This old house has new friends

WEST MILFORD — The Wallisch Farmstead has been deteriorating for many years. And while it's future remains in limbo, there are some concerned residents who want to restore the property to its former glory.

Some Wallisch history
In 1820, when the original Wallisch Farmstead house on Lincoln Ave. in West Milford was owned by Daniel Tichenor, it was located in Bergen County. The township of West Milford in Passaic County did not yet exist.

In 1775, the town, now known as West Milford, was divided; the northern half was in Franklin and the southern section was in Saddle River, both part of Bergen County. Looking back further, a map from 1700 shows West Milford’s name as New Barbados, conjuring up images of swaying palms and sun bathing on sandy beaches rather than snow storms measured in feet and black bears roaming the woods. The town of West Milford was incorporated in 1834.

The original Tichenor house consisted of one large first floor room, a second floor loft, a bump-out at the rear and a front porch. That house, which subsequently passed through several owners, is now the right wing portion of the existing structure.

In 1836 James Gregory purchased the home and additional farmland. The house was enlarged and was owned by the Gregory family until 1910 when Edwin Goodell bought the property for use as a dairy farm and erected most of the buildings that exist on the tract today.

Louis Wallisch Sr. purchased the farm in 1923. It served as a vacation home for his family; his wife Cornelia and children, John, Sophie and Louis. It apparently remained a working farm with hired hands doing the chores. In 1926, Wallisch began to sell off lots and summer cottages sprang up, some on streets named after the Wallisch children.

Today the old farmstead stands as a piece of living West Milford history and, in its deteriorating condition, its age is definitely showing. One of the most photographed sites in town, the property was willed to West Milford Township and the West Milford Board of Education by the last remaining Wallisch children, Louis and John. With no immediate plans for preservation or possible re-use, the farmstead appears to be in limbo and the future of this historic site appears to be up in the air.

Enter the “Friends”
About a month ago, a new group formed in town called the “Friends of the Wallisch Farmstead.” They have 25 members and are eager to get busy. Member Kerry O’Brien, a West Milford resident with a passion for history, spoke for the group.

He was pleased to report that local contractor Eric Bos recently organized the re-roofing of the house and removed trees that were threatening the creamery. Former resident, John Aiello, helped finance the work.

O’Brien has seen the loss of other West Milford historic buildings, citing homes and a furnace at Long Pond Iron Works and the Tichenor house on Warwick Turnpike.

“The Tichenor house collapsed due to benign neglect," said O'Brien. "Nobody could agree what to do with it so nothing was done.” He hopes for a better solution for the Wallisch property.

The immediate goal of the Friends is to make the community aware of this valuable and now vulnerable piece of history, to stabilize the buildings to avoid further damage and to look into re-uses for the property.

O’Brien has done his homework, researching in the West Milford Museum, the engineering department and with the West Milford Historic Preservation Commission. He’s travelled to Trenton and Paterson in search of information.

The Friends are working under the umbrella of the non-profit group, Sustainable West Milford, allowing them to begin collecting funds immediately. And “immediate” seems to be the operative word when it comes to the farmstead.

O’Brien believes that the stabilization of the property must be addressed quickly.

“It’s important for future generations to see where they come from,” he said. "The property represents West Milford in a time gone-by and local history will be lost if some things are not tended to soon."

Members of the Friends keep an eye on the property and, if they find further vandalism, they notify the township.

“Within a few days they seal it up,” O’Brien said, and he also commended the West Milford police for safeguarding the site.

The here and now and later
In the immediate future, O’Brien would like to see the house fully boarded up. The home has sustained water damage and the stone barn has a hole in the roof. Keeping the elements at bay is step one.

“The buildings are in sad shape. We may not be able to save everything,” O'Brien said.

Complicating matters, the property lies within the boundaries of the Highlands Act and is surrounded by wet lands, limiting potential uses. But O’Brien prefers to see the glass as half-full. He envisions a restored site as a tourism draw, a museum extension or visitor center, a place for residents to enjoy.

The Friends hope to fill the vacuum that presently exists, to raise funds for the necessary repairs at least until the fate of the farmstead is determined. “In an ideal world we’d love to see all the buildings fixed up on the outside, to restore their historical character,” he said.

But for now, time and money are needed, as well as volunteers. You know you can never have too many Friends.