Reimagining the Hackensack Meadowlands, 1968-1972

<p>The 2016 NJ History and Historic Preservation Conference, “Building a Place for History,” occurred June 8 – 9, 2016 at Seton Hall University in South Orange. You can see more about the conference, co- hosted by the NJ Historic Trust, the NJ Historical Commission, the NJ Historic Preservation Office, and the Friends of NJ Heritage, at <a href="http://www.njpreservationconference.org/">http://www.njpreservationconference.org/</a>. Organizers invited students and “new professionals,” dubbed “the future leaders of our history and preservation professions” to submit poster presentations for display at the event. The Council for the Humanities sponsored the poster session, which was judged on site at the conference by Dr. Richard Veit of Monmouth University, Mark Dilonno of the Star Ledger, and Cristen Piatnotchka of the NJ Historical Commission. We are pleased to share winner Cheryl Hendry’s poster with you here. </p>

Garbage in the Garden State: A Trash Museum Confronts New Jersey's Image

This essay discusses the Trash Museum which existed in Lyndhurst, New Jersey from 1989 to 1999 and how that institution affected attitudes toward New Jersey. New Jersey's long history of industrial pollution and its myriad garbage dumps had led many to substitute "Garbage State" for "Garden State" as the state's nickname. The museum explained the history of unregulated garbage dumping in the thirty-two-square mile Hackensack Meadowlands area and taught lessons relevant nationally about intelligent garbage disposal. By confronting the worst of its history head on, New Jersey was able to demonstrate to detractors its leadership in garbage disposal and remediation of otherwise ruined lands.