derivation: The Contribution of L. & J.G. Stickley to the Arts and Crafts Movement.

1996, October

National Trust awards the Foundation, the Township and the New Jersey Historic Trust a National Preservation Honor Award.

1997, October

Restoration begins in Phase Two project (handicapped bathroom and interior work).