I mean, I do think, bluntly, when you are inside the bubble of power, when you sniff every day the heady scent of power,
whether it's the White House or a governor's mansion or a big corporation or a media giant,
it's much easier to be blinded to the flaws of the principal, because to say something about those flaws
means you are no longer going to be in the room with the car with the private jet.
Once you leave that, it's astonishing how much clearer the atmosphere is, and somehow the flaws are seen much more clearly.

- Jeff Greenfield
 

Madison Avenue

By 1900 the nation's business and financial leaders, seeking escape from New York City, the financial capital of the nation, discovered Morris County, its isolation, ideal climate and unspoiled countryside, and started the construction of large country estates.  Within a few years it was claimed that more millionaires lived within a one mile radius of the Morristown Green than anywhere else in the world.

The introduction of the income tax sounded the death knell for the large estates and the society style of living they bred.  Slowly, through the 1930's and the 1940's the large mansions that lined Madison Avenue, for years known as "Millionaires Row", were demolished to avoid rising property taxes, increased cost of domestic help and the rising cost of living.

Source: co.morris.nj.us from the "History" section; photo from a pre-World War I vintage picture book entitled Beautiful Homes of Morris County

Luckily for modern-day Morristown residents, there are still quite a few of these lovely homes left to admire.  The site this photograph came from has photos of several.  If you're planning a trip to the New Jersey area, Morristown is probably at least worth a drive-by.

Morristown in the Spring

South Street looking toward the centre of town, the Green

The trees are snowy-white with blossoms for a week or two.  The site is breathtaking.

Source: Personal files

This is looking the opposite direction during the opposite season.

Source: I don't know.

Old Churchyard Cemetery

Presbyterian Church of Morristown

This cemetery is tucked away behind a church on the green in downtown Morristown.  Most of the graves date from the 18th and early 19th century.  If you want to know who is buried there, visit Who's Who in the Graveyard (an external site).  One thing I found curious is the number of people originally buried in this cemetery who had been dug up and reburied somewhere else.  Why so many?

For photos of the earth and moon, stained glass, sunsets on Wellington Harbour, Lady Fair, Civic Square, the old mill, the Whippany River, historical houses, Lake Parsippany and more clicking the "Up" button below takes you to the Index page for this Photographs section.