Nathaniel Crane House (108 Orange Road)

Overview

"The Nathaniel Crane House was built in 1818 by Captain Nathaniel Crane, Jr. A cornerstone from Nathaniel Crane’s farmhouse dates back to 1732 from an even older structure. Made from solid oak framing timbers that are fastened by wood joints instead of nails, Nathaniel's house stayed in the Crane family until 1851. Since that year, the home had been bought and sold to several owners and in 1894, the house was lifted and moved into the backyard of the property to make room for more homes. The kitchen was demolishes and pieces of artifacts were removed to be reused for the new structure.
In 1974, the Nathaniel Crane House was donated to the Montclair Historical Society. It was moved about seventy-five feet south in order to be located on the adjacent property of the recently relocated Israel Crane House. The 1732 stone was moved along with it, where it has remained ever since. Today, the Nathaniel Crane House is used as an exhibit of a nineteenth century general store on its first floor and an exhibit of a nineteenth century schoolroom on its second floor, complete with a dunce cap!"

Historic Montclair
updated 01/2013 by Montclair NJ