The Long Closed River Edge Hotel Continues to Make News A Century Later

Journeys into River Edge

It’s located along a side street, but this spot on Spring Valley Avenue is a place central to many in River Edge. It is a spot of history but also very much a reflection of times today.

An interesting story about the site, previously nowhere to be found in any of our local histories, surfaced this week in an online posting.

More about this in a bit. But some history first:

On Spring Valley Avenue (#56) (back to Gates) still stands an “Old Stone House” with origins that stretch into the 18th century. It is a residence today but was once the River Edge Hotel.

That hotel was an outgrowth of a development by Gustave Peetz in the 1890’s of farmland adjacent to the River Edge train station. The farmland had belonged to the Demarest family, and extended from Gates Avenue south to River Edge Road, and west to Kinderkamack, which was the known as Riverside Avenue. What is now Park Avenue was at that time called Main Street.

The building housing the hotel itself dates back much further than the 1890’s when Henry Struss took over. In fact, its origins go back more than a century earlier. For example, records indicate that during the Revolutionary War it was owned by Aert Cooper, a large landowner.

Local historians have determined that the house, still standing today, sports a history that traces back to 1755, when the property was first sold by Peter Durie to Daniel Christie, who in turn built a small house on it. In 1758 Cooper bought it and began to rent it. During the Revolution a fire occurred, and the house was rebuilt. It was passed within the Cooper, Christie and Demarest families until Peetz bought it in 1892

It is probable that stage coach lines that traveled across the Old Bridge at what is now River Edge Road worked their way up Park Avenue (then Main Street) and made overnight stops at the hotel on their way north.

One River Edge history book claims the Old Stone House was built “around the early 1800’s”.

The house continued to be used as a tavern and hotel until the early 1900’s.

Today, the main section of the building still stands, the back facing Gates and the front Spring Valley. A wooden structure attached to the brick house was torn down years ago. It had contained a large room where the tavern was located. A major restoration took place in 1966, though a stone kitchen is said to be a modern day addition.

More on the history the River Edge hotel at this old Journeys into River Edge: https://journeysintoriveredge.substack.com/p/history-in-our-midst-the-18th-century

These days, though tucked in along that side street, it is close to the hearts of many locals as a unique place with history. Of course, that raises the never ending balance that is sought to be found between recalling a place that is unique with the pressures of modernity and property ownership in a place where property values continues to climb. But that is a discussion for a different place and time.

As to that newly revealed fact, we came across it for the first in a posting at the highly recommended Vingtage Bergen County Facebook.

“….It was burnt in 1925 by the manager of the hotel Charles Stolz, but owner Frank Schlogel and his wife were also charged with planning the fire. The arson case ended with a hung jury….”

Needless to say, there is more to that story. We look forward to trying to find out more as this interesting and most unique place in our town continues to add chapters to our community story.

Facebook posting at Vintage Bergen County: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1067176895452361&set=pb.100064801805923.-2207520000