Staff editorial
This weekend the Brearley House will open in Lawrence Township. After looking through some past Ledger articles, we feel the building should stand as a monument to the power of persistence.
For years, the township and proponents of historical preservation tried to take the 1761 John Brearley House and restore its original look.
This has certainly been a long time coming. The files in The Ledger offices contain three overflowing folders of material and clips concerning the Brearley House.
Attempts to restore the house — by the Historic and Aesthetic Commission, the Landmarks Advisory Committee, the Historic Preservation Advisory Committee, Township Council and the Lawrence Historical Society, to name a few — fell short for many years for a number of reasons. A sampling of headlines throughout the years from the pages of The Ledger concerning the house show the ups and downs of the effort since 1976:
• “Town seeks funding for historic tracts,” was a headline Aug. 11, 1976. The funding eventually helped purchase the house two years later.
• “Brearly (sic) house on panel’s priority list,” read a Page 16A headline Feb. 11, 1986.
• “Mayor wants house restored,” was a story Sept. 30, 1986.
• “Ten-year, $2.5 million plan developed,” was the headline of a Dec. 12, 1986 story about the Brearley Tract Advisory Committee coming up with a plan to preserve the property following two months of meetings.
• “To restore Brearley House; Panel to seek piece of new state bond issue,” was the title of a story about another attempt to gain Green Acres funding.
• “Ancestor seeks to restore historic home,” May 31, 1988, after John Brearley, a Burlington County resident and descendant of the man who built the Brearley House, expressed interest in cleaning up and preserving the house himself.
• “Pig farmer moves to new home,” on April 11, 1989 after pig farmer and Brearley House squatter Clarence Sibert moved to Burlington County after two years of attempts by Township Council to evict him.
• “Brearley House grant rejected,” on Sept. 3, 1991, detailed the loss of a New Jersey Historic Trust matching grant for $480,000.
• “Council drops rehab plan for Baker-Brearley House,” Jan. 12, 1995, when Township Council decided not to seek a matching grant from the state to restore the house.
• “A savior for Brearley House; Historical Society agrees to seek donations,” April 12, 1995, is a story detailing the society’s decision to raise money as a way to persuade council to apply for the grant.
• “Historical Society attains $175,000 goal for Brearley House,” from Feb. 13, 1997, tells of the achievement of a goal set by Township Council for the society to reach in order get council to apply for the state matching grant.
• “Lawrence wins grant for Brearley House renewal,” Dec. 18, 1997. The headline tells all. The township was now ready to move ahead with restoration of the house.
That probably represents less than one-quarter of the stories we’ve done about the house over the years. It’s a long tale to tell.
Come and see what all the fuss has been about for the past 24 years — or 239 years for that matter. Aside from learning about the past, there will be lots of interesting things going on to pique your interest. Learn about the town you live you in.
Even kids can have a good time. They could think of the house as motivation to be persistent: If you keep pestering your parents, you too can get what you want, whether it’s an American Revolution-era house, or a new Sega Dreamcast. It’s up to you.