By Lea Kahn
Hogmanay, which is the Lawrence Historical Society’s annual New Year’s Eve bonfire, has been rescheduled for Saturday at the township-owned Brearley House. It will begin at 6 p.m.
The bonfire was postponed because the snow left over from the Dec. 26 snowstorm made it virtually impossible to park in the field at the 18th-century farmhouse, said Historical Society President Laura Nawrocik.
”There was so much snow in the middle of the meadow that you could not park and not get stuck,” Ms. Nawrocik said. The wind had blown the snow into snowdrifts that made it impossible to park there, she said.
Meadow Road, which is a narrow road that leads to the Brearley House, was further reduced in width because of the snowbanks created by the snowplow that cleared it, she said. Meadow Road is barely wide enough for two cars to pass.
And although snow showers are predicted for Friday, Ms. Nawrocik said, the Hogmanay bonfire will go on as scheduled Saturday night.
”The problem is not snow or rain as much as whether people can get into the meadow to park,” she said. “Unless there is another blizzard, I can’t see why we would postpone it.”
The bonfire, which is free and open to the public, has been a tradition of the Lawrence Historical Society since 1997, according to the society’s website, www.thelhs.org. It began as a way to showcase the Brearley House while it was undergoing restoration, and it proved to be so popular that it has become an annual event.
A bagpiper will play as participants toss into the bonfire a list of bad things from 2010 that they may wish to forget. Paper and pencils will be available for participants so they may make a list of bad things and toss it into the fire.
Hogmanay is a Scottish New Year’s celebration that has its roots in Puritan tradition, the website said. Hogmanay is the main winter holiday and includes many Christmas-like features, such as gift-giving.
The most important aspect of any Hogmanay celebration is cleansing for the new year. This includes paying off old debts, washing the home and banishing thoughts of bad happenings from the previous year.
For more information about the Hogmanay celebration, go to the Lawrence Historical Society’s website at www.thelhs.org.

