John Katerba calls himself a custodian of the past
By: Al Wicklund
MONROE John Katerba sees himself and his fellow historians as custodians of the past with a responsibility to future generations.
Mr. Katerba, 36, a resident of Monroe Township since birth, is expected to be appointed the township historian by Mayor Richard Pucci after the Township Council adopts an ordinance creating the unpaid position Monday.
There’s usually a holding period of 20 days between the adoption of an ordinance and its taking effect.
Even without the township title, Mr. Katerba, as historian-to-be, will have a busy October. The Township Council has had 18 enlargements of the many historical photos collected by Mr. Katerba placed on the council chamber walls, while other photos relating to the township’s history, which he gathered through the years, now adorn the walls of the Zoning Office and the Senior Center’s Conference Room, both located on the first floor of the Township Hall.
The council meeting room’s photographs are scheduled to have metal identification plates with historical information about them added. The information was supplied by Mr. Katerba.
Then, the Senior Center’s pictorial display will be dedicated by the Friends of the Senior Center in an Oct. 20 ceremony.
In addition, Mr. Katerba, author of the book "Monroe Township and Jamesburg," part of Arcadia Publishers’ Images of America series, is still collecting for the Dey Farm museum that will house historical pieces from Monroe’s past as well as objects and tools from the area’s agricultural past.
"We don’t own these pieces of history. We’re their caretakers. They belong to the successive generations that will follow us," Mr. Katerba said.
Mr. Katerba said, when his book was published, he was surprised by how small it was. The book was 5 by 9 inches with 128 pages.
"I had two cartons of material that eventually boiled down to be the core of the book," he said.
If there is a single thing that speaks volumes about Mr. Katerba’s dedication and determination, it’s an old barn that sits on his property.
Originally on an old farm on Route 33, he took the barn apart, carted it to his place and reassembled it a four-year project.
When he found the barn, it was scheduled to be torn down. He also found that the owners of the barn lived in Taiwan. He wrote to the owners asking that it not be destroyed and, after a six-month wait, received a response basically saying, "Save it."
Helped by his father and a friend, Mr. Katerba took the structure down to its frame. Then, he numbered the remaining pieces for re-building and took down the frame.
"After that, as I could afford it, it was assembled ," he said.
Mr. Katerba and his wife, Josephine, have been married for 10 years. They have two sons Joseph, 6, and Christopher, 4.
Mr. Katerba is chief inspector for the Monroe Township Utilities Authority.
He went through the Monroe schools, graduating from Monroe Township High School in 1984. He went to Middlesex County College, taking civil engineering courses.
Through all this as a boy collecting arrowheads or an adult visiting old farmhouses to gather information, old photos and items of historical interest for the developing Monroe museum he has been a history buff.
He said one of his pleasures is talking to third-grade classes at Mill Lake and Brookside schools about the local history that lies about them.
"I’ve been doing it for seven years. Every so often, youngsters will come up to me and tell me they remember my coming to their classes.
"I enjoy talking to them. History is all around us. It’s a legacy we all have the opportunity to share and pass on," Mr. Katerba said.