Here is a picture of Island beach Taken about 1933 at the height of the NJ "laker" period.  This part of North Jersey was a collection of lake communities built for summer recreation and vacation homes.

As we cruise down the boulevard in mountain lakes we find at number 280 the Lodge building.  With the exception of the Masonic Temple in Trenton, I think it is the most picturesque Masonic Center I have ever seen.  I have been hanging around this building since the sixties and have seen it go through many changes.  But as you can see in the pictures taken in 1939 and 2007, the outside looks pretty much the same.

Mountain Lakes Masonic Temple circa 1939

Mountain Lakes Masonic Temple circa 2007

In the early part of the century, many new planned communities sprang up across the United States. Mountain Lakes Residential Park was one of these.

In 1910, Mountain Lakes was a rural woodland owned by a few families with names such as Righter, Grimes, Ball and Van Duyne. In the space of ten years, however, the entire face of Mountain Lakes changed from a wilderness of Dutch and English properties to a planned suburban community of large stucco houses now affectionately known as "Lakers." During this single decade, the natural and architectural character of Mountain Lakes was developed. Since then, despite superficial changes, the original design imagined by the local engineer, Lewis Van Duyne, and executed primarily by developer, Herbert J. Hapgood, remains intact.

Fifteen years after Lewis Van Duyne surveyed the site for the nearby Boonton Reservoir, his practiced eye conceived a design for the development of the property adjacent to the city-bound branch of the Lackawanna Railroad. The site was a large tract of pristine land, one of rolling hills, woods, swamps and boulders. With the vague idea in mind of clearing the land and developing the site, he contacted developer and entrepreneur, Herbert J. Hapgood.

An early outdoor banquet at Mountain Lakes, NJ

Herbert J Hapgood

As the first houses were built, residents ventured out from New York to escape the city heat. The first family, the Lawrence W. Luellens, moved into 46 Dartmouth Road on March 17, 1911. By the end of June, some fifty families had taken up residence. After the railroad station was completed in November of 1912, commuters were ready to take advantage of a direct train line to New York. By the end of 1912, two hundred Hapgood homes were sold and occupied. By 1923, approximately six hundred stucco houses were built to meet the overwhelming demand.

Hapgood was particularly influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, at the height of its popularity in 1910 when he started building. He took many features of Gustav Stickley's Craftsman architecture and philosophy and adapted them to his own designs. His houses were solid and boxy in appearance. They were large yet non-ostentatious homes with variations of colonial or neo-classical detail. All showed a clear relationship to the natural environment and promoted outdoor living. They were made to fit into the landscape, located on natural rather than graded terrain. Narrow roads were curved to fit the contours of the land. Local boulderstone was used extensively. The houses were designed to appeal to upper middle-class people who wanted to raise their families in a wholesome country environment filled with recreational opportunities and neighbors who would share their values.

An early advertisement features three distinct types of houses which were built on lots near the banks of Wildwood and Mountain Lakes, these lakes having been created for the residential park by three earthen dams. Hapgood named them the Manor House, the Semi-Bungalow and the Swiss Chalet. These styles were actually adaptations of the Foursquare House common in American towns in the early part of the twentieth century. In an article entitled, "The American Foursquare," in The Old House Journal (February 1982), the architectural historian, Renee Kahn, defines the Foursquare as a two story house with "a square boxlike shape, and a low hipped roof with broad overhanging eaves. The exterior is unadorned, relying for impact on its shape and proportion. There is usually a porch extending the full width of the front elevation. Most often, there is a dormer in the roof facing front; sometimes there will also be dormers on the two side planes of the roof. Occasionally there will be a bay window or other architectural feature that breaks up the absolute flatness of the sides."

The Hapgood model homes were early forerunners of the modern development, but each house was modified to suit individual tastes. To the basic styles of these houses, Hapgood added colonial and craftsman features. He reversed floor plans, and inter- changed architectural details.

The choice of materials used in the Lakers reflected both local availability and the fashion of the times. The fieldstone of the chimneys, walls and foundations was deposited regionally by the Wisconsin glacier ten thousand years ago. Chestnut paneling, ceiling cross beams and oak flooring were cut from trees by Hapgood at local sawmills using the timber cleared from the construction sites. Around 1910, builders began to show increased interest in stucco. Renee Kahn states, "Although its initial cost was slightly more than wood, it required little or no maintenance, and could be tinted delicate pastel colors when wet ... A soft beige/brown appears to have originally been the most popular color."

As is generally the case in planned communities, most of the trees and plants were removed for ease of construction. Trees and bushes which have sprung up since reflect the natural, informal landscaping that was prevalent at the time. The mountain laurel and rhododendron, for example, are specifically adaptive to our acid soil. Other decorative outdoor structures consisted of garden trellises, pergolas, gazebos, boathouses and tennis courts designed to enhance the enjoyment of the outdoors.

