Historic Events & Projects
The Historical Society of South Amboy seeks to uphold its mission statement by running a number of programs geared to educating and sharing information with the public. On top of these public programs, the Society does research and publishes materials for dissemination to the public.
Open Houses
The Historical Society hosted the first annual open house in 2013.
This is an opportunity for local organizations, community members and visitors to come and talk to members and residents interested in history, the City of South Amboy, and the neighboring towns. Each year the focus is shifted and new speakers are brought in to entertain the crowds.
Historic Cemetery Tours
This tour takes place in October and is given around dusk. A program that materialized after hours of research while preserving and digitizing Christ Church cemetery records is the most popular of the programs the Society presents to the public. With more than 100 attendees to the first tour in 2014, this program is sure to be a crowd pleaser in the years to come. The tours allow visitors to meet some of South Amboy's most famous, yet quiet, residents. Members dress as local legends and help to educate the public on the founders of this City.
Commemorative Plaques
A great way for the Historical Society to give back to the City and its community is to apply for commemorative markers that memorialize local events and locations. A program run by the Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission and funded by the Middlesex County Freeholders, the Society can apply for one marker a year, pending the location meets the eligibility guidelines.
The Society has been successful in the placement of five commemorative plaques:
1)1950 South Amboy Explosion
Location: Raritan Bay Waterfront Walkway
2) Camden Amboy Railroad
Location: NJ Transit Train Plaza (across from City Hall on Broadway)
3) New Jersey First Airmail Flight from Perth Amboy to South Amboy July 4, 1912
Location: Broadway Bagels on Broadway
4) South Amboy Terra Cotta Company
Location: At the end of Broadway by the YMCA
5) City of South Amboy
Location: In front of City Hall