This article was excerpted from Images of America: Allendale.
From Allendale’s earliest days, residents have worked together to support worthwhile causes and to pay tribute to community accomplishments and sacrifices. During happy and healthy times, events such as Allendale Festival Day, the Holiday Walk, and the Fourth of July fireworks at Crestwood Lake are enjoyed. On solemn occasions, neighbors gather at Memorial Park in silence to remember those who have given so much. While voices are sometimes raised over plans for new housing developments, families and friends can always depend on Memorial Day parades, county fairs, and the Holiday Observers events at Recreation Park to bring the community together. Allendale has always been best described by a single word—community. In 1887, then part of Orvil Township, Allendale residents created the Village Improvement Association (VIA) to advocate for modern improvements. With A.L. Zabriskie as its president, the VIA helped establish better roads and install sidewalks and streetlights. It was the VIA that brought the area’s first public library to life in December 1900. Soon after Allendale incorporated, the VIA disbanded. In the early 1900s, the first parks were Recreation Park and Memorial Park. Swimming holes and clubs were always popular. They included Mallinson Pond, the municipal pool, Lake San Jacinto, Brookside Park Swim Club, and Crestwood Lake. At its July 9, 1914, meeting, the borough council approved payments to prepare for the opening of Recreation Park, including $295.90 for excavating the swimming pool and creating baseball diamonds, $31.81 for carpentry, and $83.89 for lumber. For many years, Recreation Park was the center of borough festivities, hosting the municipal pool, baseball fields, and the Holiday Observers fireworks. Many of these activities moved to Crestwood Lake after the borough purchased the property in 1971. During the early part of the 20th century, residents and business owners came together to form organizations to improve Allendale. In 1914, former VIA members established the Board of Trade, which was dedicated to informing and improving Allendale. In 1918, the board began a monthly newsletter that listed borough services, organizations, and local happenings. Listed organizations included the Allendale Players, Allendale Red Cross, Council on Home Defense, Boy Scouts, Allendale Fire Department, Home Guard, Library Association, Republican Club, Rod and Gun Club, Women’s Patriotic League, and the Woman Christian Temperance Union. On January 3, 1919, at the request of the Board of Trade, a new women’s organization was formed to improve conditions in the borough. This new group, known as the Allendale Community Club, was the seedling for future women’s organizations, including today’s Allendale Woman’s Club. Located at the southwestern corner of Recreation Park, the first municipal pool opened in 1915. The pool, the first municipally owned one in the county, was open to residents without registration regulations. Its layout followed the natural contour of a lake, about 250 feet long and 150 wide at its largest part. Given design problems and the presence of bacteria, by 1940 the pool was considered a health nuisance and closed. As residents were determined to have a public swimming hole, a pool committee was formed in 1946, and in June 1949, Allendale’s new and improved municipal pool was opened. The new pool had everything—sandy beaches, a diving board, floats, and lifeguards. The pool was damaged during a hurricane in 1971 and closed, about the same time the borough had agreed to purchase Crestwood Lake. During the 1960s, residential and commercial developments were replacing remaining farmland and estates. Residents worked together to preserve the remaining open space and to save historic homes. Successful preservation efforts included Crestwood Park, the Celery Farm, Orchard Commons Park, and the Fell House. In 1927, property owners Christopher J. Smith and Stephen T. Van Houten wanted to convert the area surrounding Mallinson’s Pond into a lakeside real estate development. Given the impact of the Depression, they decided to open a swimming club, known as Crestwood Lake. It was a huge success. On August 12, 1971, the council approved Ordinance No. 374 to raise the funds to buy Crestwood for $1 million. The property would be used for recreation and would be considered as a site for various municipal buildings. September 11, 1971, was Crestwood Day, which included the dedication of the newly owned lake and swim club. On September 11, 2004, three years to the day of the September 11, 2001, tragedy, hundreds of families, friends, and neighbors gathered at Crestwood Park to attend the unveiling of a black granite monument in memory of the event. The monument included a bronze eagle, its wings outstretched, and a draped American flag. In 1945, the parents and students of Brookside School created a community-wide project to document the history of Allendale. In the 1970s, Mayor Ed Fitzpatrick began an effort for the borough to preserve the open space bordered by Franklin Turnpike and Cottage Place. The McBride family, who had owned the property since World War II, sold it to the New Jersey Conservation Federation, which sold it to Allendale in 1981. Additional acreage was purchased in later years, and Stiles Thomas was appointed by the council to the newly created post of marsh warden to oversee the 107-acre nature sanctuary, known today as the Celery Farm. Allendale purchased the three-acre property at the corner of Franklin Turnpike and West Orchard Street, about to be developed into 24 townhomes, in 2007. With 2 1/2 acres preserved for a park later named Orchard Commons Park, the remaining property was allocated for six small homes built by Bergen County’s United Way for developmentally disabled residents. Allendale has always loved celebration, parades, and fundraisers. In 1919, to welcome back soldiers who served during the Great War, a parade and party were held. In 1964, communities across New Jersey celebrated the state’s tercentenary (300th anniversary). On June 2 of that year, Allendale held a parade that included 17 fire departments, floats, and marchers from many local organizations. Allendale helped celebrate the nation’s bicentennial with a parade in 1974, and then, on July 4, 1976, a 35-panel quilt created by local residents was presented to the borough. In 1994, the borough celebrated its centennial with a summer filled with activities. On June 18, 1994, the centennial mural, painted on the exterior wall of 87 West Allendale Avenue, was dedicated. On Saturday, June 7, 2020, at Crestwood Lake, the communities of Allendale, Upper Saddle River, Hohokus, and Saddle River came together for the Race Visibility March to peacefully advocate for racial sensitivity in local neighborhoods.