South River Historical & Preservation Society

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South River Historical & Preservation Society

The SRH&PS is an all volunteer organization dedicated to preserving South River's past for future generations. For details, please visit the website.

The Society runs the South River Museum located at 64-66 Main St. The museum is open from 1:30 to 3:30 pm on the first Sunday of every month (second Sunday if the first is a holiday).

06/16/2026

Join us on June 24 when Sarah Blake, author of "Hushed Up History," will recount the last chapter of the SS Morro Castle, a tragedy that was handcrafted and laced with malice, mystery... and possibly murder.

On the evening of September 7, 1934, the passengers on board the SS Morro Castle were anticipating a final evening of dining and drinks at the formal Captain’s Dinner. It would be their last happy memory of the trip. Within hours the captain was dead, two ruthless storms battered the decks, a merciless blaze swept the ship, and the shell of the luxury liner crashed into the shoreline of Asbury Park.

7:00 p.m. at the South River Museum
64-66 Main Street, South River, NJ
All programs are free and open to the public.
Light refreshments will be served.

Photo credit: The SS Morro Castle burning at sea, 1934. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

06/14/2026

Happy Flag Day!

The plate image is "Patriots' Parade" by Joseph Csatari. Donated by Jim Russell.

06/07/2026

The June issue of South River Historical & Preservation News is available online. If you remember the quote panels that were on the front of Campbell School, the story on page 8 might be of interest, Enjoy! - https://www.southriverhistory.org/Newsletters.html

Photograph from the collection of Marion Kutawski, donated by Kim Bent.

06/03/2026

Congratulations to the winners of our 2026 scholarship contest: Brendan Lell, Joseph O'Grady, and Hayden Sullivan! We'd also like to thank everyone who participated! All of the essays chronicle pieces of South River's history and will be added to the museum collection. The first place entry will be featured in our September newsletter.

06/02/2026

The South River Museum will be open from 1:30 to 3:30 on Sunday, June 7, 2026. Stop in and see our newest exhibit. It begins with snippets of South River history from the Revolutionary War era and continues to events in more recent memory. To provide context, we've matched each item on display with the relevant presidential era. Do you know which presidential era saw the er****on of the school on Thomas Street or South River's transition to an independent borough?

05/26/2026

If you're interested in area history, the summer League of Historical Societies of NJ meeting may be of interest. The June 20 event is being hosted by the Proprietary House Association, so it's taking place close to home. It features presentations by several speakers and the opportunity to visit historic sites in Perth Amboy. For more information and the registration form, visit: https://bit.ly/2026JuneLeagueMeeting

05/22/2026

If you missed the showing at the South River Museum last September, Memorial Day weekend is the perfect opportunity to see this film. It's definitely worth seeing. It "highlights a South River soldier, Joe Pisinski who was tragically killed on his second day of war. His sister, Pauline Pisinski, is also featured in the film." [Quote from the filmmaker, Jack Ballo.]

05/21/2026

These are pieces from the old curbing that's been removed from upper Main Street and replaced with more uniform curbing. The picture may not show it clearly, but it's gray. It split into layers of various thicknesses when it was removed. Can anyone identify the material? We're guessing it's something like bluestone, but we'd love to have a more informed opinion.

05/08/2026

This interesting item turned up in a scrapbook at the South River Museum today. The first surprise was finding it. The second was learning that in 1868, R.G. Van Pelt & Co., Druggists, were the "Great Central Depot for Paints and Oils." Pure white lead (paint), linseed oil, and boiled oil seem like odd things to be picking up from the same place you went for your medicines and drug store items. The address is interesting too, "At the Old Stand, Cor. of Church and Peace Streets, News Brunswick, NJ."
We suspect that Mrs. F.A. Serviss was Frances A. "Fannie" Serviss, wife of William D. Serviss, by the way. They iived in South River when it was still called Washington. He died in 1870, but she survived to see South River become a borough in 1898. She died in 1909.

11/07/2025

Volunteers needed! The Nominations Committee of the South River Historical & Preservation Society is currently seeking society members who are interested in getting more involved. We are particularly in need of candidates for Treasurer and Secretary. Each term is for one year beginning after the annual meeting in November. There are five executive board meetings each year held in February, April, June, September, and November. General membership meetings are held in the same months. There are additional opportunities to be involved throughout the year.

Please comment, send a message, or contact us by email ([email protected]) if you are interested in submitting your name as a candidate for Treasurer or Secretary, or would like more information. If you're not yet a member, but are interested in joining and helping us in our work, we'd love to hear from you.

Please consider this opportunity to get involved. The success of the society and the South River Museum is dependent on volunteers.

Address

P. O. Box 446, 64-66 Main Street
South River, NJ
08882

Telephone

+17326133078

Website

https://www.southriverhistory.org/

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