MANALAPAN – Lydia S. Wikoff, who served as Manalapan’s township historian for more than 25 years, died June 3.
In a message to the community, Manalapan Mayor Susan Cohen expressed the township’s sympathies to the Wikoff family.
“Mrs. Wikoff was the township historian for more than 25 years and had shared much historical information not only with those in Manalapan, but within all of Monmouth County.
“She lived in Manalapan since she was 2 years old and spent her youth on the Stillwell homestead farm at Gordons Corner until she was married.
“In 1952, Mrs. Wikoff and her husband, Charles, purchased the Killdee farmstead that was built in 1851 on Tennent Road near Gordons Corner Road,” Cohen said.
The Wikoff farm is now a preserved open space parcel along Route 9 north, just north of the Gordons Corner Road overpass in Manalapan.
“Mrs. Wikoff’s memory and understanding of the town’s history and the genealogy of its inhabitants was integral to preserving our past,” Cohen said. “She worked tirelessly to keep alive and share the historical significance of Manalapan with current and future generations.
“During her long and productive lifetime, Lydia Wikoff earned the respect and affection of people from all walks of life and all ages because of her knowledge, experience, wisdom and community spirit.
“As a township we send our condolences to her entire family. She will truly be missed, but her history will live on forever in Manalapan,” the mayor said.
According to her obituary, Wikoff was predeceased by her husband in 2008. She is survived by her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The family asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Battleground Historical Society, P.O. Box 61, Tennent, NJ 07763.