The Trenton Historical Society’s 100th anniversary calendar is coming off the press and going down in history. The 2019 calendar includes a four-page insert that reviews the THS’ own history and a free first-year THS membership. The purchase price is $15. And for renewing members, the cost of membership reflects THS’ birth year: $19.19.
When asked about the history of the calendar, started in 2007, THS board member Karl Flesch offered the following response:
Fellow THS board member John Hatch approached me with the idea of having a Trenton calendar. He gave me a copy of Jersey City’s Historical Society’s calendar on Jersey City. I contacted them and used their calendar as the basis for the first THS calendar. The theme of that calendar was ‘Trenton Past and Present,’ showing a mixture of old and new city photos similar to Jersey City.
Over the years we have had various themes for the calendar: Faces of Trenton (2010), State & Broad (2011), George A. Bradshaw (2012) featuring Bradshaw’s etchings, Signs of Trenton (2013) featuring R.C. Maxwell Company sign photos, Flyover Trenton (2014) featuring aerial photos of Trenton, and Heart of Trenton (2015). The most common and popular theme has been simply Trenton.
Our biggest source for photos has been the Trentoniana Collection at the Trenton Free Public Library and the R.C. Maxwell Company photos that are the property of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Duke University.
I continuously search these collections, and I also am on the lookout for Trenton photos that are found on Facebook blogs. However a problem with potential photos found on Facebook is that the images must be of high resolution, and I need to know the source or who has rights to the photo to give proper credit. I’ve seen so many great photos on Facebook that I am not able to use.
In the summer I begin working on the calendar. I print at least 30 potential photos for the calendar. A committee consisting of Damon Tvaryanas (THS president), board members Brian Murphy, and Richard Willinger, and myself meet at Joe’s Mill Hill Saloon to choose 13 to 14 photos for the upcoming calendar. Many get eliminated immediately, but getting down to the final group can be hard, because they all are great. The only consolation for those not selected: there is always another year.
The THS calendar is available online at www.trentonhistory.org or at one of the several shops listed on the site.