Haddonfield’s namesake is certainly alive and well in the hearts of hundreds of local residents.
Tavistock Country Club was filled with more than 150 people for the 99th annual Historical Society of Haddonfield Candlelight Dinner on Wednesday, March 27.
“Next year is the 100th anniversary, and we’re going to pull out the stops, but it will be a dignified Quaker pulling out the stops,” Society President Lee Anne Albright said.
This year, in honor of the town’s tricentennial, Elizabeth Haddon Estaugh and John Estaugh, otherwise known as Virginia Loomis and Bob Heffner garbed in costume, stood at the entrance, greeting attendees with colonial flair.
The dinner is a requirement of the society, Albright said.
“It’s in our bylaws that we have to have an annual meeting in March,” she said. “It’s always a lovely dinner and we have a speaker.”
The speaker, Jeffery Dorwart, a professor emeritus from Rutgers University, is nearly finished with a 250-page biography of Elizabeth Haddon Estaugh, which was produced with the help of town historians Kathy Tassini and Doug Rauschenberger and was based off 40 years of research by the late Betty Lyons.
Dorwart was chosen two years ago to script the book and spent 15 months in the actual writing stage.
He was already known in Haddonfield from a 2008 talk about the local African American community.
“It was very well-received,” Dorwart said.
Spending many intimate hours with the Haddon family, he provides many half-thoughts.
“I think they were in love in a weird way,” he said of Elizabeth and John, who were unable to bear children. “You have to read the book.”
She was a strong woman, but private, and did not write a word until her husband died, Dorwart said. As another sneak peek, he mentioned that the book will delve into other important Quaker women of the town.
“She wasn’t unique, but she was important in bringing together a lot of these women,” he said.
Tassini, who was a good friend of Lyons, was helping her with research when Lyons passed away in 2008. Joe Murphy, at the time, insisted that the town had to go forward with the biography.
Dorwart was the third person to attempt the manuscript, Tassini said.
“It’s taken 113 years,” she said.
Lyons had gone as far as England in her research.
“Betty left a wonderful legacy,” Tassini said. “She was a very special person.”
‘This was her dream date, that the book would come out this year.”
Rauschenberger first met Lyons in 1974 when he first began working for the Haddonfield Library. She was thrilled with his interest in history.
Years later, he has been busily editing the book and compiling photographs with Tassini. The expected publication is September, though a specific date price has not been determined yet, he said. There will also be an eBook available.
“We know that we’re going to have a product that’s great from every angle,” he said. “It’s very exciting.”
He and Tassini have two previous books together.
“The fact that this book is being published is our present to the borough,” Albright said. “It’s been a work in progress for so many years. It’s finally seeing the light of day and just in time for the 300th anniversary.”
Albright, who has read the book, said that it’s an accessible read, not dry.
“It’s very manageable,” she said. “It puts her (Elizabeth Haddon) in the context of her time. There are other women who had power of attorney back then, but she was really unique in a number of ways.”
The historical society is active year-round. In January, a solemn service was held in conjunction with the Haddonfield Friends Meetinghouse, which was the same service as from the bicentennial in 1913.
In May, the group will hold a general meeting with an 18th century food demonstration. The date will be released soon.
With people floating through the ballroom, mingling and smiling, Albright said the dinner was an exhibit of how important history is to local residents.
“It just shows where people’s priorities are,” she said.
Follow the Historical Society of Haddonfield by visiting http://haddonfieldhistory.org/.
