Five years ago, as part of the N.J. Meadowlands Commission’s Oral History Project, we interviewed lots of folks about the region in the old days. We are reprinting the best of them here, every Tuesday, for 11 weeks. This week: Mae DeVoe, one of the first Meadowlands residents to participate in this blog’s Oral History project. She passed away in 2012.

Raised in North Arlington in the 1920s and 1930s, Mae DeVoe loved growing up in the Meadowlands.

In this audio interview, Mae shares several colorful recollections from a childhood spent exploring copper mines, skating on the old Jersey City Waterworks reservoir and attending high school dances.

Mae also talks about life in North Arlington during the Depression and World War II.

In the following audio clips, Mae recalls exploring the old copper mines off Schuyler Avenue and the Belleville Turnpike.

Mae’s recorded reminiscences follow. Continue reading →

NJMC Naturalist Emeritus Don Smith and his wife, Joan Hansen, were checking some marshes near the Hackensack River yesterday when they came upon a roadside owl — a Snowy Owl, to be exact.

Both took some pix. A favorite: Don’s photo of the Snowy with the Empire State Building in the background (belwo).

Now, if someone had a spotting scope on the Empire State Building’s Observation Deck….

(Thanks, Don and Joan!)