An unusual feature of the development was that so many houses, nearly 500 of them, were built by one developer. That so many of them have survived is also unusual. In fact, the 454 original houses still remaining may be the largest collection of Craftsman-influenced houses in the United States.

The original design layout and the "Hapgoods" established the community as an ideal garden suburb and inspired subsequent development. The later homes were, for the most part, smaller and of various styles, but the original standards of quality in materials and craftsmanship were continued. Although there is no code in the Borough to control style of architecture, there exists nevertheless a certain homogeneity within the community derived in large part from the prominence of the old stucco Hapgood homes and the dominance of colonial styles among newer buildings.

In 1923, when Hapgood's enterprise failed, the Belhall Company was formed to take control of undeveloped land and steps were taken for Mountain Lakes to become a separate municipality. It is significant that, at this time, a committee was formed to draw up possible boundaries for the new Borough. So it was, that only a little more than a decade after the first construction, boundaries were drawn that went to the Denville border on the west and to Intervale Road on the east, explicitly "in order to permit continuity in development." This was recognition of the idea that Hapgood's vision extended not only to the properties he owned but to others that were contiguous.

The period in which Herbert Hapgood designed was one of eclectic architectural styles, but his work shows a consistent debt to Craftsman architecture, tempered by a Colonial Revival influence. Craftsman architecture -- now an area of growing interest and study -- was one of several related styles that developed out of the English Arts and Crafts movement of the 19th century. Like the English movement, Craftsman architecture emphasized a simple approach to design, with an honest expression of the materials used. This truth and simplicity was a reaction against what was called the "excesses" of Victorian design. Or, as Gustav Stickley, the American proponent of the movement, stated in his monthly journal called The Craftsman, "beauty does not imply elaboration or ornament."

We see the Craftsman attitude towards natural materials in Hapgood's use of stucco, boulderstone exteriors with exposed wood details, and interiors characterized by sturdy oak floors, exposed beams and trim, chestnut paneling, and large brick and stone fireplaces. Built-ins and inglenooks are typical -- comfortable, simple conveniences. These houses have a sense of volume to them and sit snugly into the landscape. The abundance of surrounding porches contributes to the emphasis on the horizontal, which keeps these houses so solidly anchored to the earth.

The Craftsman influence on Hapgood's architecture is modified by the reliance on Colonial Revival design. Some of the innovative concepts are melded with the very salable, tried-and-true Colonial floor plans to produce houses that have been and still are called "comfortable houses," great for family-centered lifestyles then and now.

Thus, rather than an idealistic and costly expression of a pure architectural style, the homes in Mountain Lakes combine practical features of several styles, but they remain very much a product of their time. They have a homogeneity as well as an architectural significance, but their significance lies more in the whole than in the sum of its parts. It is the collection of Craftsman-influenced homes located in a relatively small, planned community, not any particular home, that is important.

Around the turn of the century there was an increase in literature and physical experimentation in the design of the ideal garden suburb. Mountain Lakes was designed as a commuter community providing its residents with homes situated in a park-like setting, with curved roads and scenic vistas, encouraging outdoor lifestyles and shared community values.

Although a few other planned suburbs such as Llewellyn Park, before it, and Radburn, after it, have also survived, Mountain Lakes is one of the few towns designed in the 1910 decade that has survived and grown with its original goals and character intact.

Our nearest neighbor to the right at the time the temple was built

it is 260 Boulevard, Mountain Lakes, NJ

Our nearest neighbor to the left at the time the temple was built

It is 284 Boulevard Mountain Lakes, NJ

The Island beach is to the left in this photo that shows our beautiful view of the lake.

Here is the flagpole in the front yard proudly flying both the US flag and the St. Johns Lodge flag.  Beyond at the top of the hill is the Boulevard and the Boulevard path. The Boulevard path used to be the trolley right of way from Denville and was owned and operated by the Morris County Traction Company.

Trolley headed for Denville on the Boulevard

The single trolley track extended from Denville to Boonton.  The Mountain Lakes section ran along the north side of the Boulevard where the Boulevard path is clearly visible.  There were trolley stops at the major intersections: Crane Rd., Lake Dr., Briarcliff Rd., Glen Road.

The trolley was a popular mode of transportation in the days before widespread automobile ownership.  It was inexpensive and convenient and on the Denville/Boonton line ran every 30 minutes from 5:31 AM to midnight.  The cars were enclosed which made them comfortable in the winter (but hot in the summer) and, if they were anything like the 1913 Jersey City trolley car 2431 in the Shore Line Trolley Museum, East Haven, CT, they were 47 feet long and weighted about 48,000 pounds.  They were electrically powered by means of overhead wires.  The electric traction motors that drove the wheels were built by either General Electric or Westinghouse.  The electrical power came from a coal-fired generating station in Dover.

The main entrance is one of the things that has changed the covering over the stairs in not original but is  much more bad weather friendly.  It was replaced in the craftsman style about 2003 (ISH) Kurt Braun had placed the previous one there made out of aluminum from his business Brauns Aluminum products on route 206 in Stanhope, in the early 1970s  It was bent in an ice storm and no matter how much Warren Nagle tried to "heal the molecules" it was soon decided that the Lodge needed to go for a new covering.  Warren was a strong force concerning the upkeep of the building and the goings on in it.  He moved from his beloved nearby Indian Lake to the Masonic home in Burlington, NJ a few years ago with his wife Peggy.  Warren died last year (2006) He was the first line signer on my petition and a great guy.  I sure miss him.

The front hallway is done in beautiful woodwork and a really nice Masonic cutout carpet.

Down the hall and headed for the Lodge/Chapter room.

The Lodge/Chapter room holds many treasures.  Not the least of which is the beautiful barrel vaulted ceiling.  One of the nicest I have ever seen.  The lodge had the ceiling redone around the time they had the carpet replaced.  The original flooring in this room was a Masonic designed mosaic tile that depicted Masonic symbols upon it.  With the merger of the lodges in the late 70s early 80s we inherited the blue furniture, carpet and alter from Arcana Lodge #60 that was previously housed in Boonton, NJ.  The yellow chairs are from Mountain Lakes Lodge #258 and the balance of the furniture is from St. Johns-Forrest Hill Lodge #1 Arcana has a huge area rug that when DeMolay and Rainbow met here was rolled up and square dances were held in this room.

Here is the aforementioned alter from Arcana lodge.  it is one of the nicest I have seen.  Every degree I have taken has been at this alter including DeMolay, Lodge, and OES.

"The Lafayette"

Lafayette
French Soldier & Statesman

1757 - 1834

Humanity has won its battle.
    Liberty now has a country.

                                 —Lafayette

I am not sure exactly how the story goes but as I understand it This is a replica of the masters chair before the gift of the big green one above.  The original was presented in 1794 to Nova Caesarea Harmony Lodge No. 2 in Cincinnati Ohio and was carted by horse and wagon all the way to that city. That lodge (in Ohio) was chartered by The Grand Lodge of NJ. Fast forward 200 years and the brothers from  Nova Caesarea Harmony Lodge No. 2 came out to St. Johns Lodge No.1 in 1994 and presented this replica.  It was a lot of fun, and a good time was had by all. The original still sits in the vault at Cincinnati Ohio, and a link to the information about it can be found here:

http://ncharmony2.freemason.com/frameset.htm

This is one of the more interesting pieces of artwork hanging in the lodge.  As I find out more history behind it I will add it here.

This is the Lodges pride and joy.  It is on original Stewart gifted to the lodge by Gilbert Stewart himself.  This is one of 14 of Stuart’s celebrated portraits of George Washington. The famous full-length “Lansdowne” portrait of Washington in a black velvet cloak, rapier in his left hand and right arm outstretched in an oratorical pose, has been called Stuart’s grandest American accomplishment. In the decades just after the American Revolution, the American painter captured for posterity the portraits of the founders of a new nation. His masterful images of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams have become the world’s accepted renditions of these early presidents.

This wall of names are from the "buy a brick" plan.  If you purchased a brick the money would go into the rebuilding of the temple.  It helped finance all the work. Done in the mid 80s

Here is the lounge where many DeMolay / Rainbow activities were held.  Originally a smoking room in the days when that was acceptable in public buildings, it has also housed many meetings of the trustees of the lodge, camping clubs, Alanon, and other groups.

The fireplace found in the lounge is really nice but has remained unused with these same logs in it as long as I can remember.  From the smoke marks in it, it had obviously been used at one time or another.  The stones above the mantle are one stone from each of the charter members of Mountain Lakes Lodge.  They are numbered and indexed on the bronze plaque in the center.

The view from the lounge doors is beautiful and cries out for a deck to be built so you could walk out on it.  I don't know why one has not been built.

This is the stairway leading down to the kitchen and the dining room.  As our members have gotten older it has become a problem getting down for the social hour held after the meetings.  This building cries out for an elevator but so far none are planned.

This is a view of our kitchen.  It suites the purpose.

Here is our dining room.  It seats 60

Another dining room view.  Here we are celebrating the return of Norma J. Nelson, PGO for a visit.  A good time was had by all.